SD9VE + Upgrades Review

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dcrager84

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Ok so some background, I purchased the SD9VE for 319.00 and have since fired easily 800+ rounds through it in 2 months (I'm a range junky). I have done multiple upgrades as follows: 1. Apex spring kit, 2. Apex trigger, 3, Stainless steel guide rod, 4. Fiber optic sights, 5. Polished slide (looks count lol)

I shot about 200 rounds with the stock gun, the sights were ok, easy to point. The trigger was ok but felt mushy, but overall I was ok with every aspect of the gun. Did a little research and found upgrades and I always like to customize something I own, just who I am. Now since I have 600 rounds in with the upgrades and it is amazing!

The triggers pull is less then half of what it was, the sights make finding the front sight much easier, and the stainless steel guide helped keep the nose of the gun down which wasn't a issue but did notice a difference. The biggest difference was accuracy and it came from the trigger, which was easy to install but took a bit of filing to get a consistent brake, but it is 100 % reliable now. Accuracy with the old trigger I was always slight left and hell after 100 rounds my finger got a bit sore from the trigger. Now with the spring kit and new trigger my groupings are much better. At 20 feet I am easily in 2 inches, at 40 ft im closer to 3 inches, that's firing a full clip at about a round every second to second and a half. It took 21 seconds to fire a clip minus the time to start and stop my cell phone timer. With the stock trigger and springs I was a full inch off or greater in the groupings.


I have fired Glock 17, Kimber 45, Rugers SR9C, and a Taurus (yuck), all very good firearms, I would rate the SD9VE before upgrades in third behind the Glock and Ruger just because of trigger in all other aspects I would rate on par or slightly better, specially with the ergonomics. Now after the upgrades I would rate it right up there with the glock, if not slightly better.


Uograde prices: 1. Apex spring kit from MidwayUSA 19.99, 2. Apex Polymer trigger from MidwayUSA 39.99, 3. Stainless steel guide rod from Galloway Precision 29.99, 4. William Fire Sights for MP9 from Ebay for 40.00, 5. Polished slide was about 22 bucks for 800, 1500, 2000 grit auto wet/dry sandpaper and mothers aluminium polish, though I just bought a dremel and will be doing a even better job on my slide in the coming weeks.


319 plus upgrades for a 459 investment and I could not be happier with a gun that I feel went from good in stock form to great, custom, and still moderately priced. The BIGGEST reason I love this gun, out of everything I shot and held this gun felt the absolute best in my palms.
 
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Great review. The SD9VE and SD40VE are just fine if you keep them stock; but they can be improved with mods too, and still come in for less than most other pistols. I tried the Apex trigger and didn't have good luck making it function well, so took it out and sold it separately. But I am not that disapppointed, and still like my SD9 and SD9VE the way they are!
 
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Did everything you did to my SD9ve except the sights.
got the same results. made a great gun better
 
Good review and about as much in aftermarket as you can go for these models.

I thought about a different trigger, but I'm holding off for now.

I just changed to a Galloway take down plate and a 17# SS guide rod and just come in from running 2 mags through it. It had one fail to feed, and it was ever so slight, in that the slide didn't fully lock.

I attribute this to maybe the feed ramp needs polishing as the rounds I'm using, Blazer 115gr FMJ all have a sharp edge on the neck and I think they want to dig in, which slows the slide going into chamber lockup. So, I'm gonna grab my dremel and do some work on the ramp.

I done this before on a Hi-Point 40S&W and it now eats everything with no hiccups.

Took the dremel and a very fine/small metal grind to keep things smooth and did a small rework on feed ramp to round out the squared front face of the ramp for the cartridge neck to not catch on and polished things up. Went out and fired off a few rounds and now slide doesn't have what felt like micro second hang up, that it had before when chamber closes and locks.
 
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So far all mine has is the apex trigger since I don't care for the two piece design.

Next for sure is the rear sight as I'd rather have metal sights over plastic, but not sure if I'll just replace the rear or get some night sights.

Then mags, sigma ones are cheap and I want a few with +3 plates so that would fix the base plate difference.

