Our top priority at Long Rifle Nation is to be an active proponent of firearm safety and the proper use of guns. Learning the proper gun safety is of the utmost importance for the usage of firearms of any type. The safety rules for gun usage must top of mind at all times, with no exceptions for even a minute while using guns. This is our list of ground rules that are always to be followed. If the gun in your possession or the possession of the minors you are supervising discharged negligently, it could cause injury or death which would be an impossible event. Firearms almost never malfunction - so we are using "negligent" as opposed to "accidental" which is very rare. Most often the unintentional firing of a gun means that the shooter was not following a proper firearms safety protocol.
FIREARMS SAFETY - PREVENT UNSAFE GUN HANDLING AND NEGLIGENT USE AND DISCHARGES
- Treat every firearm like it is loaded, even if you have checked and it is not loaded.
- Keep the firearm pointed in a safe direction, never point your weapon at anything you are not willing to destroy.
- Know your target, know what it is and what is behind it and the capabilities of your firearm and ammo. Never fire a shot towards anything you don’t know what is behind it.
- Keep your finger off the trigger and outside the trigger guard until you are ready to shoot.
Treat every firearm like it is loaded, even if you have checked and it is not loaded.
Every time you pick up a firearm or if someone, no matter who hands the gun to you (even if they say it is not loaded), always double-check yourself to make sure that it is not loaded. You should do this automatically - it should be second nature to you. Once you have verified that it is not loaded, then you still need to treat the firearm as though it is capable of firing.
Keep the firearm pointed in a safe direction, never point your weapon at anything you are not willing to destroy.
How to keep the firearm pointed in a safe direction?
- Firing line at the shooting range - point the firearm downrange
- Home or other locations - The gun's muzzle should never cross the body line of a person, or anything that you are not willing to destroy.
Know your target, know what it is and what is behind it and the capabilities of your firearm and ammo. Never fire a shot towards anything you don’t know what is behind it.
When you are shooting a gun, you need to ask yourself first where is the bullet going to land? Is it going to hit a dwelling that possibly has humans behind the wall? You need to know and be aware of the power your gun and ammunition has. Responsible gun owners will not take a self-defense shot if firing the gun will put innocent people in danger. Outdoor sportsman needs to be able to identify that their target is clear and if they are hunting that the object is indeed the animal, they are hunting for, making sure there are no other hunters or hikers, etc. behind or near the target where they could be in danger of being shot.
Keep your finger off the trigger, and outside the trigger guard until you are ready to shoot.
Moving around with your finger in the trigger guard is a disaster waiting to happen. No matter what type of gun this is, it is the unsafe handling of firearms. Always keep your finger off the trigger and out of the trigger guard until you are on target and ready to fire.