sd40 ve.... how do they do it?

[ika'ika]

A couple months ago I purchased the sd40 ve for 330 out the door. Purchased this for home defense. The reviews were mostly good. I haven't had any of the feeding issues I've read about.

I've shot in the neighborhood of 1000 rounds of various ammo. Cheap steel case. Expensive HP's. And everything in between. Including some pretty hot reloads my buddy does. I've had not one single issue. I've had 2. exactly 2, ft-fire. One was Tula steel. The other was a reload. Had nothing to do with the gun.

My question is... how can S&W produce such a fine weapon at such a low price? I mean this gun preforms as good or better than some that cost three times the price. And you get the lifetime warranty just in case it doesn't.

If Smith can do it, why cant others? I know its not the most elegant... and I haven't seen the 100,000 round torture tests like you find for glocks. But Smith did something very nice with this gun.

Just my opinon

 

[Ds98formula]

Good gun from a good company. I love my sd9ve. Just bought my wife a m&p 40 too.

 

[hmbiohazard]

how they do it...
plastic guide rod
stamped steel slide release
no safety

they cut some corners to get the price where it is, but for the money is for sure worth every penny. i love my SD40 VE. its become my #1 carry gun

 

[Ofc.JL]

Most of the tooling for the old SW9/40VE is used on the SD9/40VE. A lot of the parts are the same, as well. Not all, but a bunch, nontheless. Better shaped frame, better shaped slide, better sear lockwork. As much as people hate the old SW9/40VE for it stiff trigger pull, it was a good system once it got de-bugged. The original SIGMA did have around a 5lb pull. State of Mass. ruined that w/ a 10lb trigger pull law, IIRC.
So for the most part, S&W didn't have to change a lot to make the SD. And, I agree, they are damn good pistols for the money.

 

[hmbiohazard]

Most of the tooling for the old SW9/40VE is used on the SD9/40VE. A lot of the parts are the same, as well. Not all, but a bunch, nontheless. Better shaped frame, better shaped slide, better sear lockwork. As much as people hate the old SW9/40VE for it stiff trigger pull, it was a good system once it got de-bugged. The original SIGMA did have around a 5lb pull. State of Mass. ruined that w/ a 10lb trigger pull law, IIRC.
So for the most part, S&W didn't have to change a lot to make the SD. And, I agree, they are damn good pistols for the money.

the bang for the buck is not often seen in this price range. it blows hi points away imho.

 

[raymo2u]

I wish they would make a SD9M so i can have one that fits in my pocket like the SW9M but with the reliability and looks of the SD series -YUMMY-

 

[Arik]

Very simple. Your experience is a sample of one. As you can see most complain about feeding issues. Most people who do high round shooting run into more problems then with otger guns. When I say high round count I mean your 1000 rounds would be done on one day as a reliability test. If you shoot 3k rounds a year you wont find a problem with most guns

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk

 

[drinva]

I own the sd40ve. Just came in from the range, it held its own against guns twice its cost. I am very happy with mine, it does carry the Apex spring kit, trigger, and mag extensions. Wonderful upgrades that have made this firearm stand it's own in a line of many. And, while were on round count, we put 850 down range just today, and we try to go at least once or more every 6-8 weeks.

DR

 

[thakingcb7]

the bang for the buck is not often seen in this price range. it blows hi points away imho.

Your comparison is like people comparing Glock to the SD line. I for one own a hi-point and have had 0 issues with feeding, firing, or ejection. Just yesterday i had 3 light strikes with my SD40 and it really don't seem to like UMC 180gr because it usually jams up on the first round.

 

[raymo2u]

I have just about 8700 rounds down the pipe of one of 3 of my SD's, it seems the only time it has a failure its ammo related or extemely dirty and needs some lube. Other than that all of mine run flawless and i would put it up against any of my other guns in a function drill and test.

I am a avid shooter and shoot between 500-2000rds every weekend, but i keep proving everytime my SD is a trooper and can stand its ground with guns people praise without thought.

Light strikes? Apex spring kit installed? Im guessing the primers were harder than they shouldve been due to quality control but i could be wrong-ive only experienced this with hard primer reloads and wolf and TULammo

All in all its a great low priced gun which people should respect and given that its a copy of a pistol that goes for much more, maybe people should raise their standards and expect even more from the glock when S&W is making the same great product for cheaper

thakingcb7-for your feeding/jamming issues try polishing your internals and your feed ramp, this may be the only thing your pisol needs to run a perfect play as the umc FMJ bullet may be getting caught on rough grain of the feed ramp. If not try a different ammo, i just picked up some 9mm umc 115grn from Dicks 250rnds for $9.98 yesterday, was hoping they would be a good target load as the sale has made them really cheap. If not ill stick too WWB and Armscor 124grn- the SD's seem to really like the 124grn loads and armscor seem to load them hotter than most manufacturers.

