The hammer IMO was pulled back, most likely from falling and then setting it off. Any time you place a gun on a front seat and then go about doing something else, anything can happen to it. Who knows how it was placed. The story will never get to what actually may have happened.
Yeah.
I don't doubt what happened but think it should be pretty easily trouble shot as to the cause.
It is easy to create myths via the internet.
As the story went father to son to us we are at third hand.
Did the OP disassemble the firing pin assembly in his previous cleaning?
Was the broken spring rusted or crushed via assembly?
How would that keep the firing pin protruding tightly?
What was keeping the firing pin protruding a bit?
Was there marring evident on it.
If you look at thing methodically the mystery usually can be dispelled.
But now we have a issue that "can happen at anytime".
Rather than put the rifle in the back of the safe might as well cut it up with a torch so no one is in danger and space isn't taken up
