# snap caps,, Does dry snapping a 1911 hurt it?



## budgetprepp-n (Apr 7, 2013)

I was thinking of using 45s with no primer or power for a snap cap.
That would be like dry snapping it. Would it hurt my 1911 to do that?


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## Denton (Sep 18, 2012)

I can't say for a fact that dry firing is bad for the 1911, but I use snap caps to make sure. I don't need a cracked firing pin.


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## Slippy (Nov 14, 2013)

https://blog.springfield-armory.com/beginners-guide-to-dry-firing


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## sideKahr (Oct 15, 2014)

If you do decide to dry fire with snap caps, get the good ones with spring cushioned primers. I got a set off Amazon that had simulated metal primers that dented on first use then after that did not act to cushion the firing pin.









Don't neglect cycling the slide on a new gun, it helps to smooth out the action's mating surfaces.


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## Kauboy (May 12, 2014)

sideKahr said:


> Don't neglect cycling the slide on a new gun, it helps to smooth out the action's mating surfaces.


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## sideKahr (Oct 15, 2014)

Yeah, baby!


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## RedLion (Sep 23, 2015)

Typically dry firing will not harm a 1911 or other centerfire firearm. You want to avoid dry firing rimfires though. Even using a fired brass will suffice to prevent any damage.


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## dwight55 (Nov 9, 2012)

If you want to go on the cheap, . . . take a once fired .45 ACP round, . . . knock out the fired primer. Then take a small pencil eraser, . . . stuff it into the primer hole, . . . with a sharp knife blade, cut it flush with the case, . . . and you have a good snap cap.

I'm not a gunsmith, . . . nor an armorer, . . . but I've always been told not to dry fire a 1911 "excessively". Don't know how to define that term, . . . so I just don't do it.

Last thing in this world I ever want to hear is my 1911 going "snap" in a firefight. I try to protect it from even "possible" problems.

May God bless,
Dwight


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## Hemi45 (May 5, 2014)

dwight55 said:


> Last thing in this world I ever want to hear is my 1911 going "snap" in a firefight. I try to protect it from even "possible" problems.
> 
> May God bless,
> Dwight


Reminds me of an old saying ... the loudest sound on Earth is a 'click' when you needed to hear a 'bang'.


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## Kauboy (May 12, 2014)

Safety in dry firing is all about using your head.
Ask yourself how a gun operates with a round chambered.
Then ask yourself what's different about the operation when a round isn't chambered.

On a hammer fired pistol, you have a striking face hitting a smaller surface and driving the firing pin into the primer of a cartridge. This means you have two impact points. One between the hammer and the firing pin, and one between the firing pin and the primer. These parts are hardened, and designed to operate in that striking order, transferring the energy from the main spring to the hammer strut to the hammer to the firing pin and then to the primer. All of these are expected to be transferring that energy to the next thing in line. If any are missing, you get a different result.
When only the final piece is missing, a primer to hit, where does the energy go? The firing pin will still be struck, and move forward. What happens when nothing is there to take the engineered impact?
In this case, the firing pin hits nothing, and therefore transfers ALL of its energy to the firing pin spring. Depending on your model, it can also progress further into the chamber and contact the wall of the hole the pin normally protrudes from. This can cause excessive wear on the firing pin spring, as well as the firing pin itself.
Are you likely to notice this wear on a well made gun? No. Not unless you repeat it a few thousand times. The gun is mostly designed to deal with the forces at work. A little dry fire practice here and there won't cause any significant damage.

That said, giving the firing pin something else to take that energy can never hurt, and will only make the overall wear that much less.

If you haven't seen it, or just think it's cool like I do, check out this animation page for the operation of a 1911: https://animagraffs.com/how-a-handgun-works-1911-45/
The detail is impressive.


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## Hemi45 (May 5, 2014)

^^^That should be a sticky on a gun blog. Bravo!


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## FoRd (Oct 3, 2021)

There are many forums where all your questions are disclosed, here are only a small part of them: ColtForum, PistolSmith...


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## Maine-Marine (Mar 7, 2014)

dwight55 said:


> If you want to go on the cheap, . . . take a once fired .45 ACP round, . . . knock out the fired primer. Then take a small pencil eraser, . . . stuff it into the primer hole, . . . with a sharp knife blade, cut it flush with the case, . . . and you have a good snap cap.


I freaking nominate this as the idea of the year.... This is one of those ideas that once you hear it you think to yourself.. WHY DID I NOT THINK OF THAT!!!! Really -


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## bigwheel (Sep 22, 2014)

Dont hurt it a bit.


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