Man, that's a tough one if I'm reading you right. I was in a friendship 10-12 years ago with a older man (in his late seventies to his early eighties) who loved firearms. He became unsafe with his gun handling and I mentioned it to him a time or two with no good result.

One day soon afterward we were shooting with a mutual friend on the elderly gents little range. I had given the mutual friend a heads up on the situation so he could help me watch. Sure enough the old guy cocked the hammer back on his model 36 snub and with his finger on the trigger reached up with both hands and adjusted his hearing muffs. We both cringed thinking he could very well blow his own brains out any moment.

That was the last time we shot with him. We stopped what we were doing and brought this to his attention. To say the least, we were not well received and it hurt our non-shooting friendship with the old sport.

He stopped contacting us and was not warm as usual anymore when we visited. Eventually we stopped visiting and calling all together because of this. Sad situation.

He died of natural causes about 6 years ago and for this I was grateful. Not for the loss, but because of the natural causes rather than him hurting himself or someone else. I understand he continued to shoot for a while. I guess he found others to shoot with him.

I wish things could have turned out better. I regret losing him as a friend over this. Perhaps there was a better, more effective way to handle it. I don't know what it would have been.

We did speak with his only daughter and informed her of the situation. As far as I know she was of no help in convincing him to stop. Neither was his wife as she became cold to us as well.

I can't tell you what to do, but I can tell you it's possible to lose a friend in this manner. Perhaps someone else can suggest a softer, easier way. Good luck.