S&W autos
- Thread starter RandyV
- Start date
yes
I have seen LOTS of rounds go through the 3rd generation guns, own three. Yes, very reliable. I think the less than stellar reliability and crummy triggers of some earlier guns (owned 2, had no problems with the 459 or 469 however) still haunts them. Plus, no "cool factor," like with a 1911, BHP, or *lock.
I have seen LOTS of rounds go through the 3rd generation guns, own three. Yes, very reliable. I think the less than stellar reliability and crummy triggers of some earlier guns (owned 2, had no problems with the 459 or 469 however) still haunts them. Plus, no "cool factor," like with a 1911, BHP, or *lock.
dick w. holliday
New member
Can't really comment on the new guns but the older guns like mod 39 and similar guns were as reliable as anybodies gun---i would bet my ass that they would shoot every time....However accuracy was something else--not very accurate......When my daughter wanted a house gun i got her a mod 39.....Dick
I did not like the ones I owned because I could not seem to shoot them well. This was a 659, a 6946, and a 5906. Obviously, all 9mms. The 659 jammed quite a bit. The other two were reliable but not real accurate, at least in my hands. Triggers were pretty mediocre. Swore S&Ws off for quite some time.
Recently bought a NIB 1076 and liked it so much I have a 1006 and a 4576 on the way from Gunbroker. Hope to have them by the end of the week. I'll be shooting the 1076 at IDPA tomorrow. Cool pistol chambered for a great round. I did have to change the grips to make it comfortable to me and disabled the mag safety but other than that, it is stock.
Recently bought a NIB 1076 and liked it so much I have a 1006 and a 4576 on the way from Gunbroker. Hope to have them by the end of the week. I'll be shooting the 1076 at IDPA tomorrow. Cool pistol chambered for a great round. I did have to change the grips to make it comfortable to me and disabled the mag safety but other than that, it is stock.
I have only one - a 4006. It is very reliable and not fussy about ammo. However, I have to replace the grit in the trigger assembly every 6 months or it doesn't feel right. One of the worst trigger feels IMX. It has complex trigger, disconnector and mag safety assemblies. It has too much doodadiness going for it. (Look that one up in your Funk 'n Wagnalls.) Compared to the likes of a SIG, it is way over engineered and you get nothing substantial in return.
I have a 457. This is the basic .45 with aluminum frame. I got it shortly before S&W decided to sell out. It has been very reliable. Not one jam. There is some wear on the slide rails I am not thrilled about but it hasn't made the gun any less reliable. Since I bought it, it has gone up $120 "on sale" at some large gun shops. It's no BHP but for what I got it for, it works fine.
I carried a 5906 9mm 40 hours a week for 4 years straight. Before I started carrying it I received 40 hours instruction in it where I fired 1000 rounds through it in 5 days. I deliberately neglected cleaning it or the mags at all whatsoever during this period as a "torture test". Guess what...absolutely ZERO malfunctions. I had no trouble putting bullets through the same hole at 0 to 10 yards and fist size groups at 15 to 20 yards and paper plate size groups at 25 to 30 yards. During the period I carried the gun I had no parts breakages. Is it reliable...YES! Is it durable...YES! Is it combat accurate...YES! Is it a good choice as a self defense gun...YES! Would it be my first choice...Probably not, as i do not care for the 9mm as much as the .45 and I despise magazine disconnect safeties (which are easily removed). I generally prefer Glocks and Sigs to the S&W. However, during my 40 hour instruction I mentioned above, there were S&W, Ruger, Glock, and Sig pistols present. The S&W and Rugers had almost no problems. The Sigs had some. The Glocks had major problems...especially from a lady with a Glock 23. She had literally dozens of malfunctions and a parts breakage (front sight flew off). Would I buy a Sigma...absolutely not!!!
Back in the Pliestocene epoch, a 659 was my primary CCW gun. Bullets were made out of rocks, and came in only two types: Silvertip and FMJ. The 659 fed them both reliably. It weighed a metric ton, but it was all stainless steel (ooh!), and it held a buttload of bullets (ahh!). It had horrible amounts of slack in the SA trigger, but I was too young to be bothered by it. Sometime after my third hernia repair from toting it, the FBI informed us that 9mm bullets had bounced off Platt & Matix, and if you didn't have a .40, you weren't squat; so I traded my 659 for a Ruger KP-91DAO.
Sometime later, I also had a 4006 with extended mag, flashlight, and laser for a house gun; just like in all the gun rags! It worked okay, but I seem to recall there were one or two bullet weight/shapes it wasn't real fond of.
