Square trigger guard on 5906

SW_shooter

Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2012
Messages
857
Reaction score
609
Location
TX
I've wondered for a while, was the square trigger guard before or after the rounded one? Is one more sought after or valuable for some reason? I don't carry so I'm not up one things like this issue.:rolleyes:
 
Register to hide this ad
If its like my 669 I believe the Square came before the round type......personally I like the square better...for function, not looks...
 
Once upon a time , a Smith and Wesson engineer discovered a little known equation dating back to Leonardo Da Vinci's time which established that the longer a gun's trigger guard was, the more accurate the piece would be.Then one day someone found out the legend was bunk and rather than admit that-which would hurt sales-the errant employee was quietly dismissed, and the trigger guards were switched to the curved variant under the cover of night.

Or so the legend goes, in any case.


In real life, the difference is just appearance.
 
And as far as one being more sought after than the other, it's mostly personal preference I think. I would never buy one with a squared trigger guard, or adjustable sights either for that matter...but that's just me.
 
I personally don't care for the square guard, it would have to be a unbelieveable deal for me to get one. There are those that prefer them, but they seem in the minority.
 
I originally did not care at all for the square guard, but for some reason I have now grown accustomed to it. I guesss I think it gives the 5906 even more of a "classic" look to it.
 
I was told by a LE rep way back in the day that the hooked guard was added because several large police department specs/bids required a trigger guard that could be used to press against a barricade for support. Which does sound very 1980's to me.
 
Square trigger guards seem to be back in vogue these days with a few manufacturers.

Beretta 92FS (rounded bottom, square front); Sig P229, 2022, etc.
 
Last edited:
Whatever the reason for it you saw the square guard show up about halfway through the second generation guns with the introduction of the 469/669 "mini gun" and 645. It carried over for the first 3-4 years of third generation guns.
 
Thanks for the replies, appreciate the input and knowledge. I bought a 469 with square trigger guard and really like how it looks. I just saw the 5906 with sq guard for sale and wondered. Something about it is kind of cool to me.

Pic of 469
 

Attachments

  • 2012-04-26_16-34-28_156.jpg
    2012-04-26_16-34-28_156.jpg
    59.4 KB · Views: 138
they can't be all that bad! Glorps have da squares too! My 4506 has one; it's not that big of a deal to me, but I believethey came first.
 
I have both...and like them both, but am planning to sell one to get something different. My use is target shooting only, but I find them pretty much equal. Any suggestions on which one to keep?

20160308_194736-1-1 (Custom).jpg
 
My use is target shooting only, but I find them pretty much equal. Any suggestions on which one to keep?

Assuming you didn't do a trigger job on the forged parts on the earlier pistol, I would expect the later one with the MIM parts to have a marginally smoother trigger. That would give it a leg up for me, though obviously the MIM-haters might disagree. There's also better parts availability for the MIM stuff and probably those Novak sights, too.
 
I bought a S&W 669 in 1986 with the square trigger guard, it didn't come any other way. Bought a S&W 5906 in 1988, again had the square trigger guard. At one point in the 1980's the trend for a lot of shooters was to place the index finger of the support hand on the front of the trigger guard (I never shot that way). Any holster fitted for the square trigger guard also worked for the same model with the later round trigger guard
 
I have both...and like them both, but am planning to sell one to get something different. My use is target shooting only, but I find them pretty much equal. Any suggestions on which one to keep?

View attachment 229524


I also have one of each, and can NOT condone the selling of a S&W 3rd Gen.[emoji6]

Seeing that it's just a personal preference, sell the one you like the least and or brings the highest $.[emoji106]
 
Fashion of the time. IIRC some of the top IPSC shooters found they shot better by putting the index finger of the supporting hand in front of the trigger guard so it became "chic" to have a squared off trigger guard with checkering.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top