On striker fired guns, I prefer having a manual safety. I get all of the arguments about in a tense situation you might forget to disengage it, but in the military and my earlier years the 1911 was the weapon of choice and no one I know ever carried them condition 0. Has anyone carrying with a safety on been shot because they forgot to disengaged? sure, but my guess it's a small number. A lot of people have had ND with striker fired/non safety guns. Yeah, yeah training. I get it, yet we see supposedly highly trained LEO having ND's although they get plenty of training.

So, I do carry a G43 which of course has no safety. And I also carry and keep a 365XL as a nightstand gun which has a manual safety. I can choose to keep the 365xl with the safety off, or engage it in certain situations. The 365 safety is very positive taking a purposeful action to engage. It's highly unlikely it will accidently be engaged, so if you carry or keep with the safety off, you're in the same situation as with a Glock. I just don't see the downside.

I'm certainly not advocating for manual safeties on double action revolvers or DA semi-autos with typical heavy, long and deliberate triggers. My gripe is that manufacturers such as Walther (Umarex?) churn out a new model about every 30 days. They are nearly all strikers and do not offer manual safety options. I have held a CPL, seemingly forever. I have the advantage of concealment. Should I need to employ my pistol, it will not be in a Gunsmoke opening scenario. I don't spend range time training to win a fast draw contest. My manual safety is disengaged during the draw stroke and reapplied when reholstering. I don't need a "live" trigger in my holster. Please, handgun designers, give us the choice.

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My gripe is that manufacturers such as Walther (Umarex?) churn out a new model about every 30 days.

Have they really slowed down that much on striker fired releases.

I have read Ayoob for many years and he is an advocate for the manual safety. He has a short article in the current American Handgunner about the value of such.

I am seriously thinking about a 365 and if I get one, it will be with the safety.

I added a manual safety to my Sig P365 when I started to appendix carry. Having said that, most of my modern striker fired pistols are sans manual safety.

The way of the Glock has been the norm for me for a very long time. Im very used to treating it like a DAO revolver. Yes I've witnessed one drop loaded. I trust them.

I also love the 1911 and the Hi-power, there's nothing wrong with prefering a safety even with a striker gun.

S&W M&P’s can come with or be easily converted to a safety version. Also it’s not a safety per se, but the HK P2000 is a TDA system with a de-cocker.

To each their own, but I generally won’t buy a pistol with a manual safety.

I used to be very against manual safeties when I was carrying a DA/SA P229. Then I got into 3-gun and got very used to flicking safeties on my carbine and shotgun. I still don’t want one on my pistols, but I’m not as dead set against them as I used to be. If you develop the habit of using it, it’s probably just fine.

But I saw so many people saying “hit the safety as part of your draw” that it makes me wonder, what is the purpose of the safety? On a slung rifle/carbine/shotgun, I understand the trigger could get caught unintentionally. But a pistol with a proper holster, what is it doing for you?

I don’t have the problem. I’m a 100% SAO guy. Yeah – I like ‘em!

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Originally posted by egregore:
If you are going to "run" a manual safety, like counter-steering a motorcycle, you must train and practice with it so its operation becomes automatic, without conscious thought.

There is no lever, button, paddle, or anything movable on a handgun that I myself want to operate without a conscious thought, including a thumb safety. YMMV.

I learned to shoot pistols when they all came with manual safeties. I can’t tell you where on the drawstroke exactly when I take off the safety , but I can tell you when on reholstering I put the safety back on. It is as soon as I am done shooting, I’ve taken my finger off the trigger, I then put the safety on. Apparently, judging from smear patterns and videos, I drag my thumb over the spot a safety would be even on pistols that don’t have a manual safety.

It is a safety redundancy to keeping your finger off the trigger located in a physically different location than the trigger.

I have handguns without manual safeties, but I much prefer to have good triggers and manual safeties.

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Originally posted by maxwayne:
I have read Ayoob for many years and he is an advocate for the manual safety. He has a short article in the current American Handgunner about the value of such.

I am seriously thinking about a 365 and if I get one, it will be with the safety.

And yet he carries a G19 if memory serves. He must be comfortable carrying without a manual safety.

As long as a handgun, be it a revolver, striker fired semiautomatic, classic SIG, or whatever, is mechanically incapable of firing unless the trigger is pulled, I see no need or value in adding a manual safety. Seems basically like insisting on having the ability to pull against the trigger without the weapon firing. That’s not a feature I require on my handguns so I can do without the manual safety.

