Experiences with S&W stainless steel .45's

[MackTech]

After reading this thread for the ump-teenth time, I'm breaking out the 4566 for carry in the morn. Makes me wish I still had my 645 I got on my 21st birthday back in 1989. Thanks to all on here who contributed their stories and info!

 

[18DAI]

Thank you nyeti!!

Beautiful 4506-1! Very nice of you to share it with us. Love the hat too! Best regards, 18DAI

 

[kpoesq369]

Like a lot of you, when I graduated from the Academy in 1981, we had 1 choice, a Mdl 10 with 125 gr +P hollowpoints. Carried that(usually with a 60 as a BUG) till we switched to the 5606/6906 in 92 or so. I was a proponent of the 4506 but was informed it was "too much gun". Still have my 10, the 5606 and 6906 as well as a 5903 with Bomars and a trigger job from my PPC days. Used both the 10 and the 5906 for SWAT, K9 and range duties for 28 years before I hung it up.

As soon as I saw one, I purchased a 4506, and like a few of you said it feeds and shoots everything! It ran much better, and shot better than the 1911s I had prior to that, and even the one I traded for it. So does the 4566 that joined it when I got back from the sandbox! About 3 years ago I got a 4516-1 and so far it has been as reliable as it's bigger brothers, running everything from FMJ to HSTs and lead target loads. While I will probably always be a Kframe guy, the 3rd Gens are neck and neck for popularity with me.

 

[18DAI]

BTT. Thought some of the new members and new 4506 owners might enjoy reading this thread.

Special thanks again to nyeti for sharing the above pics of the real deal 4506-1 used by an SIS member. Regards 18DAI

 

[ultane]

Experiences with S&W stainless steel .45's

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[ultane]

Experiences with S&W stainless steel .45's

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[triaxle]

I did pick up a mint 645 with no box some time ago , its been flawless and has a real nice 1st shot D/A pull . I picked up an old but like new Safariland shoulder rig in brown leather for this 645 its also same vintage .

 

[ultane]

I did pick up a mint 645 with no box some time ago , its been flawless and has a real nice 1st shot D/A pull . I picked up an old but like new Safariland shoulder rig in brown leather for this 645 its also same vintage .

Do you know if anyone still makes leather for the 645?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[blasterp7]

Duty carry of 4566 and 4563 - flawless!!!

 

[Dogmann]

This thread is just fantastic. Just the history and the depts using the 3rd gen guns! Thanks SIS!

Did the sis get rid of the glocks for Kimber 1911's?

 

[mscampbell2734]

Wow can not believe how old this thread is and I've never noticed it before.

Away here it goes.

4506. Purchased new shortly after the North Hollywood shootout. An early round trigger guard model.
Totally 100% reliable. I tried the Hogue rubber grips for some time but eventually went to grip tape. To me the stock grip is too narrow but the Hogues, the only authorized nonfactory grip, is way too fat. To the people with machining issues, We had a batch of 4506s come into our Department store, shortly after I got mine and probably a special bulk order, that obviously had been made on overtime on a Saturday. You could easily see waviness in the slides. To Smith's credit they did everything to make those guns run right.

5904. A very early square trigger guard model. This gun never was 100% I bought it shortly after I turned 21 and was processing with the Orange County, CA, Sheriff's Department. They issued revolvers but let guys buy their own auto, Smith, Sig, or Beretta. Right off the bat I had to send it back because the rear sight, the bulky winged adjustable one, was not centered on the slide. Next the mag catch broke and finally I've had to have the extractor replaced 3 times in 9-10K rounds.

3913. Great and easy to carry. I've seen guys shot lights out with them but nine never grouped well. It's a 3 inch at 15 yard gun at best in my hands and I'm a DX. On the plus its always been 100% reliable.

As for the LAPD allowing guys who are issued Glocks to go to a 3rd Gen gun. Yes we do but the guns, especially 4506s, are had to find and expensive when you can find them. Mags are really expensive and holsters are few and far between. While I don't carry mine any more I'll never part with it. I carried it for years when I walked footbeat patrol in Watts and it's got a few stories to tell.

 

[Dogmann]

Are there any reccomended 3rd gen gunsmiths out there???

 

[TTSH]

Are there any reccomended 3rd gen gunsmiths out there???

Yep! The best of the best!

BMCM now open for business

 

[vegasgunhand]

In the late 1980's I became a member of the U.S. Customs Special Response Team in Los Angeles. At the time the U.S. Customs Service allowed for an agent to carry many different personally owned weapons. Since I had been in the Military Police, I was very comfortable with a 1911 pistol. I carried one for about six years before transferring to the Los Angeles area. After my second year on the team, the policy was changed, and we could no longer carry single action autos.

I went to a 645 almost immediately, and it was a great pistol, especially in a tactical role. I carried in a thigh rig, so concealing it was never an issue. I also purchased a 4516-1 as a concealment gun, and it worked just as well as it's larger counterpart. I carried the 645 and 4516-1 until Glock came out with the Glock 21. With it's high capacity, I soon retired the S&W's.

 

[VTHokiesDuckHunter]

Wow can not believe how old this thread is and I've never noticed it before.

Away here it goes.

