Hammer Fire vs Striker Fire...

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I have an XD that has a remarkably good trigger. There is only enough pre-travel to disengage the strike block and zero over travel. Its every bit at crisp as my Remington R1 Limited double stack 1911 trigger though that has had minimal work. But then again I shoot a double action revolver as well or better than I shoot either of those guns so a Trigger-Snob I am not.

Getting views on semi-auto triggers from a dedicated DA wheelgunner is like asking an extreme marathoner whether it's too far to walk from the hotel to the restaurant.
 
Sorry- that caused a soda blow out the nose.

Don’t assume I am insinuating the “valid reasons” necessarily mean striker fires are “better”, there are other considerations, some already mentioned...cost, availability, variety, easy to train shooters, etc.

To dismiss the current trend to striker fired guns as invalid seems to ignore the overwhelming market demand as if undeserved.
 
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Walther has hammer-fired pistols in its stable. The PK380, P22, the PPK & PPK/S, and the CREED all are hammer-fired.

There are some advantages and disadvantages to both approaches. I don't see one ever completely supplanting the other.

Walther made a striker-fired gun (and may still make models with the same characteristics) that was DA/SA: these guns, when you rack the slide or chamber a round, partially cock the striker assembly. The striker assembly can also be decocked, manually, and the trigger can then act as a true double-action esign (i.e., it has a true second-strike capability).

I don't remember if any of the these models are available with a frame-mounted safety, but that could be probably be incorporated into the design (as a number of striker-fired guns have that feature.) The Walther P99 AS(?) and some variations of that design, and the S&W SW99 -- a joint production and sales effort by Walther and S&W here in the U.S. -- share the same design.

I've often tnought I'd like to try one of the Walther P99, but have never found a used one for sale. Seems like the best of both hammer-fired and striker-fired functionality without any of the drawbacks of either design.
 
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I don’t think DA/SA is going anywhere, I just think a lot of manufacturers already have a great offering in that format. The USP/P30, Sig’s many offerings, CZ has many offerings, the Beretta, etc.

I also think the surge in popularity with striker fired guns is due to a number of factors. The first is price, they’re likely cheaper or produce and in most cases cheaper for the consumer. Many folks don’t consider a couple hundred bucks (in some cases) a trivial amount and will take the cheaper option.

Another reason is the simple manual of arms. Sure it’s easy for people who love to shoot to look down our noses at people who can’t shoot the first shot on a DA/SA well or folks who have troubling remembering how to work a manual safety, but quite frankly most people don’t really care that much. We also like to turn our noses up at mushy triggers, but again, most folks couldn’t hardly tell the difference.

Most non gun nuts just want to be able to hit a paper plate at 7 yards and have something easy to use and reliable. Nothing wrong with that, even if it’s not what we as a group tend to do. To add to that, I’d imagine it’s easier to train large groups (LEO’s, military) if the operation is simpler. Those groups likely don’t spend a lot of time mastering their weapons or putting ammo down range, as a whole anyway and anything they can do to streamline the process only makes it easier and more efficient. Cost is a huge factor with those groups too.

So while I don’t think they’re going anywhere, I do think the days of police departments, government agencies and military issuing them are likely dwindling.
 
Striker triggers still feel weird to me, although I have gotten used to them. Until a few years ago, every gun i fired was either a long gun, a revolver, or a 1911. When i first fired a striker pistol, I thought the trigger was malfunctioning because of the takeup.
 
For my comments, I will use the Glock 19 (striker fired) and CZ 75 compact (hammer fired) as examples.

For the above examples...
1. I feel better emotionally carrying a hammer fired pistol. I can keep my thumb on the hammer as I holster.

But I have more physical comfort carrying the Glock 19 AIWB (for me) when I am sitting down. There's no hammer to poke at my gut.

In the comfort category: it's a tie


2.The hammer system... looks too complicated FOR ME to work on. (At least for now.) The Glock...I can take the striker apart.

In the repair/ maintenance category: striker fired has the advantage (for me).

3.Some suggest that under stress, there's a tendency of shooters to let their trigger finger move towards the trigger. As if to subconsciously verify that it is there. If that is true, the hammer fired DA/SA system may provide more tactile feedback to the user due to the heavier first shot trigger. ( I realize that there are other hammer fired and striker systems out there ).

For new shooters with little training, this may be a factor.

4. The cool factor. For me, the hammer fired guns just look better.

5. External hammers can get caught in clothing. Striker guns are more streamlined.

6. Striker fired guns usually have less moving parts. Less parts that can break?

7. My two favorite carry guns are the ever reliable Glock 19 and the super ergonomic CZ 75 compact variants. I regularly practice with both.
 
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I love DA/SA, but due to the longer trigger pull, the reach is often just a tad too long for comfort in DA, especially with double-stack Sigs. However, I have little problem with large striker fired pistols. So the only hammer-fired guns I own right now are a Colt Gov't and a GP100. My other pistols are a G21.4, and two Sig P320's that fit like a glove. I just don't prefer the trigger feel on the strikers, and prefer the relative safety of a DA/SA with decocker. Right now I'm on the lookout for a CZ 2075 RAMI with decocker; my LGS had one and I should have grabbed it when I could.
 
