WILSON COMBAT 1911 EXTENDED THUMB SAFETY

Have to agree with the G-man; it was not a drop-in fit on a nearly new Colt 1911/1991 Government Model. Although it's a nicely made and good-looking part, and the finish was a dead-on match for the Colt part. I did have to work on the shaft with a bit of sandpaper before I could even insert it into the hole in the frame.



If the description had said "fitting required" I might have bought it anyway - or not - but at least I would have been warned. This part was to go onto a Christmas present for my wife; luckily I got it far enough in advance that I had some time to work on it. Had it been last-minute I would probably have sent it back and gotten something else.



I checked "would recommend" because of the quality, but for people who aren't up to doing some fitting work it would definitely be a "would not" instead.

Not worth the $150.00 price. Split pin between the two levers is .148 diameter, .006 undersize. Only .100 wide bearing surface on each lever is .154 diameter full size. Will cause premature wear in hole of frame, and grip safety will be loose on .148 diameter center section of pin.

Bought this to replace a 'Novak ambi safety' on my colt SCG and the shaft is too small that it rattles. It is even more loose when I tried it on a Les Baer UTC.

Shaft Diameters (where it contacts the frame, first number is left side): Wison - .1475 - .1465 inches / Novak - .1535 - .1530 inches / Les Baer - .1540 - .1515 inches.

Maybe it fits other guns, I don't know, this is the only two that I tried. Hopefully Brownells will allow me to exchange it.

I thought this would be a fairly simple upgrade to my Colt but didn't happen as the stud was too big and would not go into the frame. I guess I could have spent who knows how long sanding the stud until it fit in but just using sand paper made me question how I could keep the shaft perfectly round without any flat spots or other irregularities. It's a safety-I want it to work right all the time. Going back to Brownell's and maybe I'll try another brand. It does look like a quality piece though.

I upgraded the safety on a Para 1911. The pin was a perfect fit to the frame. The sear engagement needed some fitting, which is to be expected. It took me about 30 minutes, but I took my time and fit frequently until it snapped into place. It feels far better than the original safety, have another one to go into a Rock Island Armory 1911 next. Absolutely recommend based on my experience so far.

I took this to a gunsmith who (prior to begining to fit it) informed me it would cost me too much in shop time for him to fit it because the thumb stud is too big. He was right. I couldn't get it in - I turned it with sandpaper and took off a few thousandths. I could get it in then and went about fitting the safety. Once it was fitted (didn't take that much) I noted it would not sit flush with the frame. Short story is it took me hours with several small files before I realized the reason it won't fit flush is because the base of the thumb stud isn't flush - it's oversized without a defined shoulder on it, possibly from molding? So no matter how much I turned the stud itself the base was sloppily manufactured and would never fit like a factory safety. I worked away on it for a while trying to get a 90 degree all the way around the base. I got it down to within a few thousandths of an inch of daylight, but still not completely flush with the frame. I would NOT put this safety on a custom gun. I do like the looks of it though.

Pin is way oversized, do not recommend for Springfield Armory 1911s. I understand "some fitting required" but the pin size is way oversized.

Installed on a Colt stainless steel Commander. I had to reduced the size of the post that goes through the frame and grip safety considerably, reduce the diameter of the cylindrical part containing the sear egagement part to clear the frame and then as expected had to file the surface that mates to the sear. It required two hours of work but the results were fabulous. It looks fantastic, works as designed and snicks on and off smoothly with a positive detent both ways. If you are up to the fitting part of the job, it is a great item.

The pin on this safety is way oversized. They should of mentioned this in the details. Did not fit in my Springfield 1911-A1. There are other safeties from other manufacturers available where the pin fits perfectly.

Looks good, but did not fit in my Springfield 1911 Mil Spec .45 auto. Pin was too thick. Would either have to make pin not as round (destroying blueing) or have to widen holes in frame. Either of which I was unwilling to do, so I left the stock thumb saftey in. This may fit in other models or manufactures 1911's.

