can a gun ever go off, (fire) when its not supposed to,if so, why?

Answer 1

Yes, if the mechanism of a gun has been compremised in any way ie dropped, replaced wrongley, slack ect the yes.
My granfarther was shot in the leg many years ago by a gun with a hair pin trigger, ironicly it was by my uncle.
The gun belonged to my great granfarther who late raped the gun round a tree.
Should the shot have been an inch higher then grandad would have never walked again.
Leasson to be learned , never place all your trust in something,
think safty at all times.

Answer 2

There's an old Mexican saying: Las armas las carga el diablo, which translates: Guns are loaded by the devil. It is a nonsensical way for people not familiar with firearms to explain how someone was accidently shot with an 'unloaded' gun. A perfect example of this happening was posted above by WESS LB. Of course we know that lady NJ officer just forgot to check the chamber of her service automatic before cleaning it. Someone not knowledgable about handguns would swear the gun was unloaded and the 'the devil loaded it.'

Can a gun go off when it is not supposed? It surely can when it is carelessly handled or stored. A loaded revovler put up in a closet can go off if someone rummaging up there for something else accidently knocked it down and it falls on the hammer and it doesn't have a firing pin block. A lot of older revolvers don't have a firing pin block. The same thing can happen with a 1911 even with the dubious grip safety that is supposed to keep this from happening.

I know of a lady who was killed when she yanked her son's .22 rifle from a closet where she had constantly told her son not to store his rifle. The rifle was loaded, the safety was off and the trigger snagged on a cloth hanger wire. About six months ago someone grabbed a towel from an ironning board not realizing that a gun was wrapped up the towel. The gun dropped on the floor and went off killing his little brother.

A car burned up and the heat detonated all the cartridges in the driver's gun. Some lady dropped her gun loose without a holster into her purse. Something got into the trigger guard and the gun accidently discharged without injurying anyone.

So you see, guns can go off accidently which is why the owner user must be intimately familiar with his weapon to prevent accidently discharges.

Best.

H

Answer 3

yep. I have seen at home trigger jobs that were less than stellar and more like stupid'' result slam fire"close the bolt to hard bam, drop it bam''. missing parts and springs are bad too.some times firing pins stick or trigger return springs fail turning a semi auto to just auto it's not fun cause it's not gonna stop till it's empty or jammed.slamming a double barrel or even a bolt gun shut with a protruding firing pin is quite an eye opener. That's why it says keep the muzzle pointed in a safe position. stuff happens I've seen it.It USUALLY but not always is neglect or at home gun smithing.buy a used gun better check it out. check the safety. only load two or three shell in a semi auto the first time. If you have some knowledge of guns check to see that the firing pin isn't stuck forward. hope I save some body some grief. good luck , be safe.

Answer 4

For the above post, I'm sure she says her finger was clear of the trigger! But I don't believe it.

A gun can discharge if there is a mechanical failure of the gun. Older guns had less mechanical safeties and it was these accidental discharges that prompted the development and use of mechanical safeties such as the firing pin block and the transfer bar for revolvers.

It is important to remember that most rifles have single action triggers and many of their safeties only block the trigger from releasing the hammer. So you have what amounts to less than a 1/16" of smooth metal holding back a tensioned hammer ready to spring forward, slamming into a firing pin and detonating a cartridge.

So the point is to all this, is that all firearms are mechanical objects and can fail. That is why it is so important that you use the 4 firearms rules.

1. Treat all weapons as if they are loaded.

2. Never point a weapon at anything you do not intend to shoot. (or could not live with blowing a hole through if you screw up!)

3. Keep your finger straight and off the trigger until you intend to fire. (Sights on target, finger on trigger, sights off target, finger off trigger.)

4. Keep weapon on safe until you intend to fire.


I have a couple I also use:

A. Frequently check the chamber to see if the chamber has a round in it. (Every time you pick it up, Every time you dry fire, Every time someone hands you a weapon, or you hand someone a weapon check the chamber for a live round and check the magazine.)

B. Some people do not worry about flagging or pointing the muzzle at others when a firearm is unloaded. This is negligent and irresponsible. There is always a safest direction to maneuver a firearm's muzzle.

Also remember the 4 weapon's conditions:

Condition 4, No magazine in the magazine well (or bullets in the magazine if no detachable magazine), Slide/Bolt forward on an empty chamber, weapon on safe.
= Metal Club / Hammer = Safe

Condition 3, Magazine inserted (loaded or unloaded) (or bullets in fixed magazine) Slide/Bolt forward on an empty chamber, weapon on safe.
= Metal Club / Hammer one step away from being gun = Safe and Almost Ready!

Condition 2, Applies to single action weapons with an external hammer that requires cocking to fire like the 1911 .45ACP. Same as "condition 1" but with hammer in a decocked position.

Condition 1, Loaded magazine inserted, Slide/Bolt forward on a live round in chamber, weapon on safe.
= Gun = Ready!

Answer 5

The only way that a modern, properly firearm will go off is if the ammo is 'cooked off' or to much heat is applied to the ammo. Modern firearms have two or three safeties including an internal one.

Now Pistols where the firing pin is on the hammer (such as the Peacemaker) might go off if the hammer is jarred and there is a round under the hammer. That's why in westerns they carried five rounds in the revovler.

Answer 6

It takes something to make the gun shoot, a gun just sitting on a table will not just go off all by itself. The gun cannot control itself, it is not cognitive of itself. It takes something, an outside force, to operate the mechanism that in turn fires the weapon. It could be a finger, or a tree branch, or any number of things gravity propelled, but a gun just sitting there, minding its own business without any outside forces, will not go off.

Answer 7

A retired police officer in NJ shot himself in the leg yesterday. How did it happen? He had his finger on the trigger as he placed the gun in its holster. This is an extremely rare event, but it can happen. Never put your finger on the trigger until you have the target in your sights.

Another NJ officer shot herself in the stomach while cleaning her duty weapon. How? She removed the magazine from the gun, but did not check and remove the live round from the firing chamber. She carelessly ignored two basic rules of gun handling: 1) Always treat a gun as if it was loaded, and 2) Always keep the muzzle pointed in a save direction.

Answer 8

Yes even experts have had "accidental discharges" I had one of my pistols go off when I dropped the hammer after taking the magazine out and jacking the slide back. What I didn't do was look into the chamber. I assumed that when I jacked the slide back it extracted the round.
It didn't.
What I did do that was correct was when I dropped the hammer, I had it pointed at the ground and down range. But when it went off I jumped 6 ft in the air. Well maybe not that high but it scared the heck out of me. I was glad I did something right out of all those mistakes.
Sarge

Answer 9

Simple. A few things can cause a gun to go off. Heat is one of the most reasonable things that may cause a round to discharge. Now most of the weapons produced in todays world will almost take any type of abuse and prevent a discharge of the round.

Answer 10

I was told a story about 2 chaps having a days rough shooting in Ireland.
The story goes...... 2 chaps walking either side of a hedge. They come to a point in the hedge and wish to meet up. "paddy" passes his loaded gun (barrels to himself, safety off) through the hedge. The trigger catches a twig and the gun goes off.
The bag for the day, 2 pheasants, 1 partridge, 3 rabbits and a "paddy".
Not sure about how true the story is but it makes you think.

Safe hunting guys.