...was high on my list of things to do this week. I just have not gotten the chance to go to the range though, but still really wanted very badly to test it to see if I got it back together right. The thought crossed my mind that I could load it with CB caps and shoot it at a target/backstop area that I could set up in my basement. They are 22 Short not 22LR but they would work enough for me to see if I got the trigger mechanism in there right to propel the firing pin forward. I thought it over and decided I really did not want to or need to be shooting bullets inside my house so I passed, mostly because of possible safety issues.
Then, I remembered that I had two containers of blanks, both 22 caliber. One is about the size of a 22 short shell, the other was about 3/4 the size of a 22LR. I opted for the latter, loaded one into the magazine, inserted the mag, pulled back the bolt and let it slingshot forward and the rifle actually loaded that smaller off sized cartridge. I aimed it in a safe direction, gave a squeeze of the trigger and it went BANG! I then had to manually operate the action because there was not enough recoil from the blank to do so. Then I loaded a second one and tried again. BANG a second time. I would have to say it appears pretty positive, I got it reassembled correctly - whoopee!
I lit a couple of scented candles to cover the telltale aroma of the gun powder but when my son came home about 15 minutes later he asked: "Is something burning? What's that smell?" I told him I had shot off a round in the basement, to which he said "WHAT". I then told him what really had transpired and he said "Cool". It was surprising how long that very noticeable odor remained despite the scented candles having been lit, in fact I was a bit surprised he did not recognize it right away. Then again, maybe he just did not want to believe that I had fired a gun in the house. Oh well, what's a guy to do when there was a gun just waiting to be test fired. Remember, they were only blanks and shooting them was certainly better than shooting actual bullets in my house and a whole lot safer too! By the way, even though I was only shooting starter gun blanks, I made darned sure to have the muzzle pointed in a safe direction. That included one that was bullet proof (just in case there was some sort of unexpected projectile in the casing) and one that was fireproof because as with any live round these contained gunpowder and gun powder produces muzzle flash and muzzle flash is nothing more than fire, some still burning powder, some unburned powder and hot gases.
Yep - it is a good idea to consider safety even with blanks. If you ever use blanks, never fool around with them or with a gun loaded with them. Firing blanks at others can cause harm and in some instances they have been known to cause death. Shoot safe, stay safe.
All the best,
Glenn B
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