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Originally posted by eclayton:

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Originally posted by maxwayne:
I have read Ayoob for many years and he is an advocate for the manual safety. He has a short article in the current American Handgunner about the value of such.

I am seriously thinking about a 365 and if I get one, it will be with the safety.

And yet he carries a G19 if memory serves. He must be comfortable carrying without a manual safety.

As long as a handgun, be it a revolver, striker fired semiautomatic, classic SIG, or whatever, is mechanically incapable of firing unless the trigger is pulled, I see no need or value in adding a manual safety. Seems basically like insisting on having the ability to pull against the trigger without the weapon firing. That’s not a feature I require on my handguns so I can do without the manual safety.

Actually I believe he Carrie’s a Wilson Combat Beretta 92 if memory serves…saw him on a Wilson Combat Gun Guys video…

The recent article in AH was taken the day he retired and he was carrying a 1911. He has carried a number of guns over the years.

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Originally posted by bcjwriter:

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Originally posted by eclayton:

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Originally posted by maxwayne:
I have read Ayoob for many years and he is an advocate for the manual safety. He has a short article in the current American Handgunner about the value of such.

I am seriously thinking about a 365 and if I get one, it will be with the safety.

And yet he carries a G19 if memory serves. He must be comfortable carrying without a manual safety.

As long as a handgun, be it a revolver, striker fired semiautomatic, classic SIG, or whatever, is mechanically incapable of firing unless the trigger is pulled, I see no need or value in adding a manual safety. Seems basically like insisting on having the ability to pull against the trigger without the weapon firing. That’s not a feature I require on my handguns so I can do without the manual safety.

Actually I believe he Carrie’s a Wilson Combat Beretta 92 if memory serves…saw him on a Wilson Combat Gun Guys video…

People should buy what they want, but I much prefer guns with either manual safety or a hammer. A safety, or a hammer, can be used when holstering or when “administrative handling” is occurring.


One doesn’t need a 3-5 pound trigger to shoot well, but if a gun has one of those light triggers, a safety is a must in my opinion.


The only reason a Glock is an option for me is because of NY1 triggers and the SCD.

I prefer a safety, but I am ambidextrous on the issue.

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Originally posted by bcjwriter:

Actually I believe he Carrie’s a Wilson Combat Beretta 92 if memory serves…saw him on a Wilson Combat Gun Guys video…

I am well out of my depth if speaking for Mr Ayoob, but I believe I recall something he posted to his usual GATE page on a Glock forum that his usual carry piece these days is a G19, switching to a G30 or some other .45 in winter climates where heavy outer wear is in play. I am sure you can find examples of him carrying many different things on different occasions and at different stages of his career.

In any case, only if one could establish that he “never” carries a Glock would I drop his name as an “expert witness” on the necessity of a manual safety. I would not be surprised to find a quote from him asserting the need for a higher standard of caution/training if a manual safety and/or long DA trigger is not present.

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Originally posted by eclayton:

quote:

Originally posted by bcjwriter:

Actually I believe he Carrie’s a Wilson Combat Beretta 92 if memory serves…saw him on a Wilson Combat Gun Guys video…

I am well out of my depth if speaking for Mr Ayoob, but I believe I recall something he posted to his usual GATE page on a Glock forum that his usual carry piece these days is a G19, switching to a G30 or some other .45 in winter climates where heavy outer wear is in play. I am sure you can find examples of him carrying many different things on different occasions and at different stages of his career.

In any case, only if one could establish that he “never” carries a Glock would I drop his name as an “expert witness” on the necessity of a manual safety. I would not be surprised to find a quote from him asserting the need for a higher standard of caution/training if a manual safety and/or long DA trigger is not present.

I would tend to agree on all points.

I carry a 1911, the manual safety disengagement is instinct for me from carrying an M4 for years.

I have a P365 and a P365XL and both have manual trigger safeties. However, I cut the safety lever off of the right side because they will fit into my pocket holster better. I bought my P365 specifically with a manual trigger safety. The only way that I was able to get a new version P365XL where the rear sight is mounted into a dovetail groove in the slide was to buy one without a manual trigger safety and then add it. But that worked out well as I was able to cut one slot into the left side for the manual trigger safety lever and not have a hole on the right side.

You can install or remove the manual trigger safety from the FCU without any tools.

No matter what kind of rationalizations you come up with for not using a manual trigger safety, it is an inescapable fact that a negligent discharge is nearly impossible when a manual trigger safety is engaged.