Unsafe firearm incidents.
- Thread starter AL45
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I didn't grow up around guns, but had uncles that took me hunting on two occassions. The first was when I was about 11. One loaned me a single shot 410 and we were hunting for rabbit. While out in the field a rabbit ran towards me so I swung my gun back behind me right towards my uncle's El Camino. I ended up firing, but after it got a little away from the El Camino. Gave them quite a scare for a second (no one was in the El Camino, but like I said we were supposed to be hunting rabbits). 
Probably 20 years ago I was plinking with a 357 magnum at a trash pit. I taped some targets to the side of an old wooden chest some one had thrown out. After several rounds I saw a puff of something from behind the chest and watched my bullet return and hit my leg. No injury, but it did sting pretty good and had it hit me in the eye it could have done some damage.
There was a pile of bricks that someone had dumped about 20 yards behind the chest that I had not even noticed.
There was a pile of bricks that someone had dumped about 20 yards behind the chest that I had not even noticed.
This bothers me to this day......
Back in the 90's, I had some friends over and one of my friends two kids were visiting. They were probably 7 and 8 or so. They were from N. Dakota, so the subject of guns came up. I mentioned that I had a revolver and one of the kids asked if they could see it. I said sure.
Well, my other friend who was there, had his cousin from Peru over, and they were both also at the house.
I went into my room, grabbed my revolver, made it safe, and brought it back into the living room where I was going to show the boys. As I was presenting the weapon to show that it was safe, my buddies dumbass cousin literally grabbed the gun out of my hands and pointed it at me and squeezed the trigger several times while saying "bang bang bang".
I almost pistol whipped the idiot. Stupid on my part for bringing out the gun. But what a learning experience.
Back in the 90's, I had some friends over and one of my friends two kids were visiting. They were probably 7 and 8 or so. They were from N. Dakota, so the subject of guns came up. I mentioned that I had a revolver and one of the kids asked if they could see it. I said sure.
Well, my other friend who was there, had his cousin from Peru over, and they were both also at the house.
I went into my room, grabbed my revolver, made it safe, and brought it back into the living room where I was going to show the boys. As I was presenting the weapon to show that it was safe, my buddies dumbass cousin literally grabbed the gun out of my hands and pointed it at me and squeezed the trigger several times while saying "bang bang bang".
I almost pistol whipped the idiot. Stupid on my part for bringing out the gun. But what a learning experience.
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kilimanjaro
New member
We've all had such incidents. Saddest one I've been involved in, only peripherally, was the workday morning when one of our team members came in and reported his son had been killed while duck hunting over the weekend, in removing his shotgun from the boat at the end of the day.
I've known several people who were seriously injured by careless gun handling and shooting, but thankfully, only one fatality.
I've known several people who were seriously injured by careless gun handling and shooting, but thankfully, only one fatality.
In the past I used to take neophytes out to shoot for their first time. Sometimes it would be in groups of five to ten people (not all newbies but sometimes two or three at a time).
I had one guy, while shooting an AK with me standing to one side and behind him, start turning to ask a question with the safety off and his finger still on the trigger, pointing the AK towards me. I burned my hand on the barrel rather than wait to see if he might stop before bumping the muzzle into me.
I also had some guy - without asking – run some reloads he had brought out with him. One was a squib load which stopped in the barrel and the next was a full powered load which punched the squib out and bulged the barrel on what had been a nice, late 70’s Colt Trooper.
After that I never take more than one newbie out at a time and they only shoot what I load for them.
I allow myself to be as anal and compulsive about firearms handling as I feel. I don’t care if I’ve just set a gun down a few seconds before – if I pick it up the first thing I do is check the chamber.
I had one guy, while shooting an AK with me standing to one side and behind him, start turning to ask a question with the safety off and his finger still on the trigger, pointing the AK towards me. I burned my hand on the barrel rather than wait to see if he might stop before bumping the muzzle into me.
I also had some guy - without asking – run some reloads he had brought out with him. One was a squib load which stopped in the barrel and the next was a full powered load which punched the squib out and bulged the barrel on what had been a nice, late 70’s Colt Trooper.