The best *&* auto I've owned or shot was my 3913LS. You'd think these things came from the performance center, or were hand made by gnomes in a German forest to *&*'s specifications. Nice gun.
Sometime later, I also had a 4006 with extended mag, flashlight, and laser for a house gun; just like in all the gun rags! It worked okay, but I seem to recall there were one or two bullet weight/shapes it wasn't real fond of.
The best *&* auto I've owned or shot was my 3913LS. You'd think these things came from the performance center, or were hand made by gnomes in a German forest to *&*'s specifications. Nice gun.
Abominable No-Man
New member
Arub-
I've had two Sigmas, one original, one enhanced (still have the
enhanced), but I've never had trouble with them. The enhanced
version is better, but they both fed everything I put in them, and
they were at least combat accurate. I guess it's the same with
every other pistol; some swear by them, and some swear at
them.
ANM
I've had two Sigmas, one original, one enhanced (still have the
enhanced), but I've never had trouble with them. The enhanced
version is better, but they both fed everything I put in them, and
they were at least combat accurate. I guess it's the same with
every other pistol; some swear by them, and some swear at
them.
ANM
Mike Irwin
Staff
My biggest problem with S&W semi-autos is:
1. Ergonomics. With the exception of the 3913 and the 645/4506, they're ergonomic nightmares. The controls are in all the wrong places, the grips, especially on the double stack guns don't help, balance is off, etc.
The Chief's Special series of semi-autos ought to be called the Brick Special series. A chunk of 2x4 has better ergonomics.
2. Safety operation. It virtually requires using the second hand to operate it.
3. Trigger. Generally poor triggers, gritty, crunchy, hard, stacking.
4. Accuracy. I've never found S&W semi-autos to be particularly accurate. Passably accurate yes, but for the supposed amount of engineering/manufacturing that goes into these guns, I feel they should be more accurate. There are exceptions, both ways.
My former brother in law's 645 was a tack driver. I think it could have competed with a tricked out Colt 1911.
A friend's 910 had trouble cutting a 7" group at 10 yards. I thought it was just him, so I fired it off the bench. Very, very bad. A trip back to S&W didn't solve the problem. He ended up trading it towards a Sig.
5. Reliability. I've never found S&W semi-autos to be as reliable as I believe they should be, given the high price.
5. Value for the money. Given the sum total of the above mentioned points, none of which in and of itself is a true killer, the guns just aren't a very good value for the prices that are asked for them.
There are other guns -- Rugers and CZs that spring to mind -- that offer far greater value, and improve on some of the above points.
1. Ergonomics. With the exception of the 3913 and the 645/4506, they're ergonomic nightmares. The controls are in all the wrong places, the grips, especially on the double stack guns don't help, balance is off, etc.
The Chief's Special series of semi-autos ought to be called the Brick Special series. A chunk of 2x4 has better ergonomics.
2. Safety operation. It virtually requires using the second hand to operate it.
3. Trigger. Generally poor triggers, gritty, crunchy, hard, stacking.
4. Accuracy. I've never found S&W semi-autos to be particularly accurate. Passably accurate yes, but for the supposed amount of engineering/manufacturing that goes into these guns, I feel they should be more accurate. There are exceptions, both ways.
My former brother in law's 645 was a tack driver. I think it could have competed with a tricked out Colt 1911.
A friend's 910 had trouble cutting a 7" group at 10 yards. I thought it was just him, so I fired it off the bench. Very, very bad. A trip back to S&W didn't solve the problem. He ended up trading it towards a Sig.
5. Reliability. I've never found S&W semi-autos to be as reliable as I believe they should be, given the high price.
5. Value for the money. Given the sum total of the above mentioned points, none of which in and of itself is a true killer, the guns just aren't a very good value for the prices that are asked for them.
There are other guns -- Rugers and CZs that spring to mind -- that offer far greater value, and improve on some of the above points.
My previous experience with Smith & Wesson auto's
consisted of 2X-39-2's, and a 459. All of these guns
were fully functional and very reliable. I never had a
desire to own a S&W Sigma series handgun, always
opting for the Glock's instead.
Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, Life Member N.R.A.
consisted of 2X-39-2's, and a 459. All of these guns
were fully functional and very reliable. I never had a
desire to own a S&W Sigma series handgun, always
opting for the Glock's instead.
Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, Life Member N.R.A.
