I've never really understood the apprehension toward disabling extra locks/safeties.
Try telling that to the parents of the sailor who was killed in 1944 when a Victory Model discharged when it hit the deck of a warship.
I think a little lesson on the history of the Smith and Wesson Hammer Block is in order.
It had long been known that the old single action revolvers from the 19th Century were not safe to carry fully loaded with a live round under the hammer. A strong blow to the hammer, such as might happen if the gun fell to the ground and landed on its hammer spur, could shear off the so called 'safety cock' notch, or break the sear, causing the firing pin to strike a primer with enough force to fire a cartridge. So anybody who is familiar with single action revolvers with a Colt type lockwork knows to only load five rounds and keep the hammer down on an empty chamber. We could ask Mr Ruger about that if he were still with us.
So when double action revolvers started to become commonplace at the end of the 19th Century, many of them had rebounding hammers, to prevent accidental discharge. Iver Johnson was among the first, IJ invented the Transfer Bar, and their 'Hammer the Hammer' advertising campaign became well known for promoting how safe their revolvers were.
Here is the lockwork on a Smith & Wesson 38 M&P that was made around 1908. Notice the hump on top of the rebound slide and how it is wedging the hammer back from the frame. This feature is still incorporated in all S&W revolvers today. Now take a look at the red line I drew across the hammer. If enough force is applied to the hammer spur, that is the place where the hammer will break. Once it breaks, the hammer will rotate forward and the firing pin will strike the primer of a round under the hammer. The other failure mode is the stud the hammer rotates on may shear off, with the same result. Granted, it will take a great deal of force for either of these scenarios to happen, but they did happen.
Flash forward a few years and S&W thought it would be a good idea to add a hammer block to their revolvers, to prevent a discharge in case the hammer got struck. This was a long time ago, long before our current litigious society that sues at the drop of a hat. S&W simply thought an extra safety device was necessary to safeguard their customers.
This is the side plate off a 38 M&P made in 1920. This revolver was equipped with the first type of hammer block that S&W used. The hammer block is the long thin piece nesting in a slot in the side plate. I have placed the hand next to it to show how the hammer block worked. As the hand rose, its angled edge would push a spring loaded pin sideways. This pin in turn pushed the hammer block back into the side plate, withdrawing the tab at its top from between the hammer and the frame, allowing the revolver to fire. If the trigger was not pulled, the hand would not rise and the hammer block would prevent the hammer from moving forward, no matter what else might break.
This 38 M&P was made in 1939 and it incorporates the next type of hammer block that S&W installed in their revolvers. This one has less moving parts than the earlier one. The hammer block is one piece of spring steel staked into its slot in the side plate. There is a tab that extends sideways on the hammer block. This time, the hand has a ramp on it. As the hand rises, the ramp pushes the hammer block back into the side plate, allowing the hammer to fall all the way and fire a cartridge.
This is the type of hammer block that failed in the case of the sailor killed in 1944. An investigation was held, and it was determined that heavy grease or cosmoline in the mechanism had prevented the hammer block from springing forward to the 'safe' position. So when the gun fell to the deck, something sheared inside and the sailor was killed.
Since this was during WWII, the military demanded that S&W come up with a quick solution if they wanted to maintain their contracts with the government. Extensive tests were run, dropping revolvers from fixed heights, and it was determined that parts were shearing, and the current passive design of the hammer block was inadequate. The engineers were called in, and in one week's time they came up with the new hammer block design that is still incorporated in every Smith & Wesson revolver today.
Notice in this modern (1974) Model 14-3, the rebound slide still has the hump on top, wedging the hammer back from the frame. Notice too how thin the cross section of the hammer is where I drew the line in the earlier photo. This is hammer block that S&W has been installing since 1944. As the trigger moves backwards, in either single action or double action mode, it pushes the rebound slide back. The pin on the rebound slide pulls the hammer block down in its slot in the side plate, freeing the hammer to fall all the way. As the trigger is released, the rebound slide pushes the hammer block back up in its slot, blocking the firing pin from striking the primer of a round under the hammer.
Keep all that in mind the next time you decide to disable 'extra locks/safeties'. Remember how thin the cross section is at the bottom of the hammer, just in case you manage to drop the revolver on its hammer and the barrel is pointing up at you.