Went to the range today and my 9mm Shield wouldn't fire. It turned out the firing pin had broken since my last trip to the range. My estimate is that I've shot at least 3k or maybe 4k rounds. Additionally, I frequently dry fire at home. Although my range gave me and installed a new firing pin, I'm sending my Shield back to Smith and Wesson to be checked out. I will be using snap caps when I dry fire in the future. You may want to think about using snap caps if you dry fire on a regular basis. Well, it looks like I'm going to have to get use to carrying a J frame while my Shield is being worked on. :-(
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If you Dry Fire - try using snap caps
- Thread starter KF-NYC
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Disabled1
US Veteran
Rastoff
US Veteran
Your malfunction was not caused by using your gun for dry practice. In fact, you probably gain a lot of improvement by doing dry practice.
While the striker should last much longer than 3K rounds, they do break sometimes. In fact, nothing is impervious to failure. I have 2,427 rounds through my M&P45 and at least 20 times that in dry presses. My striker still looks fine.
In your case, it's probably just one of those things. Stuff breaks sometimes.
You're right to send it to S&W.
Just a note about terminology: the Shield has a striker rather than a firing pin. They serve almost the same purpose though.
While the striker should last much longer than 3K rounds, they do break sometimes. In fact, nothing is impervious to failure. I have 2,427 rounds through my M&P45 and at least 20 times that in dry presses. My striker still looks fine.
In your case, it's probably just one of those things. Stuff breaks sometimes.
You're right to send it to S&W.
Just a note about terminology: the Shield has a striker rather than a firing pin. They serve almost the same purpose though.
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The legitate, necessary use of snap caps to prevent damage is limited to rimfires and a few older firearms. Modern centerfire firearms will not suffer damage from dry firing. The best use of snap caps and dummy ammo is to simulate malfunctions to enhance training . . .
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Walt Sherrill
Member
Muss Muggins said:
That's a broad statement and wrong in part.
It's probably best to use guidance from each gun's Owner's Manual, as some give specific guidance as to whether snap caps should be used. If there's no warning against dry-firing, you're probably safe.
Some rimfires can be safely dry-fired -- Ruger semi-autos, which have firing pin stops, immediately come to mind. (I've been told that the S&W Model 41 can be safely dry-fired, too, but have no direct experience with that gun. The only warning in the owner's manual against dry-firing is that it should NOT be done when the slide has been removed or gun is disassembled.)
Some modern center-fire guns shouldn't be dry-fired. Older CZ-75Bs with a single firing pin retention roll pin shouldn't be dry-fired unless you use a snap cap -- and CZ then shipped new guns with a cheap plastic snap cap in the case. The current Taurus PT92 manual says use a snap cap (and don't dry-fire otherwise); the manual for the similar Beretta 92 recommends using a spent cartridge or using a snap cap when practicing trigger pulls (but doesn't say don't dry fire with an empty chamber.) The Ruger center-fire guns, like the LC9/9s and SR9 can be dry-fired IF the magazine is in the gun, but will be damaged if it's not.
The Beretta Tomcat, a modern center-fire weapon, doesn't warn against dry-firing in the manual I found online, but when I bought one new, I didn't see a warning in the Owner's Manual and dry-fired away. I quickly broke a firing pin even though I had always used a snap cap! The Tomcat firing pin hits so hard it will eat up even good-quality snap caps quickly, and I didn't notice the damage to the snap cap until it was too late! (I've heard from others with similar experiences with their Tomcats.) I think all Kel-Tec owner manuals warn against dry-firing without snap caps (and present it as a GENERAL statement for all handguns.)
Some guns require you to dry-fire when field-stripping, but with some of them the owner's manual recommends that you NOT DO IT EXCESSIVELY. I think that is now what is taught in Glock Armorer classes. The new FN-509 also has that instruction in the Owner's Manual; the manual for the similar FNS 9 and 40 models, the design upon which the FN-509 was based, does NOT include that warning.
If you get the right kind of SNAP CAP, like the Tipton (which has a spring-loaded "primer" area), there is little chance of doing harm to the gun. With most striker-fired guns, like the M&P, you can pull back the slide just enough to reset the striker and not fully unchamber the round.
