3rd Generation CCW

[GaryS]

I found the 3913 just that much lighter to carry than the 6906, although the grip of the 6906 fits my hand just about perfectly.

All of th 3rd Gens I've bought have looked pretty good, with one exception. That was an earlier 3913 that looked like it had never been cleaned. Once I cleaned it up, it looked just fine.

One last thing. Do the revolver guys have this much angst about carrying a 1970s vintage Model 10 for self defense? Or even one older? I just don't see these types of threads over in the revolver areas.

My recent foray into 3rd Gen S&W has left me with:

• A really nice looking 3913
• A so-so looking 5904 with adjustable sights
• A beat-up looking 6906 with fantastic trigger

I carry the 6906 every chance I get.
I'm going to use the 5904 in IDPA matches.
I'm going to carry my 3913 on special occasions.

If money becomes available, I may buy a 908 to carry in summer, but the 6906 is darn near equivalent in ease of carry.

 

[timn8er]

I do get the ironic factor here. If anyone's read any of my posts, they know how I feel about 3rdGens. And yet, here I am, defending my choice of carrying a poly pistol over one of the metal pistols I treasure so much. Besides the fact that it carries a lot easier than all but one of the fourteen 3rdGens I own. I paid $375 for my Shield;only one of my 3rdGens was close to that, the rest were closer to $600, & in a few cases, more. So that's my logic, bizarre though it may be...

 

[TTSH]

I understand the throwaway aspect of plastic, but am having trouble with the concept that throwing away $500 worth of plastic is somehow preferable to wearing the finish on $400 worth of metal. Now if the new plastic pistols were cheaper than used metal pistols I suppose it might make sense to me but I haven't found that to be the case.

I'll accept that challenge!

My last Ruger LC9s cost me $299.95 brand new out the door (It was tax-free weekend).

My last Shield 9mm cost me $318.70 brand new including sales tax.

My one and only Bodyguard .380 cost me $259.95 brand new (also purchased during tax-free weekend).

Average plastic disposable pistol cost = $292.87

My average 3rd Gen cost (for mostly smaller pistols bought between last October and now) is $434.28. The three before that (all full size 45's) cost me $501.67 average.

I rest my case.

 

[petepeterson]

I do get the ironic factor here. If anyone's read any of my posts, they know how I feel about 3rdGens. And yet, here I am, defending my choice of carrying a poly pistol over one of the metal pistols I treasure so much. Besides the fact that it carries a lot easier than all but one of the fourteen 3rdGens I own. I paid $375 for my Shield;only one of my 3rdGens was close to that, the rest were closer to $600, & in a few cases, more. So that's my logic, bizarre though it may be...

I completely understand your side of the debate, and mostly agree with it. My mint 3913, CS9, 39-2, etc. don't see holster time. However, because I'm enamored with the series, my $275 915 and $300 3914LS do the dirty work. I have my cake and eat it too!

I'm not opposed to the idea of carrying a Glock or Shield. I shoot my ladyfriends Glock 19 better than any centerfire pistol I own. But I prefer a DA trigger for safety and consistency reasons, so I carry the pistols I like, just in less desirable condition.

 

[bigggbbruce]

Average plastic disposable pistol cost = $292.87

Well now, we really value our well being.

I've said this many times.

In 30+ years of a SD weapon available. I have never had to draw, let alone fire.

I carry each and every gun that can be carried that I own because I can and want to.

My first thought in a gun fight is to survive it. I'll deal with the next step at that time.

 

[85V65Sabre]

My first thought in a gun fight is to survive it. I'll deal with the next step at that time.

I agree 100%
I don't care if the pistol I carry cost me $5 or $500, if the time comes to put it to use I just want it to work flawlessly.

I value my family's lives and mine more than a pice of metal or plastic no matter it's cost.

 

[TTSH]

Average plastic disposable pistol cost = $292.87

Well now, we really value our well being.

Would it have helped if I paid more?

 

[bigggbbruce]

Would it have helped if I paid more?

Actually anyone can do as they please. I don't own cheap plastic because I just don't like cheap plastic.

I like older classic guns.

Back to the O.P. 3rd Gen guns are collectable and I have a few. But I will not let them sit in the safe and not be carried because of fear of failure to function. They don't let me down at the range I'd expect no less in a fire fight.

 

[kaveman]

I just mentally went back through what I paid for the thirty plastic pistols and the fifty or so gen3's and there's not a dime's worth of difference between the two lots,.......almost all purchased used and within the last three years. But that's not really my point.

