Chapter 3: Firearm Operation and Safe Handling

What Chapter 3 covers

Chapter 3 is the longest and most technical chapter, and it contributes a large share of FSC test questions. It covers how common firearms work, how ammunition works, and the safe handling demonstration California requires before a dealer can hand over a firearm.

The safe handling demonstration. Under Penal Code sections 26850 and 26860, a buyer has to correctly perform a safe handling demonstration with the firearm they're acquiring. It's done in front of a DOJ Certified Instructor, on or after the day the DROS is submitted and before delivery. It starts with the firearm unloaded, uses dummy rounds, and requires muzzle awareness (pointed in a safe direction, preferably down) and trigger discipline (finger outside the guard, along the frame) throughout.

Revolvers. A revolver holds cartridges in a rotating cylinder, usually with five or six chambers. On a single-action revolver the trigger does one thing: it releases the hammer. On a double-action revolver it both cocks and releases the hammer, and that's the main difference between the two. Unloading means opening the cylinder (or the loading gate on a single-action) and then visually and physically inspecting every chamber. Spinning the cylinder to an empty chamber doesn't make it safe.

Semiautomatic pistols. A pistol has a single chamber fed from a detachable magazine. The test repeatedly checks one point: removing the magazine doesn't unload the pistol. A round can still be in the chamber, so you retract the slide, lock it open and check the chamber. Manual safeties aren't foolproof, and a dropped firearm can fire without the trigger being touched.

Ammunition. A cartridge has four parts: case, primer, propellant and bullet. Use only the caliber the manufacturer specifies (it's marked on the barrel or slide, and on the ammunition box). Never fire old, wet or corroded ammunition, and never throw ammunition in the trash. Bullets travel far beyond the target and pass through interior walls, and you're responsible for wherever yours ends up.

Malfunctions. Stop firing, keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction, wait 30 seconds, and get competent help. At a range, keep it pointed downrange and raise your other hand for a range officer.

Chapter 3 practice questions

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1. How does a revolver hold its ammunition?

1. A In a detachable box magazine
2. B Directly in the barrel
3. C In a tubular magazine under the barrel
4. D In a rotating cylinder containing a number of chambers, usually five or six

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D. In a rotating cylinder containing a number of chambers, usually five or six

A revolver has a rotating cylinder containing a number of chambers, usually five or six. Study guide p. 10

2. A cartridge, commonly called a "round," is made up of which four parts?

1. A The bullet, the barrel, the chamber and the case
2. B The case, the primer, the propellant and the bullet
3. C The bullet, the casing, the powder and the magazine
4. D The primer, the powder, the wad and the shot

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B. The case, the primer, the propellant and the bullet

A firearm cartridge is a single unit of ammunition made up of four parts: the case, the primer, the propellant and the bullet. Study guide p. 22

Other chapters

1. Chapter 1: Firearm Safety Rules
2. Chapter 2: Firearms and Children
3. Chapter 3: Firearm Operation and Safe Handling
4. Chapter 4: Firearm Ownership
5. Chapter 5: Prohibited Transfers and Straw Purchases
6. Chapter 6: Firearms Laws

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