S&W SD9VE opinions?

[FergusonTO35]

Anybody ever try an S&W SD9? Been looking at them at work and I really like the super simple design, ergonomics, and trigger pull. Takes M&P sights. The gray frame/black slide looks really nice and is the same price as the regular one. Anybody try boolits in one?

[metricmonkeywrench]

If i remember correctly there are two versions one Pre Glock lawsuit and one Post lawsuit. My son had one of the earlier versions and it worked quite well for what they are. My only issue was the trigger pull which was a bit of a hard pull.

[FergusonTO35]

Thanks. I believe that was the old Sigma series, which the SD is descended from. The pull of the examples at my local shop is sort of a light double action, which is just fine with me.

[rintinglen]

The only SD I've used had a pretty poor trigger. Not super heavy like the old Sigmas had, but gritty and jerky. I only put a mag through it, and it seemed to function all right, my kid's friend who owned it ran a box of cheapy fmj's through it and I had a partial box of Hornady Critical Defense that I shot with no malfunctions. For the money, I thought it was ok. IIRC, He got it for 359 at Cabelas Black Friday. His is black with a Stainless slide.

[Tradbowhunter]

I have one and enjoy shooting it. As stated above the trigger is crunchy but seems to be getting better. I will say that if you are planning on running cast lead through it, do yourself a favor and slug the barrel right from the start. I spent alot of time, cleaning lead out of the barrel before i got it to stop leading. Sized at .355 resulted in not being able to see the riflings after 2 magazines. Worked my way up to .357 and now I can shoot almost all day.

[jimb16]

I had one too and got rid of it. The trigger pull was terrible. Actually it was worse than terrible. I never could get it cleaned up. It convinced me that I never wanted another one.

[MarkP]

I have one in 40 S&W that I bought cheap on GB about 10 yrs ago; I am a S&W revolver guy and the 40 S&W and an Automag III are my only CF autos. As others have said heavy trigger but I am used to shooting revolvers single action. I did not find the trigger pull horrible. I have large hands and it fits my hand well. It shoots cast just fine, never had a jam or misfire. Only shot maybe 200 to 250 rnds thru it. Includes a box of 50 fmj's.

[FergusonTO35]

Thanks. The triggers on the SD's I've examined were no worse than anything else in that price range i.e. Taurus and Ruger. I size everything .38 and 9mm to .358.

[JRD]

If you consider what the SD series of pistols is intended for are have realistic expectations, they are a very good option. The SD is a budget priced polymer frame self defense pistol.
In that role, I think they work just fine. In my opinion they make a great house gun or similar concept. As a striker fired plastic gun, the SD doesn't have trigger like a Colt Gold Cup, but I think it's competitive with anything else in the plastic self defense market.
Complaints about the trigger are best directed to the discontinued Sigma series pistols (which were indeed terribly heavy), but I think the SD has good ergonomics, functions reliably from good magazines, has ample self defense level accuracy, and an acceptable trigger for a polymer pistol.
Just manage your expectations. It's never going to have the crisp trigger of a tuned 1911 or a revolver in single action, nor is a match or competition pistol, but for what it's intended to be- it's solid.
At least that's my opinion.

[pworley1]

The two I have had were both good dependable pistols. They have been replaced by the MP Shield which fit me much better.

[Bigslug]

The Sigma series seemed like a cheesy Glock copy to me, and I was always highly dubious about their need to put a felt cylinder inside the coil of the trigger return spring. Felt? That might get soaked in oil or water? Seriously???

[FergusonTO35]

If you consider what the SD series of pistols is intended for are have realistic expectations, they are a very good option. The SD is a budget priced polymer frame self defense pistol.
In that role, I think they work just fine. In my opinion they make a great house gun or similar concept. As a striker fired plastic gun, the SD doesn't have trigger like a Colt Gold Cup, but I think it's competitive with anything else in the plastic self defense market.
Complaints about the trigger are best directed to the discontinued Sigma series pistols (which were indeed terribly heavy), but I think the SD has good ergonomics, functions reliably from good magazines, has ample self defense level accuracy, and an acceptable trigger for a polymer pistol.
Just manage your expectations. It's never going to have the crisp trigger of a tuned 1911 or a revolver in single action, nor is a match or competition pistol, but for what it's intended to be- it's solid.
At least that's my opinion.

Thanks, that's my opinion of them too. Another thing I like is that parts are cheap and widely available. I actually like the design alot, very simple with little to go wrong. The materials used are the same as other quality guns and I've had good success with my S&W revolvers, so I see no reason why the SD wouldn't also be a good gun.

[trapper9260]

I have one and shoot mainly cast in it, like stated slug your barrel. I shoot up to 147 grs cast in it and once you are use to the gun it is fine. To me each gun has its own personality. I do size my boolits to 357 with this one. I also after a cleaning I run a patch of JPW in it and it works good for the next firing . I size and lube ,I make my own NRA lube with ATF . It works in all I use it in.

[jdgabbard]

I own a SD9VE, and I actually like it quite a bit. I keep it in the nightstand in case of bumps in the night.

