DO NOT DRY FIRE RIMFIRE GUNS!

Dry firing a gun, (Pulling the trigger on an empty chamber), is an often performed and often misunderstood practice.  People do it for various reasons with many different types of firearms without thinking twice.  This practice can be completely harmless, as is the case with the AR platform.  It can also be damaging to some guns because of their design.

It is generally accepted that rimfire guns should never be dry fired.  This includes all of your .22 rifles and pistols.  .17 hmr /VMag etc.

If you think about how a rimfire works, it makes perfect sense.  In a rimfire, the rim of the cartridge is actually pinched between the firing pin and the surface of the barrel or receiver.  This causes no damage to the pin or barrel/receiver because the cartridge takes the brunt of all this pinching.

However, when you dry fire one of these, the pin moves forward and smacks the receiver/barrel causing damage to the pin and whatever it hits.  Over time this can lead to serious damage,  The pins can become bent and whatever the pin hits can erode away.  All of this damage causes misfires and poor extraction.

So, DON'T do it.

Problem is that many rimfire rifles do not have a last shot hold open.  This makes it very difficult to not dry fire.  The only way that I can think of is to count your shots.  Good luck getting the kids to do it.

A typical flat style firing pin on a rim fire rifle.

The new price of .22 ammo?

Hmm, so I continue to see .22 ammo on the shelves just about everywhere. Supply is definitely up from where it was just a few months ago around here.  Problem is that the price is up too.  The best price I have seen was Wal-Mart.  $18.99 for a 333 pack of Federal auto match.  17 cents per round.  I didn't think that was horrible for this day and age.  Then I saw a local store advertising 500 round bricks of Remington thunderbolts for $40.  That's around 13 cents per round.  A little better, but really $40 for cheap .22 bulk ammo bricks?  I used to buy those things for $10-$15 back in 2002.  I know that was a while ago but still.  .22 ammo has been the go to for cheap fun for well over 100 years.  I don't think it has ever been as relatively expensive as it is now.  When I find 50 round packs, and I find them quite a bit, they are marked at $8-$10 for bulk stuff.  I'm also finding match grade stuff for much more.  That's fine, I understand that, but these prices on bulk ammo are hard to stomach.  Personally, I just don't buy it.



But, all this has got me thinking.  Is this the new normal?  Are we destined to pay $40 for the same 500 round brick of thunderbolts and golden bullets that we used to pay $10 for just 15 years ago?  That inflation is worse than college.


We have heard for quite some time now about the shortages of .22 ammo.  Shortages always lead to price gougers, particularly among private people.  In my experience, big box stores like Wally World have been the best at keeping the prices reasonable.  The local gun shops have been hit and miss on price.  And then there are the people asking $75 for 500 round bricks of cheap ammo.  Asshole is the only term I have for them.

I understand shortage and its effect on prices, However, I am now finding small amounts of ammo at nearly every store I walk into.  That tells me there is less of a shortage.  So why the ultra high prices?  Is this temporary?  Or is it the new price of .22?