|
I have been a member of the Norfolk County Rifle Range since January, 2009. My extensive law enforcement and military firearms training, experience and armorer's background, as well as my part-time work in the motion picture industry, has given me a unique perspective on firearms design, function, forensics and related field of ballistics. I have loaded and reloaded extensively since the early 1970s, and I've built and experimented with much specialty ammuntion over the years. Always interested in identifying and fixing problems in these areas, my curiosity was piqued during the past year by the unusually large amount of "defective ammo" I was seeing in the disposal box on our range, especially .22 Long Rifle rimfire ammunition. I just couldn't accept, considering modern manufacturing advancements, that such a large quantity of rimfire ammunition being thrown away was actually "bad." Most of the ammuntion I initially examined had at least one "light" dent on the rim, and a lot of ammunition apparently was also being thrown away due to "guilt by association." That is, once a few rounds from the same box had been identified as "duds," the remainder of the box was apparently tossed out of frustration.
On my regular semi-monthly visits to the range for practice I began collecting the "deffective" .22 rimfire ammuntion for later examination and experimentation. Once home, I carefully examined each individual round, throwing out any severely damaged or defective rounds (those deemed unsafe to attempt to chamber and/or fire). I then segregated the remaining rounds into three groups; those exhibiting unsuccessful "heavy" firing pin strikes to the rim, those with one or more "light" firing pin strikes to the rim, and those without any discernible marks whatsoever. When I had amassed approximately 1,000 rounds (two bricks) of mixed Remington, Winchester, Federal and CCI .22 Long Rifle rimfire ammunition, I retreated to my hunting camp in Augusta County, VA, for a relaxing weekend of experimentation. I carried with me a new Ruger 10/22 semi-auto rifle, and a vintage Winchester M62 pump "gallery gun" in excellent original condition. Although I didn't document the exact number of rounds tested, or the exact ratio of truly "defective" rounds to those having been "falsely accused," I found that fully 85% of the "discarded" rounds I cycled through my rifles fired successfully the very first time! Thus, I spent an enjoyable (and cost-free), afternoon plinking in the mountains!
While about 15% of the approximately one thousand overall .22 Long Rifle rimfire rounds I tested were truly defective (probably due to no, or incomplete, priming compound in the cartridge rim), the vast majority (85%) were not. Most of those rounds had light, or even heavy, firing pin strikes somewhere on the rim, and most exhibited obvious evidence of "rounding," or worn firing pins. As I find it difficult to believe so many NCRR members own and shoot old, worn out rimfire rifles and handguns, the only obvious conclusion is that many of our members are abusing their rimfire firearms by "dry firing" them. Dry firing, while perfectly safe to do with a majority of modern firearms (and actually beneficial to some, such as modern double-action, center-fire revolvers), should never be attempted with firearms made to utilize rimfire ammunition! This is because the firing pins on these firearms, in the absence of live, once-fired, dummy or "snap-cap" ammunition in the chamber(s), allows the point of the firing pin to strike the rim of the chamber, thereby battering it and causing accelerated wear (at best), or outright damage (at worst). The only other class of firearms that cannot be safety dry fired without causing damage is the single-action revolver. That's because the firing pin on a single-action revolver is frame-mounted versus free-floating. I therefore urge all fellow club members who own rimfire rifles and pistols to refrain from ever dry firing them, or if dry firing is desired or deemed necessary, investing in some relatively inexpensive "snap caps" or dummy rounds to prevent any costly damage. From the looks of things, many members need to take their rimfire firearm(s) to their local gunsmith for evaluation and/or repair!
Jimmi Bonavita #1384 |
A non-shooting High Power Clinic will be held at 6 PM Wednesday 25 February at NCRR. The purpose of the clinic is to acquaint new or returning shooters with NRA's new regulations and procedures for Service Rifle matches.