Shorty 45 MK2
Member
I'm bringing this back to thank all who have shared, thanks it's been a good read! 
Hope to pick up my first all steel 3rd gen .45 tomorrow.
Hope to pick up my first all steel 3rd gen .45 tomorrow.
Experiences with S&W stainless steel .45's
- Thread starter 1/74SIS
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kc outdoorsman
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I got my 4506 upon ETS from the Army in 1989. I shot tens of thousands of rds thu it. Tons of 45 lead SWC reloads that I did on a single stage press! That gun never let me down and would still be a go to although we have to use a 40 here. Still I got it since I was applying for several LE agencies and wanted a 45 but many didn't allow SA guns plus the S&W had an extra round.
The heft of it really absorbs recoil and adds to longevity of the gun. Mine is the square trigger guard but I have a round guard as well
The heft of it really absorbs recoil and adds to longevity of the gun. Mine is the square trigger guard but I have a round guard as well
twistedracer
Member
I just acquired my 645 at the end of February. This has been a great read and thanks to those that have contributed to it.
Good to see an old thread still alive. I've never had any sort of problem with my 4506 I bought NIB back in 1990, IIRC. The 4516-1, ditto. The only 3rd Gen pistol that gave feeding problems for whatever the reason was was a 4566 Tactical. I changed recoil springs, mags and springs but no dice. I reluctantly sold it at some point since it was going to be a house pistol.
Trinidad Bill
US Veteran
Another great read from a few years ago. It sure help me put the 4506 family back in perspective.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Maccabeus
Member
What a great (5 year old!!) thread! Thanks to 1/74SIS and all those who added to it then and more recently.
(St.Regis, if you're still out there, looks like we were co-workers at ACC in the mid-90s. I was West side patrol; initially swing shift, then days).
After a rookie year when I was issued & required to carry a 681 (not enough 4006s to go around), I started carrying a personally owned 4506-1 for the remainder of my time. Loved that gun and carried it on and off duty. Thankfully, I never needed to use it, but it was very reliable putting holes in paper.
After a career change and selling off my guns, I got the bug to reacquire some handguns. Picked up a used pre-rail 6+1 4513TSW, which has been great after changing out the recoil springs. It makes a great carry gun and shoots as well as the 4506.
I still enjoy a good revolver (and a G30s), but can't bring myself to sell the 4513TSW even though it was supposed to help replenish funds after buying a new to me 627.
(St.Regis, if you're still out there, looks like we were co-workers at ACC in the mid-90s. I was West side patrol; initially swing shift, then days).
After a rookie year when I was issued & required to carry a 681 (not enough 4006s to go around), I started carrying a personally owned 4506-1 for the remainder of my time. Loved that gun and carried it on and off duty. Thankfully, I never needed to use it, but it was very reliable putting holes in paper.
After a career change and selling off my guns, I got the bug to reacquire some handguns. Picked up a used pre-rail 6+1 4513TSW, which has been great after changing out the recoil springs. It makes a great carry gun and shoots as well as the 4506.
I still enjoy a good revolver (and a G30s), but can't bring myself to sell the 4513TSW even though it was supposed to help replenish funds after buying a new to me 627.
My adventure in to the .45cal pistols may be a tiny bit off the beaten path. In order, I got mine like this:
1) non-IPSC Model 745. Originally shipped with fixed rear sight but some previous owner installed an adjustable sight that works well and isn't ugly.
2) PC 845 Limited, from the second run in 1998. This pistol is the finest single firearm that I own and I'd honestly say it may hold that distinction until I'm dead & gone from this life.
3) 4556TSW, since so many were hitting the used market. I really had no desire for one but the price was oh so right. I find it to be the homeliest S&W product I own (awful rail, awful billboard on the slide) and the obnoxious trigger play spring is gone and the trigger-click almost makes me want to place this gun out at 100 yards and go to work on it with a rifle. KIDDING, mostly. I need to take it apart and get a proper spring in there. The trigger click is obnoxious.
4) Model 745 IPSC with the DVC serial number prefix and the fixed rear sight. I didn't need a second one ("need" ?! what means this?!) but the price was right and man, I totally love my first 745 so it was an easy purchase.
I only have those four. I'm sure I would enjoy a 645 or a 4506 but I've simply got so many projects and extremely lovable Smith & Wesson handguns that I have to get off this train of constantly adding more.
Small ones just hold no interest to me. I completely understand why others like them, they just offer nothing I want at all. Even the 4566 to me, looks short and blocky. I would trade that 4566 for a 5-inch .45cal Smith & Wesson almost without a second thought.
1) non-IPSC Model 745. Originally shipped with fixed rear sight but some previous owner installed an adjustable sight that works well and isn't ugly.
2) PC 845 Limited, from the second run in 1998. This pistol is the finest single firearm that I own and I'd honestly say it may hold that distinction until I'm dead & gone from this life.
