Should S&W Make 5906 & 6906 Again?

[Smithsrevenge]

I have a 229 and it's a nice gun for shooting .40 and .357sig but I'd say a bit heavy for a alloy framed 9mm. You do know that it weights in at 32.40oz empty vs 23.50oz for the 69xx and 22.80oz for the 3913. I have a couple of Sigs and I like them but I like my 3rd gens more. Over the past 25 years I'd say reliability has been about the same. Oh by the way when I bought my 3913 the gun pusher thought I was crazy for not getting the then new Glock 17 ( didn't get my first Glock till 2005). I myself would not pass on a 69xx even if you don't like it you can sell it and not loose on it , try that with a 229.

229 is also a dang tank in weight when fully loaded up. I own one in .357 sig and Use it as a duty gun at work. Even in a duty holster my belt sags to the right *with 15lbs of other equipment mainly on the other side* haha. Also the 229 rusts......a lot....Sigs finish isnt nearly as good as S&W. I've had my 229 refinished twice in the past 5 years.

However my 6906...I now use that when I'm doing plain clothes work. OWB pancake holster for a XDM *waiting on my 6906 holster*.....I cant even tell its there! :-D.

Love my 06......loooooove it haha

 

[War_Eagle]

Simple answer: YES, but only if the original style and detail were maintained. No cutting corners trying to marry up stainless with plastic and tactical rails, and all the items (bells and whistles) the other manufactures have gone to. The original design is tried and true, don't alter it.

 

[ShoreShooter]

It turns out the 6906 is still being made. Pretty much, but far from exact.

It is in the form of the Sig P239.

I held one briefly in a crowded gun show last weekend.

 

[VTHokiesDuckHunter]

The SIG P239 is a very sweet gun. One of my favorites that you can buy new. Still, I'd pay $300 more for a Scandium 3913/4014/6906/Shorty or CS gun any day.

S&W has proven the market is there for quality metal guns with their new 1911's. I especially like the Scandium bobtail 1911. If they can make and sell that one at a profit, especially with all of the fish scales and premium wood grips, surely they could do the same with a, let's say scandium 4513. And for me, it would be preferred over a 1911 as I prefer DA/SA with a hammer and decocker.

In my opinion, cost is not the issue. They have just made some kind of (poor) decision to only offer plastic striker DAO guns other than 1911's.

Kudos to SIG in that regard.

I'm also surprised that Beretta won't bring back the Cheetah in an alloy frame.

And why Browning won't bring out some kind of compact Hi-Power escapes me as well.

 

[carbuncle]

It turns out the 6906 is still being made. Pretty much, but far from exact.

It is in the form of the Sig P239.

I held one briefly in a crowded gun show last weekend.

The P239 was Sig's answer to the then-growing popularity of the 3913. This was the one entry in the 3rd Gen catalog to get near-universal good press and acceptance with industry pros and the buying public.

Posted from my car phone.

 

[mbliss57]

I owned a Sig P239 in 357 Sig. Awesome pistol. But the ammo was so expensive and I don't reload...yet. Bought it new for $800 and sold it used for $905.. The 3913 (Yes I own one) have owned several actually.. is IMO every bit as good of a shooter. At 1/2 the cost. To the Ops original question..5906 or 6906.. ? I do not see why they would not.... Beretta and Sig enjoy a great market.. and are great guns. S&W just has to decide to get back in the ring. I see them introduced as PC pistols if they want to compete on that platform with Beretta and Sig. But I do think they CAN compete.

 

[Silversmok3]

Sorry guys, the answer is a straight up "NO".

Why? Because we'd be the only ones to buy them. To the typical Gun Shop Visitor, it would be the worst gun ever made. External safety, 1960s ergos, 12lb DA trigger pull, stainless steel frame, 15 round capacity? Snore. "Lemme see that Glock 17 please......."

 

[Big Mike]

I think there is a market for the 5900/6900 series pistols (standard capacities above 10 rounds), but not at the price points they would have to be at for S&W to manufacture them at the margins they're getting with other model lines (previously discussed).

I think if S&W outsourced the manufacturing of any/all style of TSW pistol and essentially "imported" them for sale, they would sell. I suspect the lower labor costs combined with the manufacturing capabilities of some countries could bring this pistols to the market for under $500/retail. Note: I'm basing this on the variety of cz style/1911 model pistols that seem to be produced en masse and readily available (they seem to be selling well). I wouldn't have a problem owning and carrying an "imported 6906TSW.

Having said all that, I think the heydey of these pistols is over and we're consigned to scour shops and the internet to find the best of the gazillion pistols they made.

