Please give me your unbiased views

B

bobby_lori

New member
Okay, I am not wanting to start the Polictics war again. I am asking for your views on which gun you would pick for duty use. I have purchased a S&W 4003 TSW and a S&W SW-99, both in .40. This gun will be used on and off duty. It will be used on duty as regular patrol, some bike patrol and used in tactical training. Due to an injury, I am not able to get out right now and test the guns. Of course the SW-99 holds 2 more rds than the 4003 TSW. I have a M-5 light that fits both.

Please I am looking for honest views, not politics. I have already purchased both and I am not looking for "should have purchased the Walther." I would like reasonable views not "the NJ State Police, blah,blah, blah." If you have experience with either, that would be great. For those on you who are not familiar with the 4003, It is a 4006 with an alloy frame which curbs about 8 ounces off the weight of the gun.

I really appreciate all that answer. I have enclosed a pic of both so you will know what they look like.
 

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They're both competent guns. The SW-99 is arguably more ergonomic than the 4003 -- the adjustable grips are nice.

They're not exciting guns. Not much to say about them except that they'll probably do what you need them to do. (Unlike some, I like the SW-99 better than its twin the Walther...)

I suspect you'll find the SW-99 easier to shoot well, but its probably a fundamentally less accurate gun than the 4003. (But that's only when you shoot from a rest. In the real world, I think the 99 will do better.)

(My son, a cop, is forced to carry the 4043 as his duty gun; horrible trigger. He shoots almost any other gun better...)
 
OK, you want an unbiased opinion based on the merits of only the two firearms involved...

In my opinion, you should have bought something else. I don't like EITHER option.

There's a big thread on S&W semi-autos, where I lay out all of my problems with S&W's semi-autos, exclusive of all of the ancilliary political problems.

But, since you've got them, take them to the range and run them BOTH hard as hell.

Whichever one works better for your, ergonomically and reliability wise, should be your choice.
 
Here are my comments from the other thread...

"I've NEVER been crazy about them.

I think they're ergonomically challenged, I don't like the safety location or operation, I think they are generally WAY overpriced, and
they just don't have the same kind of esthetic appeal to me that the revolvers do. I also think that given the price and the stature of
the company that they can be a little too unreliable.

The exceptions to the above, for me, are the 3913 and the full-size .45. They're still way too expensive, but those two guns for some
reason work for me where as the others in the S&W semi-auto line-up don't."
 
As Mike said. Run em hard. Odd positions, other handed, sideways like shooting from under a car. etc etc

Accept no failures to feed or fire. If either or both pass, good; pick the one that feels good.

Sam
 
rep and record

I don't think that the 99 has the proven record of the more conventional Smiths. That would be the big factor for me. Plus, I think the 99 has the weirdest control system ever invented.
But thats just my opinion.
 
Of the two options I would choose the 4003TSW. I have fired examples of both models and liked the TSW trigger better than the SW99. (The SW99 trigger is also the reason I bought a Walther P99.)
 
Of the 2 options, I would select the 4003 initially. Once you get the opportunity to put as many rounds as possible through each, then decide which one works best & most reliably for you.
S&W autos are funny, they either fit you and you like it, or they don't fit you and you hate it. There usually is nothing in between.
 
Dont know if its unbiased or not, but here is my opinion. You spent alot of extra money for the word "tactical" and some black parts. Not that I would'nt think about buying one if it wasnt for the S&W sell-out. I know you dont want to hear it, but I think the Walther P99 is head and shoulders above the SW99. I dont think either of the guns you chose would let you down and both will proble serve you admirably for many years. BUT, I do think you could have made far better choises (both in quality and politics) without spending any more money than you did.
When it comes to personal preference in weapons and caliber, that a subjective personal desision. When it comes to supporting from gun maker that dosnt trust us with their product and dosnt want private citizens to own guns, it affects us all. I would advise desiding the on-duty/off-duty assignments untill after you can test both guns.


This thing is scary, please take a moment to read it Mr. Joshua. just becasue you choose to ignore it dosnt mean it isnt there.
http://www.hud.gov/library/bookshelf18/pressrel/gunagree.html

Hope you recover soon, and thank you for your service,
Jason
 
I have an issue with the 4003, since the frame is alloy and the slide is stainless. As long as the number of rounds that you actually fire through the gun is low lets say fewer than 20000 for the life of the gun you will be OK. More than that and you are simply asking for problems with a catastrophic failure of the frame due to slide cutting into the rails.

Those are at least my 2 cents.
 
I would take the 99. I am a polymer fan and it felt much better to shoot than any of the traditional smith autos that I have fired.
I prefer the ergonomics of the 99.
Whichever you choose, get a good security holster for it.
Good luck and be safe. :D
 
Please give me your unbiased views
Click to expand...

Sorry...no such animal...it is an oxymoron!!!

Especially here...a bunch of biased, opinionated son of a guns...not that that is a bad thing necessarily.

As for my biased opinion...I don't care for the .40 S&W cartridge, so I could choose neither. I don't care for S&W polymers or alloys so I could choose neither. I did carry a 5906 daily for about 4 years with no complaints...stainless steel frame model though.
 
Modifiedbrowning...

"Mr Joshua, that albino SOB!" Not sure if that quote is correct, but I like the handle. Gary Busey is the man.
Click to expand...

Actually, I believe he called him an "albino jackrabbit SOB"

And then he said "I never forget an a$$hole"
 
For what it's worth:
I had a S&W M915 (9mm), some years ago. It never let me down, it was accurate and after several thousand rounds there was no noticeable wear. I trained to the point were I could draw and put two shots in an 8" circle at 25 yards in 3 seconds.
I like it!
 
ryucasta,

Use a 4003TSW for carry / competition. Got about 45000 rounds through it. It is still going as strong as ever. So I don't know where you have this "catastrophic failure of the frame due to slide cutting into the rails" from.....
 
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