SwampWolf
Member
I'm not aware of any contemporary American company making a pistol with a "European-style" magazine release located on the butt of the gun but it has three arguable advantages over a "conventional" release, (one that is located behind the trigger and activated usually with the thumb of the hand holding the gun, ala Model 1911).
(1) It's ambidextrous all the time for everybody.
(2) It's easier to manipulate when wearing gloves in cold weather, lessening the prospect of ejecting the magazine inadvertently.
(3) And, most importantly, the heel release is much less likely to inadvertently dump a magazine by the holstered pistol bumping or rubbing up against something. It is slower to reload and slower to clear a malfunction with but the need for speed in a reload is somewhat offset by the huge magazine capacity most modern autos have. Too, today's autoloaders are much more reliable than were those in the past. It could even be argued that a heel release that kept the magazine in the gun is way faster to fire the first shot than a conventional type release that lost its magazine along the way because it was so easy to depress. And Lord help you if that pistol had a "magazine safety".
This is not an argument for the heel-release type magazine, per se (at last count I have twenty semi-auto handguns and only one is so equipped -a Ruger MKII .22 auto). I'm only making the point that it does have some at least potential advantages. I certainly wouldn't have any angst depending on one to save my hide.
(1) It's ambidextrous all the time for everybody.
(2) It's easier to manipulate when wearing gloves in cold weather, lessening the prospect of ejecting the magazine inadvertently.
(3) And, most importantly, the heel release is much less likely to inadvertently dump a magazine by the holstered pistol bumping or rubbing up against something. It is slower to reload and slower to clear a malfunction with but the need for speed in a reload is somewhat offset by the huge magazine capacity most modern autos have. Too, today's autoloaders are much more reliable than were those in the past. It could even be argued that a heel release that kept the magazine in the gun is way faster to fire the first shot than a conventional type release that lost its magazine along the way because it was so easy to depress. And Lord help you if that pistol had a "magazine safety".
This is not an argument for the heel-release type magazine, per se (at last count I have twenty semi-auto handguns and only one is so equipped -a Ruger MKII .22 auto). I'm only making the point that it does have some at least potential advantages. I certainly wouldn't have any angst depending on one to save my hide.
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