New for 08 thumb safety on XD

[Mtbkski]

Originally Posted by Skullz

I think it's muscle memory at this point,

They say you have to do something 3000 times before it becomes muscle memory. WoW.

I think it is a neat idea. I don't want it. But if it makes your feel safer, then go ahead and get it on the pistol. The start the process of trying to reach that 3000 repetition goal.

[XD45]

i wish they had one on from the start, that way i never would have wasted money on my POS XD.

[jtkratzer]

Originally Posted by MarcS

Um, no, because on that handgun it would be unsafe to carry without it engaged. We're talking about a gun that already has a number of passive safeties.

I'm sure the reason why the military and certain police departments won't consider it due to the passive safeties not being sufficient. Apparently there are enough people out there who think it's unsafe to carry a gun without a manual safety to do the R&D, design work, and manufacturing to bring it to the market. No successful business is going to makes something just for the hell of doing it. They're doing it because there must be a demand for it somewhere.

[Lycanthrope]

The XD is single action........

Does the grip safety disable the firing pin or just stop the trigger movement ala the 1911?


If so, then a thumb safety would be a good idea since few 1911's are carried with the thumb safety off despite a grip safety and drop safety.


Lycanjustsayinthrope

[jtkratzer]

Originally Posted by Lycanthrope

The XD is single action........

Does the grip safety disable the firing pin or just stop the trigger movement ala the 1911?


If so, then a thumb safety would be a good idea since few 1911's are carried with the thumb safety off despite a grip safety and drop safety.


Lycanjustsayinthrope

The XD also has the trigger safety that will not allow the trigger to travel its path entirely unless the face of the trigger is pulled depressing the little tab in the middle of it. It also has the grip safety. I'm more than comfortable carrying my XD without a manual safety. When holstering, I put my thumb on the back of the slide to take my grip off the grip safety. With the chamber empty, I've tried to see if the safeties will fail and I've yet to be able to produce a safety failure when intentionally trying to do so. I would assume using safe gun handling tactics, it would be difficult to get the gun to discharge without pulling the trigger yourself. As long as I'm not trying to fire the gun, it won't fire on it's own due to operator error. It has to have a positive grip and trigger pull to go bang. Am I cautious? Yes, but I rely on being safe before I rely on the gun's safeties.

The grip safety moves out of the path the sear travels in when it's dropped down to release the striker. Part of the trigger pull is take up, once the take up is gone, everything starts to engage at the same time. The trigger bar rotates the striker safety lever upwards to depress the striker safety and at the same time (the sear and that lever ride on the same pin) the sear begins to drop obviously releasing the striker. So it is technically a single action since pulling the trigger doesn't cock the striker at all, but there is that extra action involved of depress in the striker safety.

If you're handy and have basic tools, it's quite easy to do a trigger job on the XD to remove most take up while leaving all safeties functioning as they did from the factory.

[Skullz]

Originally Posted by Mtbkski

They say you have to do something 3000 times before it becomes muscle memory. WoW.

I think it is a neat idea. I don't want it. But if it makes your feel safer, then go ahead and get it on the pistol. The start the process of trying to reach that 3000 repetition goal.

For the 1911, I have well over 3000 rounds through it now, much less the dry fire practice - much less my TRP that I compete with, so I figure, yeah, probably muscle memory at this point. However, I didn't count how many times I drew and thumbed the safety.

In any case, my original post still stands. If it's an option, great! Give the people what they want. I would be less enthused if SA only offered a thumb safety and discontinued the original design.

[Kaos]

Originally Posted by Lycanthrope

The XD is single action........

Does the grip safety disable the firing pin or just stop the trigger movement ala the 1911?


If so, then a thumb safety would be a good idea since few 1911's are carried with the thumb safety off despite a grip safety and drop safety.


Lycanjustsayinthrope

The XD's grip safety prevents the trigger from being fully depressed, and I believe it prevents the striker from being released as well. (But I would have to find where I read that for it to be taken as fact)

The trigger safety only prevents movement before the point where the grip safety would stop the trigger.

[TonyF]

Prior to ordering an M&P 45 I gave allot of thought as to whether getting one with the thumb safety. In the end I decided against it. This feature on a striker fired design is superfluous.

Manual safeties are now being added because the Big Army's was considering a new sidearm which ironically they have now abandoned. In fact, they were actually considering a return to the 1911 because of SOCOM's interests. Thus the requirement for a "manual" safety.

The issue it presents is that it also changes the manual of arms for striker fired pistols. You need to re-program your IAD to disengage the safety prior to clearing the weapon.

My basis for deciding against the thumb safety on striker fired pistols is "why"? IOW, why complicate "the process" when there is no practical or rational basis for doing so.

[Thekatar]

I am in complete agreement with Tony's post.

If you like to have it, ok, but it's not doing anything for you on a modern polymer.

It is necessary on a 1911.

[phillyd2]

Originally Posted by billamj

Note that they are first putting it on the .45.

Very insightful grasshopper