olp73 Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 I have for a long time shot CZ/Tanfoglio guns, but I recently bought a SVI. First time at the range I noticed that I have a severe tendency to let my thumb drag on the slide while shooting. This is not a problem on the cz/tanfoglio because of the design. But on the SVI it seams to hinder the slide movement to a noticeable degree. I might even have cased a jam or two. (the ammo I brought was absolute crap, so the jams may have been caused by a number of things) This problem might disappear when I get used to the 1911 design again, but I remember it was there many years ago when I was shooting a ss 45. Not to this degree but my slide had a big spot from my thumb. What can be done about this? Swenson safeties?, some other kind of thumb shield?, change my grip style? Any suggestions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boz1911 Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 Assuming you're right handed is it you right thumb that contacts the slide? Do you actually feel it? If so then a thumb shield or Swensons may be your solution. What recoil spring are you running? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olp73 Posted September 10, 2009 Author Share Posted September 10, 2009 Assuming you're right handed is it you right thumb that contacts the slide? Do you actually feel it? If so then a thumb shield or Swensons may be your solution. What recoil spring are you running? Yes I feel it. I shoot right handed but am actually left handed (cross dominant eye) I am running a 14 pound spring. The original one. Will a lighter spring speed up the slide and make it less noticeable or will I have even bigger problems when the gun returns to battery? I thought about it but couldn't decide if it would help or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XRe Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 You're shooting right handed, but its your left thumb rubbing the slide, is what you said, correct? Swensons or thumb shields won't help you with that one. And a weaker recoil spring will only make things worse, not better - where you're potentially causing problems is when the slide closes, not when it opens. You're causing the slide to not have enough energy to strip the next round of the mag and get it up into battery. What you need to do is re-examine your grip, and either learn to float that left thumb (you're obviously used to putting pressure on the gun with that thumb - and that's bad juju anyway, as you're likely steering the gun around with it) so that its not touching the gun at all (best option), or if your thumb is long enough, learn to make it touch just the dust cover. You should actually do this even if you go back to a CZ style gun Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larry cazes Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 Seems from the post to be the right thumb dragging. If so, I have the same problem. I solve it by riding the thumb safety and have modified Swensons on my open gun. I had Dan Bedell take swensons and cut them down to about half height so that I could still clear jams by grabbing the back of the slide. Give them a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XRe Posted September 10, 2009 Share Posted September 10, 2009 I apparently read "let my thumb" as "left thumb"... hmmm... more coffee... If its the right thumb dragging, a Swenson is one option I've used. I currently have one of these on my Open gun - it works just as well: http://www.1911store.com/thumbguardbcg.aspx - its 1/3 the price of a Swenson, and your gunsmith will cuss you far less (Swensons work fine, but they come as a raw casting and involve a lot of finish work to make them look presentable).... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olp73 Posted September 11, 2009 Author Share Posted September 11, 2009 I apparently read "let my thumb" as "left thumb"... hmmm... more coffee...If its the right thumb dragging, a Swenson is one option I've used. I currently have one of these on my Open gun - it works just as well: http://www.1911store.com/thumbguardbcg.aspx - its 1/3 the price of a Swenson, and your gunsmith will cuss you far less (Swensons work fine, but they come as a raw casting and involve a lot of finish work to make them look presentable).... would you mind posting a picture of that thumbguard thing? Might be exactly what I am looking for. Is it a lot of fitting involved? Do I have to mill my frame? Is it a complicated procedure? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leam Posted September 11, 2009 Share Posted September 11, 2009 Although I like to do stuff to my guns, in this case I would suggest you re-examine your grip. If the thumb is putting that much pressure on the slide you are making the rest of your hand add unnecessary tension to counteract. Having the thumb up that high is fine, but move the thumb away slightly. Less pressure. Check out Todd Jarrett: Leam Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XRe Posted September 11, 2009 Share Posted September 11, 2009 would you mind posting a picture of that thumbguard thing? Might be exactly what I am looking for. Is it a lot of fitting involved? Do I have to mill my frame? Is it a complicated procedure? How about this? http://www.1911store.com/ProductImages/30-150L.gif Installation procedure is not complex - I believe it takes making one cut under the grip that basically anyone w/ a mill can do, and that's pretty much it. Although I like to do stuff to my guns, in this case I would suggest you re-examine your grip. If the thumb is putting that much pressure on the slide you are making the rest of your hand add unnecessary tension to counteract. Having the thumb up that high is fine, but move the thumb away slightly. Less pressure. Leam, that's easy for you to say, but different people's anatomy interfere with that simple "move the thumb away slightly" notion. Short and/or fat fingers are going to have a much harder time getting the thumb away from the slide simply due to having to grip the gun, reach the trigger, etc. I accept very little in the way of crutches in my shooting - a thumb guard on the left side of the gun is one of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
COMATZD Posted September 11, 2009 Share Posted September 11, 2009 (edited) I apparently read "let my thumb" as "left thumb"... hmmm... more coffee...If its the right thumb dragging, a Swenson is one option I've used. I currently have one of these on my Open gun - it works just as well: http://www.1911store.com/thumbguardbcg.aspx - its 1/3 the price of a Swenson, and your gunsmith will cuss you far less (Swensons work fine, but they come as a raw casting and involve a lot of finish work to make them look presentable).... would you mind posting a picture of that thumbguard thing? Might be exactly what I am looking for. Is it a lot of fitting involved? Do I have to mill my frame? Is it a complicated procedure? I attached a couple pictures of mine. My hands are kind of small and my thumb rests on the guard. I can't tell you how it mounts, I bought the gun with it. Edited September 11, 2009 by COMATZD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
born-in-45 Posted September 11, 2009 Share Posted September 11, 2009 The Krebs style guard (sold by Brazos) requires a slight milling of the frame area above the grip. There is a groove on the back of the Krebs that fits into the machined area so the grip will slide on like normal. I have one on my Brazos Open gun and just finished putting one on my SteelMaster. They work! Any Smith should be able to do the slight milling (single cut). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olp73 Posted September 15, 2009 Author Share Posted September 15, 2009 I apparently read "let my thumb" as "left thumb"... hmmm... more coffee...If its the right thumb dragging, a Swenson is one option I've used. I currently have one of these on my Open gun - it works just as well: http://www.1911store.com/thumbguardbcg.aspx - its 1/3 the price of a Swenson, and your gunsmith will cuss you far less (Swensons work fine, but they come as a raw casting and involve a lot of finish work to make them look presentable).... would you mind posting a picture of that thumbguard thing? Might be exactly what I am looking for. Is it a lot of fitting involved? Do I have to mill my frame? Is it a complicated procedure? I attached a couple pictures of mine. My hands are kind of small and my thumb rests on the guard. I can't tell you how it mounts, I bought the gun with it. hard to tell form the picture. Does it go in the plastic grip or in the steel frame? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Singlestack Posted September 15, 2009 Share Posted September 15, 2009 hard to tell form the picture. Does it go in the plastic grip or in the steel frame? It goes between them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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