Acquired a nice 6906

[cnette01]

Hello all,

I found this beauty online at a shop up near Detroit. I asked the shop owner about it and he told me he took it in on trade last year and it had been sitting on display since. I made him a reasonable (to me) offer and he promptly refused, and started telling me how hot the market was. So I asked him what he was willing to take, after reminding him that the hot market seems to favor plastic fantastic pistols these days. He wasn't sure if he had the box/docs or not, so he wanted some time to check and figure out his price. It took a few days and a couple of more calls, but we came to a reasonable compromise on the price. Just the 6906 and 2 mags, but it's in really nice shape. I picked it up today from my local FFL.

He has a few more 3rd gens listed on his web site, but I thought he was overpriced on those.

Here's the required pics:

 

[Bullzaye]

Very nice...a great acquisition. I wish I could find one at a "reasonable" price! Enjoy!

 

[ISCS Yoda]

Dare I ask the price?

 

[Redcoat3340]

Great little gun. It was my carry 9 until I turned up a Chief's Special 9mm that I had some nice work done on by a member here. Mine was a police surplus from Ohio, I belive Loraine County. I paid $300 for it from an Ohio dealer....and then went to confession for stealing it.

You'll like that gun.

 

[cnette01]

Dare I ask the price?

I paid $425 shipped plus local transfer/background check fee $35. For the nice condition this one is in, I thought it was a fair deal.

 

[kraynky]

You didn't get hurt any considering the prices folks are asking these days, and that one does not appear to be an abuser LEO pistol. Some of the lower priced ones only come with one or NO mags, and have electric pencil marks that look awful. I think I gave $475 for mine here on the forum and I got a really nice clean one with 3 mags.

It's my main go to IWB carry piece these days. I really like that you can use the longer (higher capacity) mags from a 5906 too. Congratulations!

 

[Jeppo]

This unusual example caught my eye at a gun show.

 

[PeteC]

...I really like that you can use the longer (higher capacity) mags from a 5906 too...

I was happy to find out about that here, not to mention that I bought a couple of the longer magazines, and adapters from forum members.

I bought my 6906 a few weeks ago too, and also online, for a decent price, and only with one magazine.

http://smith-wessonforum.com/140796816-post20.html

Then I panicked a bit when I realized there were not that many used magazines easily (or cheaply) available. In the end I did find a few for a reasonable price, both online, from a local source, and a member here.

For anyone else, the magazine with the black follower is the original 6906 12rd, the two magazines with the orange follower are the 15rd 5906 magazines (all bought used), the one on the right has the adapter installed. The plastic bag is the adapter

 

[cnette01]

I'm one of those obsessed 3rd gen guys that will buy magazines for guns that I don't own yet but intend to buy, so I'm in good shape on 6906 magazines. I found a site last year that had some on clearance so naturally I bought him out! He only had like 6 or so left so it wasn't that many, but enough for me to be well supplied now.

 

[PeteC]

NOW I know where the extra mags are going!!!

I don't think it ever occurred to me to buy magazines for guns I don't own, but I did get a couple from someone local who had some left over - because the person who bought the gun they were for did not want to pay him for the extra mags,

My average cost on the 6906 mags was around $30, including shipping for the ones I bought online. I looked today and someone on GB is selling them for $55 each, plus shipping. At that price mine would be worth more than I paid for the gun (shaking head).

You can still buy the MecGar 15 rd mags for about $23 from Greg Cote LLC, new, the adapter from the gentleman selling them in this forum, and come out ahead. Plus he also told me they sell the Wolff springs for the gun.

This is the exact reason why I passed on a nice single stack 2nd gen gun a few months ago - the cost of magazines!

 

[ISCS Yoda]

Dare I ask the price?

I paid $425 shipped plus local transfer/background check fee $35. For the nice condition this one is in, I thought it was a fair deal.

Sounds fair to me!!!

It's much cleaner looking than my 6906.

FYI, I bought extra, new in the package, S&W magazines for my 6906 (it was a few years ago). They didn't function well. S&W
replaced them for me; excellent customer service I thought!

 

[PeteC]

The way people price and describe these guns just eludes me.

I've seen S&W .38 revolvers described as "good" when they were covered in rust spots, and I was happly with what I got at the time.