 

[cpeblue]

Well said BigMike I could not agree with you more . I have a Turkish made Beretta clone that I pick up for $300 nib . It has over 6000 rds through it and it still looks fresh , in fact I have had no issues with it . I haven't had to put a new trigger spring in it yet, all my 92's and Cz's broke trigger springs before 6000 rds. So I think your right , the Turks could most likely make us a better cheaper third gen.

 

[BrianXIX]

I wonder if S&W would make a special run for a group buy. Maybe the next LEO order that comes in, S&W could make X amount more for the forum group buy. I dont think it would be too much to ask, S&W gets a few more sales and keeps their base happy

 

[John Fritz]

Sorry guys, the answer is a straight up "NO". ...

Painful for me to agree to but Silver, you're right. In my humble opinion. For all he reasons you stated and one I'll add, that fantastic 3rd Gen 2"x4"-feeling grip. Like you're holding a block of wood someone just sawed off an eight footer.

 

[cpeblue]

Painful for me to agree to but Silver, you're right. In my humble opinion. For all he reasons you stated and one I'll add, that fantastic 3rd Gen 2"x4"-feeling grip. Like you're holding a block of wood someone just sawed off an eight footer.

Maybe I'm missing something, could you please explain to me the " 2x4 feeling grip ". One of the things I like the most about 3rd gens is I can change the grip from arched to straight if I think the grip is to large or go straight to arched if I what more grip. Tell me, what do you think of a Beretta 92s grip or any of the poly .45s ?

 

[Silversmok3]

Maybe I'm missing something, could you please explain to me the " 2x4 feeling grip ". One of the things I like the most about 3rd gens is I can change the grip from arched to straight if I think the grip is to large or go straight to arched if I what more grip. Tell me, what do you think of a Beretta 92s grip or any of the poly .45s ?

S&W made a Faustian bargain with the 3rd Gen designs. They knew the 2nd Gen guns felt like bricks , so they slimlined it on the sides and made the grips 1-piece to compensate. While S&W successfully narrowed the grips and made the gun "friendlier" then the old 3 digit guns, the sides are as flat as Rachel Maddow's chest.

While a 5906 is narrower then the 92FS, the Beretta's more natural because it fills the hand. The 5906 feels like a brick that's been sanded down on the sides. Pick up one after handing an M&P, and its like a time machine voyage to 1987.

 

[JudgeColt]

Well, of course! If everyone who has posted would buy one, Smith could sell at least 43 to this point.

Sorry, I agree with Silversmoke3. The time for the design features of those guns is past. I have an FNH FNX-45 that holds 14+1 of .45ACP, is fully ambidextrous, has a loaded-chamber indicator, etc.. As much as I love polished steel and walnut (or matte stainless and polymer), for business, I will take the FNX-45 and its other versions in other chamberings over any other.

 

[cpeblue]

Don't get me wrong, I also believe we will NEVER see new 3rd gens. I my be a old man with to many guns but I'm not a Luddite. I embraced the dark side and striker fire a while back and it is also my opinion that TDA is also a thing from the past even though it is 70% of my pistols and my go to pistols are a G19 and a G26. Sorry but poly has no soul, that is the reason almost every gun maker has a 1911 pattern pistol and Sig is selling stainless steel guns. I guess I am just not ready to put the 3rd gens on the curio and relic shelf yet.

 

[grcoffman104]

I worked a long time ago for a big agency that allowed you to carry your own gun. Must be on approved list. 2nd and 3rd gen smiths were the norm. I went to glock as as smith revolvers were not on list. Carred a 459 for a while and loved it. Fast forward to now 30 years later. Spoke to the range folk those smiths are off the list. Cause I asked? Parts are hard to get and all the old smith armorers have retired or passed on. A sobering thought for this retired , old, smith armorer.

 

[Badkarma 1]

Lots of good stuff bein posted here, both positive and negative.
While I'll admit we will probably never see the 3rd Gen return to regular production for civilian consumption, the thing is they're still bein made for LEOs, that says something right there!
And just for giggles I carried my 5946 all this last week while doing stuff out in the yard, including pruning a red bud tree, cultivating my garden, and mowing the yard. Temp was near 90 so I carried IWB. Never once did I notice the extra weight of the all steel pistol in the Bianchi rig.
Poly guns are indeed the future, at least till Smith puts a scandium frame on a 5906 or something, but when I decide to go polymer, I bypass the Glorp and go straight to the H&K shelf! If you want a pistol that IS designed for human hands look no further the the P30! Dale

 

[GoodMornin]

Judgecolt does your loaded-chamber indicator look like this ( all in good fun btw )

 

[4506517]

The 5906 feels like a brick that's been sanded down on the sides. Pick up one after handing an M&P, and its like a time machine voyage to 1987.

I would disagree. When measured, the grip diameter of an
M & P full size 45 with the SMALL backstrap is LARGER than the grip diameter of a 4506/4566.

