Richard Casady wrote:
On Fri, 5 Dec 2008 10:13:58 -0800 (PST), Frogwatch
wrote:

OK, I know nothing about guns. Why is dry firing bad?

Depends on the gun. When firing a live round the firing pin strikes
soft brass. Dry firing can, with some guns, result in steel striking
steel, with battering.

Casady


The operative phrase is "...with some guns..." With most modern
semi-auto centerfire pistols, it is a non-issue, because all the firing
pin hits without a round in pipe is...air.

And the manual for one of my Ruger "six-shooters" sez:

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 Model revolvers can be dry-fired
without damage to the firing pin or other components.

But...what would Ruger know about guns that could compete with the
knowledge of "rec.boat.experts"?