With an older (hammer-mounted firing pin) Smith revolver, is there any advantage in using snap caps? Or can those actually be more detrimental to the firing pin and mount, than just dry-firing with nothing in the chambers at all?

Thanks.

I use the snap caps.

For 44 Special (used in mag too) I recommend the Triple-K
brand from Italy. They have a spring loaded brass "primer".
I use a similar cap in my Beretta shotguns. You can tell they
are working when you hear the spring ping.
The A-Zooms (plastic "primer") have so much excess headspace
the firing pin barely touches the relief button, if at all.

JMHO ...Nemo...

I've never bothered with snap caps for s&w revolvers, and I frequently dry-fire practice. Heck I think the older manuals recommended it. Dry-fire away.

Beretta shotguns are a different deal entirely.

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Joshua Brown(Town)

Thanks, guys. My own impression, is that there really isn't a need for such safeguards with an older Smith revolver. Either with, or without, would probably be just fine.
Obviously, other types of guns can vary wildly, with what's best procedure.

I have some dummy rounds I bought for practice (randomly load one and when you pull the trigger you'll see if you a flinching). I looked at them to use as snap caps but the "primer" was indented and I'm sure the firing pin doesn't hit anything. So since I couldn't use those for snap caps, I looked at some A-Zooms and they didn't look much different. I didn't buy them because 1)they were expensive 2)they come in packs of 5 which means two packs to get the 6 rounds I wanted making them more expensive and 3)they didn't look like they would do anything.

So I looked up dry firing on the S&W web site and S&W states that you can dry fire my gun. So I dry fire when ever I want and saved myself some money. I bet you can confirm whether S&W recommends against dry firing your particular gun with a little internet work and feel good about which direction you should take with regard to dry firing.

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18-4, 15-4

Thanks. Yeah, I just bought some 9mm A-Zooms. They really DO have a racket going. But in the case of the nines - I wanted them for function and safety checking some semi-autos. But it does seem ridiculous to spend over forty-bones on two packs, just to get six-rounds into a revolver. Then you can sit there look a goof, with four useless dummy rounds in your other hand...

Or you can use them to practice reloading, which is why I have 3 packs of them.

And as someone who has broken the nose on a hammer-mounted firing pin, I would not run my dry-fire practice drills without snap caps of some kind.

I use snap caps in all of my guns. In my 67-1, which does feature a hammer mounted firing pin, I've actually shot the rims off of 2 sets of snap caps. Think about that for a moment. Solid aircraft grade aluminum with a urethane cushion in the primer cavity and simple firing pin strike can shear the rim off completely. The simple truth is that they absorb a real shock from the firing pin strike, a shock that would otherwise be delivered to the frame and lockwork. IMO those who don't use snap caps are rather foolish. As for the cost, I would estimate that it took about 5000 strikes to shoot the rims off those snap caps in my 67-1, with 38 spl. range ammo running 19 bucks per box of 50 snap caps are a real bargain.

I was looking in the Dillon catalog this morning and the revolver calibers 38/357/44 are listed as 6-packs for 19.95. Seems reasonable I guess.

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Joshua Brown(Town)

Good input. Devil's advocate, though, would still cause me to say that it's hard to compare the concentrated force from the pin, on aluminum to the fully distributed force of the entire hammer on the surface of the locking mechanism.

I think there are good reasons to use snap caps, and probably an equal number which might contradict that. But for occasional practice with handling/loading/unloading - well worth having some. I just wish they came in packs of six...

Didn't have time last night to look this up but the following is on the S&W web site under FAQ's:

Can I dry fire my S&W handgun?
Q: Can I dry fire my Smith & Wesson?

A: Yes, except for the .22 caliber pistols which includes models 22A, 22S, 422, 2206, 2214, 2213 and 41.

.22 caliber revolvers such as models 17, 43, 63, 317 and 617 also should not be dry fired.

Q: Why can't I dry fire my .22 pistol or revolver?

A: Dry firing a S&W .22 pistol or revolver will cause damage to the firing pin.

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18-4, 15-4

The Triple-K caps come in packs of 6 for revolver rounds.
Same basic price as the A-Zooms but far superior function.
No affiliation etc. Just a happy customer. Our local target
and reloading store carries em but:

Gun Holsters and Gun Magazines by Triple K :: Plastic Snap Caps

You can also buy direct.

...Nemo...

S&W says all of their center fire handguns are made to dry fire. Rim fire handguns are not. The firing pin on the rim fire guns can hit the edge of the chamber and damage the firing pin.

During my academy days I dry fired the living daylights out of a 1968 Model 14. I fired it at least monthly and carried it daily for 19 years with no problems. I still have the gun today and other than the finish it is as good as new.

Thanks for the additional advice. I'm going to pick up some snap caps, just for handling practice. But I'll continue to dry-fire away, with and without the caps.

Azoom snap caps do come in 6 packs for the 38 caliber version. Of course that's not much help when you need a set of snap caps for a 7 or 8 shooter.

As for S&W stating that snap caps aren't needed, IMO they didn't make that statement with the expectation that people would be doing 2 or 3 thousand dry fires PER DAY. Yeah, I've seen claims online by some who claim to do this much dry firing.

I make my own snap caps by resizing empty cases and punching out the old primer. I then put a bullet on one end and RTV in the primer pocket, and cut it off to be flush with the pocket - no powder. I use blue RTV so it's obvious which is the loaded vs. unloaded rounds.

While it may not be required, I think these homemade snap caps mitigate any possible damage caused by the thousands and thousands of dry firing I've done with my 329PD.

Good luck.