3rd Gen S&W vs. Sig's

growr · May 14, 2013

A dear friend of mine is a died in the wool Sig snob and is not happy with me when I asserted that a Sig is not much more than a well tuned 3rd Gen Smith for a LOT less money. ( Yes, I own a Sig 229 and still have that opinion).

This really came from a conversation regarding the saleability of the 3rd Gen S&W's competing with the Sig's, CZ's etc of the world....

What say you fellow Smith forum members?

Randy

SMSgt · May 14, 2013

I have a Sig P226 MK25, a Glock 30, and a S&W 4566 and 6906. All go bang reliably when I pull the trigger. My favorite to shoot is the 4566, not because it functions better or shoots more accurately, it just feels better. I wouldn't assert that any one is "better" than the others. Any such claim makes one a "snob" of a brand.

Those who prefer steel in their hands will naturally prefer a SIG over any plastic, and vice-versa. The downside to S&W is you can no longer go outnd buy a new 3rd Gen, unless you're really lucky and find a NIB.

TheMystro · May 14, 2013

I dont know about that,......That might be saying a Porsche 911 is a well tuned VW Bug....... I wouldn't go around saying that either.

BigDaddy7972 · May 14, 2013

I own several Sigs. All high quality pistols. The best pistol I own however is a S&W 6906. NONE of my Sigs can match the out of the box trigger on the 6906.

cpeblue · May 14, 2013

Big Daddy, I agree . I have a couple of few Sigs and they are fine guns but I like 3rd Gens better. I do think the 69xx is the most underrated of all the 3rd gens . I know there's another 'dream' tread on Smith making a new 3gens but I think a all stainless 69xx in 9mm, .40 and .357sig would sell big time . But what do I know.

texasjarhead · May 14, 2013

I'm not a big fan of automatic pistols, and prefer revolvers. That being said, I have a CZ P-01 and a S&W 6906. Both are compact 9mm pistols with steel slides on alloy frames. Just a few of my observations:

1-Easier to find parts and mags for the 6906
2-Easier to do a full dis-assembly of the 6906
3-Trigger pull is better on the 6906
4- CZ is more accurate of the two for me
5-6906 easier to find, and probably less expensive

Both have their own attributes and I like both and plan to keep both. If forced to give one up and keep the other, I'd keep the 6906 for the reasons listed above.

6actual · May 14, 2013

I dont know about newer SiGs, as all my mine are West German and older (like me, older)

P226, P220, P225 and a much newer Exeter built P238
They are all fine weapons and I would not part with any of them but.. my 3rd gen smiths 3904 and 4013TSW seem to always be in the rotation a lot more often, and I seem to just enjoy shooting them just a tiny bit more than the SiGs. I will say though that my SiG P238 beats the pants of off the Smith Body Tard .380 any day of the week.

JWS3 · May 14, 2013

Hm'mm..lemme stir the can o' worms a bit.

I own two S&W 3rd Generation pistols; a Shorty Forty and a well-charactered 5904. I also own a SIG-Sauer P229, circa late ninties, no rail, in .40 S&W.

I conceal carry all three at different times of the year. I've put many rounds down range with all of them and I have deduced the following:

- Accuracy goes to the Shorty Forty.
- Ease of carry goes to the 5904.
- Ease of dis-assembly goes to the P229.

All three will hold their own for my use. I'm just happy to have all three models. I feel that each pistol fills a certain niche and each has merits and demerits based on their unique designs.

Now if only ammunition would be a bit more readily available, I could shoot them more often.

BigDaddy7972 · May 15, 2013

cpeblue said:
Big Daddy, I agree . I have a couple of few Sigs and they are fine guns but I like 3rd Gens better. I do think the 69xx is the most underrated of all the 3rd gens . I know there's another 'dream' tread on Smith making a new 3gens but I think a all stainless 69xx in 9mm, .40 and .357sig would sell big time . But what do I know.

If you feel that you need more rounds than the 9 you can carry in a 3953, 239 etc, then I don't think you can beat a 6906 which is 12+1 for a ccw.

ikor · May 15, 2013

Over the years, I have divested myself of all my Sigs, although they were very nice pistols. I still own and shoot my 4003TSW and 4013TSW when the call strikes me to carry DA/SA guns. Otherwise I prefer Glocks and DA Revolvers along with my dozen or so 1911s. In truth, the last gun I would likely get rid of would be my Dan Wesson Valor .45 although I have many with much more sentiment attached. JMO

goldenlight · May 15, 2013

I own several Sigs, including a P-228, and a P-226 in 9mm. I also own a 6906, and a 5906.

I carry the 6906 daily, and my 5906 goes to the range regularly. Sigs are nice semiautos, but they lack the really nice DA trigger pull the 3rd generations have, as well as S&W's wonderful 3 dot sights. I don't know what Sig was thinking, with their 'post' on the rear sight, and the 'dot' on the front sight.

Perhaps they were thinking of 'dotting the 'I'? I don't know. You'd think Those guys in W. Germany would realize that three dot sights are the way to go, and just put them on their Sigs. It's a proven system, and there's not patent on it.

