Why so many SW40VEs for sale?

[Redcoat3340]

Cruising a S&W pistol search on Gunbroker for pistols currently listed for -$300, my impression is that the SW40VE is only outnumbered by the 22A.

There seems to be a ton of them for sale at what sounds like attractive prices.

I'm wondering why? Police trade-ins? .40 too much to shoot? Something else.

I have tried to limit my calibers to .38 and 9mm (I will be reloading those after the new year and the holiday madness ceases) and now .32 S&W Long (for my wife to learn on) and 7.65 for three Berettas I picked up along the way (will probably dies for those). I've stayed away from .45, 10 mm, and .40 as I've become recoil adverse in my old age, so I'm not planning on getting one; but my curiosity has been piqued.

I am seriously considering a SW9ve if a deal I'm trying to swing on a Swiss K-31 falls through, but I'm wondering about .40's.

thanks in advance.

[MyDads38]

Not to diss on the older S&W Sigma series, but for $300 you can get a brand new SD9VE/SD40VE. The older versions have heavier trigger pulls than the SDVE versions. Otherwise, some of the older versions are more attractive and some even came with night sights.

I have a new SD9VE and really like/enjoy it. And for $300, I think Bud's has police trade in M&P 40's w/3 mags for $299. Lots of choices for your money, IMO.

[retired_diver]

I agree with MyDads above. If you can buy a NIB SD for the same money and have a warranty or buy a sigma without one (warranty is only for original owner) then why buy a sigma? (I own a sigma 9f that I still shoot all the time but also a M&P9) Unless you can find one for a very very low price but always remember really low prices (to me) are a red flag in the used gun market unless you know the seller.

[speedyquad]

i paid less than $300 for my sw40ve, brand new 4 yrs ago. if i were looking in the $300 price range, it would not be for a sw40ve. there is newer and better for that price now.

[Redcoat3340]

Thanks, all. Guess I'll be looking for SD instead of SW....but my original question, "Why so many SW40VE's for sale, so cheaply, compared to all the other Smiths out there?" remains open. Folks just don't like 40 cal?

[M&PGuy2014]

Folks are always trying to upgrade for one reason or the other. Too many folks look at the SW/SD series as budget guns and therfore they can't possibly be as good as say a Glock or other higher priced firearm. IMO, they are as good as any Glock or other make or modle ou there. Mine is my CC workhorse and will be until I replace it with another just like it. It may be a newer version, but my stock SW40VE is a wonderful carry conpanion from day one and will never be sold or traded. Fact is, I wouldnt trade it for a Glock of any make or caliber. Not knocking the Glock at all. I just prefer the Grip and trigger of the S&W to the Glock. YMMV

[speedyquad]

i guess what we are saying is that $300 for an sw40ve is not cheap.

the 40s&w round kind of gets a bad rap. more expensive than 9mm. has a snappier recoil(perceived) compared to 9mm. the idea that it's a higher pressure round that wears out your firearm sooner, blah blah blah. all or some may be true or rumor. it does not matter to me i like the round, and shoot it well.

[ou1954]

Well, I just got back into the game and picked 9mm because I am recoil-adverse, as will be my wife, the instigator for me getting back into the game. I had to shoot a 1911 in College (NROTC) and later, in the Navy, carried one when in port. That was long ago and the thing to do was to stick cotton in your ears. [Still ringing 50+ years later] I would have gone even smaller but she wouldn't go for it.

About noise, I recently checked the rating on our muffs [$20.00] vs. ear plugs [$1.00] and the plugs are higher rated than the muffs!

[Wyatt p. Tato]

I just sold mine. I liked the looks, did not Mind the trigger. But, the mag release was worse than useless. I could not carry it because every holster would drop the mag. The third time I realized I was carrying an unloaded hand gun, it was put away and never carried again. 2 trips back to S&W did not cure the problem.

[copterdrvr]

It is an undeniable fact that the 40 SW is definitely "snappier" than a 9mm. If you shoot a SD9 side by side with a SD40 and say there isn't a noticeable difference in recoil-you are a liar.

If you have become sensitive to recoil I strongly recommend that you do NOT purchase a 40 cal pistol until you have fired it first. I have the same model pistols in both 9 and 40 ( a few, in fact) and the difference in recoil between them is significant.
I like shooting them but I've been doing it for a long time. Having said that I can shoot the 9's all day-not so much the 40's-especially the small ones.

[Smokin9mm]

Maybe everyone figured out what a useless round the 40 s&w is ?

[TTSH]

Originally Posted by Redcoat3340

Thanks, all. Guess I'll be looking for SD instead of SW....but my original question, "Why so many SW40VE's for sale, so cheaply, compared to all the other Smiths out there?" remains open. Folks just don't like 40 cal?

Well, first off, for full-size, "slightly used" S&W pistols in the "under $300" range, it seems only logical that you are going to find mostly Sigmas and SD's. That part is self-evident due to initial cost and used value. If you expanded that search range to "under $500", you would see a lot more M&P's, etc. And let's be honest: For a lot of people, an SW or SD is a first gun and sometimes folks just like to move up!

I think it's also quite understandable that folks looking for a low cost or "starter" pistol would probably tend to be more happy and satisfied with a 9mm than a .40. It's the old "snappy" thang... plus ammo is clearly cheaper in 9mm.

Wouldn't surprise me at all to find out that a lot of folks might start off with an SD40 but want to move up fairly quickly to an M&P9, M&P40 or M&P45. At current (lower) M&P prices, it can make a lot of sense.

[USAF385]

Originally Posted by Smokin9mm

Maybe everyone figured out what a useless round the 40 s&w is ?

Says Smokin9mm......