Loading a semi-automatic consists of two separate but equally important parts:
Loading The Magazine
Chambering A Round
Loading The Magazine
How you load your magazine is really a preference, as long as you have the cartridges facing in the proper direction. You can see a sample of how to load rounds into a magazine by CLICKING HERE.
Once the magazine is loaded with the number of rounds you wish to have in there, insert it into the magazine well of the firearm.
NOTE: It is vital that your magazine is firmly seated into the magazine well, otherwise a malfunction may occur.
To ensure that your magazine is properly seated, use the Tap & Tug method:
TAP firmly on the bottom of the magazine.
TUG on it to make sure it is in place.
Chambering A Round
There are many different methods for chambering a round as well, but there truly is only ONE CORRECT WAY to do it (the reasons for this are discussed in our Safe Gun Owner online course). You should be holding the firearm with your master grip (using only your shooting hand with trigger finger indexed on the frame). Your support hand should come over the top of the slide so that your fingers are on one side, while the meat of your hand is on the other. Your thumb should not be used to grip the slide. With this grip you can now pull back on the slide with your support hand (you may also push forward with your strong hand to give added leverage).
Once you have the slide all the way to its rearmost position... LET GO! Do not attempt to "ride the slide" forward by easing it into place. Let the recoil spring do what it was designed to do. When you pull the slide all the way to the rear, you have fully compressed it. When you let go of the slide, you are allowing it to use the proper amount of force that it has been calibrated at to ensure that the round is stripped from the magazine and properly seated in the chamber. You may now fire at will...
Learn more by trying our FREE Loading A Semi-Automatic online training.