Thread: Opening bolt before handling rifle.

Originally Posted by Tahr

About 1963 for a couple of years I worked for Tisdall's Sports (PNth) after school.

Someone came in and slipped a Ramset blank into a .22 and left it cocked, and of course at some stage later a customer pulled the trigger. Fortunately it was still in the (public access) rack but it left a burn scald up the green wall paint from the muzzle. It could have easily been a live round, And it could have easily been pointed at someone.
And it could happen at any time nowadays too. Sports shops need to remember this.

Yup. Open the breach every time you are passed or pick up a firearm.

Ha ha nothing like a purple charge to get peoples' attention.

Went to a gun and hunting expo many years ago where an army instructor was demonstrating the 303's "safety" features.
He was up on the stage a bit away from the audience (mostly local NZDA members a lot of whom still used 30s back then).
After some handling and talking he closed the bolt and then proceeded to wack the butt down on the stage several times with the intention that he could make the thing "go off"
What he hadn't bothered to tell the audience was that he had slipped in a blank round.
Well, instead of just a click the bloody thing went off big time and the sound was extremely load in the small auditorium we were in.
I still clearly remember that demo.
Slightly OT for this thread but still a noteworthy lesson.