1911: Tape grip safety?

M

Matrix

New member
One of my shooting buddies showed up at the range this weekend with electrical tape around the grip safety of his 1911, effectively disabling it. He has griped about the safety several times, and had even had installed one with the "bump". It still engaged from time to time, preventing firing.

Several other shooters were there, and the debate began.

Question is, is this madness or a reasonable solution?
No other pistol has this feature, and if good safety habits
are followed it will be moot. Arguments against are possible legal liability with the question of why would anyone disable a safety device.

Your opinions?
 
I don't recommend it, but every one of my 1911-pattern guns has the safety pinned. Even a "speed bump" doesn't work every time for me, so there's really no other solution. Some people might find changing their grip a better solution. I'll agree that gun safety is an active endeavor on the part of the shooter, not a passive hardware problem. I'm not really sure that there are many circumstances where a grip safety would prevent an AD, anyway.
 
No problem

The grip safety was never part of Browning's original design but was instead added at the Army's request. The Army is known for not trusting soldiers and requiring redundant safeties(see current requirement for manual safety.)
Look at the Hi-Power; a similar design with no grip safety, and yet I wouldn't think twice about carrying it or a CZ-75 C&L.

The grip safety may make you feel warm and cozy, but it doesn;t accomplish anything that a properly functioning weapon with a trained user already does.
 
The original military reqirements for............

the new pistol called for an "automatic safety" that did not require any effort on the part of the operator to disengage. i.e. In hand it was ready to fire and in the holster it was on safe. Since Browning (and Colt) were attempting to win the contract for the new service pistol it can be assumed that the grip safety was very much part of JMB's designs. As an aside, the Military first wanted the pistols carried in what we would call Condition 0, cocked, loaded chamber, no manualy operated safety engaged.

The thumb safety on the 1911 was added as an after thought, the M-1910 pistol did not have one and the earlier submitted pistols did not have them either. Do not forget that the Cavalry was doing the testing of the pistols and I would guess that more than one horse was head shot with an A.D. by an Cavalryman when the horse shied or something. The loss of several horses and other reasons caused the change in requirements in safeties. The thumb safety was then added to what became the M-1911.

Several of JMB's earlier pistol designs had no safety or a grip safety or a thumb safety or both a grip and thumb safety. The Highpower (P-35) was was not JMB's design alone, he died before it was much beyond the early prototype stage and was designed to fill the requirements of another military contract.
 
I politely disagree. Disabling a safety device on a firearm is a bad idea. Criminal or civil liability is a concern. If you want a cocked and locked pistol without the grip safety, buy a High Power, a Star PD or BM, or a CZ pistol or clone. By the same token, if you don't want the Series 80 firing pin safety, buy a Series 70 1911 or clone. So it goes. Buy the pistol in the configuration you prefer as it comes from the factory. Happy shooting.
 
I shudder at the thought of someone doing this!

The grip safety comes into play if the gun is dropped. Do you think that MAY have been a concern in the old horse cavalry? When the gun hits the ground and 'stops', the trigger bow CAN quite easily keep moving under its own inertia. Thus, it can trip the sear, which drops the hammer and discharges the gun. Now, this won't happen with a properly functioning thumb safety engaged. Nor would it happen with the thumb safety disengaged, and a properly working grip safety impeding the trigger bow. Do you religously keep YOUR 1911 locked on safe until the exact instant you need to fire it??? If not, then don't mess with that other failsafe grip safety.:):):)
 
I wouldn't do it. If I can't use a gun as designed, I buy a different one.
 
I agree with those who wouldn't do this. If a firearm needs tape to make it function, get another gun. I've never known anyone else to have this problem, and I would suggest there must be a better solution.
 
If you plan on using this pistol in competion only, I wouldn't hesitate to pin the grip safety. On a carry pistol I wouldn't. To much B.S. to put up with.
 
If you tape or pin your safety, and then (God forbid!) there is ever an AD or ND in which someone is hurt or killed, you can expect the lawers and reporters to descend like a cloud of locusts, and you can bet your boots that you'll lose everything of value that you currently own.

If you don't like the safety, buy another gun.

Ken Strayhorn
Hillsborough NC
 
That grip saftey is a very dangerious item if you try to ease the hammer down on a loaded chamber. Grip the gun so the saftey is engaged and lower the hammer and fiddle and fight. It is the leading cause for ADs on the range in my opinion do to the extra effort for hammer lowering. I dont shoot mine in the saddle(it pisses my horses off)and think it would be a better safer gun with out that. Drop it on the hammer and it will not do any good at all. Kind of like just because Ford Exploders come with firestones you should not put toyo tires on it.
 
All my competition guns have the grip safety pinned, the others do not. I don't recommend it for a gun used outside a match or target shooting only environment.
 
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