I don't know what JMB original intent was, nor do I argue that the half cock is or isn't a safety, because that depends entirely on what your idea or intent is while defining the word "safety."
What I do know is, that when the metal shape of the sear and the metal shape of the hammer wear together after hundreds or thousands of shots, you can still maintain the nice crisp edge of a .020 trigger and sear job for a very long time, even if you carry locked and cocked like I do. If however, you start wearing the hammer down into the half cocked safety valley on the hammer, you will take some of the edge off of the sear, and over many thousands of cycles if that gets rounded you will wind up being unsafe.
My advice, carry the gun hammer down if you go unchambered. Or, if you carry as I do with a slug in the hole, then cock the thing all the way and put the manual safety on and let the sear ride on the appropriately matched and machined edge it is supposed to ride on.
Besides, if you carry chambered, and then half cocked, don't you have to them cock the gun to use it if needs be? Why wouldn't you just swipe off the manual safety and go to town?
What I do know is, that when the metal shape of the sear and the metal shape of the hammer wear together after hundreds or thousands of shots, you can still maintain the nice crisp edge of a .020 trigger and sear job for a very long time, even if you carry locked and cocked like I do. If however, you start wearing the hammer down into the half cocked safety valley on the hammer, you will take some of the edge off of the sear, and over many thousands of cycles if that gets rounded you will wind up being unsafe.
My advice, carry the gun hammer down if you go unchambered. Or, if you carry as I do with a slug in the hole, then cock the thing all the way and put the manual safety on and let the sear ride on the appropriately matched and machined edge it is supposed to ride on.
Besides, if you carry chambered, and then half cocked, don't you have to them cock the gun to use it if needs be? Why wouldn't you just swipe off the manual safety and go to town?