 

[thakingcb7]

Feed ramp is polished to that lovely mirror shine that everybody loves so much. The only times i EVER experienced any problem with this firearm was while using UMC. It just don't like it... Plain and simple. My previous comment was just to reference the fact that without any polishing or any other work... My "junk" hi-point has given me 0 issues with any ammo i jammed down its throat. I just hate seeing people act like they are the worse pistol ever without ever owning or shooting one. Its exactly like all the Glock fan boys giving the SD line a bad rep because it cost half the price.

 

[raymo2u]

You wont be recieving the same enlightenment at the SD thread for the hipoints as you feel, my experiences with them were as pleasent as my jiminez, my Bryco, my Jennings, and some cobra's. The lower end guns are bought often and the QC on them really arent all there, its a hit or miss game. But the point of the thread is to ask how is it that S&W puts out a pretty reliable firearm that most people have bought-have had little or no issues and still be priced so well? Right??

Ive noticed on the umc compared to the other ammo i have collected and kept 2-5 shells from, the OAL is ahorter than most hollow points-which for a FMJ is pretty astounding. I have yet to try it myself and will shortly but being shorter and the end being pointed thinner than a wider hollowpoint seems to be a cause for concern, but i could be wrong

 

[ika'ika]

Most of you understood my post. It was mainly to compare to glocks. A very similar weapon foe 200 or more, less dinero. Pretty sweet. I still want to see torture tests.

I don't personally like glocks. I know they are tough and reliable. But the grip angle doesn't work for me. And most of the people I know that own glocks. Do so for home defense. The go to the range once a month or so, and that's it. So for people in that position what's better the glock, or sd? You know my answer... what's yours?

 

[hmbiohazard]

i was assigned a glock 22. ive carried it on duty for many years after i came out of the military. i was then assigned a glock 23. i have carried and still do carry on duty for the past 1.5 years. honestly i like my SD40 VE better. i find myself favoring it at the range. i take all 3 with me and typically 500-1000 rounds. the SD gets more action than the glocks

 

[raymo2u]

I own a g17/19/26 and a 30sf. They are all 3rd gen except the 19 (4th gen). I almost bought the Robar Alloy Extreme for a different grip style, it being aluminum, and its features but i didnt end up getting it, i found it a little pricey for the small differences. though the glocks i do want is the 380 and a 17l in 10mm

This was just for informational purposes showing that i do not only own SD's and preach them skyhigh but have other guns i compare function and feature with, though my opinion is my own.

 

[hmbiohazard]

im the same ray. i own many firearms in many calibers. i find myself showing favoritism for my SD40

 

[raymo2u]

Exactly right, but with a few exceptions like my Les Baer Boss and my new STI Lawman 3.0 (still function testing but its my favorite gun!). I love all my guns but theres just something about the SD that gets me and makes me want to take it out more thsn the others

 

[Tom K]

....

My question is... how can S&W produce such a fine weapon at such a low price? I mean this gun preforms as good or better than some that cost three times the price. And you get the lifetime warranty just in case it doesn't.

If Smith can do it, why cant others? I know its not the most elegant... and I haven't seen the 100,000 round torture tests like you find for glocks. But Smith did something very nice with this gun.

Actually the question is, why are most all other polymer guns so overpriced? A while ago I was listening on the radio to a review of a book that had come out called "Glock: The Rise of America's Gun" by Paul Barrett. I haven't read the book so this is secondhand, but they said that Glocks are a LOT cheaper to build than what they sell for. When they started competing for police contracts they didn't price them as low as they could, just low enough to win and have made tons of money. Gaston Glock knew that a "plastic" gun at half the price of a metal one would be regarded as cheap junk regardless of its real merits, so he priced it high enough to imply "quality".

Seems to have worked, so that has given everyone else license to charge high prices for inexpensively produced guns.

 

[raymo2u]

Glocks are made for less than what a used hipoint 380 sells for

Dont laugh it is true, the glock 17 cost less than $70 complete excluding assembly

 

[hmbiohazard]

yes i was assigned my glocks so i didnt pay for them. even so when im not on duty i love my sd and its become my go to carry