Slide release or not?

American Handgunner, July-August, 2005 by Tom Ropers

I've been shooting for a few years now, and I still occasionally come across a, I'll call it a "disagreement", over the use of the slide release on a semiauto pistol. I've heard folks say that it should never be used for chambering a round. These folks say that to chamber a round, you should pull back on the slide after inserting a loaded magazine. I've also heard folks who say it doesn't matter. I've used both methods in a number of different handguns, and I can't see any difference. So, what's the scoop?

Tom Ropers

Via e-mail

Good question, Tom. Here's the deal. I was a cop for 20-odd years and have been trained by scads of different people, with my most interesting/best training by leaps and bounds done by Clint Smith at Thunder Ranch (hence the reason I hired him to write for me). All the top guys tell you to pull the slide back to chamber a round and ignore the slide release. And here's why:

When you pull the slide back, it moves the slide back a bit more (upwards of a quarter-inch or more). This give the slide more energy to chamber that next round, and also assures the breech face will clear the rim of the cartridge in the magazine, in order to pick it up. This may not matter routinely, but if/when the gun's dirty, the next round is over-sized, etc., that little bit helps lots. And the best reason, is the fact some guns have slide releases, some don't and some have them in weird places. If you pick up ANY semi-auto with a locked slide, put a loaded mag in, and pull and release the slide, you'll be ready to rock. No need to find a slide release or other lever or widget, especially in the dark. For competition, maybe a slide release is fine. But hey, like Clint says, "Pistols are to fight with, everything else is just a game." Hope this helps. Editor.