dagger10k Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 So I am pretty sure I know what the answer's going to be already, but it can't hurt to ask. I have big meaty hands, and like to grip as high as possible, the base of my left thumb really likes to pop up the left side safety on just about any 1911 (or 2011). There's barely a limited or open gun out there that I can grip without making it impossible to shoot. (cause the safety is on.) Even on my limited gun, where I've cut a lot of material off the safeties, if I roll my elbows up, the safeties pop on every time. So... what I really need is the exact opposite of this: http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=6677/Product/1911-AUTO-LOW-MOUNT-THUMB-SAFETY I need something where the pad of the safety is mounted HIGHER than normal, high enough to clear my hands. Does anyone know if anything like that exists? I've looked all over and can't find anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
speculatorking Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 You may like these thumb guards by EGW. http://www.egwguns.com/miscellaneous-parts/thumb-guard-for-1911/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sperman Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 At one time I bought a set of Swenson safeties with the intention of moving the paddle to the top of the safety. (I have the same problem as you.) I never got around to doing it and ended up selling the Swensons. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 Your thumb should be on top of the safety pressing down on it while shooting. Or am I missing something in your question? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twodownzero Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 Your thumb should be on top of the safety pressing down on it while shooting. Or am I missing something in your question? +1 It doesn't matter how big or small your hands are. If your thumb is on top of the safety, holding it down, you will not have to worry about flicking the safety on while shooting. If you use a low-thumbs grip (thumb below the safety when shooting), you are just asking for recoil to push the safety up enough to block the sear from moving. Dryfire practice with a high-thumbs grip and you'll never have this problem again. Bonus: this solution is free and doesn't involve fitting any new parts to your gun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sperman Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 (edited) When he tries to rock his weak hand forward, the palm is high enough to hit the thumb safety. At least that is how it works for me. Edited March 20, 2012 by sperman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagger10k Posted March 20, 2012 Author Share Posted March 20, 2012 (edited) Sperman's got it right. My thumb is already above the safety, but I can't actually physically push on it, cause my other hand is in the way. I've attached a photo of my grip (sorry, this is the best I can do.) I also saw those Swensons, but moving the pad would be a lot of work and probably outside my abilities. I'm really hoping there's some ready made solution somewhere... Edited March 20, 2012 by dagger10k Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lumpygravy Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 (edited) Dagger, On my SV gun (the heavy 6" that you shot recently after a match at Richmond), Brandon somehow setup the thumb safety so that it requires considerable effort to engage but no unusual effort to disengage. My best guess is that he might have deepened the detent in the thumb safety where it mates with the plunger. If that's not it then I don't know how he did it, but someone else may know if there is a mechanical means to how this might be done. Other than that, I'd say you're looking at a one off custom lever/weld job to get something like you describe. Edited March 20, 2012 by lumpygravy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagger10k Posted March 20, 2012 Author Share Posted March 20, 2012 Yeah I'm kinda afraid I might have to get this custom made... not looking forward to the cost of that, and I don't even know who I'd talk to to get it done. Thanks for letting my shoot your gun again. That thing sure was soft... Also, you live in sf? Want to carpool to Richmond sometime? I'm right near chinatown. Dagger, On my SV gun (the heavy 6" that you shot recently after a match at Richmond), Brandon somehow setup the thumb safety so that it requires considerable effort to engage but no unusual effort to disengage. My best guess is that he might have deepened the detent in the thumb safety where it mates with the plunger. If that's not it then I don't know how he did it, but someone else may know if there is a mechanical means to how this might be done. Other than that, I'd say you're looking at a one off custom lever/weld job to get something like you describe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagger10k Posted March 20, 2012 Author Share Posted March 20, 2012 I can't drill my SVI frame You may like these thumb guards by EGW. http://www.egwguns.c...guard-for-1911/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sperman Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 Your thumb should be on top of the safety pressing down on it while shooting. Or am I missing something in your question? +1 It doesn't matter how big or small your hands are. If your thumb is on top of the safety, holding it down, you will not have to worry about flicking the safety on while shooting. If you use a low-thumbs grip (thumb below the safety when shooting), you are just asking for recoil to push the safety up enough to block the sear from moving. Dryfire practice with a high-thumbs grip and you'll never have this problem again. Bonus: this solution is free and doesn't involve fitting any new parts to your gun. Tim, Don't be an idiot. Just becuase this is true for you, doesn't mean it is true for every shooter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sperman Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 Here are some photos of my grip. They aren't the best photos, but it is akward for me to take the photos by myself, even using the timer on the camera. This is how I grip the gun. (Not by choice, but by necessity. Here is the same grip, but with the stron hand removed to show where the thumb safety is in relation to my weak hand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagger10k Posted March 20, 2012 Author Share Posted March 20, 2012 