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Dry Fire: racking slide vs cocking hammer on a 1911


danjordan78

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Just wondering...

Do people rack their slides or just cock their hammer to reset when dry firing? I cock the hammer, but see a lot of people doing it the other way too. Using a 1911/2011.

Benefits of either?

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I don't rack the slide because I have live ammo in the magazines.

Oh man...

To the OP...

I have dummies in the mag and a snap cap in the chamber.

I don't fully rack the slide as I don't want to eject the cap, rather pull the slide back just far enough to reset the hammer.

After developing a hand placement that works it is subconscious.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I don't rack the slide because I have live ammo in the magazines.

Please tell me this is sarcasm of some form.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

Nothing wrong with using live ammo for dry-fire if you are in a place where it is safe to do so. I typically do a few minutes of dryfire (with live ammo) in the bay at the range before I start my live-fire practice.

I personally wouldn't feel comfortable using live ammo for dryfire anywhere that it wasn't safe and legal to shoot live ammo, and I hope no one in my neighborhood would either.

At any rate, I use dummy rounds in my magazine, so i cock the hammer with my thumb. It never occurred to me that anyone would want to do anything different, but then I don't justin bieber either. Takes all kinds.

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I use live ammo for dry fire as well just never chamber a round. Check recheck and check again. When I do rack my gun mags are out and I always hold the trigger and feel the reset. When a mag is in I just cock the hammer. Even dummy's I never chamber a round when dry firing. Always will recommend holding the trigger down when racking a 1911/2011 on an empty gun. Any trigger job you have will stay consistent with disengaging the sear from the disconnect on every rack.

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Maybe it's just me, but it doesn't seem that hard to make dummy rounds with no powder or primer to get the weight right in your magazines. If you don't reload, I find it hard to believe you wouldn't be able to find anyone at the local matches that could help you out with something like that. You don't even need your own components. I just pull a bunch of live rounds I find on the ground at matches, pull them, and load those bullets into some empty brass.

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Less chance of damaging the sear by racking the slide. If the hammer slips while cocking it with your thumb it will slam the sear into half cock and possibly start damaging your sear.

Use a modern hammer design with a half-cock notch smaller so when it hits the sear it doesn't mess with your engagement surface for full cock?

Also, I don't rack the slide because dummies on the ground suck. They're also beat to shit and sometimes get stuck or the bullet falls out/etc. Partial slide rack is cool but you risk messing up and loading a dummy round.

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Ha Ha....some of you like living on the edge!!!

Someday......surprise..... regret........ashamed.......hope........ pride.....hurt.....maybe....lucky..... wife.....kids.......dog.....neighbors.......only sheet rock & 2x4's.................

Anyway, I cock the hammer, once in awhile (oopps) slips to halfcock, I rack the slide, sometimes I hold the trigger back but mostly not.......most of my competition guns have been dry fired in this manner at least as much or more then cycled by live ammo.........no issues.

I like Bennie Cooleys Blue mags for weight and mag change practice...........

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I use live ammo for dry fire as well just never chamber a round. Check recheck and check again. When I do rack my gun mags are out and I always hold the trigger and feel the reset. When a mag is in I just cock the hammer. Even dummy's I never chamber a round when dry firing. Always will recommend holding the trigger down when racking a 1911/2011 on an empty gun. Any trigger job you have will stay consistent with disengaging the sear from the disconnect on every rack.

Please tell me your kidding. If you want dummy rounds I will make you some. Live rounds shouldn't even be in the same room when you are dry firing.

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I don't think there's anything wrong with dry-firing with live ammo in the mags, as long as you observe the exact same safety procedures as if you were live-firing. Like at the range, or if your property has somwhere safe and legal to shoot.

I do alot of dryfire practice running around my suburban backyard where it's not safe or legal to discharge a live round, so I'm very careful to check my dummy rounds each time I go out to practice. Even with that, I'm uncomfortable pointing the gun towards the fence when a car or pedestrian or kid on a skateboard is going past.

Edited by motosapiens
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I don't think there's anything wrong with dry-firing with live ammo in the mags, as long as you observe the exact same safety procedures as if you were live-firing. Like at the range, or if your property has somwhere safe and legal to shoot.

I do alot of dryfire practice running around my suburban backyard where it's not safe or legal to discharge a live round, so I'm very careful to check my dummy rounds each time I go out to practice. Even with that, I'm uncomfortable pointing the gun towards the fence when a car or pedestrian or kid on a skateboard is going past.

are you saying that you are running around your backyard with live ammo doing dry fire? terrifying.

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Using live ammo to weight your mags for dry-fire is, for lack of a better term, really stupid.

Use dummy ammo

THIS!

and evidently some people need a reality check. very disappointed to see this topic actually getting SUPPORT!!! COME ON MAN!!!

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I don't think there's anything wrong with dry-firing with live ammo in the mags, as long as you observe the exact same safety procedures as if you were live-firing. Like at the range, or if your property has somwhere safe and legal to shoot.

I do alot of dryfire practice running around my suburban backyard where it's not safe or legal to discharge a live round, so I'm very careful to check my dummy rounds each time I go out to practice. Even with that, I'm uncomfortable pointing the gun towards the fence when a car or pedestrian or kid on a skateboard is going past.

are you saying that you are running around your backyard with live ammo doing dry fire? terrifying.

No, i'm saying EXACTLY the opposite of that.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Using live ammo to weight your mags for dry-fire is, for lack of a better term, really stupid.

Use dummy ammo

THIS!

and evidently some people need a reality check. very disappointed to see this topic actually getting SUPPORT!!! COME ON MAN!!!

agreed

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