Then either a light or laser for the rail.

Then that's it.
 
I, likewise, have the Apex AET and love it. I'm not going to bother with the spring kit though. I guess my ol' bass guitar plucking fingers have no problems. The AET dropped right into my SD40VE without any filing or swearing for that matter.
I've replaced the front sight only (HiVIz) and darkened the rears some. I found the stock white dots just too bright for my eyes and had a tough time keeping focused on the front. I honestly haven't seen a real reason to go to the M&P rear. I've never heard of plastic sights failing, so why bother.
 
This is the 3rd or 4th post I've run across regarding using the APEX trigger w/ stock S&W springs !! Leaning that way myself !! How much less is the trigger pull now ??
 
sd9boi said:
This is the 3rd or 4th post I've run across regarding using the APEX trigger w/ stock S&W springs !! Leaning that way myself !! How much less is the trigger pull now ??
Click to expand...

I'm not sure that there is much reduction of pull weight. I don't have a trigger scale so I couldn't say for certain. I know Apex suggests that there is a reduction and that reduction should take it from approx. 8.5lbs to 7.65lbs.

The trigger feel though, is excellent. There is very little take up. The pull feels consistent start to finish. The trigger breaks at full pull without any overrun. Trigger reset is back at the start

I put about 800 holes in paper before I made any alterations, and I've put another 400 through since the trigger installation.
 
i Paid 469.99 Plux taxes for my pistol stock, but i live in canada. 319.99 is a really good price for one, they go for alot more where i'm from.
 
Trigger enhancments, SD9 and 111G2

Hi All, 4/17/2016


I Have the SD9VE,And the Taurus PT 111 G2, among others
Like Most people, feel that the Triggers ( is or Are ).......Well, Needs improvement, and First off, I'm a Certified GM tech and Not a Gunsmith
But Have Been In the Automotive Business for over 40 years, I Have several
Firearms and Most will get the same Treatment That I perform on them , The SD9
Model suffers from Casting Slags Mostly in the striker system , as does the PT 111 G2, and most Strker fired Guns, if you remove the slide and work the striker by hand, you will feel the crunchiness of the striker, The trick is to remove the binding from the striker assembly. ( if your are the kind of Guy that will stab yourself with a screwdriver then This is not for you )

You will have to remove the striker cover off of the slide , Tools
Needed , Variable speed Dremel tool and Bit set,( Deluxe set) Small Jewelers set of screw drivers, , 3 punch set, small set, assorted, Magnifying Glass or Jewelers loop , Finishing sandpaper , 400,600,1000,(2000 if available) 1000 should do the
trick, 400 and 600 to clean surface's, Qtips and Your Choice of Gun cleaners the Taurus is a Little more involved to clean up,

For the SD9 Insert small Tip of Flat tipped screwdriver
to remove striker cover ,it will slide down , May have to Move Bushing forward, Just a little, Remove spring , watch out for small collets Don't lose
them , remove plastic slide bushing that The striker is in, Note you will see
two or black lines inside of Bushing assembly, Put off to side for later, we'll
get back to that , Take a look at the striker, On the end which rides into the
Bushing , Run Your finger tip along the edges , you will feel Machining or
stamping Marks, The trick to remove those edges , or really just clean them up,
so it does not binding or drag in the bushing , only remove enough so you do not feel the burrs anymore, It does not take much, polish strike pin assembly with 1000 only NOT THE POINTY END!!! leave it alone!!! put off to side, On both the Taurus and the SD, Lightly clean up the Plastic collets, Lightly! just enough to remove small casting burs, You can do this when Fully assembled, it easier,

