Was out of the office doing some work with a local machine shop.
At lunch, I decide to ride over to a small gun shop that sometimes has a deal on their used gun rack.

I spot a Marlin 60 with the "Squirrel" stock. Looks to be in pretty good shape.

I'm looking it over and pull the bolt back to see how dirty the chamber is. Out pops a damn live round!!
So I grab the rod in the tube magazine, and I can feel the spring is under pressure. I walk over to the counter where one of the employees has been BS'ing for the last mins with a customer. I pull the rod out the magazine, and turn the barrel towards the counter, and 7-8 live rounds come rolling out. I sat the rifle on top of the counter, and tell the employee that there's another live round on the floor by the gun rack, as I'm walking out the door.

I know there's some dumbasses out there that will bring a loaded gun into a store, but have you ever picked up a loaded gun off the rack before?

Gives me the shivers just thinking how badly this COULD have turned out!

Might have wanted to talk to the owner.

+1... The owner should know, and the employee may not inform him of what happened. That could have easily turned into a very nasty situation. I've never seen it but the LGS near here, run by a guy I've known well for over 20 years, has had numerous folks walk in with loaded guns that they "didn't know it was loaded".

I have seen a Ruger 10/22 with a loaded magazine (empty chamber) at an auction. Picked up a S&W revolver that was loaded with six rounds of 357mag at another auction.

NO! I always ask the owner to check the item in question first. That's just me and I DO know what I'm doing. But…...

Forgive the diversion but ….what's biting down your way right now? Has the warm weather accelerated the waters?

Looking to get out for a week or so in the next 30 days.

Thanks!!

David

I worked in a LGS during my high school and college years. Saw three accidental discharges during my time. Two from customers and one from the owner. It happens, no matter how careful folks are.

chit happens and that is why you treat all weapon as they are loaded

I stopped at a place one time that had a handwritten sign out front that said "Gun Sale."

It was like a rummage sale but had a few misc. guns in the guys garage.

I picked up a Marlin .22 and did the same thing. Pulled the bolt back and a live round came flying out.

I brought it over to the guy and told him and he said "huh! good thing one of them kids didn't shoot anybody"

I felt like slapping him upside the head.

I had it happen in a pawn shop. Opened the bolt on a Rem 700 in 22-250 and a round came flying out. Made a helluva noise when it hit the glass display case, but nothing like the noise if somebody had touched it off. I bought the gun, but told him he had to take extra off because I saved him a hole in the wall, or worse.

David,

Santee is on fire!!! I had 7 over 4 lbs each on Sunday. Biggest was 6.5-7lbs...

Just another reminder why every gun should be treated as if it's loaded.

Chit does indeed happen.

When i was in high school I went deer hunting with my dad's '94. (still- or rather- once again in my possession). Cold, snowy. Before getting in the car to head homer, I jacked the lever until nothing came out -5 arounds out of the tube, Funny, I thought I had loaded 6.

After supper I went to clean it. I had shot it - and missed earlier in the day. Never was worth a damn on running shots. For some reason, I worked the lever twice- and out popped a live round. Apparently it had hung up in the tube somehow.

Scared the hell out of me.

On another occasion I worked the bolt on a rifle - I forget what - until nothing popped out to make sure the chamber/magazine were empty when finished hunting. Closed the bolt, pointed the rifle at the ground, and pulled the trigger to release the spring tension. BOOM!

From then on, I visually check the chamber and magazine or stick a finger in it. THEN I release the striker pressure!

I learned lucky!

I was checking a group of rifles and shotguns from a local estate sale and one shotgun had a loaded chamber and more in the magazine.
I cycled them out and the sales rep said "that must have been the Old Guy's home defense gun".

Check every gun you handle!

Picked up a 1898 krag at a gunshow asked the dealer to cut the zip tie. Worked the bolt and I live round came out and the mag was loaded also. He was thankful and ended up buying it.

This.

Several years ago I was at a gun shop with a friend. I asked the sales clerk if I could see one of their handguns. He takes it out of the case checks to make sure it's unloaded, then he hands it to me. I checked to make sure it was unloaded. Then I handed it to my friend. She didn't check to see if it was unloaded. I'd berated her for not checking.

Ditto re: the last part..

I have had a couple customers come in with loaded rounds BUT I was informed of it beforehand due to malfunctions that prevented its removal so was fully prepared..

Watched a clerk at a now defunct gun shop clear the action on a .45 ACP, round pops out hits the counter and he start berating the other clerk for not checking it. Then he pointed the pistol at the owners tropical fish tank and pulled the trigger... Yep you guessed it, the dumbass never checked the mag and blew the hell out of the fish tank! Never went back there..

I've done the same at least twice at gun shows.

A friend who used to own a local store (sold out recently) picked up a gun from the counter to show and found a loaded round in the chamber. This guy ALWAYS checked the chambers on any firearm before handing them to a customer with the action open.

Earlier in the day he had shown that gun to someone else. When the handed it back he put it back under the counter without re-checking. He is certain that guy dropped a round in the chamber while looking at the gun. Not sure why. After that day they all got checked before putting them up.

Was in the LGS a couple of years back, noticed a bunch of small holes in the wall at the end of the gunsmith's workbench. The smith was to cheap to buy some dummy rounds,was checking the function of a 22 when it went full auto on him,at least it was in the vice and pointed at the wall!

No, it happens because folks aren't careful. How much care does it take to check a chamber, cylinder, magazine or feed tube of a firearm that could easily kill?

Scary stuff !

When I moved to Meridian , Id. -I went to sportsman warehouse -was talking to a guy in the reloading department when BOOM . Scared surprised us both -I said that was a gunshot . We walked over to where they mount scopes -put on fishing line etc. and they were still in shock .
A guy brought a loaded browning bar 7mag in to have a new scope mounted -handed it to the scope installer and he pulled the trigger to see if it was loaded . It blew a three inch hole in the wall and some fishing line spools had been knocked to the floor -they found the bullet caught in a bulk spool of spiderwire type line totally mangled .
Owner of the gun was standing right there I asked what ammo it was --175 partition .

my shop had a poster on the front door with moron proof cartoons showing how to clear any type of weapon, with the admonishment that all weapons crossing the yellow line on the floor had to have open actions.
you guessed it, still had one AD with a m1 carbine. my back was turned at the time but if i remember right the customer just cycled it and pulled the trigger. blew the stuffing out of my prized wood duck mount on the top shelf. last i saw of the guy, he looked like he had a metal and wood tail as he limped down the sidewalk.

I was in a large shop in Des Moines and in one hour 2 people brought loaded guns in to sell them. I asked if that was normal? They said not that close together.

Was at the range over the weekend. Loading mags and keepin my boys ( well men, but still my boys) running

Handed my youngest a 19 that I'd chambered a round in, he eased the slide back to take a peek. In auto dad mode I started to correct him as I was concerned he'd jack the live round out in the snow.

He never missed a beat, just yelled back at me "you taught us to never take anyone's word about loaded or unloaded to always inspect for ourselves"

I just grinned, stfu and went back to loading mags

Damn me if I don't love those guys