Dry fire an R9?

[rfowler]

I know that this has probably been addressed before, but I can't find it. Can you dry fire the R9? Thanks!

[Richard S]

rfowler:

If I have not previously welcomed you to the Forum, I do so now.

As for dry firing the R9, I do it very rarely with mine. When I do, I always use snap-caps.  I prefer the A-Zoom brand marketed by Pachmayr:

http://www.lymanproducts.com/azoom/index.htm

On the general subject of dry firing a weapon, I personally consider it useful only to familiarize myself with the weapon's action and trigger mechanism prior to actually firing it for the first time, or to test the mechanism following reassembly. Repeated dry firing, in my opinion, causes unnecessary wear to the ignition system of a handgun and does little to improve trigger control under actual firing conditions. (Reasonable minds will differ.)

[pbwe]

I've dry fired my Makarov multi hundreds of times, with and without snap caps (I've needed a lot of practice).  I've inspected the firing pin under a loupe at least twice, and see nothing to suggest abnormal wear.  Using a tungsten carbide scribe shows the firing pin to be very hard, and if there is nothing to strike it seems it will just bounce within a definite clearance.  After 500 [known] rounds, the tip end of the firing pin shows no obvious deformation (fine turning marks visible to near the end).  Why would the Rohrbaugh be any different?

[PsychoSword]

The hardness of the commie block guns firing pins is exactly why they tend to break more often. A softer stainless steel firing pin is more prone to deformation and bending, but less prone to catastrophic breakage.

[pbwe]

Per my experience, your's would be the first and only indication of such breakage, for a Makarov.  Grain refined hardened steel materials can be, and regularly are, tough, easily well within the service requirement for a firing pin.  

Are you saying the firing pin of the Rohrbaugh is a stainless alloy, 17-4 PH perhaps?  Typical hardness for the treated material is 450-500 HV10, which is softish compared to [generic] tool steel.   Or may the aluminum alloy frame be the material contraint against dry firing, w/o a snap cap?  Does the manufacturer's literature indicate anything about this?

[rfowler]

Thanks for the help. I'm a cowboy shooter and dry fire my guns constantly for familarity and practice, thousands of times. Some guns are OK with it and some I do use the A-Zoom snap caps as mentioned. I think that they are the best. I guess better safe than sorry, but I thought that maybe somebody knew for sure what is recommended in this matter. Good shootin'

[Richard S]

rfowler:

I apologize for not having giving you a direct answer to your direct question. I know of nothing in the Rohrbaugh literature on the subject of dry firing the R9. However, there was one post back on November 10, 2004 in which "9mil.mouse" reported that, "When I spoke to Eric [Rohrbaugh] he didn't think that dry-firing it without a snap cap would do any harm . . . ."

http://www.rohrbaughforum.com/YaBB.cgi?board=R9S;action=display;num=1099918206;start=25#25