[Wolfy]

Is one better than the other?

What are the pros and cons of each?

[capt_happypants]

Generally, it depends on the shooter. Since I have small hands and relatively short fingers, I find frame mounted safeties easier to reach. The slide mounted safety is too hard to reach, and in the case of the Beretta 92/92 series, completely confusing.

Out of everything I've held, about the only gun that I would shoot with a safety would be a CZ-75B.

I prefer Sigs and Glocks to about everthing else.

As usual, YMMV.

[otomik]

Slide-Mounted
Pro: out of the way, you're not likely to accidentally manipulate it when firing and a lot of people don't carry with the safety on anyway.
Con: more difficult to reach especially for people with small fingers. If it's loose enough one might accidentally activate it when racking the slide
Comments: generally this is for double action shooters though a lot of double action pistols are being made in a decocker only configuration now. The reason smaller handed people might find it more difficult might be because this system wasn't ment for larger pistols when it first appeared in the Walther PP series of pistols.

Frame-Mounted
Pro: Easy to manipulate and intuitive natural feeling to deactivate when taking your grip.
Con: close enough that you might activate it on accident.
Comments: this is pretty much the system of cocked and locked shooters wheither the pistol is double action or single action.

they're both good just pick one that suits you but generally it goes like
cocked and locked guy: frame mounted
double action unlocked guy: slide mounted
small hands: frame mounted
large hands: either, i have no problem flicking off the safety on a model 92.

*reading rainbow music* but don't take my word on it! go to your local library er, um, gunshop and try em out!

[clange]

92 slide mounted safety..'push forward'.

Not that i can see a reason to have it on safe with such a deavy long DA pull. :scrutiny:

I'd much rather have cocked n locked.

[otomik]

Not that i can see a reason to have it on safe with such a deavy long DA pull.
ahh but very smooth. Get the hammer spring from the "D" DAO models and that problem will be solved (only cost you about 3 bucks), the Elite II comes with the "D" spring and i suspect the only reason they haven't standardized on it yet is because of some paranoid police chiefs.

The taurus derivitives have frame mounted safeties for going cocked and locked (some ever have decockers) and Beretta will soon have a few single action frame mounted safety cocked and locked models.

[Treylis]

Frame-mounted safeties are the One True Way.

Slide-mounted safeties are for heretics.

;-)

[Wolfy]

Being a S&W fan most of my semi's have the slide frame so I guess I am just used to it. I keep my pistols loaded and decocked.

[Jacobus Rex]

I'll have to say that slide mounted safeties just don't feel right for me. Also, they usually work backwards! :D

I've got large hands and can reach the slide mounted safeties OK, but they always seem to be "in the way". I prefer frame mounted safeties.

However, in the case of decockers, I think that decock only guns work best with slide mounted decockers.

[HSMITH]

Slide mounted safeties are nearly impossible for me to use well. I won't own a gun with one.

[BigG]

If you want a DA auto without the slide mounted excrescences, why not try one of the fine SIG P series pistoles? Or a Glock? I think the frame mounted switch ala Colt Government Model is the only way to go if you need a button. YMMV

[Mikul]

When I bought my first gun, I looked at a Beretta with a slide-mounted safety and tried to disengage it. It was clumsy and difficult. I bought an H&K with a frame-mounted safety.

That was 75,000 rounds ago.

My opinion hasn't changed. Pushing backwards with your thumb is weak, and I don't mean that in slang terms. Have someone put down on the top of your thumb while you resists then have them push up. They'll have to push 3-5x harder in the latter situation.

A slide mounted decocker would be just fine because I'll never have to engage it under stress.

[clange]

Get the hammer spring from the "D" DAO models and that problem will be solved (only cost you about 3 bucks), the Elite II comes with the "D" spring and i suspect the only reason they haven't standardized on it yet is because of some paranoid police chiefs.
Does it really lighten it that much? I've been planning on getting one actually, just havent taken the time to order one. Know of a good place to get one?

[otomik]

Does it really lighten it that much? I've been planning on getting one actually, just havent taken the time to order one. Know of a good place to get one?
http://www.langdontactical.com/beretta.html
you can get it there along with plenty of other goodies.

or some place more plain like numrich if you're not interested in other stuff
http://www.e-gunparts.com/

i also heard that the hammer spring from the Beretta 8045 can be used and it's even lighter, to the point where Langdon recommends against using it for defensive use.

[cratz2]

On thing to keep in mind when going with a lighter hammer spring is the lighter the spring, the less consistant your ignition system is going to be and that's not something to dismiss lightly in a carry or home defense gun.

As far as the safeties go, I had a Beretta and now have a Taurus. It has been perfect and I can praise it highly enough if it fits your hand. Between the slide safety and the frame safety, I'd take the frame safety every single time. Having said that, I think there's some disagreement as to whether the slide safety is intended to be used as a safety at all. Beretta calls it a safety and there is the red dot for when the 'safety' is off, but I feel that it is just a decocker that can be used as a safety if you want to. Look at the SIG design, the P99 and others... if your first trigger pull is a long heavy affair, and if the gun is carried in a holster, there is very little reason for a manual safety. Chuck Taylor has said on a number of times that the device on the slide of the M9 is a decocker and should be used as such.

Also, when I carried my PT99, I carried it with the hammer down and the safety off and never thought I was unsafe for doing so... Of course, maybe I was wrong. :p