After that I never take more than one newbie out at a time and they only shoot what I load for them.
I allow myself to be as anal and compulsive about firearms handling as I feel. I don’t care if I’ve just set a gun down a few seconds before – if I pick it up the first thing I do is check the chamber.
Aaron1100us
New member
Two stories here. One was a friend and one was mine.
20+ years ago, a friend of mine and I were out at a near by public hunting area shooting our .22's. His was a single shot bolt action. It had rained earlier so the ground was muddy. He was holding the gun in his right hand and slipped goimg down a hill. His right foot went up and so did his gun. Didn't have the safety on and pulled the trigger from just holding onto the gun.
Shot himself in his right foot. Blood started shooting out of his shoe. Got him back to his car and I drove him to the hospital. Luckily the bullet went between the bones. But they had to clean the hole out with something that looked like one of those pipe cleaners. That looked painful. The police came to the hospital, took a report and I had to show them my friend's gun that he had shot himself with that was in the car.
Crazy thing is, he told me his Dad shot himself in his left foot with the same gun when he was our age.
My stupid unsafe gun incident happened around the same time back in the Highschool days. Don't ever try this.
The only gun I had was an antique Stevens Favorite model 17. I came up with a stupid idea to get more power out of a .22lr. I'd take apart loaded .22 rounds and dump the powder out then load up a shell clear to the top and put the bullet back in. Shot it with no hearing protection and could not hear for a half an hour. Good thing that old gun was built lile a tank, I'm suprized it didn't blow up. So stupid.
20+ years ago, a friend of mine and I were out at a near by public hunting area shooting our .22's. His was a single shot bolt action. It had rained earlier so the ground was muddy. He was holding the gun in his right hand and slipped goimg down a hill. His right foot went up and so did his gun. Didn't have the safety on and pulled the trigger from just holding onto the gun.
Shot himself in his right foot. Blood started shooting out of his shoe. Got him back to his car and I drove him to the hospital. Luckily the bullet went between the bones. But they had to clean the hole out with something that looked like one of those pipe cleaners. That looked painful. The police came to the hospital, took a report and I had to show them my friend's gun that he had shot himself with that was in the car.
Crazy thing is, he told me his Dad shot himself in his left foot with the same gun when he was our age.
My stupid unsafe gun incident happened around the same time back in the Highschool days. Don't ever try this.
The only gun I had was an antique Stevens Favorite model 17. I came up with a stupid idea to get more power out of a .22lr. I'd take apart loaded .22 rounds and dump the powder out then load up a shell clear to the top and put the bullet back in. Shot it with no hearing protection and could not hear for a half an hour. Good thing that old gun was built lile a tank, I'm suprized it didn't blow up. So stupid.
Shooting at my friends cabin. My friend and I were shooting our sks's. Well I also had my .223 at 15 there. The cheap white boxes got mixed and both my friend and I mixed .233 and 7.62X39. Well in all he fired 2 .223's through his and I let 1 go through mine. Both of ours jammed and had metal from the area around the primer caught in the bolt. Mine considerably worse.... Got his fixed in a couple of seconds. Mine took a knife, a piece of my fingernail, and 5 minutes.
allaroundhunter
New member
While shooting a USPSA match about a month ago there was a guy in my squad who must have gotten his shirt in his holster because on his draw he got a little snag and ended up sending two rounds out the bottom of his holster before the trigger was ever clear of the kydex... Thankfully his leg was clear of the bullet path, but he did have powder burns on the right thigh of his pants. Scary moment for sure.
My uncle brought his son over to shoot last summer. He tried a ruger 22/45 lite under the supervison of his father while I was dealing with my guns. Came back to the line and he turned handed me the pistol muzzle first which was a shock. I took this in stride and calmly took it because I was more concerned with him squeezing if I shouted or something.
"its out" He said. Still skeptical i pointed it several feet down range proceed to fire 3 more shots into the berm. Showing him the bolt hold open and safety I explained. Most pistols tell you when they are out by locking back. Always make sure the safety is on. NEVER point a gun at something your not prepared to destroy.
