Really love the trigger of the single-action automatic! Will not take double-action-only autos seriously.
I've been using safeties on 1911s along with various shotguns and rifles all my life. It's just not the problem it's made out to be on forums. Self-defense isn't the same as a jumped deer, bursting covey of quail, or ducks off of a Texas stock tank but the safety, even different safety designs in different locations, has not been a problem. Perhaps that'll change when I get older and "doddery-er."
I just don't get DAO handguns!
The last time my wife and I renewed our concealed carry permits we used the Hi-Power for the shooting portion. I like the Hi-Power and the 1911. They are sensible handguns.
I'm going to embarrass myself and ask this question.
Why is DAO so important on a handgun? After all the years of reading the re-think of tactics and observing the newer designs and models that have been introduced I still just don't (or willfully won't) grasp the notion that manipulating any sort of handgun with a DAO trigger is somehow superior to the use of models with a single action capability. Doesn't matter if it is a S&W Centennial model revolver, a "safe-action" automatic, or even a Sauer Model 1930 "Behorden" automatic; a trigger that requires more effort to press just seems wrong.
If shooters had only known the various DAO designs for the past 100 years and a manufacturer introduced a new design that, upon the release of a simple safety lever, offered a crisp and accuracy-enhancing single action trigger, then all would hail it as a great breakthrough.
Now my much esteemed brother-in-law has practiced, both with his stable of Glocks and other DAO automatics and his double action revolvers, to the point that he can hit distant targets that are quite small with ease and rapidity.
I'm envious of his capabilities but loathe to practice enough to gain such proficiency. It's fun to throw a little double action shooting into a session but I don't dwell on it. I can readily shoot a 250 score on the Texas Concealed Carry qualification target with a double action and figure that's good enough. It will cover any distance encountered within my house and any reasonable distance I encounter when carrying outside the home.
It is observed that many of the folks who tout the necessity for use of a DAO handgun, both in print and on forums, also gravitate towards the "tactical" pump shotgun and the AR 15 as part of their self defense battery. Why is a DAO trigger a requirement on a handgun and not on the long guns? If one is attempting to avoid accidentally triggering a weapon through use of the DAO trigger feature then why not have triggers with longer and heavier strokes or special trigger levers on the long guns as well?
Folks expect to manipulate actions and release safeties when bringing the long guns into play. Is the handgun all that different?
It's amazing to frequently read of the defeatist attitude regarding any trigger (handgun only mind you) that supposedly requires more thought or is reputed to be more difficult to manipulate or control under stress than the DAO handgun, whether revolver or automatic. No one apparently wants their rifles or shotguns to have a trigger pull like a DAO handgun though.
There are quite a few pistoleros out there however who appear to fret excessively about their ability to use anything "more complicated" under stress. They hold this up as special insight on why the DAO handgun is indisputably the superior design; a notion I ain't buying. Especially when one can almost hear the whine in their voices when listening to them or reading their posts.
I don't trust myself to...
I might not be able to do it when...
It seems so unsafe to...
It has to be simple for me so...
Some folks just need a little starch in their drawers and a little practice under their belts.
Which brings up the question of how to cover an adversary with the gun when one doesn't intend to shoot. If I have to point a gun at someone then things have deteriorated to a point that is grave indeed. If shooting is required it will be deliberate and I'd just as soon have a nice trigger available. DAO guns don't have nice triggers to my old fashioned way of thinking. The DAO trigger seems an unnecessary nuisance.
The following is taken from the owner's manual supplied with my 1971 vintage Smith & Wesson Model 10 revolver.
"There is time even in rapid fire shooting for the deliberate handling of the gun in single action fashion just so long as the function is performed without loss of time and in a definite cadence whereby the cycle will be completed within the allotted time."
While true of a timed course of fire on the range, this could have application for self defense as well.
To continue.
"When time or other circumstances do not allow for single action fire the revolver is used double action. To fire double action all that is necessary is to align the weapon with the object which you wish to hit and pull the trigger firmly all the way to the rear ... the only limit to the speed with which a weapon can be manipulated in this fashion will be determined by the dexterity of the shooter. This type of shooting is required in combat work or under emergency conditions where the gun must be used with great speed."
Not being concerned with law enforcement training and techniques, couldn't a person recognize when speed was necessary and DAO use was required and employ the revolver accordingly? Otherwise cheat and make use of the excellent single action trigger. Manipulation of the safety of a 1911 is much the same. Carry cocked and locked and, upon releasing the safety, enjoy the use of a really decent trigger.
Or perhaps the SA/DA automatics are the best of both worlds.
The DAO trigger is a legal safety net in the minds of many. If the argument that DAO use really is required to make a self defense shoot "righteous" then why not make the trigger extra heavy and difficult? A self defense shooting requires that we do our best, even when it isn't convenient and the odds are stacked against us. Once a line is crossed and shooting is required, a mechanical device that is an impediment is just so much baggage and the DAO trigger is designed to impede, even if only a little. Kits are available that lighten the DAO trigger pull but at what point do these render the pistol un-PC?
If a person takes comfort in the concept of DAO then it is a worthwhile development in the handgun world. It's another option for those who see its value. I'm just not interested.
Now y'all can all tell me that I just don't get out enough.
Which is true by the way.
