9mm...40 S&W....357.....44 mag.......Big deal, I carry a sawed-off flamethrower with a bayonet in a shoulder holster with a miner helmet with a tactical headlight and 4 tactical pocket knives in 4 tactical pouches and a tactical chap stick holder in digital camo in a boot holster next to my flare gun given to me by Sarah Palin on our last date. Girl's got it goin' on, that Sarah.
9mm vs .40S&W Sigma Decision
- Thread starter sonofthebeach
- Start date
OP
sonofthebeach
Member
This thread is much better than a caliber war thread!
Flamethrowers, bayonets, and tactical garb notwithstanding (is that a word?), I'm still getting the 9mm.
Thanks all, and have a great day.
Flamethrowers, bayonets, and tactical garb notwithstanding (is that a word?), I'm still getting the 9mm.
Thanks all, and have a great day.
Hey...if you're not man enough for the 40 S&W..............just kidding.
OP
sonofthebeach
Member
Well, I picked up my SW9VE this afternoon at Academy...the guys behind the counter kind of dismissed the Sigma as a "cheap gun", and told me how swell the Taurus pistols were.
I gave a close look at the "24/7" (I think)...it was taller and heavier, fit my hands a bit better, but without the Sigma sale price and rebate that pistol would have cost about $125 more than the Sigma.
I've owned a few Taurus revolvers, and they all didn't compare very well with the S&W's that I was used to. And so I didn't want to take a chance with their semi-auto quality (or lack thereof). I have the Sigma next to me on the desk as I'm posting here, and I'm really happy with my purchase.
The magazines slide into the mag well with ease, and drop quickly when the mag release is pressed. And the gun just looks good to boot. I'm gonna take it apart to clean and lube it before I take it to the range in a few days.
I have a question about dry-firing this pistol. Some of you here have advised others to "dry-fire the snot out of the pistol" to possibly make the trigger smoother. Can anybody tell me how to reset the striker without ejecting my snap-cap...I've tried to move the slide just enough to reset it, but whenever I move the slide with the snapcap chambered, I end up ejecting the thing.
I know I'm doing something wrong, but I'm not sure what. I don't plan on dry-firing this pistol too much, as it seems to have a pretty decent trigger already...a little gritty and stiff, but after cleaning and lubing it, I think it might smooth out some.
I've got the pistol apart for cleaning now, and although the instruction manual says to only lube the four slide rail contact points and two points on the barrel, I think that there are a few more points that should be lubed.
I don't know if there's a stickey about this, and I haven't done a search yet, but as long as I'm here, I thought I'd ask how you all clean and lube your Sigmas?
Thanks.
I gave a close look at the "24/7" (I think)...it was taller and heavier, fit my hands a bit better, but without the Sigma sale price and rebate that pistol would have cost about $125 more than the Sigma.
I've owned a few Taurus revolvers, and they all didn't compare very well with the S&W's that I was used to. And so I didn't want to take a chance with their semi-auto quality (or lack thereof). I have the Sigma next to me on the desk as I'm posting here, and I'm really happy with my purchase.
The magazines slide into the mag well with ease, and drop quickly when the mag release is pressed. And the gun just looks good to boot. I'm gonna take it apart to clean and lube it before I take it to the range in a few days.
I have a question about dry-firing this pistol. Some of you here have advised others to "dry-fire the snot out of the pistol" to possibly make the trigger smoother. Can anybody tell me how to reset the striker without ejecting my snap-cap...I've tried to move the slide just enough to reset it, but whenever I move the slide with the snapcap chambered, I end up ejecting the thing.
I know I'm doing something wrong, but I'm not sure what. I don't plan on dry-firing this pistol too much, as it seems to have a pretty decent trigger already...a little gritty and stiff, but after cleaning and lubing it, I think it might smooth out some.
I've got the pistol apart for cleaning now, and although the instruction manual says to only lube the four slide rail contact points and two points on the barrel, I think that there are a few more points that should be lubed.
I don't know if there's a stickey about this, and I haven't done a search yet, but as long as I'm here, I thought I'd ask how you all clean and lube your Sigmas?