All in all this was quite shocking since my father and I are huge enthusiasts. I just assumed his brother would teach his son the same... to say my cousin was clumsy and irresponsible with a firearm would be an understatement and I'm no safety freak either.
"its out" He said. Still skeptical i pointed it several feet down range proceed to fire 3 more shots into the berm. Showing him the bolt hold open and safety I explained. Most pistols tell you when they are out by locking back. Always make sure the safety is on. NEVER point a gun at something your not prepared to destroy.
All in all this was quite shocking since my father and I are huge enthusiasts. I just assumed his brother would teach his son the same... to say my cousin was clumsy and irresponsible with a firearm would be an understatement and I'm no safety freak either.
My story takes place some years ago in Elk camp in the Absaroka range of Wyoming. Camp was a horse camp, wall tents and all. Being bear country, we all carried our pepper spray and a sidearm. Mine was my S&W 686. Six rounds in the cylinder.
As nature called one morning, I made my way to the latrine. Upon arrival, I undid my belt and britches, leaving the 686 hanging in the holster. Just as I was about to sit, the pistol fell from the holster and landed directly on the hammer, muzzle pointing directly at my face!
The S&W transfer bar safety saved my life that day! The 686 just lay there, me staring at it with the blank look that only someone who knows they escaped death can have.
I learned that day that every time I undo my gun belt, the gun it is carrying MUST be removed first!
As nature called one morning, I made my way to the latrine. Upon arrival, I undid my belt and britches, leaving the 686 hanging in the holster. Just as I was about to sit, the pistol fell from the holster and landed directly on the hammer, muzzle pointing directly at my face!
The S&W transfer bar safety saved my life that day! The 686 just lay there, me staring at it with the blank look that only someone who knows they escaped death can have.
I learned that day that every time I undo my gun belt, the gun it is carrying MUST be removed first!
I was cleaning and reassembling my 1911 and USP45 a the same time while also kind of watching TV.
Somehow I confused the operation of the HK and hit the decocker and pulled the trigger at the same time poking a hole in the ceiling... I suppose I thought I was half-cocking the 1911 (trigger pull) AND decocking the HK... I mixed their operations together
Its ok to clean them while watching tv or whatever, just unload and reload in another room free of distraction, and of course leave all the ammo there.
Somehow I confused the operation of the HK and hit the decocker and pulled the trigger at the same time poking a hole in the ceiling... I suppose I thought I was half-cocking the 1911 (trigger pull) AND decocking the HK... I mixed their operations together
Its ok to clean them while watching tv or whatever, just unload and reload in another room free of distraction, and of course leave all the ammo there.
Safe Gun handling rules
We have seen these in various numbers. One I can recall was 14. I can't hardly remember what I had for dinner yesterday, let alone 14 safety rules. At our Hunter Safety classes, we teach the Cooper-four (4). Of those, the one that has the last word, is muzzle control. All else can be ignored or taken for granted except this one. ......
As diligent as we can be, there are times when our attention gets drawn away from muzzle control. It happens to all of us. ....
Incidents
Buckskinner next to me, had a misfire. Right off, his eyes and attention fell to the breech end as he swept his muzzle over our heads. Did not go off but the yelling from the other guys sure put him back in reality. ....
On one Party-Hunt or deer drive, one of the pushers shot a deer in front of him. The deer went down and the guy was so excited that he swung his muzzle around and this time, it went off and the slug hit the ground in front of us. He just shrugged his shoulders. .....
Be Safe !!!
We have seen these in various numbers. One I can recall was 14. I can't hardly remember what I had for dinner yesterday, let alone 14 safety rules. At our Hunter Safety classes, we teach the Cooper-four (4). Of those, the one that has the last word, is muzzle control. All else can be ignored or taken for granted except this one. ......
As diligent as we can be, there are times when our attention gets drawn away from muzzle control. It happens to all of us. ....
Incidents
Buckskinner next to me, had a misfire. Right off, his eyes and attention fell to the breech end as he swept his muzzle over our heads. Did not go off but the yelling from the other guys sure put him back in reality. ....
