Best .40 Pistol Value? SW40VE??

Redcoat3340 · Jan 2, 2021

I was cruising the big aution house's .40 selection 'cause I needed a few minutes break from doing the bills. Lots of interesting stuff mostly a bit higher than I'd want to pay. (But there are one or two....)

Except for the SD40VEs. A ton of 'em all reasonably priced I thought (in the $350 range). Even what I'd consider a bargain these days. I was surprised.

I had an SD9VE that I Apexed and it was a very nice pistol. (I dumped it for something in a 9 Shield, which was then upgraded to a .45 Shield.)

But I'd shot a stock SD40 and it wasn't bad at all. New trigger would make it really good.

I've been tempted to get one...BUT I have an Apexed M&P 40 1.0 and that sort of obviates the need for the SD. And with ammo in semi-short supply and a new-to-me 4006TSW CHP in the safe I've yet to shoot, I think I'll save my money and bullets for other stuff.

But I was surprised at what a value they seem to be. Wish I had more dough.

Jon651 · Jan 2, 2021

Go ahead and shoot your 4006TSW. You just might find that the SD40VE may no longer hold your interest after that...

Kid Shileen · Jan 3, 2021

The 4006 is a much better pistol but I’ve carried a 40VE since 2004. Not sure of the round count but it’s in the thousands. Great pistol for the money once you get used to the trigger pull.

edubbie · Jan 3, 2021

I bought an SW40VE years ago. Academy Sports had them on sale for $199 and S&W had a $50 rebate so what the hell. Probably just before the SDs came out. I don't care for the trigger and no longer care for .40 cal. due to hard to find and expensive ammo but it shoots OK and has never failed. I have seen vids on YouTube on how to polish some parts to fix the trigger pull but decided I shoot it well enough for it's need. It's not a target pistol. This now has a permanent role as a backup in my trunk. I bought a Shield 45 and love it but then bought a Shield 9 1.0 and use it mostly due to when I can find ammo, its usually 9mm.

Echo40 · Jan 3, 2021

Unfortunately, you won't find many folks who are big fans on the Sigma Series of pistols, so expect most responses to be lukewarm at best.

Personally, I got a SW40VE (the last-gen version of the SD40VE) LNIB for $199 last October and it has been my carry gun ever since, so obviously I think it's a great gun, otherwise I wouldn't carry it.
Unfortunately though, the Sigma Series has a bad reputation because the Gen 1 Sigmas (The SD is Gen 4) back in the 90s had issues. Said issues were entirely eliminated as of Gen 3, but the lay person doesn't know that, so they repeat what they've heard, "The Sigma is a cheap/unreliable Glock Clone that S&W totally got sued over". It also doesn't help that the Sigma Series is a no-frills, inexpensive pistol which lacks the brand name, bragging rights, or exaggerated reputation to back it up.

But yeah, "Best .40 Pistol Value" seems like an apt description of the SD40VE. If you want one, then get one.

Funny thing, I'm actually looking to buy a new Subcompact, and I've narrowed it down to either the M&P40 2.0 Subcompact or the M&P40 Shield, but if their were a Subcompact SD40VE, then I would honestly choose it without a second thought.

460harry · Jan 3, 2021

Redcoat3340 said:
I was cruising the big aution house's .40 selection 'cause I needed a few minutes break from doing the bills. Lots of interesting stuff mostly a bit higher than I'd want to pay. (But there are one or two....)

Except for the SD40VEs. A ton of 'em all reasonably priced I thought (in the $350 range). Even what I'd consider a bargain these days. I was surprised.

I had an SD9VE that I Apexed and it was a very nice pistol. (I dumped it for something in a 9 Shield, which was then upgraded to a .45 Shield.)

But I'd shot a stock SD40 and it wasn't bad at all. New trigger would make it really good.

I've been tempted to get one...BUT I have an Apexed M&P 40 1.0 and that sort of obviates the need for the SD. And with ammo in semi-short supply and a new-to-me 4006TSW CHP in the safe I've yet to shoot, I think I'll save my money and bullets for other stuff.

But I was surprised at what a value they seem to be. Wish I had more dough.

The m&p 2.0 is a very good .40 gun. I loaded some 40 s&w with 8 grains of longshot, 180 grain bullet, and they were pushing 10mm levels of energy/recoil. My p320 could not cycle those rounds, not even at 6 grains of longshot, but the m&p ate them. Very strong gun.

STORMINORMAN · Jan 14, 2021

Forte Smitten Wesson: Don't overlook the possibility of a nice M&P 40 Compact 1.0 showing up in the Guns for Sale sub-Forum, as they occasionally do.

One advantage of this series of pistols is the wide availability of aftermarket triggers, sights, barrels, etc. as they use the same components as the full-size versions.

This is a 1st hand recommendation, BTW...

CHEERS!

P.S. My 1st S&W semiautomatic is my SIGMA SW40VE.

diceman3 · Jan 24, 2021

Sw SW40VE

Kid Shileen said:
The 4006 is a much better pistol but I’ve carried a 40VE since 2004. Not sure of the round count but it’s in the thousands. Great pistol for the money once you get used to the trigger pull.

Got to agree. How can you get protection at this at home or in your car.

Best .40 Pistol Value? SW40VE??

Redcoat3340

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Jon651

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Kid Shileen

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edubbie

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Echo40

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460harry

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STORMINORMAN

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diceman3

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