dry fire - good or bad?

[Kratos]

Appleseed teaches that dry firing is great practice.  On a different firearms forum I read the following this week:

"Since the firing pin hits the edge of the case rim, rather than the center, think about if there's no case in there.  Some .22s allow the firing pin to go all the way and smack into the edge of the breech face. Do this enough, and it can deform the edge, causing issues with seating, etc.  Some have a firing pin block (like recent Ruger 22/45s) that prevent this. Others, like the Buckmark, will start peening the breech face."

I don't see how the firing pin could ever hit the feed ramp or any metal around the breech.  It hits the rim of the cartridge, which is situated just outside of the breech.  The only way the firing pin could hit any metal around the breech is if it extended far enough when a cartridge isn't present in the breech because the case isn't obstructing the firing pin's path.

Thoughts?

[funfaler]

Simple fix, get snap caps and never worry about it, makes giving yourself ball and dummy drill easier too.  Load 2-3 mags with snap caps in different positions in the mags, mix the mags up and you won't know when the "dummy" is coming.

Alternate suggestion:  If your manual does not address the issue of dry firing, contact the manufacture and ask.

The 10/22 is OK to dry fire.

Second Alternate suggestion:  Don't dry fire your 22, dry fire your centerfire rifles, shoot the 22 at the range.

[Fred]

    This 'knowledge' relates mainly to early rifles, and has been superceded decades ago by better design (like the cited Ruger firing pin block) and better metalurgy (so that repeated strikes of firing pin on breech face don't deform anything).

     While not being a metalurgist and not having tested every modern .22 rimfire (so can't say from direct personal experience), the above info is believed to be correct.

     Any .22 made prior to 1960 I prob would be cautious about dry-firing; any made a decade after that date I might keep an eye on the breech face to see if any probs are developing; any made after 1970 I wouldn't worry about.

     .22 firing pins are generally cheap; I'd have a couple of extras in my spare parts kit, along with any pins that hold them in place.

[DuaneRN]

I'd rather wear a .22 out with dry firing than miss the target at the range and waste ammo.

[TOMINCT]

Some firearms, by design, are prone to the chamber peening problem. Competitive smallbore shooters used to carry spent 22 cases for the purpose of inserting them into the chamber prior to dry firing without the potential of damaging the chamber. The firearms were typically high end target rifles (Win 52, Anschutz) where the peening could get bad enough to cause misfires, as barrel steel is 'softer' than most firing pins. It seems that some newer designs have pins or stops to eliminate the problem, but they may wear or break from heavy usage. It would be worthwhile to look at your chamber occasionally to see if a burr or dent starts to show up if you don't use cases or snap caps. FWIW Brownells makes a tool to iron or swage the displaced metal back into place if it gets bad enough. So I guess you will have to determine what is the best course to take, with your current LTR, to suit yor needs.

[Kratos]

I should have included that the poster made a blanket statement that ALL firearms shouldn't be dry fired, and gave those specific reasons for .22 when I asked "why not".  It sounded like bad info to me, so wanted to check here where I felt I'd get reliable answers.

[DuaneRN]

FYI. You can file a little relief in the breech face of a Browning Buckmark.  I did it to mine so it would hurt it dry firing.

[VAshooter]

If you have a 22 RF that does allow the firing pin to strike the face of the barrel steal a refrigerator magnet, the thin rubbery kind, and cut it to fit your barrel face. When you want to dry fore simply apply it to the face of the barrel, the magnet will hold it in place, and dry fire away. The thickness of the rubber is enough to keep the firing pin from touching the barrel. I've always used this on semi autos. Some bolt guns may lock up too tight to do this.

VAshooter

[Panama]

Here's a little practice technique I use and teach for dry fire practice. Once I am in position and set for my natural POA, I place a dime on the barrel of my rifle just behind the front sight. I then line up my shot and squeeze the trigger. I check to make sure I am still on target and the dime is still where I placed it. Once I confirm this I release the trigger. The dime should stay put here also.

If the dime falls off you are either jerking the trigger or flinching. If you cannot figure out which, have someone watch you do this drill. It will be fairly easy to tell.

[SamD]

Fred is absolutely correct.
Late model rimfires went to "short" firing pins in the late 60's and will seldom cause a problem.
Firing pins are cheap too and well worth the expense of a spare.

Most older designs can be modified to create a firing pin that is too short to strike the breech face.

Do not under any circumstances try to file the burr out of the way. You create a loose spot in the chamber at that point, teh case will expand to fill teh void and since it is rough , the cases sledom extract after that.
If you booger up your chamber buy one of these   http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=8869/Product/_22_CHAMBER_IRONING_TOOL.  A real steal compared to a new barrel too 
A nice neat tool that will clean up the dent/burr and put you back on the line in a very short time.

To get back on topic "dry fire- good or bad 
Dry fire is MANDATORY

Sam

[spitstickler]

If you have a 10/22 you are 100% good to go dry-firing as per the Ruger website FAQs: http://ruger.com/Firearms/FAQs?site=Firearm&cat=4

Question: Can I dry fire my Ruger rifle?

Answer: Yes. All Ruger rifles can be dry fired without damage, and dry firing can be useful to familiarize the owner with the firearm. However, be sure any firearm is completely unloaded before dry firing!