extractor no ejecting

It happens. Some owner's manuals indicate that during the unloading process the chamber should be physically checked with a finger, not just visually inspected.

Some guns are actually made without extractors and therefore won't/can't extract a shell from the chamber when the slide is racked. Any pistols with tip-up barrels are made that way.

Anyway, a lot of unintentional shots are fired during unloading. It's better to be too careful than not careful enough.

Remove the magazine.
Open the action.
Visually inspect the chamber.
Physically inspect the chamber.
 
As John indicated a visual check of the chamber when unloading is important, also keep your mind on what you are doing when loading or unloading. You originally loaded the pistol? You should have questioned the lack of a cartridge being removed when the slide is retracted, I usually cycle the slide several times before checking the chamber. I know how many rounds to account for as I load a full magazine and then charge the pistol, I do not top off the mag so the number of cartridges that mag holds is what I should have after clearing.
One should be especially careful with .22 magazine fed rifles as a cartridge can somehow mysteriously hide in there only to surface when you least expect it. I found one in my Marlin lever action the other day much to my surprise, after I gave the lever one last cycle before cleaning. Scary.
 
I've noticed the tread for the last few years has been to jack the slide several times in quick succession.....a practice I agree with 100%.
If once is good - a few times is better.
 
I’ll be honest and say I’m not a huge fan of racking a bunch of times unless I’m clearing a malfunction in training or a fight. If the extractor doesn’t work the first time I want to know and assess. If it does work then the additional racks are superfluous. Release magazine, lock the slide to the rear, then check the chamber and the breechface in case the extractor still has a case locked in it. You can’t just assume it worked.


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I don't rack the slide multiple times either. Drop the mag, rack the slide and lock it open, and check the chamber. A visual check requires good light. A tactile check is a good double check. You can't just go through the motions - you have to do it and think about what you are seeing and feeling.

OP, I mean no offense, but "did not see a shell" is not the same as looking carefully at the chamber. Are you saying that you looked and didn't see a round, or that you racked the slide and didn't notice a round but didn't really look for one?
 
You can't just go through the motions - you have to do it and think about what you are seeing and feeling.
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Bears repeating. I emphasized the part that I think folk forget.
 
TailGator said:
A visual check requires good light. A tactile check is a good double check.
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Excellent point.

I also agree about paying attention as opposed to going through the motions. I’ve been in classes where instructors will hold knives and other objects in their hands when people are scanning and assessing. The first few times most people won’t see them. It’s not just a process for the sake of it, there’s a purpose and the same is true of checking the status of a firearm.



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copperhead1953 said:
Rack the slide back did not see a shell in barrell. mag was removed...
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I'm not sure if this is written in the exact chronological order that the actions were performed, but if so, IMHO it also bears repeating that dropping the mag should always be the FIRST step of a chamber check.

NEVER lock back the slide and then drop the mag, because you're just asking to inadvertently chamber a round if you forget step 2. :eek: [Edit to add] Dropping the mag also admits more light into the action, making it easier to visually double-check that the chamber is clear.

I will also hop on the bandwagon regarding repeated slide racking, or what I disdainfully call the "chucka-chucka-chucka" technique. :rolleyes: It makes a lot of noise and looks impressive, but if the extractor is broken or the case rim is sheared off, all it does is lull the shooter into a false sense of security.
 
If it does work then the additional racks are superfluous.
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I've seen too many "SD's" (stupid discharges) where the slide was racked with a magazine in, then the magazine dropped & the trigger pulled.
Its an all too common mistake & there's a bunch of YouTube videos showing where racking multiple times just might catch that type of "ND".(or "SD")

You can't just go through the motions - you have to do it and think about what you are seeing and feeling.
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While I agree 100% - - human nature generally wins out & people just go through the motions.

Just like a car...

When was the last time the average person did a "walk around" of the car/truck before getting in and pulling out of the garage/driveway?
 
The solution to the example you just gave is to drop the magazine first. There’s a reason you do a visual and tactile inspection of the chamber, breechface, and magazine well. It slows you down and makes sure those areas are checked properly and in my opinion to a better level than just multiple racks. Does it require practice? Sure, so does racking the slide multiple times. As far as people being fallible they are and likely always will be. That doesn’t mean we don’t strive to be better or otherwise we wouldn’t have the standard safety rules because we’d say people just won’t follow them anyway.


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I know the drill....

I just don't see any harm in jacking the slide more than once.

If you don't want to, then God speed and do it how ever makes you feel the best.
 
O k the mag was removed first. I racked it back like I was going to lock the slide and could just see enough to see Barrell was empty I let the slide go back. Since then I've Check the gun and found that if you rack it slow the shell will stay against the breechface and rechamber.Yes I made many mistakes that time I've learned a lesson for sure .
Thanks for all the comments
 
copperhead1953 said:
Since then I've Check the gun and found that if you rack it slow the shell will stay against the breechface and rechamber.
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It sounds to me like the ejector—not the extractor—is damaged or missing.

The ejector is a tab mounted to the frame on most pistols. As the slide comes back, the case head is supposed to strike the tab, causing the fired case to disengage from the extractor and fly out.
 
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The way he describes it sounds like he only racked it back partially
could just see enough to see Barrell was empty
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In that case he might not have gone far enough back for the case to hit the ejector.
 
I'm not understanding how a round was overlooked. If the shell stays against the breechface, it occupies the ejection port, in plain sight, regardless of whether you partially racked the slide or brought it back far enough to lock it open. I'm not picking on you, copperhead, just trying to understand what happened. I don't know what pistol, or caliber, or if that even matters. I used my own fullsize 9mm for a visual reference. The other possibility is that the round did not extract, stayed in the chamber, and you saw an empty ejection port, not an empty chamber.
 
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I wouldn't think it is common . Sounds to me it was the extractor. You thought you looked in the barrel , I feel the bullet remained in the barrel , saw the empty magazine well, if the ejector was bad the bullet would be blocking the mag. well . Something I would think you couldn't miss when making your weapon safe with a dropped magazine. Glad know one was injured.

Always wonder how those bullet holes happened on the side walls of the indoor range. I pulled the trigger an it went bang . Hopefully it will never happen again , Scary.
 
It may sound dumb, but make sure you have the right ammo. For example, a .380 ACP round can be fed from the magazine of a pistol chambered for 9 x 19 (9mm Luger) then move too far into the chamber to be easily seen, yet the inertia firing pin of many 1911 type pistols will reach and fire the chambered round.

Jim
 
You also need to take extra care when there are people around you might think it's hilarious to sneak a round into your firearm. You think I'm kidding ? I'm not.
 
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