Got my SB1-11C today; accidentally dry fired it! Is it damaged now?

[dnastrau]

Greetings:

I got my new 12-gauge screw-in choke Pardner today.  While I was checking it out I accidentally dry fired it - I know this is a no-no.  However, I took it out and shot four rounds out of it afterward and it functioned perfectly.  Should I be worried that I damaged my brand new shotgun or would I already know if it was harmed?  Is there a way to check it for damage?  My hope is that it is fine since it shot four rounds flawlessly.

I feel like a dope as I am normally very careful about things like this!  Thanks for any thoughts on this.

Have a happy and safe Easter!

Andrew S.

[Cookiemann]

If it fired OK afterward, I would say you got lucky and its OK.   You're not alone, a lot of us have had that happen and the gun was not damaged.   I saw a salesman at Gander do that on 2 differnt firearms he was showing to a customer.  That's why I ALWAYS try to get one from stock and not off the rack.

cookiemann

[dnastrau]

Hi Cookiemann:

That is what I am hoping for since it seems to be OK so far.

The sad part is, it was a special order gun from Wal-mart since the off-the-rack NEF had a fixed Mod choke.   

Thanks,

Andrew S.

[quickdtoo]

Just consider yourself fortunate to have a Walmart that still sells firearms, none around here do any more, used to have 3 here in town that did, few do anymore from all the posts on it.

Tim

[dnastrau]

Very true Tim.  The WM that I got this one at was in Dickson City (Scranton) PA and there is another in Wilkes-Barre PA just a few exits down I-81 that still sells them as well.  I expect that these may not be around for long...

Andrew S.

[JamesIII]

My oldest son had that happen to him on my 20 Ga. It showed up on the next shot as a light firing pin strike. He may have just been lucky and it was a problem that was going to happen anyway. No big deal, I could have taken it apart myself but, the local gunsmith said he would do it since he already had parts for it, must have seen that before! I had to call Walmart's home office to find a store that still sold firearms in my area, went there yesterday and got REAL LUCKY, they actually have a person who is well trained and a shooter himself working there. A Remington 597 followed us home and they are calling Monday on the availability of a Tracker II 20 GA. I really would like to wait for the Ultragon barrel but, if they do not start production until mid-year they will probably not make it to consumers till next year. JamesIII

[Graybeard]

Is there something special about the NEF shotguns that make them prone to dry fire damage? I've been dry firing centerfire rifles, handguns and shotguns all my life and have never yet seen any harm done by it.

[kevthebassman]

Is there something special about the NEF shotguns that make them prone to dry fire damage? I've been dry firing centerfire rifles, handguns and shotguns all my life and have never yet seen any harm done by it.

Ditto.  I've never had a problem with any of mine.

[quickdtoo]

H&R warns against dry firing in the owner's manual, broken firing pins on centerfire rifles and shotguns could be the result eventually, pin and barrel damage can result in rimfires, as well as transfer bars on all firearms.

Tim

NOTICE: This firearm should never be dry fired, as damage could
occur to the barrel and/or firing pin.

http://www.hr1871.com/documents/manuals/HR_NEF_PARDNER_SHOTGUN_MANUAL.pdf

[MSP Ret]

No Bill, nothing special which would make them any more prone to damage from dry firing than any other gun. We all know that dry firing is not the best thing to do or the best way to treat a nice gun. An occasional slip should not damage or harm anything....<><....

[Markus]

We did hours of dry fire training in the Army. I was in in the 80's and they were trying to cut costs, we would balance a dime on the end of the barrel and try not to let it fall.

[Brett]

Occasionally dry firing a weapon should do no harm but any firearm manufacturer will tell you that they don't recommend that you make a habit of it.   Buy dummy rounds made specifically for the purpose or make your own by pumping a little RTV or silicone caulk onto an empty and deprimed shell casing so that a little bubble forms where the primer would be.

[Graybeard]

Been doing it with S&Ws and Remingtons my entire adult life and haven't hurt one yet. Like I said maybe these NEFs are tender and need to be babied but I sure don't do so on my other guns. Now Rimfires I try to do as little as possible but sure enough have done it with them too.

[striker525]

Just consider yourself fortunate to have a Walmart that still sells firearms, none around here do any more, used to have 3 here in town that did, few do anymore from all the posts on it.

Tim

I was talking to the guys at ours (they still sell them) and he said that you can petition your wally worlds to sell them again. when our WW went super they were going to remove them from here also but the workers and the guy in charge of the sporting goods dept went to the district manager and told him to keep them here due to the fact that they make too much money from accessories. WW only has a 6%mark up on their firearms but it's everything else that they make their money off of and some of that carries a 60% markup. Ours is trying right now to get it so we can order specialty ammo that they wouldn't normally carry. Sorry for getting off topic.

[quickdtoo]

That sounds interesting, but the reason those stores that dropped them nationwide was due to them not meeting the threshold for firearms sales that WM set for them, that comes from a Walmart manager that regularly posts here.

Tim

[kevthebassman]

I try to stay out of Wal-Mart period.  It'd be a cold day in he-double-l before I'd buy a gun from them.  Not when there's local guys who feed their families with their shops.

[DCRthe3rd]

Do not dry fire your handy and continue to hold the trigger in while you break it open , I believe this may bust the tip off your pin , but who'd do that anyhow? kinda awkward