The Atlanta Pink Pistols

[straightshooter]

No matter what kind of gun you own or operate, there are a few basic safety rules that you should learn! There are many versions of the basic gun safety rules, and some lists are much longer than others. In my opinion, the four basic rules coined by Colonel Jeff Cooper are the most basic set of rules that will help all of us avoid unfortunate firearms related incidents.

1. Always treat guns as if they are loaded.
It's common sense, really. A gun is a tool that has the potential to injure or kill people. You wouldn't put your hand under the blade of an electric miter saw just because you "thought it was unplugged," would you? When you encounter a gun, you should always assume it's loaded and treat it with care.

2. Never let the muzzle of a gun cover anything you are not willing to destroy.
This rule is sometimes paraphrased as "Never point a gun at anything you don't intend to shoot." Once again, guns are tools that have the potential to injure or kill people. Handling such a powerful tool should not be taken lightly. Do not point a gun at anything or anybody unless you are prepared to destroy the target and accept any possible consequences of that action.

3. Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on the target.
This is another good rule that will prevent you from hurting yourself or others. No matter what kind of fancy safety levers and switches your gun has (or doesn't have), a gun in good working order will not fire until you pull the trigger. If you're following the first two rules, you should always have your gun pointed in a safe direction, but there will be times when your gun is not pointed at a target that you intend to shoot, like when you're drawing the gun or returning it to a holster. The only reason to have your finger on the trigger is to pull the trigger! When you don't want to shoot, it's a good idea to take your finger off the trigger and lay it outside the trigger guard, parallel to the barrel of the weapon. If you took the gun out of your hand while you were doing this, it would look like you were pointing at your target with your trigger finger.

4. Always be sure of your target and backstop.
Bullets can travel a long distance if you miss your target. Even if you hit your target, your bullets could go through it and into whatever lays beyond the target. There's also the issue of hard targets that could shatter or cause a bullet to ricochet. Think about your target. Think about what's beyond the target.
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Atlanta Pink Pistols Member
GeorgiaCarry.Org Member
GA Firearms License
03 Federal Firearms License

[Gunssmoke]

This is an important set of rules, and short enough to memorize.
Bumping it, to make it more visible.

P.S. At some shooting ranges, the normal practice is to lay down your empty gun on the table for a "cease fire" and when the range is called "safe" you will walk in front of your gun (and everybody else's) to the target area to put up new targets or just check your group.

But at such ranges, there's usually a safety officer who will instruct everybody to open their guns' actions and leave them open, and the range officer / safety officer will walk down the line and visually inspect every gun to be sure it's chamber-empty, magazine empty (or out), and action locked open. Only then is the firing line called "safe."

Other ranges will require you to stick a "chamber flag" or "open bolt indicator" into the chamber. This bright piece of yellow or orange plastic sticks up to give very visible proof that your gun is temporarily disabled.

And while anybody is down range, in front of the firing line, NOBODY can touch a gun for any reason, even if they're not trying to load it.

As far as Rules 1, 3, and 4, I can't think of a single instance where it is acceptable to violate those rules.