bothersome grip safty

[ashman627]

I want to disable the grip safty on my 9mm colt govt 1911. Can someone give me some advice on an easy way to do it? I'm pretty handy with tools. I'm a locksmith so I think I can handle some small alterations. Thanks very much everyone,

Ashley

[Carmine]

It's a small and fast job....perfect for a locksmith.

Remove the mainspring assembly and note where the grip safety is engaged.

Drill a small hole on the top if the mainspring housing...generaly on side away from the mainspring retention pin.

Drill the hole deep enough to hold a 1/16" diameter pin made fron your favorite metal or old drill bit.

Make long enough of a pin( 1/8") protruding from the top of the mainspring housing so when reinstalled the pin ..Pins down your grip safety...now you have a "pinned grip safety on your 1911"...Please consult with someone who allready has one and check to see if it's something you realy want....all of my guns are "pinned"...but that's just me.

Please be carefull and safe.

Ciao.

[Seth]

http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=51797

Good place to start.

[Pat Miles]

Easiest way is to tape it down with a couple of wraps of electrical tape. If you can find a wide, short rubber band that fits around the grip without making a lump you can disable the grip safety. Best way is to pin it but for the best results a drill press or mill is needed. Without one of them it is easy to drill into the mainspring tunnel. By pinning the grip safety the process takes minutes to pull the pin and have the GS reactivated. Some folks may say to cut off the grip safety lever which makes the deactivation permanent. The only way to then reverse the process is buying and fitting a new grip safety.

CYa,

Pat

[Loves2Shoot]

Easiest way is to tape it down with a couple of wraps of electrical tape.

Works good in a pinch. If you bend straight the right leg of your leaf spring, gravity will work also.

[TreblePlink]

You DO HAVE an alternative. You can leave the grip safety active, but ease its action so any rear pressure allows it to shoot. The little blocking tang rotates above and off the rear of the trigger bar - by removing about .010" from the bottom of the ultimate tang extension at a time, you can minimize the travel required for release. Don't remove any metal from the front of the tang or it won't be a safety any longer. Then, bend back the prong of the spring that tensions the grip safety until just a slight push will do it.

Early on, I would sometimes see intermittent functioning in a match until I did this mod. I think it's safer than totally disabling it. It also helps to use the "speedbump" version to get earlier contact with the web of your hand. But then again JMB's Hi-Power didn't have a grip safety, and lots of folks seem to shoot matches safely with them disabled ...

[G-ManBart]

You can also just cut off the tab on the GS that blocks the trigger bow...can't work after that. R,

Edited July 15, 2010 by G-ManBart

[anachronism]

You DO HAVE an alternative. You can leave the grip safety active, but ease its action so any rear pressure allows it to shoot. The little blocking tang rotates above and off the rear of the trigger bar - by removing about .010" from the bottom of the ultimate tang extension at a time, you can minimize the travel required for release. Don't remove any metal from the front of the tang or it won't be a safety any longer. Then, bend back the prong of the spring that tensions the grip safety until just a slight push will do it.

Early on, I would sometimes see intermittent functioning in a match until I did this mod. I think it's safer than totally disabling it. It also helps to use the "speedbump" version to get earlier contact with the web of your hand. But then again JMB's Hi-Power didn't have a grip safety, and lots of folks seem to shoot matches safely with them disabled ...

I densitize my grip safeties too. Just don't go too far. Personally, I wouldn't drill my frame & pin the safety.

[G-ManBart]

You DO HAVE an alternative. You can leave the grip safety active, but ease its action so any rear pressure allows it to shoot. The little blocking tang rotates above and off the rear of the trigger bar - by removing about .010" from the bottom of the ultimate tang extension at a time, you can minimize the travel required for release. Don't remove any metal from the front of the tang or it won't be a safety any longer. Then, bend back the prong of the spring that tensions the grip safety until just a slight push will do it.

Early on, I would sometimes see intermittent functioning in a match until I did this mod. I think it's safer than totally disabling it. It also helps to use the "speedbump" version to get earlier contact with the web of your hand. But then again JMB's Hi-Power didn't have a grip safety, and lots of folks seem to shoot matches safely with them disabled ...

I densitize my grip safeties too. Just don't go too far. Personally, I wouldn't drill my frame & pin the safety.

You don't drill anything on the frame when you pin a GS. Most folks drill a hole in the mainspring housing and use a length of drill rod (or similar) in that hole, grind a bit of an angle on the tip and it will fit over the tab on the bottom of the GS that keeps it from popping out past the MSH.

I tried sensitizing my GS on a couple of guns and even then I'd sometimes not disengage it, which is something you can't have happen if you want to be competitive...so now they're all pinned.

[mpeltier]

Ive tried the desensitizing route with moderate success.

Ive tried the pinned route, unknowingly lost the pin and had it come back to bite me in a big match.

Now I use a piece of skate type tape. I buy a 2" wide by 50' roll at Home depot as there seems to be a million uses for it. I cut a piece long enough to go from the bottom of the mainspring housing up to where the grip safety starts to curve. Trim the width to go perfectly between grip panels across the back. Degrease the area thouroghly. When attaching apply it to the grip safety first and depress as you stick the tape into place. This stuff gives a great non slip purchase to this area of the gun and makes it feel like a solid backstrap as well as holding the safety down.

One hint here. Make a cardboard template out of an old manila folder to the exact shape you come up with, as when you do a total strip of the pistol you will have to re-apply a fresh piece. With a template it takes seconds to make a new one and the 50' roll will last about 20 yrs.