I'm a first time S&W owner with a few simple questions. I didn't order it or buy it brand new. However then gun was never fired and was purchased and traded at my local shop. I got a big discount on it so I took without having every option available if ordered. I really like a thumb safety and really like the placement of the safety if it were equipped. The question is...can I add a safety to this pistol? Thanks!
Can I add a thumb safety to my M&P 40c?
- Thread starter Crmartin
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Just to be sure, does your 40c look like this?
If it does, you cannot add a thumb safety without modifying the frame. If, however, you have a small plug on your frame, then a safety can be added without a whole lot of modification. I think at one time Apex offered a kit. Good Luck & I hope this helps!
If it does, you cannot add a thumb safety without modifying the frame. If, however, you have a small plug on your frame, then a safety can be added without a whole lot of modification. I think at one time Apex offered a kit. Good Luck & I hope this helps!
Thanks
Thanks for getting back to me. Thankfully mine does have the square blocks. And I did follow the links from the forum and I found exactly what I'm looking for. I found it on speed shooters and u are right again, the lever is out of stock. I know not many ppl like a manual safety but to me the way they have it designed it shouldn't slow down the draw at all. And the gun is sitting more than shooting so i like knowing there is a little bit safety. Anyway, this is a great forum. I've owned guns my entire life but never looked at forums for info and I learned a lot about specifics than I knew was to be learned! Anyway blah blah blah! Thanks man!
Thanks for getting back to me. Thankfully mine does have the square blocks. And I did follow the links from the forum and I found exactly what I'm looking for. I found it on speed shooters and u are right again, the lever is out of stock. I know not many ppl like a manual safety but to me the way they have it designed it shouldn't slow down the draw at all. And the gun is sitting more than shooting so i like knowing there is a little bit safety. Anyway, this is a great forum. I've owned guns my entire life but never looked at forums for info and I learned a lot about specifics than I knew was to be learned! Anyway blah blah blah! Thanks man!
You're very welcome. The only reason I know this tidbit about the 40c thumb safety is because(sigh)I wanted one too! When I first tried out the gun at a my LGS, I had to have it. I was wanting a Shield, but this was the end of last year, & Shields were few & far between. I didn't even think to ask if the 40c was available with a thumb safety. Oh well. I later got a 40 Shield, & the 40c became the nightstand gun, with a full size magazine & an X-Grip sleeve extender. Welcome to the Forum. In the short time I've been here I've learned a lot. There are a lot of nice people here, with a wealth of knowledge & experience.
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Rastoff
US Veteran
I have a .45 with a thumb safety and a .40 without. It's a non issue to me.
The safety on the M&P is superfluous when you look at it. All it does is block trigger movement. It doesn't block the sear or firing pin. So, it's only value is if something were to get inside the trigger guard and thereby press the trigger. Proper gun handling should avoid this potential issue.
I'm not trying to talk you out of the safety. Just informing of what it provides.
The safety on the M&P is superfluous when you look at it. All it does is block trigger movement. It doesn't block the sear or firing pin. So, it's only value is if something were to get inside the trigger guard and thereby press the trigger. Proper gun handling should avoid this potential issue.
I'm not trying to talk you out of the safety. Just informing of what it provides.
DocSunShine
Member
Striker fired guns do not need thumb safeties. S&W makes guns with thumb safeties purely for marketing purposes, to market guns to people who lack the training & understanding that it's pointless. Keep the gun as is and don't throw the God awful batwings on it.
I've got to wonder why anyone would care if somebody else wants a thumb safety? Aren't we all allowed personal preferences? What one person considers useless another might not. Again, its a personal choice.
marlin.357
Member
Just to be onery http://smith-wessonforum.com/images/smilies/biggrin.gif The only way to unblock the firing pin is to pull the trigger, and the only way to trip the sear is to pull the trigger, so if the trigger can't move, then the thumb safety DOES block the firing pin and the sear.
Although you may not agree, the thumb safety does give an added bit of safety if you have to holster & unholster frequently when you need to go into "prohibited" places.
DocSunShine
Member
I don't, I figured I'd be nice and give good advice to prevent the OP from making a mistake he'll inevitably regret.
Why would he "inevitably" regret making his own pistol work in the way that he considers best for him? I'll say it yet again, its a personal choice.
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DocSunShine
Member
Because every person I know who was new to carrying wanted a "safety", yet after they received proper training you couldn't pay them to use a safety, especially on a striker fired weapon that doesn't need one. That is the natural progression of of someone who's new to guns and wants to carry.
Personal preference? Maybe... But it's in the same category as those who's personal preference is to carry semi automatic handgun without a round in the chamber, it just doesn't make any sense to anyone with any kind of experience... So why mutilate a perfectly good firearm because of an impulsive feeling that will not exist once OP becomes more experienced?
I encourage the OP to ask any credible instructor if a safety is necessary or even a good idea on a striker fired handgun like the M&P and see what the unanimous conclusion is...
Rastoff
US Veteran
Yes, you're being ornery. When I say the thumb safety doesn't block the sear or striker it's because it doesn't. It does stop the trigger bar from moving and as a consequence the striker is blocked.
On a 1911, the safety actually blocks the sear from moving. It's not a secondary trait. It blocks the trigger as well, but that is an added bonus.
If you have a good holster, and use the awareness you should be using, nothing will get caught in the trigger as you reholster. Still, there is value. I'm not trying to say, as some have, that the thumb safety is completely useless, it isn't. I just want people to be aware of how it works and what it does, that's all.
Like I said, I have one with and one without. I'm not going to take the thumb safety off my .45 and I'm not going to add it to my .40.
I tell you what; you won't change my opinion, I won't change your's, but that's exactly my point:if the OP want's a safety, inexperienced or pro, he should be allowed that choice without being criticized. He didn't ask for anyone's opinion as to if it was a good idea or not, he just wanted to know if it could be done. That was the only concern here. Not if it was right or wrong, or if other people agreed it was a good idea, just can it be done. The only one that has to be happy with that pistol is the OP. Not You, not me, just the OP.
shouldazagged
Absent Comrade
Isn't it interesting how a thread can go sideways in a very short time? And in the name of helping someone! Remarkable.
Just to be sure, does your 40c look like this?
If it does, you cannot add a thumb safety without modifying the frame. If, however, you have a small plug on your frame, then a safety can be added without a whole lot of modification. I think at one time Apex offered a kit. Good Luck & I hope this helps!
I was wondering the same thing... picked up my CORE Saturday... put 40 rounds through it yesterday. I'm not sure what I'm looking for in the picture above.
I live in MD... so carrying it anywhere is out of the question. I'm lucky I even got the gun (bought it in May) - my state background check hasn't processed yet.
gwilburn, in that picture notice the arrow above the pin? From what I've been told, if there is a small square plug on the frame in the same location you can retrofit a safety. If it looks like the one in the picture, extensive frame work would be needed.
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mb66
Member
Not to hijack but I'm looking to add one to my FS9 (regardless of other's opinions).
I have the right sear block and frame to do this. I can get the detent and spring from speedshooterspecialties. Does anyone have a spare thumb safety lever laying around that they've pulled and might want to sell? Guess the OP has first dibs tho...
I have the right sear block and frame to do this. I can get the detent and spring from speedshooterspecialties. Does anyone have a spare thumb safety lever laying around that they've pulled and might want to sell? Guess the OP has first dibs tho...
I'll look when I get the chance, but I think mine is like the pic (with the pin and the arrow).
