Magazine Disconnect

[hillking2010]

Hey all, I was hoping to get some opinions on magazine disconnects from some guys with more experience than myself.

What would you say are the pros and cons? Is it a deal breaker when considering a new gun?

 

[Rhino]

Cops supposedly tend to like them because they might be able to eject the magazine during a struggle if a perp tries to get their gun. That way if the perp succeeds in getting the cop's gun, he can't use the cop's gun against them. I personally don't like them for concealed carry because I think it's far less likely for a perp to try to get a concealed carriers gun. Also, I think a concealed carrier is more likely to need to fire his gun without a mag than a cop is. That's just my personal opinion though. I'm sure others here will have other takes on the matter.

 

[hillking2010]

Thanks for your input Rhino. As a feature, is a magazine disconnect a deal breaker for you? Or is it just something that you don't prefer?

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[Rhino]

Not a deal breaker. I have several pistols with mag disconnects. They can be disabled if they're that much of a bother to the gun owner. I may do that someday.

 

[Nick Burkhardt]

Think of it like a key. If you are out, but unexpectedly need to go into a no carry zone (Post Office, School, Private property with signage) and you have to leave your pistol in the car, just pop the magazine out and take it with you.

 

[Geosan1030]

Not a deal breaker. I have several pistols with mag disconnects. They can be disabled if they're that much of a bother to the gun owner. I may do that someday.

I'd be careful disabling (or modifying a firearm to make it 'easier' to shoot) the magazine disconnect. If that firearm were used in self-defense situation, the prosecuted may point to the modification as evidence you were looking for a fight. Food for thought.

Is a magazine disconnect a deal breaker? Not for me. I prefer a firearm without the disconnect, especially if the mag release is very prominent and lays near my thumb. But, practice, practice, practice should deal with accidentally dropping a mag.

As for using it as a key: all that does is prevent the gun from being used at that point. Doesn't keep it from getting stolen.

 

[prccw]

Magazine disconnectors don't always work. There was a case, where a police instructor was teaching a class how the magazine disconnector works, using a S&W 5906. The dumb guy released the magazine and put the muzzle against the palm of his hand and pulled the trigger. Guess what? The pistol went bang. The guy ended with a hole in his hand he didn't have before. He sued S&W, only to show everybody in the court how stupid he was, as the company claimed sucessfully that if you have your finger in the trigger at the time you push the mag release, the mag disconnector becomes disabled.

Mag disconnectors, like every other safety feature on a gun, relies on the mind of the shooter, and the only way to train that mind, is with practice, practice and more practice. A gun owner who doesn't practice with his gun regularly, handling a loaded gun is as dangerous as a 2nd lieutenant with a map and a compass in combat.

 

[Rhino]

I'd be careful disabling (or modifying a firearm to make it 'easier' to shoot) the magazine disconnect. If that firearm were used in self-defense situation, the prosecuted may point to the modification as evidence you were looking for a fight. Food for thought.

There are many things that a prosecutor may twist to use as evidence that you were looking for a fight, but disabling a magazine disconnect is hardly one of them. It doesn't play into how the gun is used, has no effect on lethality, and it makes the gun perform as many law enforcement pistols do. Despite the fact that law enforcement is probably the largest proponent of magazine disconnects, many police departments still don't use pistols that have them. No prosecutor is going to find it feasible to demonize a civilian owned firearm for functioning exactly like many police owned firearms do, particularly when that function doesn't affect the lethality of the firearm in any way. I'm not saying some won't try, but it's not something I'd be greatly concerned with. I'd put it about on a par with replacing fixed sights with adjustable sights. Could they try to demonize that in court? Yes. Is it likely? No. Would it work against you? Extremely unlikely.

 

[redscho]

For me it depends on the kind of pistol, My Browning High Power and 1911 don't have it, therefore I disable the magazine disconnect on my GSG 1911. For me magazine disconnect in single action automatics is a PITA. For double action like Beretta, Bersa Thunder and Ruger SR22 I prefer the disconnect.