Thanks.
Trooper224
Member
(...the guys behind the counter kind of dismissed the Sigma as a "cheap gun", and told me how swell the Taurus pistols were.)
An S&W (of any kind) is cheap, yet a Taurus is not?
I'm of the opinion that clerks in gunshops should learn to give less opinions and more service. If I'm there to do business I require them to take my money and fill out the appropriate paperwork, what I don't require them to do is spew pie-hole feces in my direction.
An S&W (of any kind) is cheap, yet a Taurus is not?
I'm of the opinion that clerks in gunshops should learn to give less opinions and more service. If I'm there to do business I require them to take my money and fill out the appropriate paperwork, what I don't require them to do is spew pie-hole feces in my direction.
hybridsquirrel
Member
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to reset the sear, just pull it back a little bit. maybe 1/2 inch. youll hear the click and it will reset.
as far as cleaning lubing, i wet some cleaning solvent on a patch, run it through to barrel. dip the bore brush, run it through 3-4 times. run another cloth with cleaner through it. then put some clean patches through till it comes out clean enough for me. Then for the frame and slide i just use a tooth brush. For lubing, I drop a think of lube on the barrel and spread it all around with my finger. 1 drop on each metal piece on the frame that connects with the slide. and then 1 on the top of the barrel. Thats pretty much it, some of them tell you to put a drop in the sear....but i would just think it would get linty. My gun gets very linty as it is. Some people say to put lubricating oil in the barrel, but I only do that for long term storage. (maybe I should do it more.)
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flash60601
US Veteran
But never trust a man who wears both a belt AND suspenders.
A man who wears both belt and suspenders is . . . . .
. . . . . . a man who does not trust his own trousers !
Flash
Skeptic 9c
Member
Usually means he's carrying a heavy pistol on that belt.
Geoff
Who wonders how the local deputies keep all that gear on their hips without a Sam Brown shoulder strap.
leejack
Member
sonofthebeach, first I'd like to say congratulations on your purchase and welcome to the sigma club!
Pay no attention to the yahoo at Academy. Not long ago, an Academy gun counter employee told me that the Beretta 92FS and the Taurus PT92 were direct clones of the Browning Hi Power. Hello!!!
On to the sigma: Others have covered the lube. Use just a little bit. The sigma isn't an oil hog. Just bring the slide back a little until it clicks to reset.
I'm one who has dry fired mine many times and I don't use snap caps. Everybody has an opinion on this; I've had no problems with mine.
Just my 2 cents: Every gun that I've ever owned has got better with use; none more than the sigma. Not only is the trigger smooth, but the controls on the gun feel like butter. Switching out mags, slide release, etc. The entire gun feels smooth after 1000 rounds. It works so well it's almost boring. Totally reliable and quite accurate once you get the hang of it. Be patient, keep focused and practice. Once you master the trigger and it will put a huge smile on your face every time.
Please post up a range report when you get her out (pictures are a nice touch too)
Best wishes,
Lee
Pay no attention to the yahoo at Academy. Not long ago, an Academy gun counter employee told me that the Beretta 92FS and the Taurus PT92 were direct clones of the Browning Hi Power. Hello!!!
On to the sigma: Others have covered the lube. Use just a little bit. The sigma isn't an oil hog. Just bring the slide back a little until it clicks to reset.
I'm one who has dry fired mine many times and I don't use snap caps. Everybody has an opinion on this; I've had no problems with mine.
Just my 2 cents: Every gun that I've ever owned has got better with use; none more than the sigma. Not only is the trigger smooth, but the controls on the gun feel like butter. Switching out mags, slide release, etc. The entire gun feels smooth after 1000 rounds. It works so well it's almost boring. Totally reliable and quite accurate once you get the hang of it. Be patient, keep focused and practice. Once you master the trigger and it will put a huge smile on your face every time.
Please post up a range report when you get her out (pictures are a nice touch too)
Best wishes,
Lee
Skeptic 9c
Member
Welcome to the club! First, use a snap cap, to reset the striker, point the pistol in a safe direction, with a firm grip from your trigger hand, place your off hand thumb in side the trigger guard and place your index finger around the front of the slide, below the barrel, and retract enough to see the snap cap. Release, dry fire again.
