Series 70 and Series 80

[Pistol Monkey]

Good morning,

Was doing a little reading and found many of members referring to a series 70 and a series 80... What do those mean?

As you can tell, this is a newbie question.

Thanks in advance for the clarification.

Pistol Monkey.

[dakota1911]

The Series 80 have the internal firing pin safety. A good read is at:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M1911_pistol

[GKC]

"Series 80" is really a Colt term, but most use it to refer to a 1911 pistol with a firing pin safety, as mentioned above. A few 1911 makes without the FPS are the Colt series 70 1911s (obviously), Springfield 1911s, S&W "e" series 1911s, Ruger SR1911s, and Rock Island Armory 1911s. I don't believe the semi-custom pistols like Ed Brown and Les Bauer come with a FPS, but I could be wrong.

[dsk]

Both Series 70 and 80 are Colt's own terms. But the industry has hijacked them to mean a pistol with (S80) or without (S70) a firing pin safety. The thing to understand is that FPS systems are often proprietary, and a particular part meant to fit a Colt Series 80 may not fit a Kimber even though they both have firing pin safeties in them.

[dakota1911]

I think Kimber still uses the Swartz firing pin safety which Colt used at one time and then dumped. I hope the future will go with Ruger; a Titanium firing pin and no mechanical parts to make a "firing pin safety".

[GKC]

Originally Posted by dakota1911

I think Kimber still uses the Swartz firing pin safety which Colt used at one time and then dumped. I hope the future will go with Ruger; a Titanium firing pin and no mechanical parts to make a "firing pin safety".

Do you mean that you hope that all 1911s in the future will be built like a SR1911? I think that is the way I am reading what you wrote.

That is one of the things, among many others, that I really like about my SR1911...no FPS!

[Mike_Fontenot]

I bought my Kimber Eclipse Custom II 10mm mostly BECAUSE of its firing pin block. And I specifically wanted Kimber's "Schwarz" fpb, which is controlled by the grip safety, NOT the trigger (which is what controls the "Series 80" fpb). Kimber identifies their guns that have the fpb with the suffix "II", for "Series II").

[Dragoniel]

I never heard of firing pin safety failure. My SW has it and I'm happy it does. I don't trust those titanium pins. Oh, I know they have been tested extensively and they are (said to be) safe, but it's just me. No reason to degrade safety measures - don't fix what ain't broken.

[67A1F]

I keep changing my mind on the FPS. I prefer the S70 but if I carried a 1911 everyday I would like to have a S80. One more safety, trigger must be pulled to release the firing pin, not only works in the drop test but could prevent an accidental discharge if ignition parts fail.