You don't get what you pay for. Check out the price for a S&W and then compare its price to that of another manufacturer with a comparable offering. Nothing Smith & Wesson is producing in an automatic can't be had for the same or even a lower price from someone else. And this is coming from a former Smith & Wesson owner and fan.
Had a 1st generation aluminum alloy frame Model 59 that was a charmer. Reliable, accurate and went through more rounds than it was ever intended to survive and more than any 9mm I've owned since. It finally began to act quirky of feeding, so I gave it to a friend who had it worked over. Don't remember what he said the problem was, but it was relatively minor. Although a lot of people claim they had problems with their 1st generation Smith & Wesson autos, it was positively not the case with mine.
Never managed to obtain a 2nd generation version.
Got a 3rd generation 5906 that had been lightly used. Gorgeous, reliable, all stainless steel. It couldn't pattern with any ammunition put through it (and I tried everything). Best it could manage was. IIRC, 5-6" at 35' with the best ammunition. I hated selling that looker after wanting one for so long, but it did not meet my minimal standards for accuracy in a carry piece.
I don't see any Smith & Wesson autos that interest me today outside from the 3913. The fact that I will not purchase any handguns from them until they renounce the agreement assures they will get to keep the one they built for me, perhaps selling it to some HCI bootlicker type.
Doesn't matter much anymore what Smith & Wesson does. I've moved on to Sig-Sauer's and a P239 will positively fill any void that might have been occupied by the 3913. The P226's I own positively overflow the void, especially in the accuracy department, left by the 5906. Only thing I miss are those plentiful and relatively inexpensive standard capacity magazines.
I'll quit before I turn this into something best placed on the political forums.
Had a 1st generation aluminum alloy frame Model 59 that was a charmer. Reliable, accurate and went through more rounds than it was ever intended to survive and more than any 9mm I've owned since. It finally began to act quirky of feeding, so I gave it to a friend who had it worked over. Don't remember what he said the problem was, but it was relatively minor. Although a lot of people claim they had problems with their 1st generation Smith & Wesson autos, it was positively not the case with mine.
Never managed to obtain a 2nd generation version.
Got a 3rd generation 5906 that had been lightly used. Gorgeous, reliable, all stainless steel. It couldn't pattern with any ammunition put through it (and I tried everything). Best it could manage was. IIRC, 5-6" at 35' with the best ammunition. I hated selling that looker after wanting one for so long, but it did not meet my minimal standards for accuracy in a carry piece.
I don't see any Smith & Wesson autos that interest me today outside from the 3913. The fact that I will not purchase any handguns from them until they renounce the agreement assures they will get to keep the one they built for me, perhaps selling it to some HCI bootlicker type.
Doesn't matter much anymore what Smith & Wesson does. I've moved on to Sig-Sauer's and a P239 will positively fill any void that might have been occupied by the 3913. The P226's I own positively overflow the void, especially in the accuracy department, left by the 5906. Only thing I miss are those plentiful and relatively inexpensive standard capacity magazines.
I'll quit before I turn this into something best placed on the political forums.
I bought a 5906 from my father-in-law about five years ago. I've never really warmed up to the thing. IMHO, it pales when compared to my Sig 226 or Glock 19. It's heavy and just doesn't feel great to me. I really don't like the safety setup either.
On the good side of the fence, this gun will eat every bit of ammo I feed it. Funky reloads that I'd never stuff through my other 9's are happily banged through the 5906. It's as accurate as I allow it to be (no blaming the gun from me...). It makes the travelling team to the range every now and then. It's just not my first choice.
On the good side of the fence, this gun will eat every bit of ammo I feed it. Funky reloads that I'd never stuff through my other 9's are happily banged through the 5906. It's as accurate as I allow it to be (no blaming the gun from me...). It makes the travelling team to the range every now and then. It's just not my first choice.
questionable at best
I often heard smith autos referred to as jammomatics. They are far from as reliable as they should be, and with products like glock on the market, who would want one. Smith sigma's, don't even get me started on those, I have seen a ton of those come back for warranty work.
I often heard smith autos referred to as jammomatics. They are far from as reliable as they should be, and with products like glock on the market, who would want one. Smith sigma's, don't even get me started on those, I have seen a ton of those come back for warranty work.
I've owned three Smith autos, and liked them all a great deal. I've carried a 4013TSW for three years, it's been perfectly reliable. In fact it's been more reliable than my Sig P225 (took a few hundred rounds to break-in the Sig, and the Smith was reliable right out of the box). I've heard the rap about Smith autos not being accurate, but I haven't had that problem with any of mine (although my model 410 was junk with certain ammo).