There are handguns, such as the pre-80 model 1911, that MIGHT fire if they are dropped. Early S&W guns are also subject to firing if dropped on the barrel nose first. I happen to know that some tests involved dropping guns from as high as 3 stories. Has anyone had an Auto Handgun discharged when dropped? I was in a bad fight one time and a 1911 fell 'nose first' onto concrete and did not fire.

Only once did I drop a pistol. It was a S&W version Walther PPK. I carried it with the safety engaged and a loaded chamber. It dropped about 3 feet onto a carpeted floor and landed on the hammer with the muzzle pointing up. Go figure. No bang, no new holes in the house or myself.

The PPK series pistols MUST be carried with the safety engaged if a round is to be chambered. The safety not only prevents the trigger from being pulled, but it more importantly immobilizes the firing pin within its bushing, so that it cannot move even via inertia.

I do believe the pre-war S&W hand ejectors with the long throw hammer were not AS drop safe as the ones that came after it. The piece that blocked the hammer from the live round was not as robust as the later ones, and sometimes it broke, which would allow the hammer nose to strike the primer.

Dropped a Ruger Super Black Hawk. 44Mag. It didn't. Thank God.

On "Ladies' Familiarization Day" a lady laid a RG-22 down on the next bench to mine as I was coaching anther lady. She laid it down when her coach told her to after a "Safe All Guns" was called. The RG was cocked when she did so and the coach wasn't paying attention. The revolver slid and hit the concrete deck and fired. The bullet hit a 3" dia. steel bench leg and
bounced off into my left leg just about midway between ankle and knee. It hit directly centered on my shin bone. It felt like someone had hit me on the leg with a baseball bat. I pulled up my pant leg and the butt end of the bullet was visible. I pulled it out with my fingers, someone got some hydrogen peroxide and a wraparound bandage. I washed my hands and went back to coaching. I never did go to a Doctor because of the law that all gunshot wounds are reported. It would have been a big fuss about nothing. I still hate RG guns. ........ :-)

Over a 30 plus year span as a LE firearms instructor, tactical team instructor, who has instructed LEO's from new hires to "high speed / low drag" fast rope / explosive entry tac teams
I have seen a lot of dropped loaded firearms, mostly loaded HGN's, ....seen them dropped on the firing line, dislodged from holsters while executing movement drills, climbing ladders, climbing over walls, dropped down stair wells, dropped off rapelling towers etc. Hgn's encompassed 2nd gen & 3rd gen S&W & Sigs DA/SA's with the decock/safe in fire position ( per agency written policy) and Glocks.
None of them discharged. Have also seen them dropped during real life engagements, particularly before we had the retention holsters that we have today. This would include DA Smith revolvers and DA/SA Smith auto's. None of those discharged. A lot of them got dinged, bent, scarred and parts broken off, but they did not discharge.

You would think with all the talk of how dangerous 'some' guns are that it would be happening every day. I kinda think it's more of a myth to sell guns with 'the new safer action'. Don't misunderstand, there are real junker guns, RG leaps to mind, that are more dangerous to carry but a lot of second hand stories are just stories.

What I did not mention in my first post, is that I have been privy to many "drop tests" that manufacturers submit their products too. HAving been on several procurement committees where we were tasked to make reccomendations for new duty weapons, I have witnessed testing either live or on video where loaded guns were abused and subjected to harsh ( sometimes mind boggling) treatment that surpassed anything that would normally be encountered out in the real world. With the litigation crazed society that we live and operate in, it is imperative that these firearms be as "fool" proof as possible and that can indeed be a tall order.

I did get to read the reports of where the 1911 was tested, one such test involved dropping a 1911 from a helicopter. They had a lot of problem getting the gun to land on the end of the barrel and then only managed to get it to fire one time.I think some of our litigation problems come from the fact that the lawyers all come from the same pool.

I was the expert witness in an dropped Thompson Center Contender that fell from a shoulder holster and discharged, sending a .44 Magnum bullet through the fleshy part of the wearer's neck.

In this instance, the wearer was hunting deer, cocked the gun in anticipation of a shot. When shot didn't materialize, he lowered hammer and missed the half-cock, then holstered in a shoulder rig. At his house, wearer bent over to untie boots when gun dropped and discharged.

Virtually, all modern guns require that the trigger be pulled and held to the rear in order to fire. Much of the product liability lawsuits regarding guns that go off by themselves is total nonsense. Worse, some companies would rather pay a small settlement rather than fight the case in court.

In the 1970s one of the other agents in my office worked a shooting case involving another agency where one of their detective's 70 Series Colt Commanders had gone off when dropped and the bullet hit and killed one of the suspects they had just brought in. There were plenty of witnesses who all confirmed the details, including one of the other suspects brought in at the same time.
It can happen. Will it happen every time a gun is dropped on the muzzle? Of course not. People do stupid things every day and manage to avoid ill consequences. But when the stars align just right or wrong, with certain guns and ammo, it can and has happened and will again.

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183rd FBINA

Dropped a Colt hammer less safety off. Dropped from my vest plate pocket. Didn't fire. Thank goodness.

If they ever make a perfectly 'safe' gun, it will not be capable of firing at all.

I bought a series 80 Colt Government and personally I like the firing pin block. Lot of folks remove them to improve trigger pull, but I like the extra safety of it. Lighter firing pins and aluminum triggers help to. I hope I never drop any of my guns but if I do I'll never tell.
Peace,
gordon

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better have that checked

When I was young and dumb I fell backwards out of a tree down
into a briar patch in a fence row. I had a old model Ruger Single
6, loaded with 6, in open top holster with hammer thong. I was only up 5'. I landed on my back, knees up. Gun went off in holster, bullet went through calf of my leg from front to back.
Brought tears to my eyes. Hammer thong was still in place. Never
carried 6 in a SA again, I'm a fast learner. What really was the
most painful was the doc slitting the leg of a good pair of Levi's.
I did not sue Bill Ruger,it was completely my fault. In some cases
you can cure stupid. Wasn't my 1st mishap in a tree with loaded
gun, but after actually getting shot it was my last. A few years
later I reached my 21 birthday, my oldman was amazed!

A friend who worked at a local gun shop worked on his 1911's trigger pull. He dropped the gun while he was on vacation and it went off. He was a few states away so we couldn't get the whole story. The bullet went in below his kidney and did massive damage. For that to happen the gun had to hit on the but. He rarely used a holster just in the belt but forward.

Actually, there is no half cock on the Contender, at least on the older ones. I don't know about the latest models. When you lower the hammer, it will rest on the firing pin until you break it open, and it could easily fire if dropped. You can't even re-cock at this stage. Opening the action will re-set it, making it safe, and allowing it to be re-cocked. It's just a little idiosyncrasy of that gun.