About a month ago I paid $358 on GB for a 6906 that not many people bid on (plus shipping and FFL fee). It was done out of sheer deadly Corona Virus boredom on my part. I expected something one step up from a beater to have fun with at the range this summer, and not worry about scratches or dings. Like a winter car that's in good mechanical shape and not very esthetically pleasing.

(Another member here saw the same gun, so not like it was hidden under a bad description)

I called and spoke to the seller, and the gun was conservatively described to me as being in "good but not very good" condition, needs some cleaning, has a clean bore, etc. I did spend an excessive amount of time prying off a clip glued to the side with some kind of double-sided 3M gorilla tape (my first post here was about that). The rest of the cleaning was just wiping it down with an alcohol rag, not even gun cleaner, and then some gun oil. The result is below. The first 5 mags of 124 and 115 grain range ammo ran perfectly through the gun (comparing deliberate and off-hand shots, it is more accurate than the operator).

There are a few tiny scuffs you can't see in a pic taken with my cell phone, and the slide shows a bit of carbon from the previous owner, and there was some dirt inside I can't really describe, probably from sitting in a drawer.

So, if that is "good not very good", then the 3rd gen crowd must be extremely picky, and I should just take my other "good" used firearms to recycling right now so nobody can see them, LOL.

(Still looking for that 3rd gen summer beater)

Cheers

 

[cnette01]

I saw that one PeteC, but elected to pass on bidding due to the clip. I'm glad it worked out for you, your 6906 looks really nice!

 

[jmace57]

I bought one of these a couple of years ago in an auction. I really didn't expect to like it, but finally got around to shooting it a few months ago. I liked it so much that I plan to transition it to my every day carry.

Here is mine, with a magazine adapter I bought the other day that lets you run 5900 series mags through it...

 

[PeteC]

@Cnette01, T/y. For whatever reason, I don't think the 6906 guns saw as much daily use and carry as the 5906 or other 3rd gen pistols. Maybe the owners could not find extra mags even then...

 

[lhump1961]

You didn't get hurt any considering the prices folks are asking these days, and that one does not appear to be an abuser LEO pistol. Some of the lower priced ones only come with one or NO mags, and have electric pencil marks that look awful. I think I gave $475 for mine here on the forum and I got a really nice clean one with 3 mags.

It's my main go to IWB carry piece these days. I really like that you can use the longer (higher capacity) mags from a 5906 too. Congratulations!

The comment on LEO pistol caught my attention. While I'm sure there are abused LEO guns (as well as abused civilian guns) I have had very good experiences buying surplus LEO stuff. A lot of them sat in the armory their whole life and were carried little and shot less. You always have to be paying attention buying 30yr old used guns but don't shy away from LEO 3rd gens. I have a couple in excellent condition.

Here is a 4053 and a 3913 (middle of the three).

 

[PeteC]

I was surprised by how much I enjoy shooting the 6906 (once I finally made it out of lockdown and to a range). My pinkie barely fits on the mag extension/tab/rest, but the grip still feels good and solid, and the gun shoots flat for me.

The adapter on the 15 rd magazine seems to give a little security at the bottom of the palm, but I have not compared the two at the range yet.

 

[Tom-R2]

I totally agree with the posts talking about using the 5906 mags with the adapter. It isn't that much more difficult to conceal and gives you a couple extra rounds. If I carry mine, I will have the original 12 rounder in the pistol, and have the 5906 as a spare. I bought mine new many years ago and it's been one of the best shooters I've had.

 

[Razor]

I had one many moons ago, in fact it’s the reason I registered here. Unfortunately, I foolishly sold it off have to fund something I don’t even remember now. I still have half a dozen mags from it that the buyer didn’t want (I bet he’s regretted not spending the extra $50 I wanted for them). I’ve hung onto them hoping I’ll run into a good deal for a pistol.

 

[cnette01]

I had a different 6906 a few years earlier. I loaned it to a friend who wanted to borrow a 3rd gen and try it out to see how he liked them. He liked it very much but was skittish about buying a gun online, so I sold it to him (he has a carry permit). I ended up finding a 4516-1 in nice shape that I used those funds for. I've been on the lookout for a 6906 ever since and am glad I found a nice one - it's in even better shape than the one I sold off.

I plan to make it to the range Sunday afternoon - can't wait! I ordered a High Noon holster earlier this week and just got the tracking link for shipping today. It's been a good week so far!