3) 4556TSW, since so many were hitting the used market. I really had no desire for one but the price was oh so right. I find it to be the homeliest S&W product I own (awful rail, awful billboard on the slide) and the obnoxious trigger play spring is gone and the trigger-click almost makes me want to place this gun out at 100 yards and go to work on it with a rifle. KIDDING, mostly. I need to take it apart and get a proper spring in there. The trigger click is obnoxious.
4) Model 745 IPSC with the DVC serial number prefix and the fixed rear sight. I didn't need a second one ("need" ?! what means this?!) but the price was right and man, I totally love my first 745 so it was an easy purchase.
I only have those four. I'm sure I would enjoy a 645 or a 4506 but I've simply got so many projects and extremely lovable Smith & Wesson handguns that I have to get off this train of constantly adding more.
Small ones just hold no interest to me. I completely understand why others like them, they just offer nothing I want at all. Even the 4566 to me, looks short and blocky. I would trade that 4566 for a 5-inch .45cal Smith & Wesson almost without a second thought.
I had a G30 SF at one time some years back that gave me as much or more trouble feeding than any auto I ever had. I never did find out what the problem was. Even after it was worked on it still was not totally reliable. It was accurate but reliable for a Glock it wasn't. I tried the -1 and -1- but it didn't seem to matter.
Nothing to date has proved the reliability the 4506 has given me. A lot of people bash Massaud Ayoob for various reasons but he was the one that turned me on to that pistol and I've been most grateful. Mas, if you see this, thanks a lot!!
Nothing to date has proved the reliability the 4506 has given me. A lot of people bash Massaud Ayoob for various reasons but he was the one that turned me on to that pistol and I've been most grateful. Mas, if you see this, thanks a lot!!
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Bought a 645 when they first came out. From day one I had feed problems both with ball and hollow points.I sent it back to S&W. They apparently ground the ejected port and made a few ramps changes.It worked well for several weeks. I took to the department firing range.I started having issues with it staying in battery. After this experience, A friend of mine echo is a Hugh S&W fan bought it from me. Two weeks I ran into my friend, He was having the same battery issues.He sent it back to S&W. Saw him months later at headquarters he said he sold the gun,too many issues with the gun
When I worked for S&W, they generally considered the "manual safety" a decocking lever and not meant to be carried in the "safe"/down position. LA County was one of the few agencies I'm aware of that mandated Berettas and Smiths to be carried with the decocker in the down position. S&W answered that issue with some folks when they came out with the spring loaded decocking lever, available as an option for any LE agency that wanted it. A slide mounted decocker/safety is not conducive to getting a pistol into action quickly if carried that way. It's backwards and can be unmanageable for some folks.(small hands). One of the things that made the 4506 and it's full size variants so reliable was slide weight. Plenty of mass in both directions made the slide hard to stop. Plus the fact, feed angle was excellent. John and Bob are right on about that stuff. LAPD armorers are some of the best I've ever seen. When you reduce slide weight, you have to make it up with spring rate. That has a tendency to make a pistol more ammo sensitive and generally more prone to stoppages.
"Taj" M.A. Hall
rt11002003
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Thanks for all the info. I learned a lot from these posts. Makes me think I should look into an older S&W (or a newer one?). I learned handgun shooting using S&W revolvers in the late 1940's, .38 and .32. Shot a few ex-military 1911 .45's during those years. Carried the 1911 and the S&W Combat Masterpiece, at times, during my 22 years in the USAF. Recently, my shooting buddy talked me into shooting .45ACP. Wound up buying a couple of SIG 1911's and three HK's in .45ACP, including the much praised HK Mark 23. I should experience other offerings.
magicmanmb
Member
When I was forced to transition to Glock .40 the department wouldn't allow us to purchase our 4506-1 , we had been able to buy the 4506 when they upgraded to -1. 10
years later I found it at a gun show for $300. Still had my badge engraved on the slide. Took all of 3 minutes to complete the sale. Went to another table picked up a spring kit and new night sights for $85.00 carried it as a CCW piece until April. It's now a night table spare. I've gone to an FNP .45 since I have been working personal protection I want as much ammo as possible 15 rounds of .45. Locally Agencies are going back to 9mm. I tried the ammo that they are carrying. FBI may love it but had problems getting it through a windshield. We've had 1 officer involved with the ammo & it did not penetrate well 4 shots center mass guy goes on trial next year.
years later I found it at a gun show for $300. Still had my badge engraved on the slide. Took all of 3 minutes to complete the sale. Went to another table picked up a spring kit and new night sights for $85.00 carried it as a CCW piece until April. It's now a night table spare. I've gone to an FNP .45 since I have been working personal protection I want as much ammo as possible 15 rounds of .45. Locally Agencies are going back to 9mm. I tried the ammo that they are carrying. FBI may love it but had problems getting it through a windshield. We've had 1 officer involved with the ammo & it did not penetrate well 4 shots center mass guy goes on trial next year.