Back to Plastic Bushing , If you have a Jewelers loop or Magnifying Glass you can look inside where the lines are that where the Crunchiness came from The striker was digging in to the plastic, Lightly clean up with 1000, also smooth out the Outside of Bushing too, The bushing should slide in and out , of upper slide, No binding, it should not be tight , if it is tight it will choke the striker , (My Taurus PT 111 G2 had this Problem But Worse! Now smooth as silk!!, That's another Forum But same Idea, Take some White Ultra fine Polishing compound (Turtle wax) and Mobil 1 very small amount just to keep the compound from drying out , Dab on a Small Artist Brush, Small amount coat inside of bore,and Plastic bushing , reassemble and Make sure it Moves freely, , Complete the assembly and
test You should Feel it Immediately, if done correctly , You can test just
working the striker inside the Upper slide, No more crunchiness, Your trigger system will feel completely different! and will Help you from Jerking or snatching the trigger , as from before the fight was to over power the trigger,This works for
ALL STRIKER fired hand Guns , Find out where the stamping Burrs are and remove them

Now the Taurus is a little more work, When you remove the Rear cap for the Striker, You Must bring the orange Bushing forward a little be careful not to overly scratch the bushing , once apart , you will notice that The Bushing does not slide out easy,( Make sure that the Trigger locking system is Fully Disengaged) this is where some of the binding is taking Place, The plastic Bushing is deformed for 3 reasons, The way its Manufactured, The Stamping process for the trigger locking system , and the Tightness of fitting in the slide bore, this needs to be really Cleaned out, this done in 2 parts, a dremel tool is required, a small cone shaped Bit , the Hole in the Bushing Needs to enlarged alittle and some what beveled, on the inside of the hole the trick is to clean up the Bruising Marks ,



When (the or A) Part is stamped, it creates(plastic Burs) and Because its a Hole it deforms the plastic, So when Pulling the striker it feels like a Stepping crunchiness , like a dead space, Clean out use the 1000 to clean inside , Roll finishing Paper like Barrel and slide through Bushing , clean up , Now for the Striker, Same Process as the SD9 Disassemble and find the Burs or slag marks , Clean up with 600, and then 1000, Note: SD9 had More problem areas on the striker, Taurus Not so much, more on the bushing side , NOW for the Slide, The plastic bushing fits too tight in Bore of Slide , this is where it chokes the Striker pin, we do this with a Dremel tool and the Small sanding Barrel, Dremel used with a speed control, clean out bore with sanding barrel and WD 40,( make sure that Trigger locking system is Fully disengaged ) clean out enough material to let the bushing slide freely you want the Bushing to be secure,Not sloppy or too loose but Slides fairly easy,because in the stock bore size,The bore changes the shape of the bushing, distorts it, You can Use Qtips and Bore cleaner to clean out any and all Mods,


Take the Bushing and slide into bore and test fit, also align with trigger locking system and make sure that there is more than enough clearance for lock to engage , if you are so inclined to use it, I do Not, Make sure that it does not sweep the bushing, if you engaged the lock,and try to use the trigger, you will create Burs, Lock is Metal, Bushing is Plastic, enough said, Used Polishing compound mix , lightly coat said parts, as with the SD9, reassemble and test fit, test Striker, results are Immediate, Your striker has no more resistance other than Spring energey, I've have done this on My SR9, SR9E, PT111G2, SD9ve, Any striker fired Fire arm will benefit from this Surface preparation in the slides, All are totally different Now, No More fighting the trigger, The SRs had Nice triggers,Now Like OMG!! Better!!!! IMO ,I did not want to spend thousands rounds of ammo to get and OK Trigger, I wanted a great trigger, and each Gun is different, The trigger linkage is pretty much stock on all guns,Except the SD9VE, needed a bit more, Have Gallaway full spring kit, except the striker spring ,Fits way too tight, did not want to sacrifice Striker spring energy, Apex trigger and Sear pivot mods,totally different gun Now,if this Helps anybody out there Great, God Bless

Thanks for Listening Boys and Girls,

BigAl512
 
BigAl512 said:
Hi All, 4/17/2016


I Have the SD9VE,And the Taurus PT 111 G2, among others
Like Most people, feel that the Triggers ( is or Are ).......Well, Needs improvement, and First off, I'm a Certified GM tech and Not a Gunsmith
But Have Been In the Automotive Business for over 40 years, I Have several
Firearms and Most will get the same Treatment That I perform on them , The SD9
Model suffers from Casting Slags Mostly in the striker system , as does the PT 111 G2, and most Strker fired Guns, if you remove the slide and work the striker by hand, you will feel the crunchiness of the striker, The trick is to remove the binding from the striker assembly. ( if your are the kind of Guy that will stab yourself with a screwdriver then This is not for you )

