Do you guy's think the thumb safety is importaint or not?

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Second Amendment

Impossible to answer such a broad question. It depends on the gun's firing mechanism, end user, situation in which it will be used, level of training, etc. For example, a thumb safety on a 1911 (and proper manipulation of) is essential because of the firing mechanism. But on a Glock a thumb safety would go against the entire concept of the design.

just with the M&P's and with training. Self defence/HD

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Second Amendment

No, the problem with a Thumb Safety is it's a "Minor Motor Skill" the way your brain see's it. Under a stressful situation you may loose all "minor motor skills". All my guns I train with and I train consistantly, do not have any safeties. My trigger finger is the safety (do not put finger on trigger until sights on target and you have made the decision to shoot) thats the way I train always.
If you insist on a thumb safety then shoot and train only with guns that have thumb safeties. Just my opinion.

"Fight how you train so train how you fight"

Personally I prefer a thumb safety to any other type of safety around. To me there easy quick and natural feeling. With practicing flicking it on and off becomes second nature.

One cannot merely "flick off" a thumb safety. You must keep your thumb on top of the lever all the time. M1911 shooters trained at good professional schools have this hammered into them but it's vital for any pistol with a thumb safety.

Even if you never use it you'll find it ON that one time in an 0200 parking lot when you need it OFF. Put your thumb below the lever and recoil and excitement can bump it ON. If you practice the technique it's second nature and just fine, but few do.

The M1911 needs a thumb safety (and all that practice and specific thumb on top of lever grip). The S&W M&P does not. Don't complicate your life (and self defense) with unnecessary, redundant dinguses. There's an excellent YouTube video essay on how to remove this gimmick. Video runs less than 4 minutes and takes no tools.

Remove M&P Safety Video

-- Chuck

Are there holsters that will automatically disengage the safety when you take out the gun? would that be a bad idea?

Yes that's a horrible idea.

As I look at the currently popular poly pistols, I notice a continuing trend; make 'em as simple as possible! That is no safeties, DAO, slide "catch" instead of release, and generally about 5-5.5 pound trigger pulls. Thing is now your carrying a loaded weapon with a very nice trigger that if you don't keep your finger off the trigger WILL GO BANG when you don't want it too!
"Flicking" off the safety can be ingrained into your fine motor skills! You just need to PRACTICE. Repeatition is the key here! The more you do a thing, the more your body gets accustomed to doing it. Are you going to remember to keep your finger OFF the trigger at all times? Probably not. It's all about training.
Safties are needed on pistols that have light, crisp triggers like the afore mentioned 1911, Browning Hi-Power, and such. With weapons like the Glock and M&P you have a two-stage trigger, that is a light take up, resitance, then the final break and boom. In a high stress situation you ARE NOT going to be able to tell or feel that!
Also safties have saved lives! By simply tying up or licking up the "go button" as some miscreant attempts to shoot you with your own gun, giving you precious seconds to either pull a back-up or haul butt!
So yeah, IMHO safties are needed on pistols with light, short trigger pulls. Dale

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"Long live the S&W 3rd. Gen.!"

I just bought one this week with the thumb safety. Seems to me one could choose whether to use it or not and it wouldn't hurt to have an extra measure of safety.

I sure wouldn't want a single action pistol without one. For all the rest a decocking lever is enough.

For an M&P, which I assumed was the scope of the poll since it's in the M&P forum, I think a thumb safety is pointless. The trigger pull on a stock M&P is neither short nor light.

It's all in what you train with.
I never liked the slide mounted safeties on the da/sa S&W semi-autos, unless it was a single stack model.
They were easier than some other brands to sweep off, but not as easy as the frame mounted safeties, like the M&P and 1911 style pistols.
If you are a 1911 shooter, I think that having the M&P safety makes sense, because you are used to it. If you have been a Glock shooter the last two decades, I think you could do without it on something like the M&P pistol.

If you holster the gun a lot, I do like to have the safety. It only takes one time for you to keep your finger on the trigger when reholstering, or for a shirt tail to get caught on the trigger, to have a discharge, and since I'm used to safeties, it makes sense to have one.

Of course, if you are leo, it can be of some benefit to have a safety, if your gun is grabbed by someone not familiar with firearms, but today's duty holsters, make it harder for a gun grab to occur.

I have thumb safeties on both of my M&Ps.

You cannot "choose" to use the thumb safety or not! You must grip the pistol in such a fashion that you disengage the safety -- place it on Fire -- all the time, even if you "choose" to never place it on safe.

Why? The answer should obvious by now; Unless you place it on Fire and keep it there by keeping your thumb on top of the lever all the time Mister Murphy will put it on Safe when you really need it on Fire. Even if you never, ever engage the safety it will be on Safe the time you really, really (that's more than just really) need it on Fire.

M1911 needs a frame safety lock. M&P does not.

Fortunately the safety levers almost fall out when you remove the fire control parts. No need to replace them.

-- Chuck

I've thought about removing my safety and actually did when I installed the Apex sear but ended up cutting the right side off so a CT laser could be installed.
With the trigger pull I have with the new sear, I'm glad I have the safety.

Nothing wrong with a safety. Those who worry about it engaging at the worst moment are paranoid, IMO. The odds of you needing a gun are very small. The odds of the safety engaging at that one time are almost non-existent. Could it happen? Sure, i could win the lottery, too. But I'm not gonna bet on it. Safeties have saved FAR more lives than caused a death.

In MY opinion, the trend towards striker fire, slick slide, no safety guns is because America is no longer the "gun culture" it used to be. Glocks are marketed to people as "simple to use". Many gun owners buy a gun, load it, and let it sit in the sock drawer for years at a time. If you're gonna get a gun, take the time to train with it. practice drawing and dry firing. We all press the brake before shifting into drive without thinking about it. Why can't we learn to do the same with a gun?

I carry semi autos with safety. I carry safety on. When I draw, I automatically disengage the safety. I used to carry a CS9. I now carry a Ruger LC9. The safety is in a different location, and I still automatically flick "up" on the slide as I draw, since that was where my CS9 safety was. I'm training do NOT do that everyday (10 minutes a day drawing and flicking "down" on the safety) and I never do it anymore.

A 1911 is a beautiful thing. I love shooting it at the range at steel and paper.

I will not carry a pistol that requires fine motor skills in a shootout. I carry pistols that you skin, point, and pull, bang.

Gross motor skills.

With enough practice, a fine motor skill can be burned into muscle memory, but it takes thousands of repetitions, far more than most people realize. Also, muscle memory can be a perishable skill if not regularly 'tuned up'.

For a life and death situation, I'd rather KISS and stick to gross motor skills.

Each to their own, and this is my personal preference, not a "dis" on anyone else and their preference.

The poll was poorly worded. My opinion is that the thumb safety is not needed on the M&P series. However, the poll asks 2 questions. 1, is the thumb safety important and 2, is any safety important. My opinion is that some safeties are important. The primary one being the one between your ears.