Its a reliable firearm at a working-man's price. Which, ironically is what the glock was designed to be - a utilitarian gun, not a top of the line gun. As mentioned before, the triggers leave a little to be desired. It's has some take-up and isn't the most crisp. But it is serviceable for a pistol. I bought mine back in about 2012 for $259+tax from a Uhaul/Custom Motorcycle Shop (weird combo, I know). The sights are as good/slightly better than stock Glock sights. The only annoyance I had with the pistol is it has a plastic insert into the back of the grip that always slid out. Not sure what it was used for, but I epoxied it into the grip (just a few dabs so it could be removed if needed) of the gun so it wouldn't keep sliding out. I shoot it regularly, and it has been one of the best firearm investments I've made.

As for the older Sigmas, yes, this is a derivative of them. You hear horror stories about those older guns from the 90s and early 2000s about as often as you hear their praise. Personally, I've shot a few of the older ones and while cheaper guns they weren't terrible. But the SD9VE does seem a little more refined than those earlier examples.

If you're looking at buying one, I would recommend it if you're getting a decent price on one. If they're asking the same price as a higher quality firearm you might pass. But I've never been disappointed with mine.

[jdgabbard]

I have one and enjoy shooting it. As stated above the trigger is crunchy but seems to be getting better. I will say that if you are planning on running cast lead through it, do yourself a favor and slug the barrel right from the start. I spent alot of time, cleaning lead out of the barrel before i got it to stop leading. Sized at .355 resulted in not being able to see the riflings after 2 magazines. Worked my way up to .357 and now I can shoot almost all day.

This is exactly what I experienced, 0.357" is my goto sizer for the SD9VE.

[FergusonTO35]

I have one and shoot mainly cast in it, like stated slug your barrel. I shoot up to 147 grs cast in it and once you are use to the gun it is fine. To me each gun has its own personality. I do size my boolits to 357 with this one. I also after a cleaning I run a patch of JPW in it and it works good for the next firing . I size and lube ,I make my own NRA lube with ATF . It works in all I use it in.

Thanks, please give me the recipe for that lube.

[FergusonTO35]

I own a SD9VE, and I actually like it quite a bit. I keep it in the nightstand in case of bumps in the night.

Its a reliable firearm at a working-man's price. Which, ironically is what the glock was designed to be - a utilitarian gun, not a top of the line gun. As mentioned before, the triggers leave a little to be desired. It's has some take-up and isn't the most crisp. But it is serviceable for a pistol. I bought mine back in about 2012 for $259+tax from a Uhaul/Custom Motorcycle Shop (weird combo, I know). The sights are as good/slightly better than stock Glock sights. The only annoyance I had with the pistol is it has a plastic insert into the back of the grip that always slid out. Not sure what it was used for, but I epoxied it into the grip (just a few dabs so it could be removed if needed) of the gun so it wouldn't keep sliding out. I shoot it regularly, and it has been one of the best firearm investments I've made.

As for the older Sigmas, yes, this is a derivative of them. You hear horror stories about those older guns from the 90s and early 2000s about as often as you hear their praise. Personally, I've shot a few of the older ones and while cheaper guns they weren't terrible. But the SD9VE does seem a little more refined than those earlier examples.

If you're looking at buying one, I would recommend it if you're getting a decent price on one. If they're asking the same price as a higher quality firearm you might pass. But I've never been disappointed with mine.

Around here they go for mid-300's, about the same as the Ruger Security 9 which I don't think is as good a gun as the SD or even the Taurus G3. I have two Glock 19's, a Glock 26, and Browning Hi-Power. It might seem like a backwards step to add a "lesser" gun when I already have a few good ones, but I like variety. I also have a Taurus G3C as my go-to when I don't want to pack something expensive, and it works really well.

No, it's not odd to buy a gun from a Uhaul/motorcycle place. Alot of totally unrelated businesses have FFL's, I've bought guns from a hair salon and a pet store.

[fixit]

I have one, carried it until I threw out my back. The trigger as I received it was just OK, but there are things that can be done to improve it, just look only. There exists a spring kit, and there is a do it yourself lawyer spring removal that can be done.

[FergusonTO35]

Yeah, I've been reading about that. From what I can tell, the Sigma trigger was so heavy because it had two extra springs that were totally unnecessary for function. Depending on what you read, the two extra springs were supposed to give it a DA revolver type trigger at the request of LE customers and/or were added as part of the Glock settlement. The SD simply doesn't have them, and Apex sells a spring kit and new trigger which improves it further.

As an aside, my gen. 5 Glock 19 is the first Glock I've ever tried where I really like the OEM trigger and don't want to modify it in any way. My two gen. 4's got a thorough Flitz polish and my two 42's required a minus connector and 4.5 pound striker springs.

[MFGordon]

I have owned a Sigma (SW9VE) for about a dozen years now and have fired thousands of rounds through it almost all cast reloads. It has never failed me and shoots about as well as any Glock I ever shot. The trigger is long and heavy and was , I guess, intended to mimic the double action trigger of a revolver. If you shoot double action revolvers a lot there's nothing to complain about. It's a lot a gun for the small amount I paid for it.