picked up a S&W SW9VE today

metaldonnieg · 04-16-2007, 03:27 PM

I finally decided on a full sized auto in 9mm for my concealed carry. From the get-go I wanted to carry one of these and after a couple of months of thinking I decided that as many people as there are out there hiding full sized autos surely I could as well, even with my wimpy frame.

Anyway, I read a lot of reviews on this gun and had almost ruled it out because I found a lot of people saying they had several different problems with it (particularly the stiff trigger, which I actually don't mind so much) but I did a little more research and found that these problems were pretty much wiped out with a small redesign of sorts. I went to several different shops today, looked at and held all the others I was thinking of buying, then made my final decision.

I was also proud of my decision on where to purchase it. I went to what's called the "Army-Navy Store" in the town where my college is and those guys are always super helpful so I decided that I'd consider them for my next firearms purchase and I'm glad I did. It wasn't the cheapest place to purchase this gun but I didn't like the vibe inside the place where it was the cheapest. Also, it may not seem like much but the owner looked me in the eye and shook my hand after I paid him and told me to be sure and let him know how it performs for me. Something about that seemed extremely respectable. (I supposed it bears mentioning that what got me interested in this pistol in the first place was one of the younger guys at the shop carries it for his CCW and he had some good things to say about it.)

Now to start a holster search...

rybohunter · 04-16-2007, 08:02 PM

Good luck, hope they make them better than they used to. That's the only gun I've ever sold.

Retaks · 04-17-2007, 01:53 AM

I had one and it was great. I have the 40 S&W model though. The trigger was stiff but it was ok for shooting. I would get another one but im just running out of room for pistols and i have my eye on a Para Ordnance.

metaldonnieg · 04-17-2007, 08:48 PM

Took it out and shot it today. I had to just hit up the pasture in between stops because I didn't have time for the range but it at least went pop. That's good to know. The accuracy test should come this weekend.

I did notice that sometimes when I pull the slide back to load a cartridge I have to bump it a little to finish pulling the cart on in there. I'm not going to cry over this just yet as I am, after all, shooting free ammunition the guy gave me as a "here ya go buddy" when I bought the thing so it's probably the lowest quality on the face of the earth.

davs2601 · 04-18-2007, 06:24 PM

Look at the blackhawk line of holsters. They are very nice, but im not sure about what they have for concealed holsters....just an idea

okchunter · 04-20-2007, 07:37 AM

I have one of these and so far after several hundred rounds have had no issues with it at all. Never had the slide issue you mentioned either. The trigger did losen a touch over time.

On holsters well the Blackhawk line does not come in any model for the SW9VE. Infact I haven't found a good holster yet for it. I know Fobus makes some and a few others but haven't found any that I truely like compared to the Blackhawks.

TROPHYHUNTER25 · 04-20-2007, 07:44 AM

congrats on the new gun

Retaks · 04-20-2007, 07:55 AM

I could be wrong but when i got my holster for it it was the same as a Glock 17? I knwo its the same size and all as a Glock but i dont remember the exact model. I think it was a 17 though.

metaldonnieg · 04-22-2007, 11:09 AM

Took it out to the range yesterday and it lived up to my expectations. Obviously I won't be sniping with this thing but with the exception of a few straysI was having no trouble at all hitting one of those 3" Shoot-N-C circle stick on targets from 5 yards with fairly rapid shooting then was still pleased once I started shooting one of those steel spinners with a 6" circle at 15 yards. I was still shooting that same ol' cheap ammo the guy gave me, though. I did pick up a 100 round box of Winchester at Walmart last night to try out and once I decide on the ammo I want to carry in it I'll run a box (or maybe more) of it through there and get a real test.

It's not anywhere close to the accuracy of my Buckmark 22 (with which I can hit the 4" steel spinner every single shot at 20 yds) but I didn't expect it to be. It's a close range defense pistol, not a target/hunting rig.

I do wonder if I was flinching some, though. My strays were typically high and right, the same type of grouping I get when I start flinching with my rifle. I suppose it is quite likely as that's the first time I'd ever shot a centerfire pistol more than 2 or 3 times and was actually trying to hit something.

wolverine350 · 04-24-2007, 08:04 PM

excellent gun for the price my 40 shot better than the 9, and smith and wesson has the lifetime gaurantee