How many firearms are not 'drop safe'?

[Alessan]

@Bookkeeper

A WW2 British Army joke was that if you didn’t have any grenades, an equally effective way of clearing a room full of Germans was to throw in a Sten with a full magazine.

I’ve heard the same thing about early-model Uzis, except in my case, they claimed that Israeli soldiers actually used to do it.

[Martini_Enfield]

@Gbro

Sorry sir, but you totally misunderstand what I said and apparently do not understand a pre-transfer bar revolver or as in the Freedom Arms SAR’s hammer block safety feature.

I know what a transfer bar is and how they work (ditto revolvers in general), I’ve just never heard a transfer bar referred to as a “safety catch” before.

To me (and every other shooter I know), a “safety catch” is exactly that - a thumb catch on the side of the gun (like the one on a Beretta, a Colt M1911A1 etc) which can be thumbed on or off.

[Mdcastle]

@Alessan

I know from personal experience that an M-16A1 rifle will discharge when dropped, or at least when its stock is slammed to the ground by an idiot recruit presenting arms, after he had been fooling around with live ammo and forgot he had a round in the chamber. It could have been worse - he could have lost an *important *finger.

Out of curiosity, what happened to said recruit?

[Gray_Ghost]

@Alessan

I’ve heard the same thing about early-model Uzis, except in my case, they claimed that Israeli soldiers actually used to do it.

Jamie Lee Curtis’s contribution to the meme. With what the IMFDB claims is a MAC-10. Funnily enough, the IMFDB states, and Mythbusters confirmed, that a MAC-10 won’t go off that way, and that the movie crew had to wire down the trigger to obtain the effect.

[Gbro]

@Martini_Enfield

I know what a transfer bar is and how they work (ditto revolvers in general), I’ve just never heard a transfer bar referred to as a “safety catch” before.

To me (and every other shooter I know), a “safety catch” is exactly that - a thumb catch on the side of the gun (like the one on a Beretta, a Colt M1911A1 etc) which can be thumbed on or off.

As a firearms instructor I always convey that I do not know everything about handguns and I also state I can convey something wrongly and encourage all students to question me any time they are having trouble understanding what I am teaching.
TBS, I have used the word “Catch” where the word(s) “Notch” and or “Arrest” and “Position” could have been better used and backed up by the instruction manuals.
I have read many instruction manuals and have owned and used many Single Action Revolvers that one thing is certain and that is, There are many different explanations that all say almost the same thing but in different ways.
Today I read and re-read all the Colt SAR manuals I could find and have not found what I believed I have read in the past, but other than my using the word catch in place of arrest and notch the rest is supported by the verious manuals. And for that I am sorry! :smack:
The Safety Notch on a Pre Transfer Bar SAR also technically called a “Drop Safety” in that when the trigger is released the device DROPS out of position:smack:
Ok again the Safety Notch keeps the fireing pin from contacting the cartridge primer and is also, as is the half cock(load position) a safety device that will Arrest the falling hammer ( catch ) if the thumb slips off the hammer in the cocking process!
I am forever your observant servant,
Greg

[BrotherCadfael]

“Accidental Discharge? At his age, they’re ALL accidental!”

[Martini_Enfield]

@Gbro

Today I read and re-read all the Colt SAR manuals I could find and have not found what I believed I have read in the past, but other than my using the word catch in place of arrest and notch the rest is supported by the verious manuals. And for that I am sorry! :smack:

It’s quite alright. Happens to the best of us:)

My interest area is British Empire firearms and the British pretty much ditched single-action revolvers in the 1860s following Frederick Beaumont’s 1850s invention of the double-action mechanism. I’m trying to think of a cartridge-firing British single-action revolver and I’m not coming up with anything - the various Adams, Tranter, Webley and Enfield revolvers from the 1860s onwards were all double action (or double-action only).

However, this discussion has sparked this thread, which might be of interest…

[Alessan]

@Gray_Ghost

Jamie Lee Curtis’s contribution to the meme. With what the IMFDB claims is a MAC-10. Funnily enough, the IMFDB states, and Mythbusters confirmed, that a MAC-10 won’t go off that way, and that the movie crew had to wire down the trigger to obtain the effect.

The Uzi’s design actually supports the myth. Modern Uzis have a grip safety at the back of the pistol grip (visible here) that has to be pressed in order for the weapon to fire. The first generation of Uzis lacked this safety; the fact that it was added later indicates that the weapon probably needed it.

[Leo_Bloom]

@Gray_Ghost

Jamie Lee Curtis’s contribution to the meme. With what the IMFDB claims is a MAC-10. Funnily enough, the IMFDB states, and Mythbusters confirmed, that a MAC-10 won’t go off that way, and that the movie crew had to wire down the trigger to obtain the effect.

I thought of this too (I haven’t checked the cite, but I’m guessing True Lies).

But why did the movie hae to wire down the fake trigger of a fake gun? And gleaning what I can from this thread, I’m not sure the trigger is constantly down for the intermittent blasts–even if such an extreme closeup shot was used, which I can’t remember.

Light effects and Dolby in post-production for gunfire is done all the time.

[Leo_Bloom]

@Alessan

I’ve heard the same thing about early-model Uzis, except in my case, they claimed that Israeli soldiers actually used to do it.

Intentially to clear bad guys a la Jamie Lee Curtis (I kind of doubt that, because I’ve heard that the Israeli Army is at least competent)? For yucks? Or as a real event occurring by accident?