Does Anyone Here Still Carry or Shoot DA/SA?

I have just begun my SA/DA journey. A S&W 1076. Lovely pistol. It’s too big for me to IWB carry. I hope to find a shoulder holster for it.
 
MikeInOr said:
If you are proficient with DA/SA pistols striker fired pistols are a piece of cake. Those that learn to shoot with striker fired pistols seem to turn out to be the ones that are trigger snobs because they never became proficient with a DA trigger pull. It is the first shot that counts most so you better be able to make an accurate first shot with a DA pull if you are going to own one.
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Agree, but it seems those that learned or primarily shoot SAO are even worse.

(and this is coming from a reformed trigger snob :) )
 
halfmoonclip said:
A popular gun on the Walther board is the P5. The decocker is right under the right thumb, so it is really easy to return to DA without shifting the grip. It also has an easy DA stroke.
Have to wonder if thumbing the hammer on the draw stroke doesn't make more sense than struggling with the long DA pull?
Moon
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Regarding de-cockers, the CZ75 D models' decocker lever is in a very nice location. It's easy to reach and can lower the hammer fast, or slow and quietly, it's basically a "snick-snick" motion.

Thumbing a hammer back in a hurry on a semi-auto pistol is a cumbersome affair for me compared to a DA or SA revolver. Especially with pistols with anything that one would call a beaver tail.
 
halfmoonclip said:
The decocker is right under the right thumb, so it is really easy to return to DA without shifting the grip.
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I do wonder, if we aren’t talking competition or duty, what ease of decocking rates for folks here. I have a relative (who is retired LEO, so maybe that’s part of it) who doesn’t like Sig Legion only because the decocker is harder to work quickly.

As a civilian CCW I’m thinking it’s largely a non issue. I’m not drawing unless I plan to fire, and certainly not working the hammer back, so if I get to the point where I’m thinking about decocking I’ve got time, since the threat is over at that point.

I certainly understand easy to use safeties, but the decocker always struck me as a “whatever” issue for CCW.
 
JR24 said:
I do wonder, if we aren’t talking competition or duty, what ease of decocking rates for folks here.
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It is definitely a factor for me but behind several other things. I really appreciate it for when I am running drills at the range. I can develop a system to get ready for each draw that won't tempt me to take potentially dangerous shortcuts if the decocker is in a good place. I don't prioritize speed as much as being able to do so with only the firing hand and not twisting my hand on the grip.
 
JR24 said:
I certainly understand easy to use safeties, but the decocker always struck me as a “whatever” issue for CCW.
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For me, if a old school DA/SA hammer fired autoloader has a decocker it might not have a manual safety lever. Since I tend not to prefer safety levers on my SA/DA pistolas, then I'll take the decocker version.
 
chicharrones said:
For me, if a old school DA/SA hammer fired autoloader has a decocker it might not have a manual safety lever. Since I tend not to prefer safety levers on my SA/DA pistolas, then I'll take the decocker version.
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When I bought my old P94 (my only DA/SA) I really didn't know crap about pistols other than I wanted one. A safety seemed like a good idea. After practicing with it & carrying it for some time I realized I would have preferred it did not have one. Of course then it was too late.
Some folks say with a DA/SA the solution is to chamber a round, use the decocker, holster the pistol then take the safety off. I actually did that for a while. My Ruger has an ambidextrous safety. I was out hunting one day & had just finished coming up the tree & getting my climber situated the way I wanted it. I did a quick check of all my stuff & realized the safety I had left off on the P94 was now on. That experience convinced me that even if I don't feel a safety is necessary & I choose to carry with it off I should still train to disengage it when coming up on target. Safeties don't always stay in the position we leave them in.
 
Yes, a Beretta 92 Brigadier and 96; Sig P226 357Sig/40 and a P220 SRT in 45auto, my favorite. Coming from a .357mag 1911 background, the DA/SA models have a short learning curve, plus these models mentioned are natural pointers.
 
