actually some M&P's do have a mag safety, a argument can be made both ways. It all comes down to personal preference of what you like. My 59 and 915 have it but my M&P's 40-45 don't. We got my father in law a M&P 40 for x-mas, it had one and he likes it.

Both of my M&P's came with Mag Disconnect's.

My Grandson and I use them for USPSA competition. The normal routine when finished shooting a stage is to remove the magazine, empty the chamber and pull the trigger to drop the hammer and render the pistol absolutely safe. With a mag disconnect the last step can not be done.

For that reason I removed the mag disconnects.

If we were not using them in competition I would probably have left them as received.

My problems with magazine disconnects are as follows: First, they are often used as a short-cut around proper/safe handling procedures. Rather than physically inspecting the chamber for ammunition when unloading, and removing any that is found, folks get lazy and pop out the mag, thinking that it renders the weapon "safe." Second, it also leads them to believe that many or all weapons have a similar feature, which is far from being accurate. Finally, it adds unnecessary complexity to disassembly procedures on some weapons which require the weapon to be dry-fired during takedown or reassembly (see the Ruger MK-III series .22 rimfire handguns for a prime example).

I just see it as more un-needed crap. If I get one with a disconnect I'll usually remove it. It has caused me to not buy some guns because I don't want to fool with hit. I still have one with it but I don't shoot it much anymore. Just goes out on some range trips these days.

The magazine-disconnect safety causes two unrelated problems:

1. The actual mechanism connects the trigger action to something that rides upon, or "feels for," the magazine. This adds friction to the trigger-mechanism's action, degrading the trigger pull in terms of both apparent weight and crispness.
2. If you are in a save-your-life fight, and have to change magazines, you should try to arrange to leave one round in your pistol's chamber to speed the reload process (so you don't have to rack the slide). If someone attacks you while changing magazines, you can kill him with that one chambered round only if your pistol does not have a magazine-disconnect safety. Otherwise, you have to wait until the new magazine is fully seated, before being able to fire that shot.

Does that answer your question?

1: Once a LEO my Father worked with was about to be attacked by a guy with a knife, his mag was not completely seated, he got a click instead of a bang.

2:In a close up fight with someone trying to get your gun, you can remove the mag to render the gun useless if they get it away from you, but your gun is now useless to you as well.

There are positives and negatives to having on with or without. Personally, I don't like them for the first reason I mentioned, in the event that throughout the day if I somehow manage to hit the mag release just enough to disengage the mag without realizing it, I could get a click instead of a bang if I need the gun.

If you have sufficient grip to release the magazine you should have sufficient grip to pull the trigger. If not willing to do the later then don't carry.

Originally Posted by TOF

If you have sufficient grip to release the magazine you should have sufficient grip to pull the trigger. If not willing to do the later then don't carry.

That's all fine and dandy until you have a "Sufficient grip" while struggling for a gun/grappling and the gun is pointed at you.

You don't have to have a firm grip to push an itty-bitty button with whatever digit is available.

Sorry for being a slight gun newb but, what is the difference between the magazine release and the magazine disconnect?

Originally Posted by Brevard

Sorry for being a slight gun newb but, what is the difference between the magazine release and the magazine disconnect?

The magazine release is a button (often located on the left side of the weapon, below and behind the trigger) that is used to remove the magazine. Push the button, magazine falls out of the gun.

The magazine disconnector is an internal part (or parts) that prevents the handgun from being fired unless there is a magazine in place in the frame of the weapon. It operates automatically, sensing whether there is a magazine in place by using a small lever that is moved to a certain position when the magazine is seated. If you put a magazine in the weapon and load a round into the chamber, when you pull the trigger, the gun should fire. If the gun has a magazine disconnector (not all do), if you put a magazine in the weapon and load a round into the chamber, THEN REMOVE THE MAGAZINE, when you pull the trigger, the gun will NOT fire. The act of removing the magazine has "disconnected" part of the firing mechanism, stopping part of the chain of mechanical events that is needed to complete the firing sequence.

Thank you. Do the M&P's have it? I am pretty sure the glocks dont.

Originally Posted by Brevard

Thank you. Do the M&P's have it? I am pretty sure the glocks dont.

The M&Ps are available with or without. Glocks do not have them.

There have been stories of officers sticking the web of their hand between the hammer and fireing pin to stop a shot from a BG and I've read one story about dropping the mag to make the gun unfireable. I have a Ruger P345 that had the feature but the little spring got away when I was changeing the rear sight so out came the link. There were some Rugers were they had problems with it were it wouldn't work right with some mags and the gun wouldn't fire. Frankly I'm a believer in the KISS principle. I think it's folly to think you can depend on hitting the mag release to save your life. If a gun has extra parts that can break and screw up a guns function then you don't really need them. Before I had to remove the part due to the loss of its spring if you dry fired the pistol with the mag out it would eventually break the fireing pin. Stupid design! Now it isn't a problem as the fireing pin block isn't there anymore. I don't believe in stuff like internal locks and mag safeties. It makes it a whole lot easier to make a bad mistake because "you thought" it was "safe" and the gun went off. If you want it not to fire then drop the mag and clear the chamber and lock the slide back. You can't easily miss read that! I like my 1911 and my old S&W 586. They are streight forward with none of this useless extra layers of garbage. Basicly they are nothing more than "Lawyer Parts" to satisfy some antigun group.