This part will require fitting to achieve its full range of motion, then to accommodate the sear. Yes, it can be tedious, but it will result in a far better fit and function than a one-size-fits-all part. To achieve this, I recommend a wide, flat needle file. The part itself seems to be well made.

FITTING REQUIRED! I didn't read the reviews, but I wish I did. Fitting Required! I've read the Kuhnhausen book on the 1911 and it only says to fit the sear. I over fit 2 sears and ruined them before I decided to just file the contact point of the safety/sear (on the safety) down to match the sear. My Norinco is truly looking custom.

As a student of the 1911, I am always looking to make my weapon the safest and most reliable possible. This safety was highly recommended by another 1911 operator and gunsmith who sells some of his products through Brownells. It's well thought out and flawless in operation once adjusted.

I liked this thumb safety a lot. It did take a lot of filing to get a perfect fit, All thumb safeties do. I like it becaus it is comfortable on your thumb for a high grip. Shooting a lot of 45ACP in one sitting and my thumb was not sore like the original that came on the gun I was rebuilding. I like that it stays in the safe position and needs a good press down to take off safe.

Very well made part. You can't go wrong with this safety!

It looks good but it isn't a drop in for any gun that is not used where the hole is loose. This unit is tight. It should have been noted that it is tight and then have an option to get one that works better on newer guns. I have used this on Mil Spec guns only do not know if they work on other custom guns. You know Colt is till the gold standard they are completely mil-spec. I have had problem with other parts like the main spring housing frame pin hole not cut correctly. Parts that have tight pins are harder to fit if you don't want to alter your frame.

Ive used them all... Brown, Kimber, Caspian. This safety is a little more costly than the others but by far you know where you spent your money. Installation was basic,minimal fitting, positive engagement and disengagement. SOLID!
The surfaces are a little on the smaller side but perfect!

both pin & stud requires extensive work to fit properly

This a good quality part for the money. The .002 oversize pin was actually a great fit. The part functions as good as I could want. As with any 1911 thumb safety, fitting was required. This is not a con, just the way it is.

All it takes is a little common sense,120 grit emery cloth,a small file and about ten minutes. It was alot easier than I thought it would be.Flatman

This was to be a drop in part. It would not function in my Springfield 1911 or my Colt 1911.
I compared the original with the Wilson thumb safety under magnification. Then took measurements to compare. After close inspection I filed a few thousand off and then it functioned properly. I gave it 3 stars because the finish was very nice.

this part dropped right in and worked after a tiny amount was ground off the catch and looks good mirror polished.

Requires fitting, but it looks nice once it's in.

Well made part. The pin will need to be turn as this was very tight. I had only 320 grit, so do yourself a favor, get heavier grit, to save time, then polish. I was bored the day I fitted this piece. Used the stock safety to gauge how much material to remove from area that blocks the sear. Remember to have sear under pressure from sear spring for final fitting of contact edge.

Nice looking part, design is great....but. Pin on mine was extraordinarily, hugely, enormously, gigantically......well, you get my drift. TOO BIG! Don't get me wrong, I'm a big Wilson fan and have never had an issue with any of their guns or parts save for this one. This was a part for a custom gun built by a nationally very well known gun smith. He couldn't use it, told me that in his opinion, he's seeing more and more Wilson thumb safeties come this way. Replaced it with another from the Big-3, no further issues, end of story. Doesn't sour me on WC, but somebody up there needs to keep their eye on the ball and not take things for granted. Per the gunny, "What's Bill doing up there?".

Installed on my government model Colt, nice polished blue finish. Thumb pad is very large but gives you plenty material to recontour.

I use this part on many installs. It works just fine on series 70 and 80 models.

It, as all thumb safeties for the 1911, does require fitting. I am sure they covered that in the Colt armorer class? Thanks for the laugh!

