Sunday, October 08, 2017

Ok, finally: the Gunsite Lowered Safety

I'd been thinking about doing this for quite a while, and finally ordered one from Brownell's.  They've got blued steel or stainless, since the frame is stainless I went with that.*

The reviews mentioned that the surface needs finishing, and it certainly does.  I used some 240-grit wet/dry paper to clean up the surface, then some buffing compound and a felt wheel on a rotary tool to polish it a bit.
Extended safety had before on the left, new one on the right
The thumb shelf is a lot lower than the original design.

Note: I had to do some finish work on the back as well, as it was a bit uneven.

On the fitting, it took very little to make it work properly, probably spent as much time smoothing the back as I did fitting the safety lug.  Here it is installed
I put it through the usual tests to make sure it worked properly mechanically.  So how's it work with my hand?  Very well.  That lowered shelf is MUCH easier to manipulate with my messed-up joints, both moving it to off and on.  I do have to shoot with my thumb resting on the shelf, as if I try it with my thumb under it bumps it up enough to safe the pistol.   Since that's the way I started off shooting these, no problem for me.  Also, some people had said they'd had to remove a little material from their left grip to clear the lever; it moves over the Crimson Trace grip with room to spare.

So I give this a definite thumbs-up.  If you have small hands, or the same arthritis problem I do, I'd suggest you consider getting one. 

Remember: unless the thing drops in and works correctly(sometimes they will), then some fitting WILL be required, and if you're not certain about how to do it and your ability to, take it to your friendly gunsmith; you do NOT want to try this unless you're sure of how and your ability to do it.


*Wilson Combat also makes one in blue, but from the pictures the shelf isn't as low(which might make it just right for you, that's your decision). 

3 comments:

Alien said...

This is one of the myriad gun parts that seems a natural for 3-D printing (although since it needs to be in metal, it'll require something more than an inexpensive desktop printer). A simple software adjustment could provide a nearly infinite range of lever positions; the challenge would be knowing what lever position worked best with one's hands.

Which leads to the next issue: having someplace that has a wide range of samples of whatever part one is seeking to determine what specifications in it one wants to order.

Glen Filthie said...

Good work Firehand.

I almost got violent with one of my favourite elderly geezers at the rod n' gun club. He gave his top of the line Wilson Combat pistol away to one of the kids because his hands don't work as well as they did - he's got that beshitted arthritis something awful! He's going to be giving others away too right away. I tell him there's all kinds of tricks and work-arounds like this to keep him in the game... but maybe it's just his time to get out, I guess. I suppose I'll have to forgive him for getting old although I probably shouldn't.

I'm glad you're still in the game - and see that ya stay there! :)

Firehand said...

Alien: That would be very nice. I've had several people say they wish there was a left-handed version of this