Yep, looks about the same as what I've got going on. How did you end up dealing with it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sperman Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 Most of the instructors will tell you to cam your weak hand forward as much as possible to help absorb the recoil. When I do this, the thumb safety completely disappears under my weak hand palm. Again,with the strong hand removed. I don't know how clear it is in these photos, but my strong hand thumb is nowhere near the thumb safety with this grip. My weak hand palm is pushing against the thumb safety. I have my safety setup so that it is fairly hard to engage, but it is still possible for my weak hand to engage it when using this grip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sperman Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 Yep, looks about the same as what I've got going on. How did you end up dealing with it? I accept the fact that my grip is less than ideal, and work on improving in other areas. I thought about sticking my hand against the belt sander, but decided it wasn't worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagger10k Posted March 20, 2012 Author Share Posted March 20, 2012 Alright... well if I ever figure out a solution I'll let you know! Yep, looks about the same as what I've got going on. How did you end up dealing with it? I accept the fact that my grip is less than ideal, and work on improving in other areas. I thought about sticking my hand against the belt sander, but decided it wasn't worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chirpy Posted March 20, 2012 Share Posted March 20, 2012 I have to have all my 1911 TS custom made! Not because I have your problem, but because I have short stubby thumbs and cannon easily disengage any of the aftermarket TS. It isn't too costly...the thumb pad is removed and a new pad attached, grooved and coutoured and refinished with the rest of the pistol. When you consider the cost of the entire pistol, the cost of fabricating a new TS is minor. JMHO FWIW Richard PS: Any good smith should be able to do it for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twodownzero Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 Your thumb should be on top of the safety pressing down on it while shooting. Or am I missing something in your question? +1 It doesn't matter how big or small your hands are. If your thumb is on top of the safety, holding it down, you will not have to worry about flicking the safety on while shooting. If you use a low-thumbs grip (thumb below the safety when shooting), you are just asking for recoil to push the safety up enough to block the sear from moving. Dryfire practice with a high-thumbs grip and you'll never have this problem again. Bonus: this solution is free and doesn't involve fitting any new parts to your gun. Tim, Don't be an idiot. Just becuase this is true for you, doesn't mean it is true for every shooter. You guys must have some monster hands! I just pulled out my 2011 just to take a look, and I've got probably 3/8", depending on how I place my hands. Would shortening the thumb shelf front to back provide any relief, or would you have to cut too much off? It looks like I could remove about half of mine on the left side and probably not lose any serious amount of comfort. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lumpygravy Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 Yeah I'm kinda afraid I might have to get this custom made... not looking forward to the cost of that, and I don't even know who I'd talk to to get it done. Thanks for letting my shoot your gun again. That thing sure was soft... Also, you live in sf? Want to carpool to Richmond sometime? I'm right near chinatown. I'd try dremeling a detent in the thumb safety to see if that provides enough retention. Carpooling to the range is a possibility. I'll pm you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lumpygravy Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 (edited) Oh and before anyone else says it, you and Sperman have some seriously big meat hooks. You can barely see the magwell in Sperman's pics! Edited March 21, 2012 by lumpygravy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sperman Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 I can't speak for dagger, but mine aren't that big, they just have the meat/fat in the wrong places. I would love to see pics of TGO's grip. I understand he has some monster hands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carmoney Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 Sometimes I think people get carried away with the desire to create lots of contact between the weak hand and the gun, in search of the ultimate "neutral grip" as described in Brian's book. It seems to me that if your weak hand is getting in there so tightly that it's pushing the strong thumb off the safety, maybe there is a better way to overlap the hands in that particular area. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aglifter Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 Perhaps you could try to find some large grips for your 1911 - then tell me where you found them. I can shoot a double stack OK - one of my friends has large hands as well, and has attached 1911 grip panels to the grips of his open gun, to get it larger. The other thing, which I find more comfortable, is to use an arched mainspring housing. That, or switch to a G21 or G20. 1911s were designed for an average height of about 5'6" - it just doesn't really fit larger hands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wes777 Posted March 21, 2012 Share Posted March 21, 2012 (edited) I ordered these http://strikeindustries.com/shop/index.php/pistol-enhancements/1911-pistol-grips-2/1911-extreme-pistol-grip-non-texture-matte-black.html And they are f$ing thick! Roughed them up and put 3M grit tape from hdepot on them. Used a razor to cut out the mag release relief (which I have to have because they are so huge) and ran with them. Now my go to grips. Pm me for pics if u want them. Edited March 21, 2012 by wes777 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dagger10k Posted March 21, 2012 Author Share Posted March 21, 2012 Are you guys suggesting attaching 1911 grips to my 2011? Is that something you can do? Also, I used to shoot a G20 in Limited. This is the gun I switched to. Advantages and disadvantages both ways I guess... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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