When do you chamber a round while hunting?

[cbobclark]

I don't load the gun till I get to the hunting land, but then I load before heading to the stand, and proceed with option "C". Load one in the chamber, and disengage the firing pin by slowly decocking the rifle and holding the trigger down.

That has worked for me and a bolt rifle for 50+ years, when traveling to the stand. Then, it is clocked with safety on. Sort of like my 1911. If an inexperienced person is with me, they must play by different rules.

 

[FIGJAM]

Option A for me, I also wont hunt with anyone that feels they need to walk around with a round in the chamber.

Hope this link works it's gives you something to think about, I choose to never put myself in this man's situation
https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1111986868962765&id=100004543871821

This is powerful. I can't imagine going through this...option A for me after watching that.

 

[theosmithjr]

THEN,.. THIS ^^^^

What kind of MORON NEEDS 5 RIFLES to hunt SQUIRREL? AND WHAT KIND OF JACKASS LOADS ALL 5, AND EVEN MORE STERNLY I ASK, WHAT KIND OF IDIOT PACKS LOADED HUNTING RIFLES INTO A VECHILE? That IMBISOLE HAS NO RIGHT or JUSTIFYABLE REASON for those actions! In my opinion HE HAS NO RIGHT to OWN, USE or EVEN BE AROUND FIREARMS! I pray that YOU'VE ENDED your Hunting or Range shooting with this COMPLETE & UTTER *******!
Theosmithjr

 

[spdrman]

We hunted in thick timber - but fairly easy walking. On tricky ground - I would think about going empty in the chamber.

Pictures never do it justice on how steep anything is, go hunt a burn with just enough snow on the ground you cant see the branches under it and you're going to slip and fall sooner or later!

 

[JungleBoogey]

OK,.. OPTION "C" is UNSAFE,..except in a Blaser, BUT very FEW of us, own a "Blaser" !

I own one (R93)... and chose "B" 'cause that's just the kind of hunter I am

 

[stel67]

I hunt with a round in the chamber but with the firing pin dropped. To do so chamber a round, with the bolt in the upper position squeeze the trigger and then close the bolt. This will release the firing pin slowly, all you have to do when ready to shoot is lift the bolt up then down with ouo having to fully cycle the bolt

 

[Littlehud]

choice C is very dangerous. I have tried that before, and had an accidental discharge by doing so. Yes the gun was pointed in a safe direction, I was by myself, and no one got hurt. I did learn NOT to do that.
I have also had one other accidental discharge when I was about 12 yrs. old. I had a round in the chamber and was getting ready to shoot. When I flipped the safety off, the gun discharged. I always figured it was my own fault and must have had my finger on the trigger. It was a Remington model 600, which from what I understand may have the same issue as the 700 which will do that if it has a certain trigger mechanism, so I am now not 100% certain it was my fault. That being said, it is safest to not chamber a round until you are ready to shoot.
I normally carry my gun without a round in the chamber, but will put one in with safety on if hunting in timber in case all I may get is a quick shot. When I do this I am extra cautious about keeping the gun pointed in a safe direction due to previous experiences.

 

[parshal]

I was working on a trigger that did not engage the sear properly. When the bolt was closed it would fire. That's similar to holding the trigger while closing the bolt. If you do it too fast it WILL go off.

One comment on the spring being compressed. It's majorly compressed. If you remove the firing pin spring it's much longer when removed from the assembly when when the shroud is screwed on (700 here). So, there's a tremendous amount of compressed energy in that spring. When you drop a rifle on it's butt end there could exist enough force to compress that spring and the resulting expansion of that spring could cause the primer to go off. It's much less likely to happen with a strong spring. However, if your firing spring is weak it's much more likely to compress when dropped on the butt and the firing spring is more likely to push the firing pin into the primer.

I'd suggest a weak firing pin spring is more likely to result in a stronger primer strike from a drop on the butt.

 

[cbobclark]

We did learn that half-cock notches do break if hammered. We're taught to control the muzzle, but that's not controlled if the weapon is dropped. Solution?? Depends on the weapon, but for some it may be empty chamber as on an old single action revolver.

 

[tomsd]

Pictures never do it justice on how steep anything is, go hunt a burn with just enough snow on the ground you cant see the branches under it and you're going to slip and fall sooner or later!
View attachment 118966

I knew where I was hunting and how steep it was - or wasn't.

 

[spdrman]

This is powerful. I can't imagine going through this...option A for me after watching that.

I dont ever want to go through that, or put a family through that, wish that video could get out to more people. Bet it was hard for Jay to make that video but I'm glad he did.

 

[Idaho Lefty]

What kind of MORON NEEDS 5 RIFLES to hunt SQUIRREL? AND WHAT KIND OF JACKASS LOADS ALL 5, AND EVEN MORE STERNLY I ASK, WHAT KIND OF IDIOT PACKS LOADED HUNTING RIFLES INTO A VECHILE? That IMBISOLE HAS NO RIGHT or JUSTIFYABLE REASON for those actions! In my opinion HE HAS NO RIGHT to OWN, USE or EVEN BE AROUND FIREARMS! I pray that YOU'VE ENDED your Hunting or Range shooting with this COMPLETE & UTTER -------!
Theosmithjr

MANY people use multiple Rifles, to shoot ground squirrels and Prairie Dogs in the West, to avoid "burning out" their Barrels. The POINT I was making was that, Guns when "DROPPED" in loaded condition,.. DO go,.. OFF ! I wasn't with this Guy, when this DEVASTATING accident, happened. I was just making a,.."POINT" that accidents "happen" ! Yes, several mistakes, were made, AS,.. He FORGOT to unload, ONE Rifle !

 

[Orange Dust]

There is something many of you are missing about all this. Fig is asking advice on teaching his child to be a safe hunter. Having the gun hot with the safety on is just about as bad of an option as "C" in this situation, unless the rifle is resting in the corner of a stand or on a bipod, out of the child's control. Or am I the one that is missing something??? Fig still has about 5 years to pound safe gun handling into the child's head, before he will be allowed to hunt on his own in most States. One of the biggest things I learned doing this is you have to make peace with the fact that you are willing to let game get away while teaching a child. More will than won't, and you have to be OK with this, and let safety trump success. As he gets older fewer and fewer will get away, and Fig won't have to worry about the guy walking behind him with a gun.

 

[Idaho Lefty]

Option "C" is ,.. UNSAFE and DANGEROUS !!!!!!!!!!
And the Polls,.. SHOW,.. THIS !!!!!!!!!!