Extended thumb safety

[Gunmetal]

I recently bought a Colt Defender and want to add a Wilson extended thumb safety. I'm told this is a gunsmith fit to make it happen.  I noticed since the frame is cerakoted it does not fit like the factory one.  I can't for the life of me get it to fit in place of the factory safety.... Help advise please.

 

 

[Dr Mitch]

Does it fit through the hole with the frame empty of the other parts?  Sometimes the inside of the cutout has a burr that needs to be removed in order to fit a well-made safety. 

 

Also, you do have to file the cam-shaped tab down in the appropriate location in order for it to engage properly.  It won't fit and function without that being done.  Google it.

[Gunmetal]

The safety fits and drops in ttill it hits the spring (on the slide). Then it feels like it is hitting something below. I can depress the spring so the safety would clear and drop in but it seems to be hitting something.  No amount of wiggling gets it to move from this depth. Another thing is that since the slide was cerakoted I had to polish the safety to get it to drop thru at the back above the grip safety.  I wondered if the paint no matter how thin pushed the safety forward some causing it to hit the internals?  Don't know; just wanted to check to see if I was being told the "right" that it had to be fitted. $60 bucks later...

[assaulter]

A 1911 thumb safety physically blocks the sear from moving.  It has to be fit perfectly to the sear in your gun.  It must have material removed before it will fit in your gun.  If it's not done properly, you will have an unsafe firearm that could unintentionally discharge.  It's not difficult, but it's important that you know what you are doing.

[BeerBaron]

hang on? what spring on the slide? first thing. remove the slide. it has nothing to do with the safety.

 

remove the plunger and plunger spring, remove sear and hammer and disconnector and then try and fit the safety. this is the first test. i.e. does it fit through the 2 frame holes. 

 

The next step is re-assemble the trigger parts and see if you need to fit the lug on the safety so it can engage the sear (i.e. do it's job as a safety).

 

I'm not sure what you mean about the slide spring and I'm not sure why cerakoting the slide would affect the safety fit? is this a 1911?

[Beef15]

BeerBaron is spot on.

 

You do have the hammer cocked, right?

 

Thumb safeties almost always require fitting. It is extremely easy, but you must go slow.

[tyler2you]

10 hours ago, BeerBaron said:

first thing. remove the slide. it has nothing to do with the safety.

 

Except the slide limits the safety's upward motion.  If you try and fit a safety with the slide off the frame, it can fool you into removing too much material.

 

First thing to do is what Dr. Mitch suggested and make sure the safety operates through its full range of motion on an empty frame with the slide installed.  If it does, it's time to reinstall everything in the frame and remove just enough from the safety's engagement surface until the safety moves completely up into the slide notch and prevents all sear movement.

[BeerBaron]

Agree with that but in this case something else is going on. I was suggesting he remove as many variables as he can to start with. That's all.