I shoot the gamut of them, and really dont pay much attention. The one I do notice the most, is the lock time on my SA revolvers. They seem to be really slow (not as bad as an open bolt gun, but close :)) in comparison to everything else, but then again, they are the only guns I shoot like that. Everything I can shoot DA I shoot that way.

I think with any of them, the more familiar with them you are with them, the less noticeable they are. If youre only accustomed to light SA triggers, then anything else is going to seem off and more difficult.

If you shoot a revolver DAO, then youre going to be well ahead of the curve for most other things, and a lot less trigger phobic.





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S&W's still relatively new EZ was purposefully hammer-fired because it's easier to rack the slide. My own wife, the G43 was a no-go. The P238 was beautifully smooth and easy. My neighbor's wife cannot rack the slide on her G17. There are a lot of people, a very large portion of the population, not "shooters", that cannot rack the slide on most striker-fired guns. I have not seen anything that makes racking a striker gun easier. I know shooters will say they don't have a problem, lack of training, or that there are some techniques... ad nauseum.

If the handgun market size is going to expand, and makers are not just going to sell more guns to the same people, striker-fired handguns have a problem. I'm not saying hammer-fired is the only solution.

Certainly, hammers are not a thing of the past yet. It's true that Sig and CZ just got into making striker-fired guns, and Glock has yet to introduce a hammer-fired gun, but not much else has changed in 100 years.
 
There are a lot of people, a very large portion of the population, not "shooters", that cannot rack the slide on most striker-fired guns.

I have been surprised that no mainstream/mass-market gun maker is putting slide rackers on home defense guns. Obviously, those would be difficult to incorporate into a concealed carry gun, but for a bedside pistol? They just solve all the arthritic-hands-can't-grab-slide-hard problems.
 

HAMMER TIME!


I like both platforms. For autoloaders preferred strikers are Glocks, my preferred hammers are CZ's.

It's hard to get a low bore axis with a hammer fired autoloader; CZ does this better than most with their slide configuration.
There aren't many options for restrike on striker fires, but there are a few out there.
Hammer fired is more complex; strikers are easier to maintain.
Not many good options on decocking strikers, hammers have it easy.

Pros and cons to each, embrace them and enjoy, and for those that cannot see those pros and cons or cannot embrace one or the other; have fun in your own little world.
 
I have been surprised that no mainstream/mass-market gun maker is putting slide rackers on home defense guns. Obviously, those would be difficult to incorporate into a concealed carry gun, but for a bedside pistol? They just solve all the arthritic-hands-can't-grab-slide-hard problems.
The cocking ears on the VP pistols are pretty handy for this reason, and my last girlfriend liked them quite a bit. She didn't have arthritis, and her hands weren't terribly week, but she didn't have man hands either.

They work well and don't impede concealment.

But you're more talking like a actual protrusion to grab onto, like on some race guns?
 
Yep, an actual knob or handle that sticks off the slide. I have seen a lot of rather elderly shooters who do have arthritis or other hand strength challenges find them to restore the ability to comfortably load and unload. It totally removes grip force/friction from the equation - they only have to be able to hold their fingers in a hooked position against the weight of the recoil spring. If you can pick up a single plastic bag of groceries, you can rack a slide with a slide-racker on it.

I think most people who think they can't rack a slide can't rack because of a mental hangup (fear of applying real force to the gun), but for those with an actual medical problem, slide rackers make it super easy.
 
Striker fired is simply a better, more reliable design and it's use in shotguns and rifles prove that.

I can't for the life of me think of a striker fired shotgun. Every pump or auto I have ever used or worked on has a bolt with a firing pin powered by an internal hammer. You may not be able to see the hammer but its there. Maybe one of the old bolt action shotguns but those are rare these days.
 
I can't for the life of me think of a striker fired shotgun. Every pump or auto I have ever used or worked on has a bolt with a firing pin powered by an internal hammer. You may not be able to see the hammer but its there. Maybe one of the old bolt action shotguns but those are rare these days.

Are there any striker fired shotguns? I don't know of any.
 
My hammer fired XDE has a pretty good DA trigger and the SA is great. The gun is my most reliable gun I own. Next is my G19 only because the RSA has been the cause of light strikes with two different RSA's.Could be they have been the plastic type. A stainless one will be here Sat. Three lt.strikes today and two last week.Correction: off center strike.
 
Are there any striker fired shotguns? I don't know of any.

Just the old bolt actions like the ones Mossberg made so many of and sold them under their name and all the store brand names they were sold under. Buts all I can come up with. I have owned 4 of them. A 12, 20 and two 410's. I still have one 410 and gave the other to my nephew.
 
Just the old bolt actions like the ones Mossberg made so many of and sold them under their name and all the store brand names they were sold under. Buts all I can come up with. I have owned 4 of them. A 12, 20 and two 410's. I still have one 410 and gave the other to my nephew.

Oh yeah, obviously the old bolt shotguns.
 
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