Model 15-4ever
Member
When I came on in 1986 everyone was issued and/or had personally owned S&W revolvers, except for SWAT which had the 459. In 1988, S&W autos were authorized, and I bought a 645. Our first issue ammo was Remington 185 gr JHP... some lots had inconsistent rim dimensions and caused malfunctions. A couple years later the Federal 230 HS was issued - the original bullet shape was a truncated cone and did not feed consistently. Federal later changed the bullet to a roundnose HS and it fed fine.
I carried the 645 for 5 years, and the large size and big bore was intimidating and got a lot of respect from offenders arrested at gunpoint. The slide was relatively light like the 1911, and so if the recoil spring wasn't changed every 1500 rounds functioning became spotty. Looking for something more compact for concealed carry, I acquired a 4516. That gun never was reliable, all kinds of malfunctions. The armorers, gunsmiths and S&W couldn't make it work, even with three changes to the magazines. Finally the factory came out with the 4516-1, and they replaced my slide with the 4516-1 version. The -1 was subststantially heavier and thicker, which sort of negated the purpose of a compact pistol in the first place.
When the 4506 was introduced, S&W made the slides thicker and heavier than the 645. The 4506 was completely reliable, but it was a bigger and heavier gun than the 645, which was already at the edge of viabilty for concealed everyday work. When the factory came up with their version of the SIG decocker-only, they applied it to the 4506 line. The 4586 - 4" barrel decocker-only - became a favorite of mine and replaced the 645 for awhile. One I had which I wish I hadn't sold was the rare 4505 - all blued carbon steel.
With age and experience, my desire to pack heavy iron all day every day waned, and the SIG P220 replaced the 645 for me. The SIG was more accurate and lighter, although the recoil was heavier. But I also didn't care for the poor durabilty of some of its small stamped steel parts. When the .40 polyguns arrived and became authorized, I made the switch and never looked back: lighter, more rounds, more compact and plenty of ballistics for a pistol.
I carried the 645 for 5 years, and the large size and big bore was intimidating and got a lot of respect from offenders arrested at gunpoint. The slide was relatively light like the 1911, and so if the recoil spring wasn't changed every 1500 rounds functioning became spotty. Looking for something more compact for concealed carry, I acquired a 4516. That gun never was reliable, all kinds of malfunctions. The armorers, gunsmiths and S&W couldn't make it work, even with three changes to the magazines. Finally the factory came out with the 4516-1, and they replaced my slide with the 4516-1 version. The -1 was subststantially heavier and thicker, which sort of negated the purpose of a compact pistol in the first place.
When the 4506 was introduced, S&W made the slides thicker and heavier than the 645. The 4506 was completely reliable, but it was a bigger and heavier gun than the 645, which was already at the edge of viabilty for concealed everyday work. When the factory came up with their version of the SIG decocker-only, they applied it to the 4506 line. The 4586 - 4" barrel decocker-only - became a favorite of mine and replaced the 645 for awhile. One I had which I wish I hadn't sold was the rare 4505 - all blued carbon steel.
With age and experience, my desire to pack heavy iron all day every day waned, and the SIG P220 replaced the 645 for me. The SIG was more accurate and lighter, although the recoil was heavier. But I also didn't care for the poor durabilty of some of its small stamped steel parts. When the .40 polyguns arrived and became authorized, I made the switch and never looked back: lighter, more rounds, more compact and plenty of ballistics for a pistol.
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Arik
Member
My experience with them was always good but in a casual way. I did carry a 5906 for a few months but thay is in no way a testament to reliability. I have asked cops who did carry 3rd gens and like every other handgun ever made I got mixed reviews on reliability. Extraction problems, ejection problems, dead triggers, poor accuracy. ...etc. It's simply the law of averages.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk
Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk
Had an early 4516 it was OK; but felt like I was like carrying a brick vs. a 3913 or PPK......later got an 6 shot TSW 4516-? like it but pre-internet it was hard to find spare mags... and the three I had weren't enough for me.
I had a W. German 220 that had replaced my 1911s as a carry .45 in the mid 80s..........so when the Sig 245 was introduced I traded my 4516TSW for the compact Sig.
The Sig 220 and 245s have been my carry .45s since the early 90s....... but I do have a Smith 4566 and a half dozen or so mags. in the safe!!!!
Would love to have a FrankenSmith with a 4516 frame and 4566 upper.....
I had a W. German 220 that had replaced my 1911s as a carry .45 in the mid 80s..........so when the Sig 245 was introduced I traded my 4516TSW for the compact Sig.
The Sig 220 and 245s have been my carry .45s since the early 90s....... but I do have a Smith 4566 and a half dozen or so mags. in the safe!!!!
Would love to have a FrankenSmith with a 4516 frame and 4566 upper.....
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