4506. Purchased new shortly after the North Hollywood shootout. An early round trigger guard model.
Totally 100% reliable. I tried the Hogue rubber grips for some time but eventually went to grip tape. To me the stock grip is too narrow but the Hogues, the only authorized nonfactory grip, is way too fat. To the people with machining issues, We had a batch of 4506s come into our Department store, shortly after I got mine and probably a special bulk order, that obviously had been made on overtime on a Saturday. You could easily see waviness in the slides. To Smith's credit they did everything to make those guns run right.

5904. A very early square trigger guard model. This gun never was 100% I bought it shortly after I turned 21 and was processing with the Orange County, CA, Sheriff's Department. They issued revolvers but let guys buy their own auto, Smith, Sig, or Beretta. Right off the bat I had to send it back because the rear sight, the bulky winged adjustable one, was not centered on the slide. Next the mag catch broke and finally I've had to have the extractor replaced 3 times in 9-10K rounds.

3913. Great and easy to carry. I've seen guys shot lights out with them but nine never grouped well. It's a 3 inch at 15 yard gun at best in my hands and I'm a DX. On the plus its always been 100% reliable.

As for the LAPD allowing guys who are issued Glocks to go to a 3rd Gen gun. Yes we do but the guns, especially 4506s, are had to find and expensive when you can find them. Mags are really expensive and holsters are few and far between. While I don't carry mine any more I'll never part with it. I carried it for years when I walked footbeat patrol in Watts and it's got a few stories to tell.

Tim Thurner (TT Gunleather); makes awesome leather holsters for 3rd Gens. His are as good as they come, and at half the price (and a fourth the wait time) as the other “premier” holster makers.

 

[Jon651]

To the people with machining issues, We had a batch of 4506s come into our Department store, shortly after I got mine and probably a special bulk order, that obviously had been made on overtime on a Saturday. You could easily see waviness in the slides. To Smith's credit they did everything to make those guns run right. (Edited for brevity)

Many moons ago I had a brand-new 645. It's the pistol that started my love of S&W semi-autos and of .45s.

HOWEVER...

The external machining on that pistol was horrible. When looking straight down the slide you could see that the shoulder cuts that ran the length of the slide were uneven between the left and right sides and not a constant depth, almost as if the work piece was placed slightly to the left of center and slightly crooked on the milling machine. It shot wonderfully but was "uncomfortable" to look at for a kid who spent some time recently in a machine shop while in school.

I contact S&W and they promised to make things right, but I ended up trading it in on a brand-new 4506 that I still have today. And the machining on that pistol is perfect!

 

[ColColt]

Tim Thurner (TT Gunleather); makes awesome leather holsters for 3rd Gens. His are as good as they come, and at half the price (and a fourth the wait time) as the other “premier” holster makers.

That first link takes you to Master's Holsters Horizontal Shoulder Holster | Up to 24% Off w/ Free S&H I didn't see any holsters for 3rd Gen S&W pistols.

 

[sigp220.45]

I normally don’t resurrect dormant threads, but this one is a doozy. I can’t believe I missed it originally and during its previous resurrections. I only found it today by doing a tag search.

It is mentioned almost in passing that 645s and 4506s will fit in holsters meant for the Sig P220. Say what? I carried my trusty 220 in a Galco shoulder holster for years. I gave the 220 to my son when I retired but he’s a lefty so he had no use for the leather.

I rooted around and found it somehow. And, yep, the 645 I got a couple weeks ago fits great, though the business end sticks out a little farther than the Sig did. The mags fit the pouches, too.

I should probably pop for a new harness, since the four points of it are attached to the holster and mag pouch with: 1- Superglue, 2 - a piece of leather shoelace, 3 - a plastic flex cuff, cut short, and 4 - nothing but optimism.

Seems like a good cold-weather felon repellant set up to me.

Goes to show there can be gold in these old threads.

 

[18DAI]

Very nice rig! If you have access to an old school shoe cobbler, those guys can make repairs to gun leather too.

I am fortunate to have had one locally while I was still on the job. Regards 18DAI

 

[Old Corp]

Revival of a good old thread - and I must've missed it before.
My department's first auto (~1989-90) was the S&W M1076. We had good service from it - it was adopted before the .40 ever came out.
Ammo was the basic, usually Federal 10mm 180 gr JHP LITE.
Results of OIS was generally quite good.

Fast forward about 9-10 years and the 1076 was no longer being made. S&W would make up 'batches' of them up for incoming academies, usually 25-40 at a time, but a premium was being charged. Plus, 10mm ammo was getting much more expensive.

That lead to the next S&W auto - the CS45 for plainclothes/Detectives and the M4566 for uniform.
Over time, I had both.
I started with the CS45 and shot it well, even though it was not really all that comfortable and was sure ugly.

Near the end of my career I returned to uniform and the CS45 looked goofy in uniform gear. Knowing I'd be given my duty weapon at upcoming retirement, I switched to the 4566. These guns ran 100%, and would even feed empty/fired cases.
Duty load for all has been the Speer 230 gr GDHP. It has done very well.

With the ever-increasing load on officer's duty belts, Tasers, OC, etc, the 4566 became labeled 'the boat anchor' by young guys pining for a Glock.

The last few months before I retired, I helped assist in T&E of proposed new duty pistols and after I left, the S&W M&P .45 FS won out.

I was given my 4566, but it mostly lives in the safe, along with the 1076.
I just always find something else to shoot it seems.

Our 4566 had the slide-mounted decocking lever, but it was ONLY that - a decocker. It did not function as a safety, as the previous 1076 only had decockers (frame mounted) - and they didn't wanna confuse anyone.
Thought that was a good move.