Top Tips for Firearms Safety

Many American families grow up in the presence of guns. Both hunting and recreational sports shooting are popular pastimes practiced by generations of Americans. As a result, there is a relatively high rate of literacy among the general population when it comes to safety relating to firearms ownership and usage. Despite this, there are still far too many tragic accidents every year where people are killed or injured in avoidable firearms accidents.

Being a responsible gun owner means understanding both the more common safety considerations and the lesser known hazards that come along with using a firearm. The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) claims that virtually all firearms accidents that occur in the home are preventable and could be avoided if homeowners were more conscious of their safety obligations.

Only Point the Muzzle When You Intend to Shoot

One of the most basic and most important safety considerations for firearms owners is that you should never point the gun at anything that you don’t intend to shoot. This applies whether you believe the gun is loaded or not. The reasoning behind this should be obvious: your gun can’t physically shoot what it isn’t pointed at.

Accidental discharges of firearms are thankfully rare, but they do occur, and they can present a very serious hazard. Avoiding pointing your gun at anything that you don’t intend to shoot is a good habit to get into to improve your general discipline and proficiency.

Keep Your Finger off the Trigger

This tip goes hand in hand with the above advice. Not only should your gun never be pointed at anything that you aren’t intending to shoot, but you should also never put your finger on the trigger until you are preparing to fire. The trigger guard of a firearm is the natural place to rest your finger and will prevent you from accidentally discharging the weapon.

Practice at a Well-Ventilated Firing Range

Recent evidence suggests that firing weapons in ranges with poor ventilation, as is the case for many police firing ranges, means shooters are at risk of developing lead poisoning. Exposure to lead from shooting firearms is an underappreciated risk.

Keep Your Gun Unloaded

When a gun is not being used, it should be kept unloaded. This will avoid situations where someone picks up a firearm from its storage location and assumes that it is unloaded, and it will also mean that should the gun fall into the wrong hands, it won’t be a deadly weapon.

Know Your Firearm

Although many people neglect to, it is always worth reading the manual for any gun that you have. This won’t only help you to understand the best practices for handling and operating your firearm, it will also give you some insight into the engineering and mechanical aspects that are vital to routine maintenance.

Practicing good firearms safety isn’t difficult; in fact, it is mostly a case of simply applying common sense. However, it is always worth revising your family’s firearms safety knowledge to ensure that everyone understands how important good practices are.