SwampWolf said:
For self-defense, especially when a auto- pistol is being carried concealed, I much prefer a "classic" da/sa configuration. My second choice would be a sa type. I am no fan of a da only system (why give up the "better" sa trigger pull on subsequent shots in the case of the da/sa action or the first shot on a sa action if you're trained to appreciate it and use it?).
SwampWolf,
There were three reasons in my experience.
1. Safety. The DAO guns that I have seen were almost always police trade ins. I know that some companies had DAO type triggers, but the majority were DAO versions of traditional double action/single guns like my issued BERETTA 96D Brigadier or later, a DAO H&K P-2000. You lost the manual safety and got a longer trigger pull than with a single action gun like the 1911. For government agencies issuing guns to people who would only use them in a panicking, life and death situation, this reduced the possibility of an unintended or accidental discharge.
2. You could never FAIL TO DISENGAGE THE SAFETY when drawing and firing under a high stress situation with a DAO pistol as they do not have a manual safety. This also avoided activating the safety when racking the slide or reholstsering. You also could not holster a still cocked gun. I know, I did this once with my SIG 226 and another SIG 226 user did the same thing, on the same day at qualifications. We were both experienced shooters, but new too the SIG and mistakes can happen.
3. I found that shooting my BERETTA 96D and later a BERETTA 92D, that I shot just as well as with the traditional DA/SA. It may make a difference to IPSC competitors, but to the average or even experienced shooter, it is NO DISADVANTAGE at all, in my experience.
Instead of an 11 or 12 pound trigger pull followed by a shorter, lighter pull, you had a consistent 8 pound pull, every shot.
You are not giving up a better trigger pull, you are giving up switching to a different trigger pull. When we replaced our .357 magnum revolvers, the firearms instructors told us to think of the BERETTA 96D as a 12 revolver. It proved to be just as reliable, easier to shoot accurately and every bit as powerful as the RUGER'S and S&W'S that it replaced.
Many of the people who have gone into law enforcement recently have not had any firearms training or even experience with a gun. They are not recent veterans of a foreign war who had the aim, shoot, check you flanks and all the other stuff that went with being in the military. One of my coworkers studied nursing, another has a science background. This was their first ever time shooting a gun, when they went to the academy.
I write all of this based on my own experience with DAO pistols and from my agency's experience and observing others.
Jim