Mike J said:
When I bought my old P94 (my only DA/SA) I really didn't know crap about pistols other than I wanted one. A safety seemed like a good idea. After practicing with it & carrying it for some time I realized I would have preferred it did not have one. Of course then it was too late.
Some folks say with a DA/SA the solution is to chamber a round, use the decocker, holster the pistol then take the safety off. I actually did that for a while. My Ruger has an ambidextrous safety. I was out hunting one day & had just finished coming up the tree & getting my climber situated the way I wanted it. I did a quick check of all my stuff & realized the safety I had left off on the P94 was now on. That experience convinced me that even if I don't feel a safety is necessary & I choose to carry with it off I should still train to disengage it when coming up on target. Safeties don't always stay in the position we leave them in.
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Not quite the same, but I’ve had enough safeties that I holstered in the ON position come out of the holster OFF to ever trust any safety to stay in the same state i holstered it in, so I absolutely agree always train to disengage it on the draw.
 
Shot my CZ 97 B decocker as modified with a Cajun Professional tune up kit installation today . It produced 1-2" groups basically tore one elongated hole dead center in the bullseye from a simple v rest and sand bags at 25 yards with my favorite old match load of 205 Hensley and Gibbs SWC over Winchester 231 powder to give 950 fps in a five ince barrel 1911. It was at least as smooth shooting as my custom Colt Gold Cup and carries double action with a 7.5 pound pull. Also shot my favorite early 90 s Sig P 220 .45 with same load and I got that size one hole group at 15 yards . Again the GrayGuns tuned light 7 pound DA and 3. .5 pound made it easy to keep fifteen yard fast shots in head at 15 yards unsupported dead on .
 
somethingbenign said:
Nice touch on the CZ pistols is that they lock the safety off when the hammer is down. Normally I am in the camp of if it has a safety, train the safety. My CZ with a safety is the exception to that.
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Wish my thumb would accommodate CZ safeties, but they just don’t work for me.

(yes, I’ve tried all the various options they offer)
 
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I don't know if anyone has mentioned this but a big plus for DA/SA handguns is a very reduced possibility of an accidental discharge from it falling from a holster while you're gyrating on a dance floor or poor finger positioning before a proper target is identified.
 
Primary carry is my Sig P224 in 357Sig. Also have a 40S&W bbl for it. Also have a Sig P229C with same setup plus a Barsto 9 conversion. Have a Sig 9mm Legion and a Sig P229 40, 357Sig and 9mm bbls.
 
I like DA/SA options because I don't like putting pre-tensioned striker guns with short trigger strokes in my waistband. I have a 3rd Gen S&W 908 that is my regular rotation and I picked up an HK P2000sk LEM last year to mitigate the heavy DA pull. The HK is nice but obviously chunkier than the 908 which is single stack.

I picked up a S&W SW99c AS (Walther P99c AS) this year which I intend to carry de-cocked so this is a striker version of a DA/SA. I like it but it's also thicker than a single stack since it's Glock 26 sized.

I think there's a definite market for a thin single stack DA/SA with modern P365-style extra-compact magazine stacking. I'm surprised nobody has made one yet.
 
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Lt Shaffer said:
I like DA/SA options because I don't like putting pre-tensioned striker guns with short trigger strokes in my waistband. I have a 3rd Gen S&W 908 that is my regular rotation and I picked up an HK P2000sk LEM last year to mitigate the heavy DA pull. The HK is nice but obviously chunkier than the 908 which is single stack.

I picked up a S&W SW99c AS (Walther P99c AS) this year which I intend to carry de-cocked so this is a striker version of a DA/SA. I like it but it's also thicker than a single stack since it's Glock 26 sized.

I think there's a definite market for a thin single stack DA/SA with modern P365-style extra-compact magazine stacking. I'm surprised nobody has made on yet.
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I'm not sure how well they would sell but I would be interested.
 
chicharrones said:
For me, if a old school DA/SA hammer fired autoloader has a decocker it might not have a manual safety lever. Since I tend not to prefer safety levers on my SA/DA pistolas, then I'll take the decocker version.
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Yes, I prefer a decocking system on a da/sa pistol versus manually decocking it.

I was practicing with a Beretta 96 a few years ago and the hammer got away from me on a manual decock. No harm, no foul as I wa at my home range and the gun was pointed in a safe direction but I re-assessed my decocking priorities.

With a heavy DA trigger pull, I see no need for a safety.

But, I have a P30SK LEM trigger and I’m still getting comfortable with this “DA” concept.
 
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