You will have to remove the striker cover off of the slide , Tools
Needed , Variable speed Dremel tool and Bit set,( Deluxe set) Small Jewelers set of screw drivers, , 3 punch set, small set, assorted, Magnifying Glass or Jewelers loop , Finishing sandpaper , 400,600,1000,(2000 if available) 1000 should do the
trick, 400 and 600 to clean surface's, Qtips and Your Choice of Gun cleaners the Taurus is a Little more involved to clean up,

For the SD9 Insert small Tip of Flat tipped screwdriver
to remove striker cover ,it will slide down , May have to Move Bushing forward, Just a little, Remove spring , watch out for small collets Don't lose
them , remove plastic slide bushing that The striker is in, Note you will see
two or black lines inside of Bushing assembly, Put off to side for later, we'll
get back to that , Take a look at the striker, On the end which rides into the
Bushing , Run Your finger tip along the edges , you will feel Machining or
stamping Marks, The trick to remove those edges , or really just clean them up,
so it does not binding or drag in the bushing , only remove enough so you do not feel the burrs anymore, It does not take much, polish strike pin assembly with 1000 only NOT THE POINTY END!!! leave it alone!!! put off to side, On both the Taurus and the SD, Lightly clean up the Plastic collets, Lightly! just enough to remove small casting burs, You can do this when Fully assembled, it easier,

Back to Plastic Bushing , If you have a Jewelers loop or Magnifying Glass you can look inside where the lines are that where the Crunchiness came from The striker was digging in to the plastic, Lightly clean up with 1000, also smooth out the Outside of Bushing too, The bushing should slide in and out , of upper slide, No binding, it should not be tight , if it is tight it will choke the striker , (My Taurus PT 111 G2 had this Problem But Worse! Now smooth as silk!!, That's another Forum But same Idea, Take some White Ultra fine Polishing compound (Turtle wax) and Mobil 1 very small amount just to keep the compound from drying out , Dab on a Small Artist Brush, Small amount coat inside of bore,and Plastic bushing , reassemble and Make sure it Moves freely, , Complete the assembly and
test You should Feel it Immediately, if done correctly , You can test just
working the striker inside the Upper slide, No more crunchiness, Your trigger system will feel completely different! and will Help you from Jerking or snatching the trigger , as from before the fight was to over power the trigger,This works for
ALL STRIKER fired hand Guns , Find out where the stamping Burrs are and remove them

Now the Taurus is a little more work, When you remove the Rear cap for the Striker, You Must bring the orange Bushing forward a little be careful not to overly scratch the bushing , once apart , you will notice that The Bushing does not slide out easy,( Make sure that the Trigger locking system is Fully Disengaged) this is where some of the binding is taking Place, The plastic Bushing is deformed for 3 reasons, The way its Manufactured, The Stamping process for the trigger locking system , and the Tightness of fitting in the slide bore, this needs to be really Cleaned out, this done in 2 parts, a dremel tool is required, a small cone shaped Bit , the Hole in the Bushing Needs to enlarged alittle and some what beveled, on the inside of the hole the trick is to clean up the Bruising Marks ,



When (the or A) Part is stamped, it creates(plastic Burs) and Because its a Hole it deforms the plastic, So when Pulling the striker it feels like a Stepping crunchiness , like a dead space, Clean out use the 1000 to clean inside , Roll finishing Paper like Barrel and slide through Bushing , clean up , Now for the Striker, Same Process as the SD9 Disassemble and find the Burs or slag marks , Clean up with 600, and then 1000, Note: SD9 had More problem areas on the striker, Taurus Not so much, more on the bushing side , NOW for the Slide, The plastic bushing fits too tight in Bore of Slide , this is where it chokes the Striker pin, we do this with a Dremel tool and the Small sanding Barrel, Dremel used with a speed control, clean out bore with sanding barrel and WD 40,( make sure that Trigger locking system is Fully disengaged ) clean out enough material to let the bushing slide freely you want the Bushing to be secure,Not sloppy or too loose but Slides fairly easy,because in the stock bore size,The bore changes the shape of the bushing, distorts it, You can Use Qtips and Bore cleaner to clean out any and all Mods,