 

[Jim_Macklin]

With or without a magazine disconnect is a question with no absolute answer. But if you have lost your magazine, your gun is just a poor club.
The disconnect usually makes the trigger pull worse.
But whether it is a deal breaker, it depends on what you want to buy considering all factors.
But don't remove a magazine disconnect on a gun you intend to carry, don't remove or disable any "so called safety device" on a carry gun because if you are ever forced to use your gun it will be examined by the police and DA. You do not want to be asked in front of a jury why you removed a safety>
I think the disconnect is more of a political talking point than a real safety, states like California require "safety" and a magazine disconnect might help getting permission to sell within that state.
As for police being able to engage the safety by pressing the button during a struggle over their holstered handgun, a security holster and having both hands available to use in the fight seems a better use for the hands. Private citizens are not required to go hand to hand with drunks, drug addicts or hardened criminals, cops are required to do so, cops may benefit from a magazine disconnect. But a better use of force policy for the police would seem a better safety feature.

 

[GlassWolf]

Hey all, I was hoping to get some opinions on magazine disconnects from some guys with more experience than myself.

What would you say are the pros and cons? Is it a deal breaker when considering a new gun?

I will not own a firearm with this feature. It is a lawyer gadget to allow some firearms to be sold in very restrictive states like CA, where a firearm has to possess a certain number of safety features to be legal. The truth is, there is no advantage to this feature. It's a liability. It prevents your weapon from operating if the magazine is not seated properly, or is removed from the firearm. This means if you have a round chambered, you cannot fire the gun if the mag release button gets bumped and the mag drops, or if the mag isn't seated properly, or if yoou draw the gun and accidentally release the mag, etc.. for a defensive firearm, this is a "last accident ever made" waiting to happen. If the feature malfunctions, it will also prevent the gun from operating.

When I pull the trigger, and there's a round in the chamber, my gun needs to fire. No question, no conditions, or restrictions. I pull, it goes bang.

 

[wolf_fire]

One thing that I would warn anyone with a magazine disconnect is to not rely on it. Always remember, you are the one responsible for the safe use of any firearm. With the mag removed, the round that is chambered is not supposed to be able to go off. This could lend one to forget whether there is a round chambered or not once the magazine gets reinserted. Now, I know it is your responsibility to know whether that firearm is loaded or not.

But to some nincompoops, they may "test" the trigger after reinserting the mag and not sliding the rack and think the chamber is empty, only to find a nice sized hole down range of the weapon.

My $.02.

Yes, this is all completely avoidable, and yes, never pull that trigger unless you are on target and made the conscious decision to shoot.

Therefore, in my opinion, this is a feature I could do without. Would it keep me from purchasing a firearm? I can't answer that.. I have yet to come across a firearm that I like that has one equipped.

 

[hoffy97]

I hate them. If I pull the trigger, I expect the hammer to drop (or striker, or whatever). The Ruger 22's (MKIII, 22/45) mostly come with them, and I've removed it in both of them (Volquartsen bushing). To take these Rugers apart, you need to drop the hammer at one point, so it ends up being a dance of remove the mag, do some stuff, put the mag back in so you can pull the trigger, then remove again, etc. They are already difficult as it is to take apart. Thankfully, Glocks don't have them; you need to pull the trigger to disassemble those as well.

And I agree never to get used to them; it's unsafe, and sets bad habits. Better to not have them in the first place.

 

[Rhino]

Thankfully, Glocks don't have them.....

Which is why I may never get around to disabling any of them, since I carry Glocks almost exclusively now. Well, that and the fact that I'm an expert procrastinator.

 

[GlassWolf]

Thankfully my Ruger Mk I lacks this "feature."

 

[hillking2010]

I wish that so many Rugers didn't have it. I was interested in the lc9 but was turned off by the disconnect

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[GlassWolf]

I wish that so many Rugers didn't have it. I was interested in the lc9 but was turned off by the disconnect

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you can remove the mag disconnect on the LC9. Of course you're still stuck with the worst trigger on the market and the need to drop another $150 in parts to fix that from galloway precision, at which point you have an "acceptable" trigger.

 

[hillking2010]

I ended up getting a Taurus 709 Slim. Its been a great gun. Affordable, feels good in the hand, and has a ton of features that I like.

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