Roar Safety: Hunting states of readiness

Hunting and Wildlife Magazine - Issue 224 - Autumn 2024

Words By: Mike Spray

In December 2022, the firearms regulator, Te Tari Pūreke Firearms Safety Authority, released the revised Firearms Safety Code, subtitled ‘the fundamental guide for the safe use of firearms’. This extremely important code is the bible for all civilian firearms users in New Zealand.

Section 1 of the revised code contains the seven basic rules of firearms safety. These rules can be described as basic common sense, and they are all extremely important. They are important because on all occasions, where hunting-related injuries and deaths have occurred and been subsequently analysed, the conclusion has been that they could have been avoided if one or more of the seven rules had been followed

The revised code is, in general, very well constructed and contains excellent information about the safe and lawful handling of firearms. However, some changes have been introduced to parts of Rule 3, ‘Chamber a cartridge only when ready to fire’, specifically the ACTION state of readiness, that you may benefit from knowing, understanding, and being alerted to.

The new version of the code has,as part of Rule 3, an alternative primary state of readiness, which differs from all previous codes. I believe that the new version poses a greater level of risk when you are in a situation where you expect to encounter game.  

This alternative state of readiness is described as the ‘ACTION’ state (military term), where the:

• the safety catch is on safe (if the firearm is fitted with one)
• a live cartridge is in the chamber, and;
• the bolt/action is closed.

In the revised version of the Code, this is the recommended state for when you expect to encounter game. The term encountering game is very broad and open to interpretation. It can cover many situations when hunting, from assuming a state of readiness as soon as you leave your vehicle, to seeing a glimpse of an animal ahead in thick bush, to spending significant time roaring in a stag that may move into sight at any time. In the revised code, the ‘how to apply the ACTION state of readiness’ describes the following scenario:

 “As he gets closer to an area where he has seen deer before, John identifies a safe direction, points the rifle muzzle toward it, checks that his safety catch is still on (safe), then chambers a cartridge, bringing his firearm to the ACTION state. John stalks to the next gully.”

I wonder how wise it is to move to the next gully, on uneven terrain with the chamber loaded while relying on the safety catch. The risk may increase further if John was with a hunting companion, or how would this scenario apply when hunting with a model of firearm that does not have a safety catch? The level of risk is far greater than if you were to use the original primary state of readiness, the ‘half-open bolt in a state of semi-readiness’.

The reason for going into this state is to lessen the noise of chambering a round from the half-open bolt position when you are near game. This is, as opposed to chambering from the magazine, which will make a clinking sound that could potentially alert an animal that a threat is nearby.

I therefore recommend that if you see game or expect to flush it at any moment, use a ‘half-open bolt in a state of semi-readiness’. It will provide you with a safe, semi-ready state where the noise of chambering the round is minimal, the firearm cannot be fired, and there is no reliance on a safety catch.

The revised code mentions the half-open bolt in a state of semi-readiness as a secondary option, but it says it should NOT be used by those new to firearms handling as it is a more advanced skill. In my experience with guiding novice hunters, the half-open bolt in a state of semi-readiness is an easy procedure for beginners to learn and adopt as the norm whenever they expect to encounter game.

In the ‘seven basic rules of firearms safety’, the revised Firearms Safety Code states “that all firearms users must know, practise and strictly adhere to the seven basic rules of firearm safety”. My interpretation of Rule 3: ‘Chamber a cartridge only when ready to fire’, is only to load the chamber and close the action when you intend to fire and only after having completed your safety checks, such as positively identifying your target and checking your firing zone. The use of the safety catch should not factor into Rule 3 in relation to bolt action hunting rifles. The ACTION state of readiness appears to me to be a contradiction of Rule 3.

To go into the half-open bolt in a state of semi-readiness, the bolt is pushed forward, feeding a cartridge from the magazine into the chamber so that the extractor at the front of the bolt connects to the cartridge. Keep your finger outside the trigger guard while doing this. The bolt is then brought back halfway so that part of the brass case is showing. The bolt is held with the thumb so it cannot slide forward or back, ejecting the cartridge.

The firearm cannot be fired in the half-open bolt in a state of semi-readiness. Note the half-open bolt can be used with a lever and pump action and should only be used for the person in front if you are with a companion.

NZDA endorses the use of the half-open bolt in a state of semi-readiness as the primary state of readiness and views the ACTION state as a more risky option. NZDA supports strict adherence to all rules, including Rule 3, where a cartridge is chambered only when you are ready to fire. Both strict adherence to the rules and the half-open bolt in a state of semi-readiness are taught in our HUNTS courses.  

As an aside, be aware that the half-cock position is not viewed as a safe state of readiness. The half cock is where the bolt is pushed all the way forward, chambering a cartridge, and the bolt is then closed halfway into the lock position. For some hunters, this practice is confused as being the half-open bolt in a state of semi-readiness, but it is not. The risk associated with the half-cock position is if the trigger is inadvertently knocked or pulled, the bolt on some models of Mauser actions can fly down, allowing the firing pin to rest on the primer and where a non-intentional discharge can occur. It also means you have chambered a cartridge before being ready to fire. It is also easy for the bolt to be inadvertently closed completely, leaving the firearm ready to fire.

The safety catch has always been viewed as a mechanical device that is subject to wear and tear and, therefore, results in failure. A safety catch should never ever be relied upon. At times, it is necessary to use a safety catch, for example when using semi-automatic shotguns in the maimai for duck shooting. When using a safety catch, a rigorous set of rules apply, and most importantly, the need to always point the firearm in a safe direction. Semi-automatic centre-fire rifles, once able to be used for big game hunting, are now prohibited; the need to apply a safety catch in certain situations while hunting big game is no longer necessary at all.   

Below is a risk analysis on the ‘half-open bolt in a state of semi-readiness’ and the ‘ACTION’ state described in the revised code. It is considered in a hunting context, that is when a hunter expects to encounter game. The consequences of an unintentional discharge when in any state of readiness can be catastrophic.

From the analysis of the potential risk, my conclusion is that the less risky option for a state of readiness when you expect to encounter game is to use the half-open bolt in a state of semi-readiness. My advice to hunters is to carefully consider the use of the ACTION state, as described in the revised Firearms Safety Code and put simply DO NOT walk around the hills with one up the spout and on the safety. You must strictly adhere to Rule 3 of the code and ONLY chamber a cartridge when ready to fire.

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