Would like to re-visit this thread:
https://forums.accuratereloading.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/9411043/m/426104947

quote:

Craftsman: Series 80 guns Do Not have a half cock safety. That position is called a half cock ledge, not half cock safety notch. If you take a new series 80 out of the box, you will be able to pull the trigger and drop the hammer when it is in half cock position.

I just installed a new sear and hammer in said Colt 1911, a more recent Combat Elite version, the same one in which the hammer fell when slide was released earlier.
Problem solved.

Just double checking on this, but the hammer does fall when trigger is pulled on half cock as Craftsman shared earlier. Is there any way it would fire with a shell under the hammer from half cock? This makes me nervous. While I would prefer to use "Cocked and Locked", I can remember a few times over the years when I gently lowered the hammer to half cock after deciding not to fire at my target, a temporary situation at best with me. Still, please convince me that a hammer falling from half cock is not dangerous ???

THANKS for putting up with me.

"Bo"

quote:

Originally posted by BoCash3:
Would like to re-visit this thread:
https://forums.accuratereloading.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/9411043/m/426104947

quote:

Craftsman: Series 80 guns Do Not have a half cock safety. That position is called a half cock ledge, not half cock safety notch. If you take a new series 80 out of the box, you will be able to pull the trigger and drop the hammer when it is in half cock position.

I just installed a new sear and hammer in said Colt 1911, a more recent Combat Elite version, the same one in which the hammer fell when slide was released earlier.
Problem solved.

Just double checking on this, but the hammer does fall when trigger is pulled on half cock as Craftsman shared earlier. Is there any way it would fire with a shell under the hammer from half cock? This makes me nervous. While I would prefer to use "Cocked and Locked", I can remember a few times over the years when I gently lowered the hammer to half cock after deciding not to fire at my target, a temporary situation at best with me. Still, please convince me that a hammer falling from half cock is not dangerous ???

THANKS for putting up with me.

"Bo"

Sorry bud, but if the hammer fall when you pull the trigger at half cock, it is dangerous. It means you have more replacing or adjusting to do. I'm not a pistolsmith so seek out a good one and get that puppy fixed right.

The series 80 has a firing pin block safety which, when working correctly, requires the hammer to be at full cock in order for the lever to fully depress the block. If the hammer and sear fail to connect, the half cock shelf is designed to arrest the forward movement of the hammer preventing ingnition. In the series 80 it is not designed to prevent the sear from moving.

I don't have a series 80 at hand to test this, but there is a simple means for which to test whether or not the gun could fire from the half cock position. Point the muzzle of the empty gun in the air. Insert a BIC pen in the barrel, pointy end facing out, and with the hammer resting on the half cock shelf, pull the trigger. If the pen jumps forward, then the gun will be hot in the half cock position and all bets are off.

You are playing with fire here...the series 80 safety system is just that. The series 80 hammer is designed to and will drop from the half cock "ledge" and this is normal. HOWEVER! The only way this SAFELY works as designed is if the entire system of levers and plungers works together to perform their individual tasks. Its NOT simply a matter of seeing if the hammer drops or doesn't.


PLEASE do yourself a favor and get to a competant 1911 gunsmith. Unless you know the specific function tests for a series 80 pistol you are taking it all on faith.

I really doubt that the kinetic energy acquired by the hammer falling from half-cock would be sufficient to fire a round in the chamber. BUT with an over-sensitive primer, I would NOT want to count on this to remain safe!!

Despite Army propaganda, the half-cock notch on the M1911 is NOT a safety! Browning did not design the pistol with a half-cock notch, he later ws forced to add it, being pressured by the Army to have one, due to having had one on the Colt SA Army. ("The troops were used to one".) I would never depend on the half-cock notch on a 1911! If you don't want to fire the shot, either lower the hammer all the way down (lowering the hammer all the way, or to half-cock is a risky act, as it could slip!!)But, all the way down,the hammer will rest on a firing pin which is NOT in contact with the primer. "Hammer down" on a round is a relatively safe carry condition, as long as you don't drop the pistol onto the muzzle; or. just put the thumb safety back on until you can clear the piece safely!