Ruger Forum banner

Your CCW had a malfunction... what do you do to regain trust?

2K views 60 replies 43 participants last post by  terry_p 
#1 ·
Hopefully as armed citizens we're all practicing regularly with our carry weapons.

Suppose you're at the range using self defense ammo... and you get a failure to extract, or maybe a stove pipe.. or maybe the gun double feeds - WHATEVER - but the bang button didn't make the gun go bang.

What is your policy/procedure for gaining trust and in the weapon? Do you have a certain number of rounds that must run clean before you'd put it back into service? At what point would the frequency of a malfunction cause you to shelve a gun and tag it out of service?
 
#2 · (Edited)
In any case the gun will have had a fresh clean and lube. So I'd examine the gun carefully for anything out of place or broken. Study the operation with a snap cap or fired brass. On rimfire, look at the FP strikes. Then try a different ammo. Even your usual could be a box from a bad lot. With a semi-auto feed issue, try different magazines and take notes as to how each one did.

Putting a new buy into service my standard is cheap, 50 rounds without an issue, discounting good rimfire hits that don't fire. If I have to sort out magazines it takes a few more. If a mag does okay with two loadings, I trust it.

I have three Zastavas with 12 mags so that was four boxes divided up three ways, two different brands. I had one extractor that still had some cosmoline I missed. One rough follower.

Two Guardians with eight mags took two boxes, all good.
 
#3 ·
If I have a failure to extract out of my .44 Special Bulldog ... There is 'really' something wrong.
 
#5 ·
A single failure on the range would not me lose trust in the gun. It would make me test the gun’s performance with the ammo I EDC. If no failure in 20 successive rounds, then it is as safe to carry as any other randomly selected gun. Any gun can malfunction, and it is not always the gun’s fault. I had one failure with my security 9 Compact over two years of shooting it. It was a stovepipe. Cause? I limp writes the gun. Never had a subsequent problem. Ammo can be the culprit too. Don’t assume the gun did it.
 
#7 ·
Trust is gained through experiance. You just shoot your chosen gun over and over again to practice with it. I have guns that have been flawless at the range. I poked fun at a fellow forum member but he brought up a good point. You don't obsess with the possibility of a failure but you should plan for it. Everybody has a plan until something goes wrong then you don't. Any mechanical device can fail and eventually will. You may not reach thae breaking point but it's out there. Bad ammo or adverse conditions like stress can induce a failure. Test your gun under ideal conditions but try to practice under and for less than ideal conditions.
 
#9 ·
I do nothing special.
Anything built by humans is subject to a failure at any time.

I've had my CCW 15+yrs and never a failure (yet),
so, if I was to have one, I would l clear it and continue to shoot.
If it repeats, then I would go looking for the issue, if it does not repeat, I would have no further concerns.

ETA: I would not lose confidence in my ccw because one failure.
 
#12 ·
I've carried S&W revolvers exclusively for over 30 years ... Js, Ks, Ls, Ns, 38, 357, 44 Sp ... and owned/collected close to 100 during that time, mostly pre-lock models. Of the few failures I experienced, two were due to Internal Locks, of which I will never own another. The remainder were due to my oversight, and had nothing to do with the revolver. One that will always be a memorable moment was a Model 60 cylinder/yoke assembly coming apart in my hand during a reload at the range. I had neglected to check and tighten the screw and ended up with a handful of parts at a critical moment. Lesson learned and error never repeated. A wheelgun can fail, just not as often as a semi.
 
#14 ·
Anything mechanical can fail. The main difference I see between revolvers and semi auto's is that there are three things a semi auto can fail at that are not the result of a part failure. A semi auto can fail to feed, fail to fire, or fail to eject. Not because there is anything wrong with the gun necessarily. It's just something that can happen with semi's even when the gun is working properly (although failure to fire is more likely due to the ammo then the pistol). As long as a revolver is functioning correctly it won't fail to feed or eject. If it fails to fire you just pull the trigger again.
 