Geoff
Who notes his wife annexed his 9 VE.
OP
sonofthebeach
Member
Thanks again for all your replies. My problem with trying to reset the striker was that I just held the pistol with my right shooting hand, and tried to rack the slide with my off hand just like I was trying to chamber the first round of a magazine.
The problem was that once the slide started moving to the rear, I couldn't control the distance it moved, probably because of the stiffness of the slide moving in a new gun.
Skeptic 9c, thanks for the hint on resetting the striker and controlling the movement of the slide. I place my off hand thumb in the trigger guard, curl the other four fingers around the top of the slide, and use these fingers to move the slide just enough to hear the reset. I don't know if this is exactly how you do it, but it really works great for me.
And leejack, thanks for the welcome, and for your observations on how the Sigma gets smoother with use...I've taken it to a friends house in a pretty rural area, and fired about 50 rounds into a berm behind his house. Nothing picture-worthy, but in just those few rounds, I feel the slide, magazine, and even the trigger loosening up a bit.
My wife just couldn't work the trigger...too much pressure needed, and so we didn't really know exactly where her rounds were flying (after one of them I did notice some birds flying out of a nearby pecan tree, and on a second shot, I heard a cow bellowing in the distance)...I then asked my friend if he was certain that the down-range area on the other side of the trees was secure, and he assured me that the cow really liked Sigmas, and whenever she heard one, she couldn't contain herself.
A few hours ago, I handed over the unloaded Sigma to my wife, and she kept trying to rack the slide, release it from a locked position, and work the trigger on a snap cap.
In a strange kind of way, I think she has enjoyed today with the Sigma, even though she's really having a hard time with her lack of hand strength in operating the pistol. She can double-action press the triggers on both my 642 and 325PD much more easily than the Sigma, and the grips seem to fit her hands better...they allow her to reach the trigger more easily.
Maybe a good k-frame .38 special revolver might be a better match for her. In the meantime, if she's still willing and interested in shooting the Sigma, I'll keep working with her.
I personally really like the way the Sigma feels in my hand, and the way it feels as I operate the various parts...I think it's because I've been shooting and carrying my little KelTec P-11 everywhere, and while it does carry concealed really well, and it has been completely reliable for the 450 rounds I've run through it, I really like the slightly larger grip and weight of the Sigma...it's larger than most compacts I've seen, and still not too large for easy concealed carry.
I think it even fits my Crossbreed KwikClip? that I got for a M&P9c...I'll probably have to use the ole "hairdryer heating trick" to better mold the ejection port part of the kydex to match the Sigma.
A funny thing about the "heavy" trigger of my Sigma is that the extra weight of the trigger pull helps steady the gun while I squeeze the trigger. And the rather short trigger pull (compared to double action revolver shooting) seems to help me focus better on my target.
Well, I figure I'd better get some sleep before the sun comes up. Hope you all have a great day tomorrow (today).
--Andy
The problem was that once the slide started moving to the rear, I couldn't control the distance it moved, probably because of the stiffness of the slide moving in a new gun.
Skeptic 9c, thanks for the hint on resetting the striker and controlling the movement of the slide. I place my off hand thumb in the trigger guard, curl the other four fingers around the top of the slide, and use these fingers to move the slide just enough to hear the reset. I don't know if this is exactly how you do it, but it really works great for me.
And leejack, thanks for the welcome, and for your observations on how the Sigma gets smoother with use...I've taken it to a friends house in a pretty rural area, and fired about 50 rounds into a berm behind his house. Nothing picture-worthy, but in just those few rounds, I feel the slide, magazine, and even the trigger loosening up a bit.
My wife just couldn't work the trigger...too much pressure needed, and so we didn't really know exactly where her rounds were flying (after one of them I did notice some birds flying out of a nearby pecan tree, and on a second shot, I heard a cow bellowing in the distance)...I then asked my friend if he was certain that the down-range area on the other side of the trees was secure, and he assured me that the cow really liked Sigmas, and whenever she heard one, she couldn't contain herself.
