That gun has _no_ safety?

[coylh]

I was shooting with some novices last year and one saw me reholster a Sig. She asked if my pistol had a safety. I said no, and she looked somewhat thoughtful, and then asked if the holster covered the trigger, so I showed her. The point is, it seems to me that the idea of a gun without a "safety" sounds unsafe to the uninitiated. So I think we need two responses to the "Does that gun have a safety" question.

If you hear "Does that gun have an active/manual safety? You can rattle off a quick no.

However, if you hear "Doesn't that gun have a safety?" You should pause for a moment, and in a gentle way explain that yes, there are multiple mechanical and design safeties built into this firearm:

1. The trigger guard prevents accidental contact with the trigger.
2. The holster (if applicable) covers the trigger guard for added protection.
3. The weight of the trigger pull is set well above two pounds.
4. The firing mechanism will prevent firing until the cartridge if fully chambered.
5. With a quick pull on the slide you can verify if the chamber is loaded.
6. These safety holes in the magazine allow you to verify if the magazine is also loaded.
7. This safety flange above the grip prevents the web of your hand from being injured by the slide during firing.
8. The internal design of this firearm prevents accidental firing if it is dropped.
9. There are safety instructions on the barrel showing you exactly which ammunition this gun fires.
10. There is a manual selector switch (if applicable).
11. The trigger houses a manual selector switch (if applicable).
12. The grip houses a pad which must be pressed to fire (if applicable).

Whew! Can you believe our firearms are designed with so many safeties? I'm sure I've even left a few out...

[Hkmp5sd]

Seems the media and anti's disinformation strategy is alive and well. If someones sole source of firearms training is VPC/Brady Bunch/Dan Rather, then views like this can be expected.

The answer is, of course my gun has a safety. It's called a trigger. You pull the trigger, the gun goes bang. You don't pull the trigger, the gun sits there collecting dust.

[ReadyontheRight]

Hmmmm...my revolvers have a safety. It's somewhere between my brain and my hands.

I was raised to think "don't trust any safety". If a round is in the chamber, any gun can go off. Act accordingly and THINK!

[chetrogers]

Yesterday i Bought a Ruger p97dc and it doesnt have an external safety.And before purchasing it i thought for a while and said to myself why would the gun go off if i didnt pull the triger.My other pistol had a thumb safety and to tell the truth after shooting the Ruger today I like it better without the exterior safety..You give 100 percent of your thinking to your trigger finger instead of worring about an external safety...

[another okie]

If she knew enough to ask if the holster covered the trigger, maybe she was just curious about the set up of the gun and not freaked out by the fact that there was no external manual safety.

[Ala Dan]

You gotta luv them SIG's; cuz YOU do have to
pull the trigger to make 'em fire! WOW- what a blessing.

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member

[tc300mag1]

I always thought the best safty is between you ears same thing i tell people when they ask why your auto/revolver has no safty.

[P95Carry]

Bought a Ruger p97dc and it doesn't have an external safety I have a 97 and 95 ... both DC's .... true enough .. a ''safety'' per se would actually be an incumbrance.

With the hammer down in condition 2 that gun is about as safe as it gets ... remembering too the not inconsiderable poundage required for the D/A first shot. As I was late to the ''1911 camp'' and not confident or proficient enough (I don't think) with condition 1 on one of those ... my P series fit the bill nicely.

Hope you enjoy your P97 as much as i do mine .. fugly but tough as nails!!:p

[chetrogers]

p95carry- I agree with the condition 2 would be great for the p97dc.I dont have a permit yet so i dont carry but if i did i would feel safer in condition 2 with the ruger over my old gun in condition 2..But my old gun didnt have a hammer but had thumb safety..It would take something very strange to get the gun to fire in a holster i think.. :)

[Jim Keenan]

The best and easiest answer:

"This gun has several internal safety devices to prevent its firing unless there is a long deliberate pull of the trigger."

Jim

[4v50 Gary]

The Sig family of pistols does not have a manually operated safety. They are not without their safety features though.

Decocking lever - safely lowers the hammer from cocked position.
Disconnector - prevents the gun from firing before it's locked up
firing pin block safety - prevents the forward motion of the firing pin should the hammer fall and the finger is not on the trigger.

[Ala Dan]

Good points about the SIG's Gary.

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member

[orangeninja]

in that I don't have to flip a switch or hit a button during a crisis at a critical moment. I can't think of anything "safer".

[makarov]

I just bought a Kahr K-9 Elite 98. Same thing. Trigger is smooth, but you have to pull it deliberately back to release the striker. This one has the shorter trigger pull too. It concerned me a bit, since my other guns have external safeties, but now I really like it. Holstered the trigger is covered. Draw it and you keep your finger off the trigger until you need to shoot. I suppose you could keep the chamber empty and learn to draw and pull slide back, but that is a bit much.

BTW, I really like the little Kahr. I have revolvers too, but the trigger on the Kahr is really nice, different than firing a revo in DA mode, but very smooth.

[Range Ninja]

One term I hate hearing is "Glock-leg", it should more appropriately be called, Careless-Idiot Syndrome. Safety is a practiced behavior, not a switch to flip on and off.