Dry firing .22 Rugers... OK?

[RLS@home]

Quick question - ok to dry fire a Ruger MKII and Bearcat?
posting same question in Rimfire Rifle forum about a Ruger 10/22...
thanks,
Randall

[pastorp]

No. Use a fired case. 

Regards,

[Ron 1]

i try not do drop the hammer on any gun unless it is loaded and i am shooting.
dry firing is a practice i have tryed to keep my self from getting in to with any gun.
        rw

[tcrace]

Head over to Rugers website and read the manuals. All of the Mark series of pistols are ok to dry fire and must be in order to disassemble them.

From the Mark II manual "The pistol can be dry fired as long as the firing pin stop is in place".

The new Beacat manaul states "DRY-FIRING: Going through the actions of cocking, aiming, and pulling the trigger of an unloaded gun is known as “Dry Firing.” It can be useful to learn the “feel” of your revolver. Be certain the revolver is unloaded and that the gun is pointing in a safe direction even when practicing by dry-firing. The RUGER® NEW BEARCAT® revolver can be dry-fired without damage to the firing pin or other components.

And the 10/22 manual: "The rifle can be “dry fired” for practice as long as it is empty and pointed in a safe direction."

Although Ruger states you can dry fire these guns I wouldn't with the exception of my Mark II for disassembly. I'd much rather run live ammo through them 

[cwlongshot]

As a general rule, never dry fire a rim fire or a Dbl Barrel shotgun without a snap cap. Most current and resent manufacturer center fire firearms are safe to dry fire. (BUT why, just make or buy a snap cap. Or fired case for the RF.)

I have seen MANY ruined chambers and broken firing pins from such practices.

I have been shooting 22 Bullseye pistol (Winter) for many many years and repaired more than a few firing pins form guys dry firing for practice at home. they get to the match and guess what.. "Gun no workie"!!    Either the rounds will not chamber or will not eject or after the first fired shot, the pin breaks. 
 No matter how I try, my wife cannot "count" her shots, so she "dry fires" on the sixth round in almost every five round mag she shoots. There is six five round mags per 300 match. Suffice it to say, I change allot of pins....  It's not worth it, so I don't do it.

CW

[Bigeasy]

Not to argue with the Ruger factory manuals, but it is not a good idea to dry fire on most rimfires.  Problem is, being a rimfire, the firing pin strikes the brass cartridge rim, cushioning the firing pin, and firing the weapon.  Without the cartridge there, the firing pin hits the steel part of the chamber where the case rim would normally be.  Over time, it can break the firing pin, and damage the chamber from the peening of the steel firing pin on bare steel.  Dry firing is usually not an issue on centerfires, as the firing pin does not strike anything, and stops at the end of its travel without any undue stress.

Larry

[tcrace]

I agree dry firing without an empty case or snapcap isn't a good idea but the design of the Ruger Mark series pistol, and 10/22 rifle, utilizes a firing pin stop pin. So the occasional inadvertent dry fire (or dry fire to disassemble) won't result in the pin hitting the rear of the chamber assuming it's been assembled correctly at the factory. Excessive dry fire over time most likely will result in a worn firing pin or stop pin and allow the firing pin to travel too far. With the pistols it is important to ensure the firing pin stop pin is still in the bolt and hasn't fallen out when the gun is reassembled. Newer MKIII versions that I've seen use a roll pin that can't fall out on it's own.