This part definitely requires fitting for Remington 1911R1 I'm no gunsmith but I made pretty quick work of it. Once the fitting is out of the way it works well and looks good. Much better to work with than the STI piece I bought first.

Easy to fit to the 1911.

I should have read the reviews on the other listings. I never bought a bad part with the Wilson name on it until now. Too much work to fit the rough casting .I definitely would not recommend this part.

looks great finish is nice requires a fair amount for fitting put on my springfield 1911a1

I have never recieved a bad product that came from Wilson Combat till now. If i had read the reviews before i bought it (NOTE TO SELF and EVERYONE ELSE... READ THE REVIEWS!!!)the pin on the safety was bent and i finally got it straigt enough... not completely... but enough to go in and was able tho fit the rest after 2-3hrs... Then when i installed the beavertail it would hang in the unlocked position. I ended up taking a drill bit... that was a tight fit in the beavertail... using the chuck end and lapped the pin hole and got it to fuction. I did like it afterwards but for the money and veins busting in my head... not worth it,and if you are wondering i installed this on a Rock Island tactical.

TRY THE BULLET PROOF MODEL FROM WILSON... OR THE ED BROWN YOU MIGHT HAVE BETTER LUCK... BUT NOT THIS ONE!!

I needed to replace my thumb safety on a Sig 1911 that has the nitron finish. The Wilson Combat safety with the matte blue finish matched the nitron finish perfectly; you'd think it came from the factory with that safety. The safety is just wide enough to make it easy to activate, but narrow enough to stay out of the way. The extended lever has a nice curve to it (it doesn't have the "bend" in the middle of the extension like so many other safeties). The saftey is very nicely finished, with no burrs or seams. Of course, like most 1911 safeties, I had to hand fit it to the gun. There are no instructions included, so you have to find instructions elsewhere. [...] I'm very satisfied.

This is the first Wilson Combat piece I've ever been truly disappointed by.

First the pin which holds this in place (through the grip safety) was massively out of round and very oversized at the tip. This required hand polishing that took the better part of two hours to get this to fit the frame.

Then, I noticed it was poorly cast, with a metal seam running through the channel that the thumb lever and sear block meet... required a bunch of work with jewelers files to remove the metal seam and make the piece round enough to function in the frame.

I've used these before and had no issues getting them fit. I've only ever had to do minor fitting to get the sear engagement correct.
This particular one has no finish left anywhere on the "invisible" portions... it's nicely blued on the exterior, but the entire working surface inside required extensive work.

Almost enough to turn me off on Wilsons thumb safetys... I'll probably try a different brand next build.

Used in a "scratch build" of an (iffy?) Essex frame Government Model. Part is very square and pin size fit very well. Safety cam was over-sized and requires extensive fitting/reshaping. Once fit, looks and functions flawlessly with zero movement in trigger/sear.

Be prepared to fit this on your 1911, have a small fine file handy, it's easy to do. Plenty of info on google if you search for safety lever fitting.

This will not drop in and function without fitting (as with any 1911 safety).

dimensionally correct pin.

I bought this for my Colt Commander series 80.
I am a qualified gunsmith and this is a wonderful product from good ol Wilson. I will say that anytime your going to replace anything on a 1911 ishould always be fit. Drop in parts leave to much room for error, and a chance to fail a safety. I definatly recomend this product. I will recomend though if your not qualifed to fit this part, than have a Smith do it for you. Safety first people :)

I bought this product to install on a Colt Gold Cup Trophy MKIV/Series 80 model. Although I am a Colt factory trained armorer I was hoping this would be a drop in part. To my disappointment it was not. I suspect it could work with some minor fitting, but I don't like having to file if I can find a true drop in replacement. In my opinion there is too much room for error in doing so. I returned this item and am still on the hunt for a true drop in. I checked I would not recommend this to a friend, but to be specific, I would not recommend it for a Colt Series 80 pistol. It may work fine for other guns.