miss fire

You don't want to miss fire when you get a chance to shoot at a fox.

From Ben Comee A Tale of Rogers's Rangers, 1758-59 by M. J. (Michael Joseph) Canavan

The missionaries have assigned a very absurd reason for firelocks not being used in China; they say the dampness of the air is apt to make the flint miss fire.

From Travels in China, Containing Descriptions, Observations, and Comparisons, Made and Collected in the Course of a Short Residence at the Imperial Palace of Yuen-Min-Yuen, and on a Subsequent Journey through the Country from Pekin to Canton by Sir John Barrow

The guns were shotted, the matches lighted; for, although our guns were all furnished with first-class locks, they were also furnished with matches, attached by lanyards, in case the lock should miss fire.

From The Naval History of the United States Volume 1 by Willis J. (Willis John) Abbot

When he had closed the pan, he struck the stock of the gun one or two blows to shake the powder well down into place, that the gun might not miss fire.

From Duffels by Edward Eggleston

Now,” added the trapper, “I think I can promise you a rifle that is not likely to miss fire, and the hand of a friend that will not fail you.”

From Wood Rangers The Trappers of Sonora by Mayne Reid