This is the Number 1 rule of firearms safety.
A firearm that is pointed away from everything will not
be able to injure anyone, should it have an accidental discharge.
Always treat every gun as though it was loaded. And always
keep track of where your muzzle is pointed, even when the
gun is unloaded.
Load your firearm only when you are ready
to shoot. When you get done shooting, make sure to unload
everything. Not just the chamber, be sure to unload the
magazines also. Keep the action open on your gun when it
is not in use. You should NEVER hand someone a gun with
the action closed, nor should you accept a gun from someone
without the action open, and then visually and physically
check to make sure the gun is empty.
Do not rely on the safety of your weapon
to prevent a round from firing. Safeties are mechanical
items, and therefore are susceptible to failure. Do not
have your finger anywhere near the trigger unless you are
preparing to fire the gun. Most accidental discharges are
caused by a trigger being activated with a finger placed
on it when the shooter was not planning on shooting.
A bullet fired out of a gun can travel in
excess of 1 mile. Make sure that you have a good, solid
backstop. If shooting at game, make sure that if you miss
(we all do from time to time), the bullet will not travel
beyond your line of sight.
Every gun is designed to shoot a specific
type of ammunition. There may be several names for the same
round of ammunition. If you are unsure of what your gun
shoots or what ammo you have, ask your local gunsmith. A
firearm may chamber a different caliber, but firing the
wrong ammunition could result in serious injury, dismemberment,
or even death.
If you squeeze the trigger and the round
does not fire, you may have a "hang-fire." Revert
to the First Rule; be aware of where your muzzle is pointed!
Keep your face away from the breech of your gun, put the
safety on, and carefully open the action. Take care to properly
dispose of the round. Remember, just because the round did
not fire, it is still a loaded round of ammunition, so treat
your gun as a loaded weapon.
You risk great damage to your eyes and /
or ears by not wearing proper protection. A stray fragment
from your ammunition could end up in your eye, there could
be a mis-loaded round that causes extra-high pressure and
creates a disaster; anything can happen. The noise created
by firing a firearm will damage your hearing after only
a few rounds, and ear plugs only cost a few cents. What
are your eyes and ears worth?
Before firing your gun, open the action,
and after making sure it is unloaded, look down the barrel
to ensure that you have not collected any debris in the
barrel. A small amount of dirt, snow, grease or even a stray
spider's nest could increase the pressure in your barrel
to the point where the gun could explode. Never try to shoot
an obstruction out of your barrel, you most certainly will
be injured, or at least ruin your firearm.
Your firearm was designed by engineers to
function a certain way. Modifying or dis-engaging any safeties
of portions of your firearm will only serve to endanger
you and possibly ruin your firearm. We recommend that you
only have your Hi-Point serviced by Hi-Point. After all,
who knows more about how the parts fit together that the
people who built it in the first place?
Guns from different manufacturers are very
different. The individual characteristics of each gun should
be learned inside and out before you chamber the first round.
Read the owner's manual before ever shooting any firearm,
no matter who made it. If you do not have an operation and
safety sheet for your Hi-Point firearm, call (419) 747-9444
and one will be sent to you at no charge.
When your Hi-Point firearm is not in use,
it should be unloaded and stored in a safe place that is
not accessible to children or other unauthorized person.
It should not be stored with ammunition readily at hand.
It should always be stored with the trigger lock in place.
If you do not have a trigger lock for your Hi-Point firearm,
call (419) 747-9444 and one will be sent to you at no charge.
Firearms
can be a great source of good, clean, family entertainment;
but only by following appropriate safety measures will the
activity be safe and enjoyable.
Have
fun, if you need any further assistance, feel free to contact
us here.