Now, perhaps that is the case for an M & P 9mm vs. the 5906. It is NOT the case with the 45 cal pistols. I, unfortunately, carry a full size M & P on duty. My agency replaced the 4566 with the M & P.

I carry the M & P with the small back strap installed. I constantly "milk" the grip when shooting for qualification. Hmmm......never did that with the 4566.

 

[4506517]

Hmmm.....like a slide mounted decocker?

Don't tell Beretta or SIG that....they're too busy making money selling pistols with those features.

Single stack 45 magazine?

Hmmm....don't tell the 1000 different 1911 manufacturers, they're too busy selling 1911s and the Marines are too busy buying them.


Let's face it....there really hasn't been anything new in the past 60+ years in gun design.

The reason most new designs are successful is because they're new.

Again, I carry an M & P everyday. I shoot it more than most folks on this board do. I still fail to see how it is BETTER than the 4506/4566. I never carried a 4006/5906 or an M & P 9/40, but based on my experiences with the M & P 45, I really have no desire to.

Is the 4006/5906 better than a comparable Beretta or SIG? I'm not really sure. I own both and they both have their own benefits/detractions. It is a matter of personal preference.

To say a pistol's features or design is "outdate" is incorrect, not to mention outright ignoring what manufacturers are currently selling today.

 

[Badkarma 1]

Let me add I just compared the grip on my 5946 to my M&P.357SIG.
Yes the 5946 is slightly wider (mine has the flat backstrap) than the M&P, but other wise they feel just as good, same trigger reach, and the 5946 trigger is a lot more tactile, than the mushy M&P. Dale

 

[Silversmok3]

Hmmm.....like a slide mounted decocker?

Don't tell Beretta or SIG that....they're too busy making money selling pistols with those features.

Single stack 45 magazine?

Hmmm....don't tell the 1000 different 1911 manufacturers, they're too busy selling 1911s and the Marines are too busy buying them.


Let's face it....there really hasn't been anything new in the past 60+ years in gun design.

The reason most new designs are successful is because they're new.

Again, I carry an M & P everyday. I shoot it more than most folks on this board do. I still fail to see how it is BETTER than the 4506/4566. I never carried a 4006/5906 or an M & P 9/40, but based on my experiences with the M & P 45, I really have no desire to.

Is the 4006/5906 better than a comparable Beretta or SIG? I'm not really sure. I own both and they both have their own benefits/detractions. It is a matter of personal preference.

To say a pistol's features or design is "outdate" is incorrect, not to mention outright ignoring what manufacturers are currently selling today.

What manufacturers are currently selling are polymer framed handguns with shaped grips. Why? Because its the "IN" thing to sell.

We connoisseurs are a very rare and special breed of shooters. We actually shoot guns often enough to know what we like. Most of our brethren at the gun stores are NOT-and in order for a firm like S&W to generate a profit, they have to sell their guns to clients beyond the cognoscenti.

That sucks, and for what its worth I hate to even have to type this. But-and all of us have witnessed this to an extent- people are lemmings, and gun buyers are the worst lemmings of the bunch.

"Don't buy a Beretta. The Slide will Crack in TWO!"

"Guns with external safeties will get you killed!"

"Double action is impossible to run fast!"

"Police Agency X uses the Glock, so that's what I'm buying"

"Glock is the best, and metal frame guns are obsolete"

.....yadda, yadda , yadda. Its garbage, but that's the nasty business of market perception. People buy things because it makes them feel good, and gaining social approval is partly why the gun business is so profitable. Right now the "crowd" likes polymer frame guns with strikers and pillbox slides, so that's what companies focus on.

You could have the best handgun ever made, but if it doesn't conform to the trends of the moment its destined for history's scrap heap.If S&W released a 5906 today, it would be a modern day repeat of the Bren Ten debacle.

 

[Badkarma 1]

What manufacturers are currently selling are polymer framed handguns with shaped grips. Why? Because its the "IN" thing to sell.

We connoisseurs are a very rare and special breed of shooters. We actually shoot guns often enough to know what we like. Most of our brethren at the gun stores are NOT-and in order for a firm like S&W to generate a profit, they have to sell their guns to clients beyond the cognoscenti.

That sucks, and for what its worth I hate to even have to type this. But-and all of us have witnessed this to an extent- people are lemmings, and gun buyers are the worst lemmings of the bunch.

"Don't buy a Beretta. The Slide will Crack in TWO!"

"Guns with external safeties will get you killed!"

"Double action is impossible to run fast!"

"Police Agency X uses the Glock, so that's what I'm buying"

"Glock is the best, and metal frame guns are obsolete"

.....yadda, yadda , yadda. Its garbage, but that's the nasty business of market perception. People buy things because it makes them feel good, and gaining social approval is partly why the gun business is so profitable. Right now the "crowd" likes polymer frame guns with strikers and pillbox slides, so that's what companies focus on.

