Stay Gun Safe: 5 Firearm Safety Rules Everyone Should Know
You have a right to own a gun, but you need to be a responsible owner, too. Read on for some essential firearm safety rules.
More than 40 percent of U.S. households are home to a firearm.
While concealed carry license and gun education programs help to educate the public on firearm safety, not all gun owners know how to keep themselves and their loved ones safe.
Keep reading to learn 5 firearms safety rules that everyone should know.
1. Never Point the Gun Towards Someone
This is perhaps the most important rule for staying safe around firearms.
Guns aren’t dangerous on their own. What is dangerous is negligence, getting too comfortable around firearms, and not knowing how to properly handle them.
Any of these situations can lead to accidents. Keeping guns pointed in a safe direction can prevent those accidents.
Even if a gun isn’t loaded or the safety is on, keep the muzzle of your firearm aimed in a safe direction. This means pointed towards the ground, away from people, walls, or the sides of buildings.
That way if the gun were to accidentally discharge, the risk of someone getting hit, or the bullet hitting the person holding the gun, is reduced.
2. Store Your Firearm Unloaded
Unless you are a trained gun owner keeping your firearm in a locked safe, you should never store your gun loaded.
Storing a loaded gun in your home can lead to accidents. Even if it is well-hidden, children could stumble across it and accidentally fire it.
3. Keep Guns Locked in a Safe
Simply storing your guns unloaded isn’t enough.
A break-in could put your firearm in the wrong hands. Older children who know enough about guns to load them, but not enough to handle them properly, can cause a dangerous accident.
That’s why it’s always best to store your gun in a safe. It’s also a good idea to store your guns separately from your ammo, just in case.
4. Know Your Gun Before You Use it
Just because you know how to handle a gun doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re ready to handle any gun.
Each firearm is unique. Before you try handling a new gun, make sure that you know how it works. Learn how to open and close the action, and how to properly load and unload the firearm before taking it to a range.
You’ll find most of the gun information you need in your manual. If you’re buying a used or vintage firearm that didn’t come with a manual, do your research online or talk with an expert before trying to fire it.
5. Clean Your Firearm Regularly
Older firearms needed to be cleaned to prevent them from misfiring or not firing at all.
While modern guns, like Sig Sauer guns, are designed to hold up to wear and tear and will usually work just fine when they’re dirty, it’s still important to clean your gun regularly.
It’s not the cleaning that is so important, but instead the process. When you clean your firearm, you’ll have to open it up and take it apart. This gives you a chance to inspect the inner parts.
Parts of your gun can break or wear down over time. This can leave your gun inoperable. Inspecting it regularly will give you a chance to check for bad or broken parts so that you can repair or replace them to prevent an accident.
Mastering Firearm Safety Rules
Whether you are an avid gun collector or a new firearm owner, gun safety is a must.
These firearm safety rules are only the beginning. If you haven’t already, it’s a good idea to look into local gun safety courses before you take your new piece to the range.
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I’m a single mother of 2 living in Utah writing about startups, business, marketing, entrepreneurship, and health. I also write for Inc, Score, Manta, and Newsblaze
In addition to first point: Always, always treat your gun as it’s loaded. Even if you’re sure it’s not loaded – treat as if it’s loaded!