Being a gun owner doesn't end with having a gun to your name. The more important part of it is being a responsible gun owner. If you're new to this, here are some tips.
Always Be a Responsible Gun Owner
Being a gun owner is great, but it also comes with heavy responsibilities.
Firearms are fantastic tools and great equalizers between people, but they also possess a destructive potential that can be disastrous if guns are handled by irresponsible adults.
Today, let’s break down the top five tips you need to know to be a responsible gun owner.
1. Store Guns and Ammunition Separately
For starters, you need to practice storing your guns and their ammunition in separate locations. There are a few big reasons for this:
- It prevents kids or anyone else who shouldn’t be using your firearms from actually firing them.
- It ensures that a would-be burglar can’t access both your gun and the bullets it fires
You might wonder if this is useful if you mostly have your weapons for self-defense.
The truth is that your guns and ammunition don’t need to be stored separately so that you can’t load the weapon in a home invasion scenario.
Just don’t keep them right next to each other.
2. Keep Guns Stored Safely and (Sometimes) Secretly
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Furthermore, ensure that you keep all your firearms stored safely, and potentially secretly depending on who’s in your household.
For instance, it’s always a good idea to secretly store your firearms in a place where kids don’t usually investigate or can’t reach.
This prevents them from accidentally stumbling onto your weapon and discharging it (in the event they also find ammunition by accident).
Safe storage can mean a lot of things, but it generally means storing your firearm so they can’t be easily retrieved without combination or key.
Examples are display cases or gun safes, which are a particularly good investment since they protect your firearms from fires and robbery alike.
3. Always Assume Guns Are Loaded
Any responsible gun owner will tell you to always assume that guns are loaded, even if you’re 100% sure that there aren’t any cartridges inside the weapon.
Basically, act like a weapon is loaded because you can never really be 100% sure. This includes:
- Never pointing the barrel of a firearm at anyone unless you intend to shoot
- Never throwing your weapons around casually
- Not looking through the barrel of your weapon unless the gun is disassembled or thoroughly checked for cartridges
4. Maintain Your Firearm(s) Well
Similarly, a responsible gun owner will always maintain their firearms well.
This includes practicing recurring maintenance, like cleaning the gun from dust, debris, oil, and gunpowder.
Such debris can pile up over time and affect the performance of a firearm, essentially causing it to become dangerous the next time you want to use it.
You’ll also need to ensure that your gun doesn’t rust over time.
This may involve cleaning away rust that accrues over months and using anti-rust gun oils or other compounds to prevent it from coming back.
You should also take your weapon to a gunsmith or another firearm expert if you feel that it’s performing inadequately or acting strangely.
Never take any chances when it comes to gun maintenance.
5. Teach Kids and Spouses How to Use Firearms Properly
If you have kids or a spouse that doesn’t know how to use your firearms correctly, you should teach them.
When it comes to kids, teach them as soon as they’re old enough to responsibly use a firearm and understand the ramifications of a mistake.
The reason for this is to ensure that no one plays with a weapon irresponsibly or, in a worst-case scenario, doesn’t know how to use a firearm in a self-defense situation.
Ultimately, the best way to be a responsible gun owner is to educate yourself about gun safety and spread that knowledge to other people in your family.
Based on your experience, what can you advise a new gun owner? Do share it with us in the comments section!
Up Next:
- Firearm Safety At Home: 6 Tips For Parent Gun Owners
- Gun Display Tips: How to Showcase Your Guns Safely
- Gun Rust Prevention | How To Prevent Guns From Rusting
I liked your tip of using anti-rust gun oils to prevent rust from growing on a firearm. My wife and I are wanting to get some used guns and we were wondering how we could maintain the firearms so that no rust grows on them. I’ll be sure to tell her that we should use anti-rust oils on the guns.