Here we go.
I have an personal anecdote that addresses this very question.
In the early fall of 1991, my stepfather's aunt died at a ripe, old age. Mid-90s if I recall.
Her granddaughters found her husband's old pistol in the attic, wrapped in a diaper and stored in a hat box. Uncle Will had been a town constable in Courtney, NC and part time railroad detective. He died in his sleep, and Aunt Emma found his pistol in the nightstand, and not knowing what else to do, wrapped it up and placed it in the hatbox in the attic, where it was forgotten until the girls discovered it.
Having no living male heirs, and being a little afraid of guns, they called Homer to come and get it. Then, he called me to tell me that he had the pistol and he thought it may be loaded.
When I got there, he handed me a nice commercial Colt Government Model that was indeed loaded...cocked and locked. I dropped the magazine and cleared the chamber. There were six rounds in the magazine. The serial number resolved to 1921.
After a cursory examination, I placed the loose round back into the magazine...locked it into the pistol...and stepped outside. I then proceeded to fire the gun to slidelock. It functioned perfectly.
The kicker? Uncle Will died a fairly young man in the summer of 1929. The pistol was cocked and locked...with six rounds in the magazine...for over 62 years.
I have an personal anecdote that addresses this very question.
In the early fall of 1991, my stepfather's aunt died at a ripe, old age. Mid-90s if I recall.
Her granddaughters found her husband's old pistol in the attic, wrapped in a diaper and stored in a hat box. Uncle Will had been a town constable in Courtney, NC and part time railroad detective. He died in his sleep, and Aunt Emma found his pistol in the nightstand, and not knowing what else to do, wrapped it up and placed it in the hatbox in the attic, where it was forgotten until the girls discovered it.
Having no living male heirs, and being a little afraid of guns, they called Homer to come and get it. Then, he called me to tell me that he had the pistol and he thought it may be loaded.
When I got there, he handed me a nice commercial Colt Government Model that was indeed loaded...cocked and locked. I dropped the magazine and cleared the chamber. There were six rounds in the magazine. The serial number resolved to 1921.
After a cursory examination, I placed the loose round back into the magazine...locked it into the pistol...and stepped outside. I then proceeded to fire the gun to slidelock. It functioned perfectly.
The kicker? Uncle Will died a fairly young man in the summer of 1929. The pistol was cocked and locked...with six rounds in the magazine...for over 62 years.