A few hours ago, I handed over the unloaded Sigma to my wife, and she kept trying to rack the slide, release it from a locked position, and work the trigger on a snap cap.
In a strange kind of way, I think she has enjoyed today with the Sigma, even though she's really having a hard time with her lack of hand strength in operating the pistol. She can double-action press the triggers on both my 642 and 325PD much more easily than the Sigma, and the grips seem to fit her hands better...they allow her to reach the trigger more easily.
Maybe a good k-frame .38 special revolver might be a better match for her. In the meantime, if she's still willing and interested in shooting the Sigma, I'll keep working with her.
I personally really like the way the Sigma feels in my hand, and the way it feels as I operate the various parts...I think it's because I've been shooting and carrying my little KelTec P-11 everywhere, and while it does carry concealed really well, and it has been completely reliable for the 450 rounds I've run through it, I really like the slightly larger grip and weight of the Sigma...it's larger than most compacts I've seen, and still not too large for easy concealed carry.
I think it even fits my Crossbreed KwikClip? that I got for a M&P9c...I'll probably have to use the ole "hairdryer heating trick" to better mold the ejection port part of the kydex to match the Sigma.
A funny thing about the "heavy" trigger of my Sigma is that the extra weight of the trigger pull helps steady the gun while I squeeze the trigger. And the rather short trigger pull (compared to double action revolver shooting) seems to help me focus better on my target.
Well, I figure I'd better get some sleep before the sun comes up. Hope you all have a great day tomorrow (today).
--Andy
leejack
Member
sonofthebeach, glad you had some fun with your sigma. 1000 rounds from now, it won't feel like the same gun. I'm closing in on 1500 and mine is easy to shoot.
Just a friendly suggestion for the wife: Maybe one of those hand exercisers (the kind you squeeze and release) might be helpful. A $5 investment might make all the difference; just a thought.
I procrastinated forever before I bought mine, after reading all the BS on the sigma trigger, but now that I got it, I absolutely love it. As a matter of fact, my oldest daughter has pretty much taken it over, and tells me that I can use "hers" until I get my own. LOL!
Keep us posted and best wishes to your family,
Lee
Just a friendly suggestion for the wife: Maybe one of those hand exercisers (the kind you squeeze and release) might be helpful. A $5 investment might make all the difference; just a thought.
I procrastinated forever before I bought mine, after reading all the BS on the sigma trigger, but now that I got it, I absolutely love it. As a matter of fact, my oldest daughter has pretty much taken it over, and tells me that I can use "hers" until I get my own. LOL!
Keep us posted and best wishes to your family,
Lee
Tslepebull
Member
Sonofthebeach, try this. After insuring that the pistol is empty -- twice. Put your left hand over the slide just in front of the rear sight. Place your left thumb high on the rear of the grip just below the frame extension. Move your palm and thumb toward one another while gripping the slide to that it moves back 10mm or so; you will hear the sear reset. You can then dry fire with the right hand without removing your left; repeat as necessary. If you are left handed, reverse the directions.
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Welcome to the world of Sigma!
Yep the trigger sucks. Yes I think it sucks sheep dong through a straw. But many like it for what it is. A high tech unfinished wart hog of a cam. To each there own. I find the grip and barrel to be the best of any mass produced pistol I have ever owned.
I am teaching my wife to shoot. The tool of choice is the Sigma 9mm. Mines no where near stock. But for her I put all the stock springs back in. And the only thing she is then left with is fluff and puff. And she is a real girly girl. 5-2 and 127 lbs. Once she got it through her brain, finger off trigger except for shoot. Slide rack was nothing. Now she is dry firing the M&P .45 and looking at the all comblock steel flame thrower CZ-52 that accurate out to 100 yards.
As for clean and lube on your new weapon of choice. I very from S&W not to mention many of our wonderful members. I use nothing but M1 grease and oil on my firearms and clean them with only Hoppe's #9. I use the grease on the rails, a thin smear on the barrel and a thin coat on the barrel lugs. One drop of 0w-20 on the sear deep where the pins are and a random drop in the trigger. It stays slicker than snot and never drips, runs or stains it's surroundings.
