SR9 storage questions

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Anonymous

Hey everyone, new pistol owner here. I recently picked up an SR9 from a local gun show, however it is my first handgun. Due to some recent strange activity around the neighborhood I decided that we need to start using this gun as a home defense weapon. Since I have never used a handgun in this fashion, I had a few questions for the experts....

I don't have any kids or anything to worry about. Just me and the wife, who is all for using this as a self defense tool.

Firstly, is safe to keep an SR9 chambered while "semi-cocked" ?(gun semi-cocks itself when you chamber the first round). I always thought that weapons such as a glock or the sr9 are considered "safe-action", meaning that they cannot fire unless the trigger, and small trigger insert are pulled. What happens if the gun is bumped or dropped in this configuration? Is there potential for a misfire even though the striker is only semi-cocked?

Secondly, does this configuration put any wear on the springs that operate the striker or anything else?

Also, just a general question..... In general, is it best to keep a striker fired weapon like the sr9 semi-cocked or not cocked at all. I would image that for just general storage, the non-cocked configuration would be best, but what do you think?
 

Grendel

Single-Sixer
Joined
Jan 26, 2008
Messages
215
Location
FL
There are numerous safeties to prevent the gun from going off without the trigger being pulled. In addition, there is the manual ambi safety. Keeping the gun ready, even with the manual safety off, should be perfectly safe, as long as you follow the Four Rules.

Their shouldn't be any issues with wear with the striker-fired system, and the gun shouldn't go off until it's meant to or unless somebody does something outright stupid with it.

My SR9 is stored with one in the pipe, a full 17-rounds in the mag. All I need to do is drop the safety. I wouldn't dream of storing a self-defense gun without one in the chamber. Storing a self-defense gun without one in the chamber means you have two chambers unloaded: the one in the gun and the one in your skull.

-JT
 

Ski

Bearcat
Joined
Dec 26, 2007
Messages
69
Location
Minnesota
+1 to Grendel's comments. If the SR/9 is to be used as a self-defense gun in your house, then you need to keep it ready to use in self-defense and that means with one in the chamber and a full magazine in the gun. I would also encourage you to research the various ways available for storing and keeping your SR/9 handy for quick use should you need it. Do some roll playing with your spouse considering various senarios and most importantly, practice with the gun ... both of you!!

I would add the following for clarification on the term storage. In my home, there is "ready to use/self-defense" storage and general or "not ready to use" storate. I have a variety of firearms some of which are not intended for everyday self-defense purposes and some of which are rotated in and out of self-defense status. If the firearm is out of self-defense status I store it unloaded, hammer/striker/fireing pin released. Others may do things differently with their firearms.
 

Jumping Frog

Bearcat
Joined
Jun 11, 2009
Messages
90
Grendel":2u9f060r said:
Storing a self-defense gun without one in the chamber means you have two chambers unloaded: the one in the gun and the one in your skull.
Now that is both funny and true!

Regarding cocked versus decocked. For all practical purposes, it makes no difference. Assuming spring movement is kept within elastic limits, which it would be in this case, keeping a spring compressed does not wear it out. It is the act of cycling between loading and unloading a spring that wears it out.

BTW, if you live in one of the 40-odd "free states", why not get yourself a concealed carry license and carry it all the time?

If you live in one of the non-free states like Illinois, then my sympathies to you.
 
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