Input on S&W CSX wanted…

Micro 9 versus CSX experience?

I also have a Kimber Micro9…the two pistols are all but identical in size other than the CSX holds a few more rounds… I plan on shooting them side-by-side to see which I like better.

Just found this thread as the Forum search function seems to hate me and I had to resort to "next page" search here.

Sorta new to micro pistols, other than the Performance Center Shield my wife bought some years ago after a coworker was raped doing a site visit on a new road into a development in planning - she stumbled into a meth cook (Montana does have a meth problem). Anyways, the Shield is pretty good but injuries have caught up with my wife and she's starting to have problems manipulating the slide.

And some lifestyle changes have resulted in a decision to pick up a micro 9mm to have as an alternative to the C series Browning High Power I've owned, carried, and competed with a bit since the early '70s. The handguns in the safe are overwhelmingly K frame S&Ws as a result of years of addiction to competing in PPC. So - for me - I like single action, 5-7 lb trigger pulls are a feature instead of a bug on an adrenaline pistol, and safeties on pistols are what I want.

I shot a Kimber Micro 9 Crimson Trace about five years ago at a fundraiser shooting event where Kimber (still in Kalispell at the time) donated a bunch of pistols to the event, still in the boxes and shipping oil. That Micro 9 was SWEET! Felt just right in the hand, trigger was more than good enough for the intended purpose, safety easily and positively manipulated, etc. Had to talk myself out of buying one at the time by reminding myself I had no use for it and enough handguns to try and keep the dust shot off all of them already.

ANYWAYS... headed to the local gun barn as they had a sale on their Micro 9s in stock, intending to leave with a Micro 9. I left disappointed and feeling like I just got told Santa Clause doesn't exist.

I tried four (maybe 5?) of the Micro 9 variants they had on display. The safety's really sucked on all of them, had to put some effort into pushing off safety. The one with ambidextrous safety, the meat of my hand stopped the off side safety from moving down. Triggers were okay, but definitely not what I remembered (five years is a long time to remember what a trigger pull previously felt like, I know). The killer was that the gun guy (who I know) at the counter who works there as a side gig from his job as a local cop told me that there's a high rate of problems with the Micro 9s the store sells. I didn't think to ask, but I noticed that the Micro 9s were the only compacts and Kimber handguns they had on sale.

He showed me the CSX next - I didn't even know such a thing existed as I'm not really looking for The Next Gun I Will Buy these days on the very wrong side of senior citizen status. It felt almost, but not quite, as good in the hand as the Micro 9. Felt a tiny bit thicker - but not as bad as the size increase from the T/C series Hi Powers to the Mk IIIs.

Soooo.... with all that said... after this amount of time, what are your feelings on the Micro 9 versus the CSX? Both in subjective feelings after some time shooting both and problems/issues?

When I started poking around looking on the Web, it wasn't hard to find criticism and complaints about both. But corporate owner/user knowledgebase is far more interesting to me.

I am mildly surprised there's so little in the way of forum content on this pistol compared to others, just as it appears there is little in the way of third party offerings to improve the stock pistol (whether those products are actually improvements is always open to question). The only thing I think I'd miss is the built in Crimson Trace in the Micro 9 that worked well even on a sunny summer day outside, and some choices in high visibility replacement sights. Old guys whose last name isn't Miculek need all the help they can get with eyesight/aiming...

Anyways, the feedback on the pistol from buyers/users has trailed off a bit, and I am interested in your opinion after owning both the Micro 9 and CSX for a while.

One of them will eventually be going home with me; hopefully I won't have my first experience with sending a handgun back to the manufacturer.

Thanks to all.
 
I've fired both my CSX and Micro 9 side-by-side...same ammo from the same box. I would feel completely comfortable using either in a self-defense situation but the CSX gets the nod overall...but the differences are minor and more subjective than anything.

Accuracy between the two is pretty much a wash. The CSX didn't quite shoot to point of aim but I'm going to replace the factory sights with tritium night sights and will make sure it shoots to point of aim then.

The CSX comes with replacement back straps to fit your hand better...though I added different stocks to my Micro 9 to feel better.

I've never been one to believe magazine capacity is super important...statistically (you can live or die on them) any confrontation will be over one way or the other after three or four shots are fired. But in virtually the same size envelope the additional rounds in the CSX are a plus.

As I said...I would feel completely comfortable carrying either. It comes down to which feels better in your hand and which you can shoot best.
 
In regards to the CSX. I love how it feels in my hand and how naturally it points. The grip feels larger than it is. However, if you decide the CSX is for you, before you take possession of one, examine it VERY closely, especially the bore. If the bore is dirty, ask to have a patch run through the bore so you can examine the bore well for chatter marks in the rifling. My purchase had to go back to the factory within 24 hrs of my taking possession, without ever getting to fire a single round due to a horribly defective barrel that I couldn't see on brief inspection because of fouling from test firing. I have found a couple other folks on other forums that have encountered the exact same barrel defect that was so obvious when the barrel was clean that if S&W actually had any quality control inspectors checking the barrels before they are assembled into pistols and prior to test firing, they would have to be blind to miss.
 
I've just had mine about a month, but liking it a lot so far. Only about 100 rounds so far, flawless with 124 gr. ball and Hornady HPs. I put it on top of my wife's Shield, the CSX is a good bit smaller in overall profile, though slightly thicker (but not much). She also shot the CSX and liked it, so we may consider trading her Shield on another CSX for the advantage of magazine interchangeability.
 
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