I have SO'ed both cases. And to be honest, it doesn't make me a hill of beans differnce. Why? Because if I see ANYONE handleing a weapon off the firing line... I AM TOSSING THEIR @$$ OFF THE RANGE... RIGHT FREAKIN NOW! I don't give a rats @$$ why or how come. The rules around here are pretty danged clear. You do NOT touch a firearm anywhere but on the line or in a designated safe area. We DRILL this at all shooters when they show up. There is NO Show and Tell here. Newbie or old hand. It doesn't matter. We do maintain a safe area for those who show up with duty ammo and a CHL to unload and prepare for the match.
Yeah, I know. I sound like I am being a real hard @$$ here. Well, that's why we call them SAFETY OFFICERS. If I am anal about safety, so be it.
Now, since my fellow SOs and I are running the range in this manner, the hot or cold thing doesn't really bother me. I will give HOT one benefit. If I don't have to go through a loading sequence with each shooter brought to the line, stages DO move along a bit faster. But it does require the shooter to have that extra mag to top off before leaving the line.
That's my opinon. That and .75 cents will buy you a Dr Pepper. ( Hey this IS Texas...not Atlanta..
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[This message has been edited by Bubba (edited 02-17-2001).]