When does your 1911 come off safety?

[Burk Cornelius]

Did your self defense training teach you to bring your 1911 (or any external-safety gun) off safety.

1. As it clears your holster?
2. Low Ready?
3. On target?

Thanks in advance for your answers.

BC

 

[aeropb]

As it clears the holster

 

[grwd]

When the muzzle is in front of my leg during the draw. From a belt holster, this is about 6" out of the holster.If the gun were to fire, it would impact 8-10 feet away from me.

I teach/recommend that starting out with 1911s, it should be engaged just before the support hand gets on the gun. This is at high ready.
There is no low ready for me. But thats another thread's worth of discussion.

 

[1911user]

Mine goes off safety as it moves toward the target. If I intend to stay at "high ready", it would go off safety as I approach high ready. However, I don't see the point of drawing to the high ready position. You're either drawing to shoot or not. If you're drawing and not shooting, you'd better hope they are running away.... otherwise an unscrupulous DA could nail your butt for brandishing.

If my understanding of the OK concealed carry laws if wrong, please educate me.

 

[ninefan]

My secondary safety (thumb safety) is off as soon as the muzzle clears my feet... the primary safety (trigger finger) is hopefully doing its job to keep everything kosher until the sights are on target.

I never could get used to taking the thumb safety off any further along in the draw.

 

[Lance Jensen]

When the muzzle is in front of my leg during the draw. From a belt holster, this is about 6" out of the holster.If the gun were to fire, it would impact 8-10 feet away from me.

Yep...

 

[Bierhunter]

I was taught that the safety is on until you transition from the ready position to on target. Then the safety goes back on when doing the reverse.

But....although my 1911 is still my favorite, I carry a Sig with a DAK trigger; so I don't worry about the safety (don't have one other than my finger). It's just like carrying a revolver.

 

[David E]

If you have decided to shoot as soon as you're sure you'll make the hit, (IE; not performing threat management) then the safety comes off as soon as the hands come together.

It's easy to remember and has a tactile indicator of when it's safe to take it off.

If you take the safety off prior to that, you run the risk of becoming a "half-assed shooter"..........literally.



l

 

[grwd]

Mine goes off safety as it moves toward the target. If I intend to stay at "high ready", it would go off safety as I approach high ready. However, I don't see the point of drawing to the high ready position. You're either drawing to shoot or not. If you're drawing and not shooting, you'd better hope they are running away.... otherwise an unscrupulous DA could nail your butt for brandishing.

If my understanding of the OK concealed carry laws if wrong, please educate me.

High ready is a position that is part of the draw; The "up" part of "up and out".
It's not a place to go to after the draw. If I am concerned about retention or weapon security, then I'll really suck it in to my chest, or go position "sul" if I'm not immediately concerned with a threat.

This brings up another good point about who's doing the draw; while a ccw holder will likely (?) be firing soon afterward, the draw can also be looked at as an "elevation" of readiness, as in a cop doing it. It's always a good thing to not look at the draw as a prelude to a shot, but rather as a waypoint.
I don't think much more should be gone into this on a internet forum, and is best done in training, like in a class.
I know that when I realized the ramifications of drawing on another person (this was in a tdsa class) I was overwhelmed with the possibilities of what may come next. Lives are in the balance.

 

[1911user]

Good points. It definitely depends on who is drawing the pistol.