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Why does SA/DA pistol fire hammer down on first shot in production


zombywoof

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Introducing my teenage son into USPSA. I have a nice Tanfo Witness Steel 9mm for him to shoot. I don't understand why the hammer must be down on first shot. It seems unsafe (dropping the hammer safely) and a disadvantage over striker fired guns. I've put him in Limited minor to avoid any problems. Why this rule?

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Or to put it another way -- because there are four other divisions where SA guns can play. Production was designed to be a home for DA/SA, DAO and striker fired autos. 100s of competitors manage to safely lower the hammer on a CZ designed auto to play in production, if the gun doesn't have a decocker. If you're concerned about first shot accuracy -- the shooter may manually cook the hammer after the start signal.....

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I don't think there is anything unsafe about dropping a hammer. I've done it thousands of times on my cz and don't think twice about it. I always read about how people worried about it before I got my cz but once I had it for a while I couldn't understand why it's an issue for some. Personally if someone can't safely lower a hammer then I wonder what other things they can't do safely when handling a firearm. Just my 2 cents.

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If shooting Production division you cannot stop on the half notch (decocked position) unless you actually have a decocking lever on the gun. If manually decocking you are required to fully lower the hammer.

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And to one more bit into the mix -- if the gun has a decocker you must use the decocker. Manually lowering the hammer isn't an option for you -- at the penalty of dq.....

10.5.9 Failure to keep the finger outside the trigger guard during loading, reloading, or unloading. Exception: while complying with the “Make Ready” command to lower the hammer of a gun without a decocking lever, or while initially loading a revolver with a spurless hammer.

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I almost wish I could put a decocker on a shadow because I have a hard time reaching the trigger but with the hammer at half cock it's a lot easier

you can can't you? Isn't there a decocker version of the Shadow, ( the Tactical I vaguely recall) I may be wrong but I'm sure I asked our CZ importer here in Australia a few years back.

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I almost wish I could put a decocker on a shadow because I have a hard time reaching the trigger but with the hammer at half cock it's a lot easier

you can can't you? Isn't there a decocker version of the Shadow, ( the Tactical I vaguely recall) I may be wrong but I'm sure I asked our CZ importer here in Australia a few years back.

The 75 SP01 Tactical has a decocker but it also has a firing pin block. Both the firing pin block and the decocker mechanism make for a slightly less ideal trigger than what you can get on a Shadow.

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I almost wish I could put a decocker on a shadow because I have a hard time reaching the trigger but with the hammer at half cock it's a lot easier

you can can't you? Isn't there a decocker version of the Shadow, ( the Tactical I vaguely recall) I may be wrong but I'm sure I asked our CZ importer here in Australia a few years back.
The 75 SP01 Tactical has a decocker but it also has a firing pin block. Both the firing pin block and the decocker mechanism make for a slightly less ideal trigger than what you can get on a Shadow.

Yeah that's what I thought. If I could put a decocker on my shadow it would be perfect for me.

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Can someone explain to me why is it unsafe to leave the hammer at the half cock notch on a 75B but not on a 75BD?

The half cock notch is identical on both. CZ designed the pistol to be carried with the hammer at half cock. That's where the decocker drops it to.

And no, "because the rules say so" is not an acceptable answer

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Can someone explain to me why is it unsafe to leave the hammer at the half cock notch on a 75B but not on a 75BD?

The half cock notch is identical on both. CZ designed the pistol to be carried with the hammer at half cock. That's where the decocker drops it to.

And no, "because the rules say so" is not an acceptable answer

Actually, it is with respect to playing our game.

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Can someone explain to me why is it unsafe to leave the hammer at the half cock notch on a 75B but not on a 75BD?

The half cock notch is identical on both. CZ designed the pistol to be carried with the hammer at half cock. That's where the decocker drops it to.

And no, "because the rules say so" is not an acceptable answer

The rules say what safe gun handling is, and if you violate them, it's a non-discretionary DQ, so you do so at your own peril. I know I prefer to shoot the match rather than watch.

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If you're concerned about first shot accuracy -- the shooter may manually cook the hammer after the start signal.....

Really? I thought first shot had to be DA.

More so in IPSC. USPSA just says that the hammer starts down.

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If you're concerned about first shot accuracy -- the shooter may manually cook the hammer after the start signal.....

Really? I thought first shot had to be DA.

More so in IPSC. USPSA just says that the hammer starts down.

Very interesting.

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If you're concerned about first shot accuracy -- the shooter may manually cook the hammer after the start signal.....

Really? I thought first shot had to be DA.

More so in IPSC. USPSA just says that the hammer starts down.

Very interesting.

IPSC has (had the last time I looked) a requirement that the first shot had to be fired DA. If I remember correctly we might have had the same rule from 2001 until 2004, when it was eliminated.....

Actually I just looked and the 2001 14th edition USPSA rules required the first shot in Production to be fired DA; in 2004 that was amended to require that a gun could not start in SA mode....

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