On Fri, 08 Mar 2013 19:53:07 -0500, "F.O.A.D." wrote:

On 3/8/13 7:39 PM, Eisboch wrote:


"F.O.A.D." wrote in message
...

On 3/8/13 6:54 PM, Eisboch wrote:


"F.O.A.D." wrote in message
m...


I'm just astonished at the utter stupidity underlying many of the
"accidents." Example: how dumb do you have to be to make sure a firearm
is unloaded before you clean it?

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Some of the pistols can be confusing ... especially the ones on the "MA
Compliant" list up here. There are so many supposed "safeties" on them
that you really have to stop and think about the one you are handling if
you don't use it often.

I have a Walther PPK/2. To lock the slide open, you first release the
magazine. That allows the slide to lock in the open position. Won't
lock open if there's a magazine installed.

To release the slide, a magazine must be re-inserted ... either loaded
or empty. The actual "safety" switch is really a de-cocker. It puts a
barrier plate up so when the slide is released, it prevents the hammer
from hitting the firing pin.

It took me a while to understand how to use it and it's different than
some of the other pistols I've tried. I can kinda see how someone
could screw up if they have several guns with different operating
characteristics or procedures.

That's why I like revolvers. Simple.




Hmmm. On my CZ, you can drop the mag, rack the slide to make sure
anything in the chamber pops out, and then lock the slide to take a
close look into the chamber and barrel. That's probably more typical.
You can also lock the slide open with a mag loaded. But the first step
to inspecting the firearm is to drop the mag, then rack the slide, then
lock the slide to make sure the firearm is empty. I never deviate from
that.

On the other hand, I don't keep a loaded mag in my CZ. I keep an empty
mag in there.

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I think the difference is that on the Walther I can't lock the slide
open with a magazine inserted.

The first time I used it at the range I had fired two or three rounds,
then tried to lock the slide open. It wouldn't, (by design) and when I
released the slide it tried to load another round into the chamber, with
one already loaded in the firing position. The slide would not fully
return forward, so I couldn't release the magazine *or* lock the slide
open. To clear it, I kept it pointed downrange and had to force the
slide forward, (with the safety "on" while simultaneously depressing the
magazine release button. Once the magazine dropped out, I could pull
the slide back to the locked position and clear the rounds from the
chamber. It was strange to me to have to do that and I wasn't sure I
liked it.

Later that day I loaded a magazine with a bunch of spent shells. (It
loaded them fine.) I kept practicing the method for loading and
clearing the chamber until I felt comfortable with it and it became more
routine. But things shouldn't become *too* routine. When I clean my
guns, I do so when I am not tired and I concentrate on what I am doing.

I usually don't clean my pistols the same day I use them. The relatively
cheap target ammo I use most of the time seems to be pretty clean, so
even when I do scrub out the pistols the next day, they're very little
residue anywhere. Early on when I started shooting, I used Winchester
"White Box" ammo for practice. It was cheap, but I found it to be pretty
dirty. Now I use Seiler & Bellot or CCI ammo for practice, and cleaning
is quick and easy.

I don't usually wait more than a few days... tend to forget, then it
just eats things up.