Hangfires

[docrice]

I haven't shot in years and I've just purchased my first gun. I've read about hangfires happening, but it's usually referring to old ammunition. Does this occur with brand-new ammunition as well and if so, how frequently?

I'm just worried then if / when it happens, I'll forget the rule about keeping it pointing down range for 30 seconds before carefully removing the mag / unloading the chamber.

[LDC]

I have never had a hang fire with any ammo other than some old paper shotgun shells that where probably from the 1950's and had been stored in an old barn for most of their existence. Even then the delay was about a full second to 1.5 seconds. I have never experienced a hangfire with any type of rifle or pistol ammo. I have fired countless numbers of surplus ammo from around the world some dating back to the 1940's. I am not saying they don't happen, just that they are very very rare. However I always use the 30 second rule before clearing an misfire at the range. I also clear the misfired round in a safe area away from where I am shooting and clear of bystanders. After a few minutes I will recover it and try to determine what happened. Most times it is a light primer strike. Even then out of tens of thousands of rounds downrange I can count on one hand the number of misfires I have experienced with centerfire ammo.

So most likely with good current production ammo and a weapon in good condition it will be a rare situation to say the least.

[Snake-eater 1]

I've been shooting since 1951. The only hangfire I have ever had was with a homebuilt (not by me) MATCHLOCK! rifle. That was in the early '70's. Not a problem I'd spend a lot of time worrying about.