1911 ND/AD..... Safety engaged... Lesson to be learned

[TomN]

Dude, that is one uuuuuuugly foot. Seriously.

 

[pmpmstrb]

I've dropped my Glock twice and nothing. What gives?

 

[melensdad]

I've dropped my Glock twice and nothing. What gives?

You might want to try to get some "stick um" for your hands. The pro football players use it so they can hang on the ball. Probably would keep you from dropping your Glock

 

[pmpmstrb]

You might want to try to get some "stick um" for your hands. The pro football players use it so they can hang on the ball. Probably would keep you from dropping your Glock

I think it was due to it still being slightly wet from having just come out of the dishwasher. I just hand wash it now because I hated all the water spots.

 

[Ri22o]

I think it was due to it still being slightly wet from having just come out of the dishwasher. I just hand wash it now because I hated all the water spots.

I use a delicates bag and throw mine into the washing machine with my darks. Comes out clean every time. Just make sure to let it hang dry, I haven't had good luck with the dryer though.

 

[Benny]

Wow, close call! Glad to hear no one was hurt.

 

[Scutter01]

Just make sure to let it hang dry, I haven't had good luck with the dryer though.

You're supposed to unload it before throwing it in the dryer. That's why some of the bangs are louder than others.

 

[Ri22o]

You're supposed to unload it before throwing it in the dryer. That's why some of the bangs are louder than others.

Hmm, I never made the connection. You're a lifesaver!

 

[rhino]

there really isn't a satisfactory way of keeping a ser 70 type 1911 from doing this. you can put in an extra power FP spring and a light firing pin, but it could still happen. even though it's really tough to get a good trigger with the firing pin safety, these days my carry 1911's have them. my competition guns do not.

I remain skeptical about all of these reports. I don't find it hard to believe that it has happened, but I do not believe that a majority of people who report discharges of this nature are reporting the incident accurately, fully, or telling the truth at all.

Yes, I have accidentally dropped guns muzzle down on hard surfaces (and have the dings in the end of the barrel from the tiles to prove it). No disharges, although one of the guns has a series 80 firing pin block.

The extra power firing pin spring is a really good idea, though, and virtually eliminates the possibility of this happening. You can do some web searching and find documented, systematic tests of 1911s (w/o firing pin blocks) being dropped from various heights directly onto the muzzle without discharges occurring.

Another thing that would probably increase the chances of such a discharge happening (albeit still a tiny chance) would be if the hammer were lowered on a live round. If the gun hits muzzle down, that's more mass that's going to be traveling in the same direction as the firing pin. Of course, lowering the hammer on a 1911 with a live round in the chamber is a bad idea for a lot of reasons.

 

[Disposable Heart]

If I EVER have to drop a firearm, its because Ive run it completely dry and am now throwing it at the bad guy to buy time to get to my new black-jack!

+1 Rhino: Actually sounds like a worn or underpowered firing pin spring, plus very very sensitive primers. You gotta replace those springs intermittantly. I agree, though, not every detail is usually given about a ND/AD.

 

[Lars]

I agree most stories usually leave out a critical fact or two as to what caused the problem.

The Maintenance schedule on a 1911 pistol seems a bit more involved than a pistol like a Glock. That certainly could have had something to do with the AD/ND as well.

I still think the overall lesson here isn't "1911's are Safe/Unsafe. I think the overall lesson here should be, don't trust a mechanical safety mechanism of any type to be the only thing between you, and a bullet in something that doesn't need to be shot.

 

[obijohn]

keep in mind that ANY mechanical device can fail, will fail. but the rhino is likely spot on about the "truth".