Garand Thumb drop-tests carry pistols, and tuned triggers fare worst

Garand Thumb put a stack of popular carry and duty pistols through chest-height drop tests using dummy rounds with live primers, hitting each gun muzzle-down, butt-down and at odd angles to see which would fire on impact. The results pushed back on some internet lore and confirmed some of it.

Key points

• 2011-style pistols struggled most: A Staccato and a Cajun Gun Works-tuned CZ both fired on drops, and the video suggests competition-light triggers made them more vulnerable.
• 1911 and Hi-Power held up: Several drops knocked the hammer to half-cock instead of letting it reach the firing pin, which the video credits with preventing a discharge.
• SIG passed: The P320, M17, P365 and P226 all came through, and despite the P320's reputation online, the video reports no primer dimpling on the test sample.
• Glocks tested clean: A worn Gen 3, a Gen 5 with an Acro, a tuned build and a PSA Dagger clone all passed without firing.
• Walther passed too: The PDP survived multiple hard drops with an aftermarket trigger installed.

Quick take

Garand Thumb calls this a small, informal sample rather than a lab study. The pattern is still worth noting: stock service pistols came through fine, and lightened or heavily modified competition triggers were the common thread in the guns that failed.

Watch the full video: Garand Thumb