Safeties... Who needs 'em?

[RandomTask]

Originally Posted by Thekatar

I have read all of this thread and I must say I find a lot of the responses disturbing.

...modern semi auto pistols is that they WILL NOT fire if dropped ("drop-safe"); this includes the cocked and locked 1911.

I'm well aware of this, and theoretically you should be able to chuck a cocked & locked 1911 off a skyscaper without discharge. However, I'm sure there is some sort of statistical failure rate. maybe 1 in 50,000? 1 in 1,000,000? Who knows.... but I do think that a decocked DA pistol would have a lower failure rate.
I carry a P7, so it's a non-issue for me anyway. Along with the drop safety and super-stiff striker spring, a guy would have to be some sort of retard to ND a P7.

[Agent Ronin]

The only safety needed is your brain. Granted SA pistols NEED a manual safety for reasons obvious. For carry purposes i prefer not having to worry about such things. For carry i have a USP Compact LEM - DAO, and a J-Frame revolver (hammerless).

[glassman]

I'll play the devil's advocate...how many have taken their cocked and locked pistol from their holster at the end of the day and discovered the safety was off? That scares me a lot!!

[TonyF]

Originally Posted by glassman

.......... how many have taken their cocked and locked pistol from their holster at the end of the day and discovered the safety was off?

I've never had that happen. A knowledgeable 1911 smith can fit a thumb safety with the proper amount of tension.

[jdlv4_0]

Originally Posted by glassman

I'll play the devil's advocate...how many have taken their cocked and locked pistol from their holster at the end of the day and discovered the safety was off? That scares me a lot!!

Never on any of the following:

Para P16-40
Para P-10-45
Para P-14-14 LDA
Para CCW LDA
Colt Series 70 Commander
Colt XSE Gov't
Springfield 1911A1
Kimber PRO CDP
Kimber Compact CDP
Kimber Stainless Ultra carry.
Kimber Ultra CDP

and my Colt Mustang, and so far my Sig 220 SAO, but the thumb safety on that is more stiff and less protusive than a 1911, so I think it will most likely never happen.

The above 1911s have all had a mix of thumb safeties, from standard to extended, to extended ambi...


And that's after a day of work crawling around in Police cars, Public works trucks, Electric company trucks...even garbage trucks...ewwww.

[Lycanthrope]

Originally Posted by glassman

I'll play the devil's advocate...how many have taken their cocked and locked pistol from their holster at the end of the day and discovered the safety was off? That scares me a lot!!

Never happened.....and I'm rough.

[Skuggi]

Originally Posted by Lycanthrope

Never happened.....and I'm rough.

we dont need to know about your and emptymags relations.... :P

[MrsKitty]

Originally Posted by glassman

I'll play the devil's advocate...how many have taken their cocked and locked pistol from their holster at the end of the day and discovered the safety was off? That scares me a lot!!

I've only unholstered an cocked and UN-locked 1911 once and that was because I never engaged the thumb safety when I holstered it.

And I didn't have one single fear while carrying the gun cocked and unlocked. I know my gun is never going to fire unless I pull that trigger and I never put my finger on the trigger until I've lined up my target.

Just today I was getting dressed and the gun slipped out of my shoulder holster I had not properly snapped.

The gun fell from four and half feet onto a steel floor. I put one hell of a scratch in the side of it and it did jar the slide and thumb safety but even then the thumb safety NEVER disengaged and the gun didn't fire (and that's even WITHOUT a firing pin block). The hammer and sear never moved, the gun was fine, it was me who was kicking the crap out of myself.

I like thumb safeties... one saved my best friend's life. She's alive and unmarred, married and has three kids only because the gun she picked up and pulled the trigger on as a child had a thumb safety. No matter how foolish it was of the gun's owner to leave it in a place where a child had access to it, it still stands that she found the gun and it was the thumb safety that kept an accident from happening.

All of my guns, carry or not, have thumb safeties, it's a requirement of mine. I disengage them as I draw them nullifying any argument that the safety will be a hindrance in draw-time and performance.

God bless my 1911 and its safeties. I won't be giving it up ANY time soon.

[Lycanthrope]

Originally Posted by Skuggi

we dont need to know about your and emptymags relations.... :P

EM won't buy me dinner so I'm holding out.


Lycanjustrememberthegroupshootiscomingthrope

[Emptymag]

Originally Posted by Lycanthrope

EM won't buy me dinner so I'm holding out.


Lycanjustrememberthegroupshootiscomingthrope

How about breakfast?
Later, I'll give you a private tour of the club... just be sure to have your "safety" on!