Educate Me About the Single Six "Safety" Issue

[doc540]

As a teenage I shot thousands and thousands of rounds through my 1967 three screw long before the transfer bar upgrade.

Back then, we loaded all six cylinders and always put the gun on "quarter cock", lifting the hammer off the firing pin.

It just became a habit of operating a Single Six.

Was that not sufficient to make it safe then?

I recently bought a 1968 and will shoot it a bit.

It hasn't been "upgraded" with the transfer bar system.

So, how necessary do you think the conversion is "safety-wise"?

and thanks

(I'm guessing this might have been explained, beaten, and argued to death by now. So, my apology in advance.)

 

[Double Maduro]

The problem is that even with the hammer on the "safety notch" if it is dropped it COULD discharge.

Now the safety mod is not necessary IF you load one round, skip one chamber, load four more, pull the hammer back all the way and then lower it gently. This positions the hammer over an empty chamber.

This is the way it was done in the old west, and the way it is done today.

I hope this helped,
DM

 

[doc540]

The problem is that even with the hammer on the "safety notch" if it is dropped it COULD discharge.

Now the safety mod is not necessary IF you load one round, skip one chamber, load four more, pull the hammer back all the way and then lower it gently. This positions the hammer over an empty chamber.

This is the way it was done in the old west, and the way it is done today.

I hope this helped,
DM

Yes, I understand that an empty chamber is, ultimately, the safest method.

I just didn't know that the quarter-cock position was still such a liability!

And, to think, we carried like that all those years. :shock:

 

[flatgate]

I've encountered quite a few OM Rugers with broken quarter cock notches and as many with broken half cock notches on the hammers. I always wonder what the actual cause of such damage was......

I strongly believe in the "Hammer Down Over An Empty Chamber" procedure and will NOT do otherwise.

flatgate

 

[P90]

I definitely recommend carrying on a empty, if you don't have a transfer bar. I dropped a Blackhawk 30 Cal. on a Tile over Concrete floor, and it fired.

 

[Cholo]

Before I bought my 1 st handgun, I carried a borrowed Colt SA with the .22 mag. cylinder loaded full. I simply didn't know. Wouldn't do it now.

Dang P90, what got a hole in it? :shock:

 

[ranger1]

I would leave it as is, and of course carry with the hammer down over an empty cylinder. Remember the old expression? "Five Beans in the Wheel"

If you feel you need for all six rounds, you could add a New Model to your collection. :wink:

 

[doc540]

In my advanced years I've begun to heed good advice.

"Hammer on an empty chamber" it will be from here on out.

thanks for your counsel

 

[P90]

Before I bought my 1 st handgun, I carried a borrowed Colt SA with the .22 mag. cylinder loaded full. I simply didn't know. Wouldn't do it now.

Dang P90, what got a hole in it? :shock:

My billfold and credit cards. It went in above my knee, behind the bone and came out at the hip, in my billfold. Was lucky at that. Wife was about one step away when I dropped it. Could have killed her, or me either one. Don't take but one mistake with a gun, for it to be the last one.

 

[Stoots]

Before I bought my 1 st handgun, I carried a borrowed Colt SA with the .22 mag. cylinder loaded full. I simply didn't know. Wouldn't do it now.

Dang P90, what got a hole in it? :shock:

My billfold and credit cards. It went in above my knee, behind the bone and came out at the hip, in my billfold. Was lucky at that. Wife was about one step away when I dropped it. Could have killed her, or me either one. Don't take but one mistake with a gun, for it to be the last one.

Wow.

Glad it wasn't worse. Thanks for sharing that; it's a powerful reminder.

 

[Cholo]

Glad you're still here to post about it!

With the surge in SA's from the 50's till now, just think how many more accidents like that would have happened if Ruger, in particular, hadn't gone to the transfer bar. I love my old unconverted SA's, but I think the general population is better served with the NM's.

 

[tailwind]

Good thread. I sometimes load my OM bearcat with six when I am actively using it. Never again. Thanks.

 

[flatgate]

Good stuff put out by SR&Co.

flatgate

 

[contender]

I have to echo everything Flatgate posted. While you may not have ever had any problems,, as noted above,, by P90,,, we do not want it to happen to anyone else.
Safety first!!!!!

 

[bspitt]

what about the new models or old ones with the tansfer bar installed...do any of you guys still practice "hammer down on an empty round"?

 

[contender]

In my NM's,, I carry 6. NONE of my OM's have had that rough "safety transfer bar" upgrade.

 

[Hondo44]

what about the new models or old ones with the tansfer bar installed...do any of you guys still practice "hammer down on an empty round"?

No, I do not. I've tested every single transfer bar gun that I handle by dropping the hammer on a loaded round under safe conditions with my finger off of the trigger. That's been a lot of guns over the years and I've never had one go off. Not to say it couldn't happen but I have complete confidence in Ruger's transfer bar system.

However, no mechanical device is foolproof and nothing competes with common sense for foolproof safety. When you see an idiot with a gun in hand, even one that's transfer bar equipped, with finger in the trigger guard and not ready to engage a target, you know no mechanical safety will save him from himself!!

 

[Hondo44]

As a teenage I shot thousands and thousands of rounds through my 1967 three screw long before the transfer bar upgrade.

Back then, we loaded all six cylinders and always put the gun on "quarter cock", lifting the hammer off the firing pin.

It just became a habit of operating a Single Six.

Was that not sufficient to make it safe then?

I recently bought a 1968 and will shoot it a bit.

It hasn't been "upgraded" with the transfer bar system.

So, how necessary do you think the conversion is "safety-wise"?

and thanks

(I'm guessing this might have been explained, beaten, and argued to death by now. So, my apology in advance.)

Using the safety notch was definitely better than not using it. However, as you read above they weren't safe enough. When a gun drops it is butt heavy and usually falls with the barrel pointing up and if the hammer with safety notch engaged strikes a hard surface the safety notch will shear off and fire the round under it almost without fail.

Also many cowpokes in the old days learned the hard way about not having an empty chamber under the hammer when cinching up their saddle and the stirrup slipped off of the horn on the saddle and struck the hammer on their holstered gun, shooting themselves in the leg.

 

[JSam]

MOST excellent topic. Safety must always be forefront in our minds.

 

[FunkyD]

With my new model Single 6, it's always load-all-6.

With the 22 mag revolver I had before it, it was hammer-on-empty.