Good quality snap caps are cheap insurance, but depending on the gun, may be an unnecessary expense. I have them and use them, depending on the gun.
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hexnut
Member
I don't use snap caps on my M&Ps and have never had a problem
Disabled1 thanks but I am well aware that S&W has included the Shield with its handguns that can be dried fire. I would not have dry fired my Shield had S&W included it within its list of handguns that should not be dry fired. I concur with Rastoff that my dry firing may not necessarily be the cause of the broken firing pin. I've pressed that trigger back 1000s of time both in live and dry fire. I couldn't give an estimate on how many times I've dry fired that pistol. As both Muss Muggins and Walt Sherrill have indicated snap caps certainly will not damage your handgun. It may or may not provide a little extra insurance in safe guarding and maintaining your firearm - obviously it not going to brake anyone's bank to buy snap caps. Dry firing helps to improve and maintain my shooting skill. If I were to only live fire at the range, for me it would be like playing the guitar without any calluses on my fingers. I don't go to the range as frequently as I dry fire. Without calluses on my fingers I wouldn't play my guitar often. Similarly if I didn't dry fire my shooting skill would become stagnant. I merely put the issue of using snap caps out there for shooters who like me dry fire frequently. The bottom line of course is that it is all up to you whether you decide to use snap caps or not to use snap caps.
I broke off TWO firing pin tips, dry firing (without snap caps), in a new AMT .40 DAO Back Up, when they first came out (1996?). The mainspring on that pistol is s t r o n g, no doubt contributing to high pin velocity...
A lot of the Kel Tec's use a notched firing pin and set-screw type arrangement, to both retain the pin in the slide, and limit its breechface protrusion. The speculation is that excessive dry firing can peen the set screw tip, which can make removal difficult, and possibly kick up enough burring to impede firing pin travel.
One thing we do know. Using them cannot possibly hurt anything.
SO, rather than risk damage, I'd use them with any gun I was going to dry fire extensively.
But that's just me, YMMV...
SO, rather than risk damage, I'd use them with any gun I was going to dry fire extensively.
But that's just me, YMMV...
HCH
Member
I wish they'd sell them singly. Can't imagine needing more than one for a semiautomatic.
Walt Sherrill
Member
HCH said:
A single one would probably cost as much as 3-5, and I have been known to misplace the darned things. If I were smart, I'd keep one in each of the cases the guns came in, if the guns need them.
(Then, too, if you order by 'net, as I do with most of my gun stuff, postage tends to cost as much as the relatively inexpensive stuff. And the only ones I've seen in gun shops aren't they type I'd like to buy -- the Gun Shop ones just don't seem to hold up or protect the gun.)
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BLACKHAWKNJ
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I have been using the A-Zooms in my handguns and rifles. Work fine. Buy them singly ? When you have more than one pistol in the same caliber...
Arik
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oldiegoldie
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This is the Nth time I've posted this.....the firing pin retaining pin [keeps the firing pin in the FP channel] takes alot of abuse. My Ruger LC9 had a retaining pin break after alot of dry firing. Ruger fixed it and their advice: "use snap caps with a spring loaded primer when dry firing". That is when I began using Tipton snap caps. I will continue using Tipton snap caps in all pistols.
Arik
Member
So how does Ruger quality relate to S&W/Glock/HK? Same raw materials? Same manufacturing process? Just because they have a retaining pin doesn't mean it was engineered the same way or intended to be used the same way. My carry gun has 15 years of shooting and dry fire. Nothing ever broke.
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oldiegoldie
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not sure how all compare quality wise, but Ruger sells more guns in USA than any manufacturer. I do not see any downside in using snap caps.
Arik
Member
No there is no downside except a little money. My daily carry is used by 60% of US LEO, US military and police forces and armies around the world. Ruger can sell more but it's not used/tested/shot more. The simple act of purchase doesn't speak for anything other than money spent. Civilian sales don't necessarily mean anything, plenty of people here and elsewhere buy a gun a week
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