What is your preferred method of field stripping SFA pistols?

[Skribs]

It seems every handgun I get has a slightly different process for taking it down. The way I see it, for the toolless variety, there are three primary methods of taking the slide off the pistol (after obviously dropping the mag and racking the slide).

With the Springfield XDm series, you just pull the slide back, flip the lever (which also has a decocker), and slide the slide off the frame. This is as simple as you can get.

With the Glock (and MANY derivatives), you have to fire to release the striker before you can pull the pistol apart. On the one hand, pulling the trigger can lead to a ND if the chamber is loaded, but on the other hand this is a much safer condition for a ND than when the gun is taken apart.

With the S&W M&P series, you have a lever inside the frame that must be lowered to take the firearm apart. This lessens the chance of ND in either scenario mentioned above, but is also the most complex system on the list (as it requires a tool stored in the M&P grip or use of another tool) in order to break the weapon down.

Then of course there's the very possible fact that I am way over-thinking all of this, because I do tend to over-analyze things (I've even analyzed why I over-analyze things...when I realized what I was doing I analyzed that, and...well, you get the picture).

What are your thoughts?

 

[Fishbed77]

With the Springfield XDm series, you just pull the slide back, flip the lever (which also has a decocker), and slide the slide off the frame. This is as simple as you can get.

No - the easiest pistol to field strip I've ever encountered is the Walther P99.

Check to see that the gun is unloaded. Decock the pistol and press the down the disassembly tabs. That's it. The pistol will literally disassemble itself (as there is still enough spring tension to push the slide forward off the frame).

No need to pull the slide back or pull the trigger. If there is an easier pistol to field strip, I have not seen it.

 

[savanahsdad]

SFA ? Sporting Firearms Association ? Striker Fire Auto, ?

 

[savanahsdad]

No - the easiest pistol to field strip I've ever encountered is the Walther P99.

Check to see that the gun is unloaded. Decock the pistol and press the down the disassembly tabs. That's it. The pistol will literally disassemble itself (as there is still enough spring tension to push the slide forward off the frame).

No need to pull the slide back or pull the trigger. If there is an easier pistol to field strip, I have not seen it.

Makarov , pull down on trigger guard , with weapon empty, slide comes right off then push safety /decocker up and out , and out falls the firing pin , barrel stay attached to frame , full field striped in seconds

 

[Skribs]

Safe Action, as opposed to SA which is single action.

 

[savanahsdad]

Safe Action, as opposed to SA which is single action.

is there an unsafe action I have SA's and DA's and have shot DAO's ,

 

[JTQ]

With the S&W M&P series, you have a lever inside the frame that must be lowered to take the firearm apart. This lessens the chance of ND in either scenario mentioned above, but is also the most complex system on the list (as it requires a tool stored in the M&P grip or use of another tool) in order to break the weapon down.

I don't own an M&P, but can't you just use your finger? Ruger's SR's are similar in this regard.

 

[jimbo555]

My beretta 84bb is the easiest I own, next is the springfield xds. Glocks are ok, I used to own a colt new agent and that was tricky to strip and reassemble.

 

[Skribs]

I meant striker fired. Somewhere (probably the omnipotent Wikipedia) I read that Glocks were originally called "safe action or SFA" and that was in my head in my last post.

 

[19-3Ben]

I don't own an M&P, but can't you just use your finger?

Yup. I've used my pinky before. Works fine.

 

[spanishjames]

I believe you can also pull the trigger on the M&P instead of manually flipping the disassembly lever. As far as easiest gun to disassemble, I'd say the Beretta/Taurus 92 button and lever feature is pretty easy. They can be disassembled with one hand if you had to.

 

[jimbo555]

Sorry, missed the abbrev.

 

[skt239]

You can pull the trigger on the M&P to take the slide off. I have never used the lever method on mine.

Easiest in my opinion is the P series Sig.

 

[Plan2Live]

I prefer the non-trigger pull method like with my Sig and XDm. Building in a step that involves pulling the trigger doesn't seem very perfect to me.

 

[Robbins290]

+1 for the makarov/wather pp series. Pull down trigger guard, pull back slide

 

[tarosean]

I don't own an M&P, but can't you just use your finger?

Yup. I've used my pinky before. Works fine.

You can just pull the trigger, like a Glock...

 

[Fishbed77]

Makarov , pull down on trigger guard , with weapon empty, slide comes right off then push safety /decocker up and out , and out falls the firing pin , barrel stay attached to frame , full field striped in seconds

+1 for the makarov/wather pp series. Pull down trigger guard, pull back slide

Still one more step than the P99.

 

[2zulu1]

I don't care.

 

[Hometeached1]

Don't care, just follow the 4 rules and be safe.

 

[2wheels]

At the end of the day, if given a choice, I'd rather not have to pull the trigger to disassemble the gun.

That said... If you offered me a gun that was perfect for me in almost all respects, but I had to pull the trigger to take it apart? I'd take that gun without hesitation, it's not a deal breaker for me.

 

[savanahsdad]

Still one more step than the P99.

how can this be ? there is only 1 step to remove the slide from a Makarov, 1 less would be 0 ?

 

[eldon519]

I think a lot is made of nothing for the Glock. Any competent shooter does dry fire practice. Is it that hard to safely empty a gun and dry fire it once before disassembly?

 

[herrwalther]

No - the easiest pistol to field strip I've ever encountered is the Walther P99.

Check to see that the gun is unloaded. Decock the pistol and press the down the disassembly tabs. That's it. The pistol will literally disassemble itself (as there is still enough spring tension to push the slide forward off the frame).

No need to pull the slide back or pull the trigger. If there is an easier pistol to field strip, I have not seen it.

This. The P99 really spoiled me on how easy it is to take apart. Glock gets much easier if the trapezoidal take down lever is installed. I am not a fan of the stock take down catch. Any blowback firearm or pistol where the barrel is attached to the frame has some sort of personal vendetta against me. Whenever I put those types of pistols back together it always seems like it takes me 20 minutes to get the slide back on.

 

[KansasSasquatch]

I'm in the who cares crowd. Just about every modern designed pistol is pretty easy to field strip and reassemble. Not to say that a 1911 is hard to field strip but the modern semi autos have a definite advantage.

 

[Fishbed77]

how can this be ? there is only 1 step to remove the slide from a Makarov, 1 less would be 0 ?

You don't have to draw the side back on a P99. That's one less step.


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