When Did Firing Pin Blocks Become Prevalent?

[Tommygunn]

Don't know about that, but cocking one to make a point would have probably been considered ridiculous and probably would have gotten you killed.

Yea well, ... the point would be for the Henry shooter to shoot first.

 

[Jim Watson]

I don't understand the problem.
I have shot a bit of CAS and could pick up a lever action or just come up from port arms, swing the lever and have it loaded and cocked by the time the buttplate hit my shoulder. Kind of like the hammer on a SAA or the safety on a 1911; the prep work is done with the gun on the way to the target.

Now if you want to talk about the time Jim Corbett was concerned that the tiger might hear the snick of his safety catch...

 

[Tommygunn]

I don't know that there is a "problem." It seems to be just a question on when a safety was introduced.

 

[.455_Hunter]

I would say that the late 70's - early 80's saw broad introduction of modern firing pin blocks- Glock, S&W 2nd Gen, Beretta 92 SB, CZ 75/85B, Colt Series 80, etc.

 

[WestKentucky]

I can’t speculate on when, but I will say that it wasn’t soon enough. That’s the biggest gripe about modern lever guns and other classic designs which have had safeties added over time, and many people go to the point of removing them. Safeties serve a purpose, and should have come about sooner. Especially in a time when medical treatment was grossly lacking to a point where a wound from even the weakest of arms was enough to kill a man days later from untreated infection. If they generally had been around back in the 1880s then maybe people today wouldn’t gripe so much about a feature designed to keep them from accidentally shooting themself or someone else.

 

[Jim Watson]

The firing pin block as we know it now was introduced with the Swartz design in Colts of the late 1930s. Not in the mil spec when they increased production for WWII, and not replaced with the Series 80 until 38 years later.

The advantage of the cross bolt safety on a lever action is that you can unload the magazine by cycling rounds through the action with no risk of firing.

 

[Bill M.]

Late 1800's on a horse I believe they carried on an empty chamber.

 

[Reinz]

Iver Johnson was not only ahead of its time with the transfer bar introduced in 1894, but they introduced the trigger blade safety in 1897; which most people think was invented by Glock.