That's a bunch of pistols and I couldn't realistically put any appreciable wear on them all unless I dumped them into a cement mixer and walked away. Again, not really the point. I guess my point is that if I took my very best gen3(a $500 as-new 3953)and carried it every day for the rest of my good 15yrs, it would still be worth more than I paid for it no matter how badly I mistreat it. And it will still be just as good as the day it was made,........like someone said upthread,.......it's not a piece of fruit that's going to go bad a week after you purchase it.

Gen3,......durable goods.

Plastic is more of a perishable fruit sort of thing.

And if something happens to that 3953 and I never get it back,......I'll just switch to my second best 3953.

I can understand saving a hundred dollars on a pistol if you don't have an extra hundred dollars to spend but I really don't get letting a hundred dollars of perceived value dictate what I carry when choosing from a stable of guns I already own. They're mine,.....my heirs don't get them until I kick. Let them curse me for the muzzle wear after I'm gone. What do I care?

 

[TTSH]

I just mentally went back through what I paid for the thirty plastic pistols and the fifty or so gen3's and there's not a dime's worth of difference between the two lots,.......almost all purchased used and within the last three years.

We all paid what we paid (my numbers are to the penny)... but in general, you can see that I tend to pay more money for my used 3rd Gens (admittedly, almost all of them in top condition w/box) than I do for my brand spanking new cheap plastic wonder guns.

Gen3,......durable goods. Plastic is more of a perishable fruit sort of thing.

Better not go saying that in the M&P forum or the Sigma/SD forum. I tried it once. My butt still hurts from the lashing it took. But I don't disagree with you.

I can understand saving a hundred dollars on a pistol if you don't have an extra hundred dollars to spend but I really don't get letting a hundred dollars of perceived value dictate what I carry when choosing from a stable of guns I already own.

Here you make the common mistake of thinking that I would prefer to carry all-metal, all other things being equal. I don't. I really do prefer to carry modern plastic. I love my 3rd Gens to death... which should be obvious to anyone by now... but honestly, I really do prefer to carry plastic for a variety of practical reasons.

They're mine,.....my heirs don't get them until I kick. Let them curse me for the muzzle wear after I'm gone. What do I care?

LOL!!! Well said! That part I get!

 

[TTSH]

I guess my point is that if I took my very best gen3 (a $500 as-new 3953) and carried it every day for the rest of my good 15 yrs, it would still be worth more than I paid for it no matter how badly I mistreat it.

Well, there's one major difference between us right there. You have 15 good years left. I only have 4 good years left. Cheap modern plastic doesn't have to last nearly as long for ancient elderly me.

 

[BAM-BAM]

Here you make the common mistake of thinking that I would prefer to carry all-metal, all other things being equal. I don't. I really do prefer to carry modern plastic. I love my 3rd Gens to death... which should be obvious to anyone by now... but honestly, I really do prefer to carry plastic for a variety of practical reasons.

What !!!!!!!!!....... has early Alzheimer's set in....... with 4 good years still to go....you...." I really do prefer to carry modern plastic."

We need to brand a scarlet "P" on your forehead......OK we'll just sew one on your bosom!!!

 

[TTSH]

What !!!!!!!!!....... has early Alzheimer's set in....... with 4 good years still to go....you...." I really do prefer to carry modern plastic."

We need to brand a scarlet "P" on your forehead......OK we'll just sew one on your bosom!!!

No serious Alzheimer's disease yet (Thank God!), but my 4 good years left sure as heck do seem to be going downhill awfully fast.

But I digress...

The key word in all this is "carry"... and in my particular case, that almost always means pocket carry. And there is nothing more practical for an old man like me to pocket carry than super-compact, lightweight, dirt cheap plastic. Deny it if you must, but it's a fact. I have my choice of multiple LC9s, multiple Shield 9's, a Kahr CM9 and a Bodyguard .380. There are others but those are my first choices these days. Small, cheap and lightweight is beautiful. And if I somehow drop it or lose it or otherwise mess it up, who cares?

I could never say the same thing about my beloved 3rd Gens.

 

[kaveman]

For pocket? Well, in that case, the 642 has displaced the CM9 I used to carry. I've always got the 642 with me and it's much, much more comfortable than any auto I ever tried.

 

[TTSH]

For pocket? Well, in that case, the 642 has displaced the CM9 I used to carry. I've always got the 642 with me and it's much, much more comfortable than any auto I ever tried.

Oh, I have no problem at all with a Model 642. In fact, excluding the vintage Model 10-5 that my wife got me for Christmas, the only S&W revolver that I've had any serious interest in at all lately was a "slightly used" no-IL Model 442 that a certain shop (some distance away from me) was practically giving away. I should have bought it on the spot, but the shop owner was tied up in an endless conversation and I couldn't seem to break in. Being in a huge hurry that day and already way behind schedule, I left it but called back a little later to reserve it. It had sold.