On one Party-Hunt or deer drive, one of the pushers shot a deer in front of him. The deer went down and the guy was so excited that he swung his muzzle around and this time, it went off and the slug hit the ground in front of us. He just shrugged his shoulders. .....
Be Safe !!!
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I've never had any real dangerous accidents yet, and hopefully never, but I've had an incident at an indoor range that was I guess part my fault, and part bad luck.
My brother had just bought his WASR 10/63 at the range we go to, which also sells stuff, and so we went into the actual range to try it out. Well I was wearing shorts and somewhat short socks since it was summer, so a good deal of my leg skin was exposed. It was now my turn to try out his rifle, and what do you know as I'm shooting it a casing that got ejected bounced off the right lane dividing wall and lands right in my shoe, high enough that its touching my skin not the sock. I knew there were only a few rounds left in the magazine so I quickly, but safely, fired those off, cleared the gun, and got the thing out of my shoe as quickly as possible. That was a few years ago and I still have a slight mark where I got burned from the hot casing.
I now wear pants to the range
My brother had just bought his WASR 10/63 at the range we go to, which also sells stuff, and so we went into the actual range to try it out. Well I was wearing shorts and somewhat short socks since it was summer, so a good deal of my leg skin was exposed. It was now my turn to try out his rifle, and what do you know as I'm shooting it a casing that got ejected bounced off the right lane dividing wall and lands right in my shoe, high enough that its touching my skin not the sock. I knew there were only a few rounds left in the magazine so I quickly, but safely, fired those off, cleared the gun, and got the thing out of my shoe as quickly as possible. That was a few years ago and I still have a slight mark where I got burned from the hot casing.
I now wear pants to the range
While squirrel hunting once with my dad when young, we became separated briefly by a ravine. I took a shot at a squirrel, but missed. Nothing noticed by either of of at the time. Later that night when home my dad noticed there was a buckshot firmly wedged in the hardwood buttstock at a angle. Judging by the velocity it would have taken to imbed into stock at that angle, it could have been tragic.
Another time while living at a farm house with some buddies, I was showing a friend a rough rider in the living room. He pulled the hammer back to see the action as I told him to be careful that it had a hair trigger, it went off, much to our surprise. We looked around and at each other to make sure everything was ok. Almost 3 min later one of the rabbit ears on top of the TV dropped in slow motion. It had nicked about 1/3 deep notch it it.
Another time while living at a farm house with some buddies, I was showing a friend a rough rider in the living room. He pulled the hammer back to see the action as I told him to be careful that it had a hair trigger, it went off, much to our surprise. We looked around and at each other to make sure everything was ok. Almost 3 min later one of the rabbit ears on top of the TV dropped in slow motion. It had nicked about 1/3 deep notch it it.
Boomer58cal
New member
So my Bro calls me up and says, "I just picked up some ammo cheap!" I responded, "lets do it!" Well we get out to the ranch and he hands me a box of .44 mag and I load up the old( 3 digit serial number ) Super Black Hawk. Well I've been shooting this this since I was 7 and I've never seen a. 44 kick like that. It numbed my arm to the elbow. The recoil unseated the other rounds in the cylinder and the gun had to be disassembled to clear the rounds. Well when I asked where the ammo came from he said... "A yard sale. " 
On later inspection of the ammo, I pulled the bullets and about half had NO POWDER! and the other half a FULL CASE! of what looked like unique. Good thing the Hawk is a tank.
Never and I mean never use ammo you don't know the history of.
Thank you Lord and thank you Mr. Ruger
Boomer
) Super Black Hawk. Well I've been shooting this this since I was 7 and I've never seen a. 44 kick like that. It numbed my arm to the elbow. The recoil unseated the other rounds in the cylinder and the gun had to be disassembled to clear the rounds. Well when I asked where the ammo came from he said... "A yard sale. " On later inspection of the ammo, I pulled the bullets and about half had NO POWDER! and the other half a FULL CASE! of what looked like unique. Good thing the Hawk is a tank.Never and I mean never use ammo you don't know the history of.
Thank you Lord and thank you Mr. Ruger
Boomer