Second Strike Capability

[KFP]

After reading through TLynn's HK thread, a question that I've failed to ask in the past regarding a pistol's (HK, Sig, Taurus) second strike capability reignited my curiosity. I realize that light primer strikes do occur, just as do hard primers - making the second strike nice if the round fires the second time. What if it's just a bad primer that isn't going to go?

My feeling has always been that it's a nice feature for a gun to have (dry firing). IMO it would waste precious time in a real world situation if the primer fails and you've got to go back to the tap, rack, bang that could have happened sooner. Obviously, the chances of a misfire are low, but I would rather move on to the next round, rather than figure out if that round was going to fire.

Does it just come down to personal preference or is there a real world benefit that I'm missing?

[Beiruty]

What I do a quick rack and fresh rd is chambered in 1 sec. Carry on.

[srothstein]

I personally do not see much use for the second strike feature. As you point out, if it is critical and the second strike doesn't work, where are you? I would also point out that if you use multiple guns, the best training/practice should work on all of them (you don't know which you will have at the time you need it). So, i keep the tap rack ready scenario practiced. If the round does not go off, I eject it and can recycle it later for a second try if I want to.

[WildBill]

Does it just come down to personal preference or is there a real world benefit that I'm missing?

"Second Strike Capability" has never been a criteria which I even considered for purchasing a concealed-carry handgun, but I would think that in a "real world scenario" that it would be second nature to pull the trigger again before you even realized that you had a misfire.

[juggernaut]

I have never bought a gun based on this criteria, but I would think that in a "real world scenario" that it would be second nature to pull the trigger again before you even realized that you had a misfire.

That's the key I think anyone who does the Bill Drill can appreciate the difference.

[CompVest]

I personally do not see much use for the second strike feature. As you point out, if it is critical and the second strike doesn't work, where are you? I would also point out that if you use multiple guns, the best training/practice should work on all of them (you don't know which you will have at the time you need it). So, i keep the tap rack ready scenario practiced. If the round does not go off, I eject it and can recycle it later for a second try if I want to.

Spot on!

[KFP]

In my limited experience shooting in competitions, I've seen a few instances in which the shooter has pulled the trigger on an empty chamber, fully expecting it to fire. The sound of that click, is indeed deafening, yet IMO the lack of a trigger pull is yet another indication that a tap, rack, bang is needed.

My feeling is that with a second strike capable pistol, you might be better off pulling the trigger again, but in most cases you're behind the curve in chambering the next round. I have the majority of my shooting experience with Glocks, so to me the second strike seems like a nice feature for the range, but relying on it in a defensive situation could waste valuable time if the problem extends beyond the ignition of the primer.

[WildBill]

Earlier this month I took my BIL to the range. He is thinking of getting his CHL so I thought I would let him try out a few handguns. I gave him a short lesson on how to operate each of them and then we started shooting.

Later on in the session, I picked up my .380, inserted a full magazine and chambered a round. The first pull of the trigger went "click". The second trigger pull went "click". I did my tap and rack and then another "click". It took a few seconds, but examination of the gun showed that my BIL had put the safety on after he shot it. Since I never use the safety, I didn't check it before I used it. Obviously, in a real encounter with an armed BG I would be dead.

[dcphoto]

Second strike could come in handy. Imagine if you are in a real shooting. You will be under an extreme amount of stress. So much stress that you might not stop pulling the trigger just because it went "click." You may have pulled the trigger several more times before you process the necessity to tap and rack. If the problem was a light strike or hard primer the next trigger pull could very well fire the round, and allow you to continue using the weapon without any remedial action.