#15 ·
The only answer is that any gun that has any kind of hiccup, regardless how minimal, can never be trusted again. In fact, the only way to handle such a gun is to sacrifice it up as a burnt offering. After all, no shooter of any integrity could ever let a gun of such questionable perigee get into the hands of a fellow shooter.
Oh, wait, I forgot I am not a tactical ninja. As pointed out, anything mechanical can fail, and if you are practicing with your carry gun like you should, things wear out. Big thing is, as mentioned above, understanding exactly what happened. Once that is understood, things go from there.
Here is one example of what is a commonly overlooked issue, and that is carry ammo. I get that carry ammo is expensive, but I have seen people at the range who carry the same magazine’s worth for years. You know the drill, unload gun, load up practice rounds, reload carry rounds after practice, etc. well, after a long time of doing this, they decide they better shoot their carry loads and have some kind of issue.
 
#18 ·
If my car breaks down, my first drive back from the mechanic isn't going to be an out of state road trip. I'd usually like to see that the problem is fixed and the car has at least some record of running smoothly. If a car becomes too problematic or repeatedly breaks down, I sell it. I guess that makes me a 'tactical auto-driver' 🤷‍♂️ ;)

In the same vein, if I experience a pistol malfunction my process is a little more thorough than to shoot one more round and declare "I guess it works!".

I'd need a bit more in order to feel confident I can defend myself from evil. Generally I'd like to see the gun run at least a box of FMJ and then perhaps a couple magazines of whatever I'm using for self defense without any more hiccups.

@brnwlms mentioned finding out the problem and then 'things go from there'. Can you (or anyone else, of course) tell me more about your 'things go from there' process? Suppose you replace a part? How much testing might that new part need before you're satisfied it's set to go? Are there any parts that you feel would need or warrant more thorough testing than others?



Me, personally, I retire a gun from self defense consideration when testing and verifying it's reliability becomes more expensive than buying a new gun that just works. Only guns that really fall into this category are my Taurus TCP and Beretta Bobcat. Those would never find their way back into my holster. Unsurprisingly, these are both micro pistols known for being a bit sensitive. For me, it wasn't a weird sacrificial ritual - just economic considerations.
 
#21 ·
........ if I experience a pistol malfunction my process is a little more thorough than to shoot one more round and declare "I guess it works!".

I'd need a bit more in order to feel confident I can defend myself from evil. Generally I'd like to see the gun run at least a box of FMJ and then perhaps a couple magazines of whatever I'm using for self defense without any more hiccups.

Suppose you replace a part? How much testing might that new part need before you're satisfied it's set to go? Are there any parts that you feel would need or warrant more thorough testing than others?
"I guess it works!" doesn't work for me either. It doesn't take that long to be sure. Most pistol problems are the ammo, extractor, magazine, or springs. The only failures I've ever had were a broken transfer bar on an LCR, and a broken trigger spring on a different LCR. So much for revolvers being more depedable, LOL.

A new part or magazine get the same treatment. Two loadings with no problem, I'm happy.
 
#19 ·
If I find a definite problem, I repair it, test it, and all is well.

My best friend had a G23 he’d carried every day for 15 years and ran THOUSANDS of rounds through. It started jamming, failing to extract. He didn‘t trust it anymore and gave it to me. It had a broken extractor, weak recoil spring, and weak mag springs. I replaced all that and I’ve run several hundred rounds through it since with no malfunctions. I offered to give it back, but he said he just couldn’t trust it. I trust it.
 
#20 ·
@Angry Hippo, go from there involves knowing your gun. For instance, I carry a 1911 every day, and it gets shot at least once a week. What are some known problem areas with the 1911? A common one is the extractor. Have a malfunction, pull the slide off. Grab an empty case and test the extractor. Not right, pull it out and run a .22 rod through the extractor channel. Get a big ball of gunk, yea, probably figured it out. Replace extractor, test tension, maybe tune it a bit assuming the extractor still looks good. Run a box or two through and should be good to go. A big part of the process is knowing your gun and it’s likely problem areas, and each gun has one. If a gun’s been running great and has a problem, it’s probably some thing simple and once you figure it out, if it even is the gun, it’s not worth wearing the gun out trying to prove to yourself that a gun is reliable.
 
