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b322da wrote:Hidden away somewhere, Gringo, in my post, but obviously not loud and clear, was a distinction drawn when you are, e.g., in combat. The rules are different when someone is shooting back.
Elmo

If you don't train for it in training, you won't do it in combat (or competition). There is no Combat Switch that you flip that turns your training to "wait 30 seconds with the muzzle pointed down range" into a speedy 2.5 second Tap Rack Bang or a 5 second double feed clearance. That is the primary point I wanted to make.

I understand what the issues are re. hangfires. I also understand what causes hangfires vs. misfires and what frequency I have experienced both events in my shooting career. I am confident that when I'm shooting modern ammo and I get a dud, I can extract it and move on. When I am shooting 50 year old ammo or sustained fire in a closed bolt machine gun, I'll do things a bit differently.

I think we're getting away from the OP's original question so I'll bow out of this thread.

Gringop

b322da wrote:Thanks, Bullwhip. Your experience should be widely circulated among shooters. Many do not know the difference between a hangfire and a misfire, and I have more than once been accused of meddling when I attempted to point this out to someone who, after a FTF immediately racked the slide, letting the unfired round fall where it might. Once upon a time I was curtly advised that "This is a Glock, not a flintlock, hangfires do not happen with modern handguns, and this was the way I was taught at a combat course." Naturally, when someone is in fact shooting back at you it is a different ballgame, but the fact that an event may be "rare" does not mean that it will never happen.
Elmo

What would be the consequences of a hangfire of an ejected pistol round during a practice session compared to the consequences of not quickly fixing a malfunctioning gun during a gun fight? I've had hangfires before, around 35 years ago with some old 250 Savage ammo. I've had literally hundreds of misfires since then and my first priority is always to get the gun back up and running. I don't ever make the mistake of training incorrectly in practice and hoping I'll do it correctly in a fight.

As to the original question, it's not age that can cause problems with carry ammo, it's things like sweat, pocket lint, being exposed to rain or humidity and being loaded, unloaded, chambered, ejected, etc. that can cause problems. As other have said, shoot up and refresh your carry ammo twice a year.

Gringop