Is dry firing bad for your gun?

If you’re frustrated with your pistol accuracy, you’re not alone. Whether your issue is bad aim, anticipating recoil, or bad trigger control, there’s one solution that can help - dry fire training. 

If you’re looking for ways to work on your firearm training without visiting the range every day, at-home dry fire practice is the best way to see improvement. Dry fire practice is an effective way to become a better shot that is cost-effective and safe for your gun.  

What is dry fire training? 

Dry fire training is used to practice the fundamentals of shooting a firearm without live ammunition in the chamber. Although live drills at a shooting range are crucial to being a good shot, dry fire drills are the best way to improve your handgun accuracy at home. You can practice dry fire training with nothing but your pistol. 

The first step to effective dry fire practice is to develop a good sight picture - this is the image your mind sees the moment you pull the trigger. When lining up your shot with iron sights, first identify your target, then shift your vision’s focus to the front sight. If everything else is blurry except for that front sight, you’ve achieved a proper sight picture.

The second step to effective dry fire practice is good trigger control, meaning that when you squeeze the trigger to fire your shot, you don’t disturb your sight picture. Using the tip of your forefinger, add pressure slowly to the trigger until it breaks. By practicing squeezing the trigger slowly, you can better prevent jerking your aim away from the target or flinching at your gun’s recoil.

Dry fire practice can be done without any special equipment, but you can improve your dry fire drills by using a laser bullet training system that tracks your shots to better understand where you’re aiming.

Is dry firing safe?

Whether you’re practicing your firearm training at home or at the range, safety comes first. Dry firing is safe, so long as you always practice the same precautionary procedures you would with a loaded weapon. When dry firing, always double check to ensure the chamber of your weapon is free of any live ammo before you begin your practice.

Is dry firing bad for your gun? 

There is contradicting information out there on whether or not dry firing is bad for your gun. In some cases, like with semi automatic handguns or revolvers, if there is no bullet for a firing pin to strike, it will strike the hard steel chamber and cause damage. However, in most cases, dry firing is completely safe for your gun. 
If you want to practice dry firing and are worried about the safety of your gun, you can load a laser bullet in the chamber so that the firing pin hits the hard rubber back of the laser bullet, which absorbs any impact.

Practice Dry Firing at Home with iTarget Pro 

Level up your dry fire practice and improve the fundamental skills required for shooting a firearm with the iTarget Pro. The iTarget Pro is a training system that allows you to use a phone app and a laser bullet to safely practice dry fire training with your actual firearm. Shot-by-shot feedback eliminates the guessing game of where your shot would hit and allows you to make quick improvements for visible results.