But, my Sigs just pretty much live in the safe, and my S&W's get out and get shot regularly. I LIKE the weight of my 5906; it really soaks up the recoil, and makes follow up shots so much quicker. Did I mention that the 3 dot sights are really nice? They help with follow up shots, too.

I've always wondered why Sig made the P-228 (And P-229) almost as big as the P-226. The P-228 is a 'full sized' semiauto, in my mind, while the 6906 is just enough smaller to really make a difference. The 6906 only gives up one round in the magazine, (12 for the 6906, 13 for the P-228), yet the grip of the P-228 is substantially larger than the 6906. Enough larger that I can conceal the 6906 much more easily than the P-228.

Sig makes nice semiauto pistols, but, just a few differences make the S&W's much more user friendly pistols, IMHO.

BigDaddy7972 · May 15, 2013

I couldn't believe how nice the trigger was on
on a Smith till I picked up my 6906 which was a police tradein.

cpeblue · May 15, 2013

Here's a comparison shot of my 5904 with a P228 and a Glock 19

VTHokiesDuckHunter · May 16, 2013

Both make awesome pistols. I much prefer the S&W 3rd gens.

However; kudos to SIG for still making a quality, metal framed DA/SA pistol with a de-cocker. Including compact versions.

The P239 SAS GenII is a really nice EDC pistol. S&W is nuts not to make a new run of 6906's, 3913's, 4014's, CS9's, and Shorty 40's. Make mine in Scandium please.

Arik · May 16, 2013

After about 2005 Sig has been living of their past reputation. Back when they were W. German made or used W. German parts. Todays Sig is a shadow of its former self. Their QC and quality material dropped big time. Their focus seemed to have changed from one where they made a few no thrills but quality duty guns to one where they focus on making a lot of funny models in 70 varieties for tge civilian market but at a cost of quality....... and a lot of agencies are now dropping them due to high round count problems.

S&W 3rd gen pistols have always been consistent in quality and reliability

Sent from my DROIDX using Tapatalk 2

18DAI · May 16, 2013

I've owned half a dozen Sigs over the last few decades. I don't currently own any.

I sold or traded them all for more 3rd gen 45's.

I agree with Arik. Sig quality took a nose dive around 2005. I must say that the quality appears to be returning, based on my examination of some NIB Sigs at the LGS. But only one mag with a $700 or more pistol? Thats outrageous, to me.

I prefer the 4566 to the Sig 220. I've yet to own or shoot a P220 that was as accurate or reliable as a standard production 4566.

I think the Sig 239 is a very fine pistol and I would own one IF the 3913 didn't exist. I may still buy one in 357sig before its all over with. Next to the 3913 the 239 may be the 2nd best concealed carry gun made, by anyone.

My favorite Sig is the P226 in 9mm. I'm hard pressed to think of a S&W as fine as the P226 9mm. Maybe the PC 5906, but it is heavier. I will own another P226 in 9mm at some point.

So, I guess based on a quick inventory of my accumulation, I prefer the 3rd gen guns. Regards 18DAI

QXSOUP · May 16, 2013

I own 12 sigs... all P series with the exception of the P230/232 and P239. and I also own a 4006 and a 5906.

I would rank the 3rd gen smihts right up there with the best Sigs made.

The trigger on the Smith is much nicer.

mbliss57 · May 16, 2013

I have a bunch of 3rd gen Smiths.
A Sig P239 in 357 Sig and a P6 from 1984 West German import.
I just sold the P239..it was a great pistol but I don't need that many calibers. The P6 had a professional trigger job before I bought it so it is not a 1 to 1 comparison. The P6 is a very accurate but mostly due to the 3# trigger. I wouldn't carry it because it is so light.
Now all of my 3rd Gens are very accurate and sturdy and have decent triggers. The best of any in the price range by far.
If I had to rate any thing negative about the 3rd Gens to the Sigs and Glocks it would be ease of field strip and especially reassembly.
They are not hard by comparison of many guns I own but definitely harder than a Sig Pxxx or a Glock.

catcus-jack · May 16, 2013

Arik said:
After about 2005 Sig has been living of their past reputation. Back when they were W. German made or used W. German parts. Todays Sig is a shadow of its former self. Their QC and quality material dropped big time. Their focus seemed to have changed from one where they made a few no thrills but quality duty guns to one where they focus on making a lot of funny models in 70 varieties for tge civilian market but at a cost of quality....... and a lot of agencies are now dropping them due to high round count problems.

Sorry but I don't agree with that.

WW5906 · May 17, 2013

I've had a couple of Sigs and a lot of S&W 3rd gen pistols. By the time I was done (are we ever done?) swapping sights and grips and getting stuff worked on, I'm in about the same place with my W. German P226 with the SRT package as I am with my 5906 with the PC 3rd gen action tune. They're both full size service 9mms that you can polish up into a pretty great competition handgun, with about the same results . I did have a problem 226 mag that I had to throw away after a string of malfunctions, but that's kind of random.

3rd Gen S&W vs. Sig's

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