Press check hell

[WillBrink]

Seen this more times than I would like to admit with uniformed officers during quals also. We also frowned on those same officers from doing a press check because of the out of battery issues they created. Just getting them to always put their thumb on the back of the slide when holstering was enough of a challenge. David.

That would be a training issue no? For myself, never had a failure due to out of battery issue due a press check, but did have a few times where I had a click and no bang due to mag not fully seated at the worst possible time, at least as it relates to IDPA stages. So, a press check before a stage, or Done correctly and at the appropriate time, I'd think a safely performed press check has more pros then cons. Not my lane however but I have trained with/been to the range with, enough LEOs to experience the, err, umm, gun handling skills that are the norm...

[dwhitehorne]

That would be a training issue no?

Training issue, yes. Two day transition from the P2000 to the P320 with approximately 600 rounds fired was training on the P320. About two hours of trigger time on day one and 5ish hours on day two for the one time transition course and I had to put up a fight to get a two day course approved.

Semi annually: 52 rounds in the pistol qual, 36 rounds in the reduced light qual and 3 pistol rounds during the shotgun qual. Quals are not training though. The officers that are rifle trained get 2 pistol rounds at the end of the rifle qual course quarterly. If they actually attend every quarter.

Not much firearms training going on in LE so press checks are not covered. Keeping the slide in battery is stressed. We definitely did get our annual 8 hours of EEO training in though. David

[TomMcC]

I have watched a lot of guys in gun games get that first round click because they did not seat the mag all the way when they "load and make ready." A simple press check would have caught that. Plus they use super high cap mags with no extra room for the round to give when it hits the bottom of the slide when seated.

When I load a fresh mag during an administrative load, I ALWAYS pull on it to make sure it's locked. Whether a pistol or AR. That's what I was taught and that's what works for me.

[titsonritz]

When I load a fresh mag during an administrative load, I ALWAYS pull on it to make sure it's locked. Whether a pistol or AR. That's what I was taught and that's what works for me.

Same here

[Bret]

I have watched a lot of guys in gun games get that first round click because they did not seat the mag all the way when they "load and make ready." A simple press check would have caught that. Plus they use super high cap mags with no extra room for the round to give when it hits the bottom of the slide when seated.

I’m not a LEO, but I’d think that a gun that won’t lock the magazine and feed 100% of the time is not the proper setup for duty use. I know that I’d never carry one that exhibited such issues. At the same time, I understand why it might be worth the risk in sport shooting.

[joedirt199]

My right hand thumb is up high enough that it semi-rests on the slide stop of my glock 22. Has kept the slide from locking back numerous times. Tried the aftermarket forward mounted slide stop and using the grip extensions to move my hand further back on the pistol. No luck. My other guns it's not a problem.

[TomMcC]

I’m not a LEO, but I’d think that a gun that won’t lock the magazine and feed 100% of the time is not the proper setup for duty use. I know that I’d never carry one that exhibited such issues. At the same time, I understand why it might be worth the risk in sport shooting.

Gamers that know what they're doing are quite concerned with reliability and their zeros. Want to ruin your match....have an unreliable and not zeroed gun. Not locking a mag into a gun is usually a rookie mistake in my experience. Many times you can spot a rookie or semi rookie by the way they handle their gun like it's a delicate flower or they sort of fumble around with it. About the first thing I learned when I started 3gun years ago was, make sure your guns are reliable and know your zeroes.

[WillBrink]

I’m not a LEO, but I’d think that a gun that won’t lock the magazine and feed 100% of the time is not the proper setup for duty use. I know that I’d never carry one that exhibited such issues. At the same time, I understand why it might be worth the risk in sport shooting.

It can happen with any pistol. They don't allow super high cap mags in IDPA, but a mag not fully seated is a mag not fully seated. I have never had an out of battery issue doing a press check after the "load and make ready" but before holstering to shoot a stage or before a course of fire at a course, but have seen and experienced a click, and no bang, early on, and that is really a drag in IDPA, and must be the loudest sound in the world if during a life/death situation I would imagine. For myself, the risk/benefit of making sure there's one in the pipe when loading seems warranted to risk of a out of battery issue issue, which you will at least know about on the spot.

That's my non expert/non SME POV which may bot get approval from said group here.

[titsonritz]

I’m not a LEO, but I’d think that a gun that won’t lock the magazine and feed 100% of the time is not the proper setup for duty use. I know that I’d never carry one that exhibited such issues. At the same time, I understand why it might be worth the risk in sport shooting.

The question is not will it lock the magazine 100% but rather will it lock the magazine 100% on a close bolt/slide, which has lead to things like down loading mags and the push pull technique.

[Bret]

When I load an empty carry gun I:
1) Load a magazine to its fullest capacity
2) insert that magazine in the pistol with the slide back
3) Release the slide
4) Verify that the slide is fully forward
5) Drop the magazine
6) Add another cartridge to the magazine
7) Insert the magazine back in the pistol
8) Tug on the bottom of the magazine to verify that it’s fully seated
Given the above, the gun has to be loaded and in battery. I feel no need to verify that there’s a cartridge in the chamber. If there isn’t one in the chamber after (3), I would not be able to accomplish (6). I understand that this wouldn’t apply to sport shooting as you’re not allowed to top off a magazine.