Jim's Browning '74C series 9mm

[Snarl]

@"Ninurta" @"Snarl"  .... to pick up where we left off in the shoutbox, you guys were asking about the safety.

Here is the safety (the mag is out) --- being as it looks as tho the safety is OFF
And yes, it looks rusty in this picture

Yeah, that safety is "off" or in "fire" mode. When it's on safe, the little hook fits into the notch on the slide. It looks like it may not be fully in "off" position - the "hook" on the safety looks like it might be impeding rearward movement of the slide, but not fully engaged or full disengaged, either. If it won't move at all, that might need a gunsmith.

You 'could' try applying some penetrating oil and letting it soak in overnight.  As much surface rust as I'm seeing there, it would be the better method at this time.

There's only one gunsmith in my town I'd take a firearm to.  The other 19 fall into the hacker category.  I can usually get by asking someone as knowledgeable as @Ninurta.  And that saves me a lot of $$$.  I inherited a few firearms from my dad's collection when he passed.  A friend of mine dealt with worse rust than I see on yours, but I wasn't there to see how he did it ... and he's not the guy you ask, "Could you show me how to do that?"