#22 ·
I try to vet semi-autos by firing at least a hundred rounds of ball ammo and 50 rounds of carry ammo. I also try to induce problems by randomly inserting an inert round in the magazine. If you carry a semi-auto, you should practice clearing a malfunction, just saying. That's the reason I usually carry a revolver, but not always. (I also love my 1911s)
 
#23 ·
I would stop trusting only if the incident repeats itself after a cleaning and maybe an ammo switch. I carry a S&W 442. If it all of a sudden started light striking, first I would give it a good cleaning. If it still did it, I would try another brand of ammo. If it still happened it would be fixing time.
 
#24 ·
Would depend upon the situation.

Failure to feed or eject: Was it a single round? If multiple rounds, am I using a new ammo at time of failure?
I have had firearms reject certain types of bullets such as those with rubber coatings. I note the manufacturer when that happens and check to see if issue occurs with other ammo. If no issues with other ammo, I just know not to use that particular ammo.

Oh, check the seating of the magazine. Any issues with the magazine such as not locking in properly or dropping randomly?

Quality and reputation of ammo are both important, too. Just remember that even good manufacturers sometimes have bad examples of outcomes. I learned this in October 2021 myself when I had a factory round explode in my firearm damaging both the extractor and barrel. That was with my firearm that I used as my concealed carry weapon which at the time was a Taurus TCP PT-738. Ammo manufacturer replaced the ammo and confirmed an issue with the batch of 380 ACP.

Another thought is a firearm may seem great on paper, but actual use may reveal features or characteristics that one may not like in their firearm. Perhaps you have to break your grip to operate some of the functions. Perhaps the trigger or handgrip is uncomfortable when practicing. Perhaps the firearm has a peculiar disassembly process. Bottom line, if you find you do not like something about the firearm, should it be a conceal carry choice? My personal experience says this is not likely.

Here's my final thoughts - it depends upon the totality of the circumstances. I would not look at a single issue but rather an overall evaluation of the performance of the firearm in general. Also, consider the reasons for the failure, any damage that may have required repair, turnaround time of repair, brand reputation for customer service, and your acceptance of risk of not having a firearm if your concealed carry firearm fails.

For that Taurus TCP, I was lucky that the Taurus TCP could be repaired, but there were fewer parts being made for that firearm by Taurus. The TCP did go bang once repaired. However, both the facts that parts would be hard to find in the future from Taurus and that 380 ACP ammo was also difficult to find at the time were the deciding factors to consider replacing my conceal carry. I ended up changing over to a Ruger Max-9 for my conceal carry for a more common caliber (9mm) and the fact it carried more rounds.
 
#31 ·
You ask about process, so here is mine.
First failure - move on and ignore it if it doesn't repeat within 20-25 rounds (or the rest of the visit).
Second failure (within reason) try a different ammo; if I think the gun is dirty, clean it and watch for it again. I don't let my guns get dirty enough to cause malfunctions, except maybe my .22LR semis
Failure persists after that, it is time to diagnose based on the type of failure. I've only gotten this far with someone else's gun, and cleaning and lubing fixed it so really not then either.
NOTE: sometimes the failure is the shooter. Not really talking limp wristing, but if you grip a gun the wrong way, you can cause it to malfunction. If that turned out to be the case, I would not lose trust in the gun. I may lose trust in the gun in my hands until I fix what I am doing wrong
Assuming I locate the problem (recoil spring, extractor, mag, etc), I would correct it, test between 50-100 rounds and call it good.
 
#32 ·
When my EDC won't go bang that means that it's time to reload. Hope and pray that I never need to use more than a couple rounds should ever have to use it in self defense. Wheel guns forever. I do carry a Shield Plus now and then and I've never had it stop going bang unless the mag is empty.

Sent from my SM-G991U using Tapatalk
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top