Take the Bushing and slide into bore and test fit, also align with trigger locking system and make sure that there is more than enough clearance for lock to engage , if you are so inclined to use it, I do Not, Make sure that it does not sweep the bushing, if you engaged the lock,and try to use the trigger, you will create Burs, Lock is Metal, Bushing is Plastic, enough said, Used Polishing compound mix , lightly coat said parts, as with the SD9, reassemble and test fit, test Striker, results are Immediate, Your striker has no more resistance other than Spring energey, I've have done this on My SR9, SR9E, PT111G2, SD9ve, Any striker fired Fire arm will benefit from this Surface preparation in the slides, All are totally different Now, No More fighting the trigger, The SRs had Nice triggers,Now Like OMG!! Better!!!! IMO ,I did not want to spend thousands rounds of ammo to get and OK Trigger, I wanted a great trigger, and each Gun is different, The trigger linkage is pretty much stock on all guns,Except the SD9VE, needed a bit more, Have Gallaway full spring kit, except the striker spring ,Fits way too tight, did not want to sacrifice Striker spring energy, Apex trigger and Sear pivot mods,totally different gun Now,if this Helps anybody out there Great, God Bless

Thanks for Listening Boys and Girls,

BigAl512
Click to expand...

I guess I'm an old KISS kind of guy. If it ain't broke......

Anyway, I bought a new SD9VE and a new Taurus TPC. Other than cleaning and lubing them, I didn't do anything. the more I shoot them, the smoother they and the triggers work.
 
In was looking at The TCP and PT 809, I like the capacity of the SD9's and the bigger Models, I tend to use 9mm , To keep costs down, and do most of my own work, I Have a 380 CC Bersa Great Gun!, Not real cheap to shoot though, I want to shoot Factory ammo, I am a Tinker er, so a lot of what I did was More Of Being Inquisitive , I want To know how and Why it works, That's Just Me, So reading any and all the Forums, No one had a clear cut answer on The Why Part of it, so Me being Me and doing what I do, did what I did, Now I know, When I Get better at Pictures, I will try to get some for all, But You Get the Picture, Looking for another new toy, I Tend to want Just Handguns, Thought about the Shield, More then I want to spend , Like to Keep them in the 3-400 range
and like the Higher capacity , and for me easier to store ,
 
BigAl512 said:
In was looking at The TCP and PT 809, I like the capacity of the SD9's and the bigger Models, I tend to use 9mm , To keep costs down, and do most of my own work, I Have a 380 CC Bersa Great Gun!, Not real cheap to shoot though, I want to shoot Factory ammo, I am a Tinker er, so a lot of what I did was More Of Being Inquisitive , I want To know how and Why it works, That's Just Me, So reading any and all the Forums, No one had a clear cut answer on The Why Part of it, so Me being Me and doing what I do, did what I did, Now I know, When I Get better at Pictures, I will try to get some for all, But You Get the Picture, Looking for another new toy, I Tend to want Just Handguns, Thought about the Shield, More then I want to spend , Like to Keep them in the 3-400 range
and like the Higher capacity , and for me easier to store ,
Click to expand...
Glocks are great pistols to tinker around with. BUD'S GUNS has some LEO trade ins for $300-$400.
 
Have taken out some of the slide slop in the front , By tweaking Just the front Rails, if you cycle and pull the trigger you can feel the front of the slide move up and down from the sear linkage, way to Much for me, adjusting this takes any excess play out and Makes trigger pulls sharper and crisper, Just enough to clean it up, trigger pull is a smooth 6.5 lbs, ]
 
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