You could have the best handgun ever made, but if it doesn't conform to the trends of the moment its destined for history's scrap heap.If S&W released a 5906 today, it would be a modern day repeat of the Bren Ten debacle.

Aye, you hit the nail on the head! "Trendy" same as fad, or flash in the pan.
Now I do notice a lot if the customers who frequent the shops I do will actually test fit a particular pistol or two in their hand, but as you accurately stated its all a matter of what the recent celluloid hero had on the big screen, what the local cop was wearing in the diner while he was eating lunch, or what was splashed on the front page of a gun rag they just happened to pick up. Dale

 

[DpSyChO]

S&W made a Faustian bargain with the 3rd Gen designs. They knew the 2nd Gen guns felt like bricks , so they slimlined it on the sides and made the grips 1-piece to compensate. While S&W successfully narrowed the grips and made the gun "friendlier" then the old 3 digit guns, the sides are as flat as Rachel Maddow's chest.

I've been a fan of and wanting a 5906 for some time now, funds always seem to get directed to something else but I still lurk here from time to time.
I dont want to start a political discussion but the last thing I want to associate with a 5906 is Rachel Maddow's chest.

 

[SheffieldPD380]

Here is my view:

If the made the new 5906 with a polymer frame with a light rail that utilized standard 5906 holsters and magazines, you may have police department that may look at it. Think of all the Safariland 5906 holsters out there. They pretty much give them away on Ebay.

As far as the 6906, same thing Polymer frame, fits standard holsters and uses 6906 mags.

If the above was possible and they could price them say in line with Beretta 92FS, higher end Glocks, etc, they would have a winner.

 

[sw44spl]

yes I feel they should both were great guns.

 

[Silversmok3]

Here is my view:

If the made the new 5906 with a polymer frame with a light rail that utilized standard 5906 holsters and magazines, you may have police department that may look at it. Think of all the Safariland 5906 holsters out there. They pretty much give them away on Ebay.

As far as the 6906, same thing Polymer frame, fits standard holsters and uses 6906 mags.

If the above was possible and they could price them say in line with Beretta 92FS, higher end Glocks, etc, they would have a winner.

This would be a valid option -IF DA/SA pistols still piqued the interest of LE.The reason most police agencies carry striker fired polymer is $$$$$.

No,not just the acquisition cost of the gun.Police agencies are run by administrators who consider "Live Fire Practice" a budget liability instead of a training asset.With striker fired guns,the manual of arms is easy;grab gun,shoot it,re-holster.

With DA/SA or 1911 type handguns,actuation of a safety or decocker must be taught too.That eats into department payroll,which means less money and time can be spent training in the REAL lifesaving stuff, like sexual harassment awareness and filling out booking forms accurately.

That's the marketing reason why it would flop.Engineering a polymer 3rd gen would be a design nightmare.Part of the metal frame acts as a feed ramp AND locking mechanism for the barrel,which means a metal insert would need to be made for that part which just so happens to be the middle of the frame.

 

[SheffieldPD380]

I have to disagree with the Striker Fire and manual of arms training. I was an Asst Chief for two departments and was part of the panel to buy department guns. Manual of arms did not have anything to do with it. Price was it came down to.

When my first department got Glocks, Beretta came in second place at $100 higher (96 series).

About a year after we got the Glocks, S&W and Beretta both offered us gun for gun trade (equal trade). The only. reason we didn't was the cost of the holsters.

A big department just east of here has had Beretta 92 forever. Couple of years ago, they wanted to go to the .40. Cost was not an option. They brought a group of officers in (various sizes and experience) to shoot the .40s.

After reviewing 20-something pistols, they decided to stay with Beretta 92s. They just bought new ones.

That is the way to equip a department. However, in smaller depts, most of the time it is money

 

[JudgeColt]

Judgecolt does your loaded-chamber indicator look like this ( all in good fun btw )
View attachment 119351

Looking into the hole indicates whether the chamber is loaded. Isn't that a "loaded chamber indicator?"

4506517, just because old designs continue to be popular, does not mean they are the "better." It just means that enough people buy those designs to make producing them profitable. The classic 1911 design is an example of a great design that many find superior to other, newer designs. The long service history of the 1911 design lends a lot of cachet to the current guns being produced on that pattern. Beretta surely benefits from having the current service pistol to lend cachet to the commercial Model 92. The demand creates the supply.

I love the old designs, but prefer the new designs for their improvements in many areas. Others do not agree. To each his own.

 

[GoodMornin]

Like I said all in good fun, and it's what "I'm" comfortable with and prefer that than something that protrudes even if just a little. Some people try to get custom melt jobs to make sure there pistols are as smooth as possible for a draw. Mine isn't like that but I prefer what I have.