1911 Grip Safety Problem

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Thirty-30

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Hi, Guys.

So, I have a brand new RIA 1911-A1.

Had high hopes. Still is quite pretty.

However, there is something very strange going on in the grip safety.

Either that or I am in left field, in which case tell me.

Every other 1911 I've ever had, you can squeeze the grip quite hard -- I have a strong grip, too much...... nevermind .... apparently.

That said, with this one, if you squeeze it hard, the gun will not fire, almost feels like it is not engaging, a gentle grip and it works.

However, as the trigger is pulled, right before the hammer falls, I can feel the grip safety click.

I've stripped it once already, checked for burrs, etc.

Any idea what I should be peeking at, or should I be contacting the people I got it from?

Addendum: If pressure is on the LEFT & lower SIDE of the grip safety, it will fire every time, left side, 90% of the time, center or right anywhere, 0% of the time.

Addendum #2: NOW WITH VIDEO, watch and see what my tinkering has found out. Bear in mind I've already stripped this once, results are identical.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tGlaud2dF0k&feature=youtu.be
~B
 
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Remove the grips and see if you can see what's happening with the grip safety. You should be able to see inside the frame. Maybe you need to file a bit off the end because it's not disengaging when pressing on it straight.

Check out this video:

[youtube]_oSg42YCfP8[/youtube]
 
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judging by your video demonstration, it seems like your grip safety needs to pivot up and to the right to allow trigger travel. you need to disassemble and investigate or return for new gun.
 
Fitting a 1911 grip safety is not rocket surgery. You CAN do it yourself, but you really should not have to.

Warranty it. It's a faulty product. You should be able to squeeze the life out of that thing without issue.
 
!

Trinimon said:
It's new, I agree about sending it in for warranty replacement. Good video Jackrabbit.
Click to expand...

That's what it'll come to, just sucks alot because it means it's god knows how long I have to wait for it to be serviced.

I realize RIA is not kimber, but the are not bottom of the line either, when you pay for something you expect it to work :/
 
The best thing to do on a 1911 is render the stupid grip-safety inoperable.

You take it out, grind off the tang that blocks the trigger, and put it back together.

It still looks and feels normal. But your gun won't fail because you weren't depressing the grip-safety just right.

They are a stupid invention.
 
You could also just install and tune your grip safety correctly...I set every grip safety on every 1911 to clear if the "memory bump" is depressed by about .75mm.

It's virtually impossible to pick up one of my 1911s without depressing the grip safety. If you have a 1911 that requires ANY effort to depress the grip safety, it's been done wrong.
 
I like the nickel RIA! I have the same pistol and its a decent shooter too.

Might be kind of redundant at this point, but here's an animation that clearly shows the relationship between the trigger and grip safety. As someone else stated, the grip safety isn't rocket science, but if you don't really know how the parts interact its helpful to see an illustration/animation.

http://www.m1911.org/loader.swf

Click the "frame" and "safety" boxes in the Hide column to view internals.
 
misanthropist said:
You could also just install and tune your grip safety correctly...I set every grip safety on every 1911 to clear if the "memory bump" is depressed by about .75mm.

It's virtually impossible to pick up one of my 1911s without depressing the grip safety. If you have a 1911 that requires ANY effort to depress the grip safety, it's been done wrong.
Click to expand...

How do you tune them?

Remove material off the trigger block?

John
 
John in B.C. said:
How do you tune them?

Remove material off the trigger block?

John
Click to expand...

In a good gun, yes...if that doesn't work, either the GS or the frame is defective (i.e. holes drilled in the wrong places).

I take a fine file to mine and dress the trigger block a bit, then stone the surfaces with a 6000 grit bench stone. Everything ends up smooth as silk, no way to depress the trigger without gripping the gun; no way to grip the gun without depressing the safety.

Great for reholstering. Pressure is applied with the heel of the hand, adding an extra layer of safety during the most dangerous phase of shooting.
 
CAUTION! There are a few things the "home handyman" CAN do to improve or repair a 1911 HOWEVER - dicking around with either the thumb OR the grip safety IS NOT ONE OF THEM!!! Before ANY filing, hI would have recommended "borrowing" a grip safety from a known functioning 1911 to see if that grip safety would make the offending gun function properly. If it DID - the safest bet would be to replace it. Since the first mod put on umost newly acquired 1911's is a beavertail grip safety - there is an abundance of stock grip safeties for the asking. If a replacement was not available the safety that DID work could at least be used to duplicate the correct "angles" and dimensions onto the one that didn't work. I cannot condone the posting of such videos HOWEVER well intended they may be. Doing work on your own gun is one thing but posting videos promoting such work is irresponsible. If anyone's feelings are hurt by these comments - when you've been an RO running shooters through a stage with a malfunctioning safety causing an Accidental Discharge TOO many times - your realize that safety pre-empts hurt feelings.
 
Why are you referring to the grip-safety and the actual safety as if they are the same thing? They are not.

The safety, actuated by the thumb, is necessary for the proper use of the pistol. The grip-safety is not.

Todd Jarrett (google if you don't know who he is) has said in many interviews that he disables the grip-safety on all of his 1911 style pistols.

I'm sure he's not alone. The grip-safety does nothing to prevent accidental discharges. And it causes the gun to not fire when you need it to.

Novak actually makes a great product for removing the grip safety completely, and replacing it with a solid backstrap.

http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=49757
 
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