Also,,, never use a brass barrel brush on it. Get a Nylon brush. No need to make your cleaning patches more blue than need be. If you want to detail out your chamber and barrel get some Rem 40X and attack it with a nylon brush. Follow the directions and your 9 will greet you with joy and easy cleaning from that point on.
Be good or bad at it!
Welcome to the Sigma Club.
Yep the trigger sucks. Yes I think it sucks sheep dong through a straw. But many like it for what it is. A high tech unfinished wart hog of a cam. To each there own. I find the grip and barrel to be the best of any mass produced pistol I have ever owned.
I am teaching my wife to shoot. The tool of choice is the Sigma 9mm. Mines no where near stock. But for her I put all the stock springs back in. And the only thing she is then left with is fluff and puff. And she is a real girly girl. 5-2 and 127 lbs. Once she got it through her brain, finger off trigger except for shoot. Slide rack was nothing. Now she is dry firing the M&P .45 and looking at the all comblock steel flame thrower CZ-52 that accurate out to 100 yards.
As for clean and lube on your new weapon of choice. I very from S&W not to mention many of our wonderful members. I use nothing but M1 grease and oil on my firearms and clean them with only Hoppe's #9. I use the grease on the rails, a thin smear on the barrel and a thin coat on the barrel lugs. One drop of 0w-20 on the sear deep where the pins are and a random drop in the trigger. It stays slicker than snot and never drips, runs or stains it's surroundings.
Also,,, never use a brass barrel brush on it. Get a Nylon brush. No need to make your cleaning patches more blue than need be. If you want to detail out your chamber and barrel get some Rem 40X and attack it with a nylon brush. Follow the directions and your 9 will greet you with joy and easy cleaning from that point on.
Be good or bad at it!
Welcome to the Sigma Club.
HspncElvis
Member
Can't go wrong either way. I opted for the Sigma 9mm. I've owned a S/W 9mm years ago. I also have a 380. 9mm suits me better.
bitstream
Member
I went with the .40 I figured that the majority of police and federal agents who have already selected it means it can't be bad. While some of them might have been political/financial decisions as somebody noted earlier in this thread, I don't think they'd choose the .40 if it didn't work. I like the larger, heavier round and trust it will do the job if I ever need it.
The 40 is an excellent, versatile cartridge.
topics like this will go on and on, with todays ammo you can get a defensive round for the .380 that will get the job done. I have had many guys tell me my .380 is under powered and wouldnt do anything, to date no one has taken me up on my offer to let me prove them wrong.
for me the sigma is just a fun gun so I went with the 9mm, far cheaper to shoot.
just a thought what gun will do more damage a 9mm that has over 1000 rounds through it giving the owner much experience with it or a 50 cal desert eagle of which has less than 100 rounds through it. ill put my money on the 9mm.
besides we all know the .45 is teh best round for defense.....LOL
for me the sigma is just a fun gun so I went with the 9mm, far cheaper to shoot.
just a thought what gun will do more damage a 9mm that has over 1000 rounds through it giving the owner much experience with it or a 50 cal desert eagle of which has less than 100 rounds through it. ill put my money on the 9mm.
besides we all know the .45 is teh best round for defense.....LOL
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Good Evening All...yep caliber wars are a tough fight for sure. Bigger is better, and I would always consider the 40cal sigma superior to the 9mm sigma. It's a choice that makes a difference in my mind to consider the larger 40 superior and the additional cost for ammo warranted because being cheap for self defense is priceless in my mind.
If one shoots often...they are different...40 is 40... 9mm is 9mm!
Haven't been by for awhile...busy with the harvest from the gardens and hunting now. Have a great day....shoot straight, that's the most important ingredient.
spricks
If one shoots often...they are different...40 is 40... 9mm is 9mm!
Haven't been by for awhile...busy with the harvest from the gardens and hunting now. Have a great day....shoot straight, that's the most important ingredient.
spricks
