What's the best 9mm Carry Semi-Auto- Dept changed policies-help!

B

bls72bmw

Member
Joined
Aug 28, 2013
Messages
27
Reaction score
3
Guys, my department changed policies and the options for personal carry are opened up a bit. I don't like the new style plastic M&P Series, but I've handled some 3913s, 908s, etc, that felt quite nice.

For S&Ws I'm more of a revolver guy, so school me in the best choice for a small, single stack 9mm semi auto- I HATE DA ONLY so it has to be SA/DA, safety lever up top is not an issue.

I understand the 3913TSW was one of the last good ones? IS it that much better?
And what else is there, it's tough to find info on the older series pistols now that the M&P has taken over.

Thanks gents!

Oh yes, needs to be able to handle/feed 124gr Speer GDHP +Ps fairly well- not a 'steady diet' but enough that I'll keep fresh with it, so let's say 100/month.
 
Last edited:
Register to hide this ad
There were some very nice 3913s around about a year or so ago. They were turn ins from the CA Department of Corrections. I don't know how many there were, but several members (including me) bought them from various sources. They are in really good shape. My thought would be if you can find one of those, it would make a very good off duty firearm. There are also some 908s guns floating around. That's the stainless version of the 908 Value Line gun.

The CS9 in either blue/black or stainless is nice too, but they are kind of rare and pricey.

The 3914 is the blue alloy/steel slide version of the 3913. There were a lot fewer of them made than the 3913, so they are harder to find.

Any of them should be able to handle +P rounds, but there are folks on the forum that will know more about that than do I.
 
Being a revolver guy, I'm surprised you don't like the DA only? I had a 3953 issued to me, and when the agency went to Glocks, I was bummed.

I found the DA only trigger of the 3953 to be very easy to work, and the pistol was very accurate and reliable. It was an all around great single stack 9mm pistol.

They may be a bit hard to find, but you might want to try and locate one, and give it a try.
 
I did handle a DA Only SW. Big problem for me. I am used to Sig DA/SA trigger pull, and when firing the DA Only SW, there is a distinct "click" reset after about 1/4 release of the trigger mechanism to reset. I tried it out and it became an issue immediately- meaning if you did not go ALL THE WAY BACK OUT to full "revolver mode" of rolling the trigger forward vs the "reset-prep" of a DA/SA you short stroked your trigger.

Not something I want to deal with in the least.
But thanks for asking.

The CS9 Looks pretty handy, what a nice gun. Don't know why they didn't sell, size of a Glock with a real trigger. Might be an interesting piece.
Thanks all for the info, keep it coming.
 
The 3913TSW without the rail is a superb carry pistol. I liked it so much, I bought another and several extra magazines. Carry, handling and operation are excellent.:cool:
 
Is the rail removable from the 3913 TSW? Or do you have to find one without it?
 
RedCardinal said:
The 3913TSW without the rail is a superb carry pistol. I liked it so much, I bought another and several extra magazines. Carry, handling and operation are excellent.:cool:
Click to expand...

I agree. I would have mentioned it as a possibility, but there aren't a lot of them out there. People don't tend to sell them once they get one. Plus the magazines can be hard to find.
 
By "department" do you mean LE? If so I'm surprised you want a single stack. You might check out a 12-round, double-stack 6906. It's DA/SA with cocked-and-locked option. It will feed rocks if you can fit them in the magazine.
 
If I were in your same situation I would choose either a 3913 or an HK USP. Either are fine choices but of course you should spend some time with any potential new carry piece before diving in.
 
Along with Max i'll cast my vote for the Sig225 9mm single stack. Or the near exact former LE German/Swiss Police Sig P6. If it was a revolver you were looking for it would be a S&W recommendation for sure.
 
SMSgt said:
By "department" do you mean LE? If so I'm surprised you want a single stack. You might check out a 12-round, double-stack 6906. It's DA/SA with cocked-and-locked option. It will feed rocks if you can fit them in the magazine.
Click to expand...

+1 to that^^^^! I have a 6904 that feeds rounds like they are greased...it has NEVER failed to feed, fire and eject. Having said that I also have a 3913TSW no rail. I love the gun and it has also been 100%. Although I think the TSW is a great CC gun for private use I'm not sure I would want the shorter grip for duty use...I would stick with the regular 3913.

If it were me and I was looking for a duty type Smith outside of the M&P's (love those as well!) I would take a serious look at the 6904/06. Same great qualities of the 3913/14 but in a double stack 12 rd mag. Grip is wider but the rest is the same. Here's a 6904 (my usual carry gun) and a 3913TSW pre-rail.

edit: SMSgt, I'm not sure you meant "cocked and locked" on these guns...if so I'm missing something.

Let us know what you come up with.:)
 

Attachments

  • TSW 007.jpg
    TSW 007.jpg
    93.9 KB · Views: 117
  • 6904 & Shorty 9 001.jpg
    6904 & Shorty 9 001.jpg
    62.4 KB · Views: 122
Last edited:
If it doesn't absolutely have to be a single stack I'm going to suggest the 6906 as well. The only 9mm I ever owned that I actually liked
 
NOT SURE I'M GETTING YOUR?

If it's an on duty gun why go small and low capacity? if concealability is needed a sig 239 9mm single stack holds 8 in the mag I believe. I have the 239 40 cal & it holds 7 and they are great guns, but for open carry on duty I'd definitely go for the sig 226 9mm dbl stack with 15, both are da/sa. If you want a bug that can use the same mags as the primary than go glock.
 
Are we talking uniformed duty use or plain clothes/off duty carry?

If we're talking uniform use I'd look at the 5906 TSW. It's a full size double stack 9mm with a rail to mount a light. JMO, of course, but a compact, low capacity gun is not suitable for duty carry. I wouldn't argue one bit if the chief told me today I had to turn my tactical tupperware in and carry a 5906. In fact, that model with my Surefire X300 attached would be a very nice setup. Ditto for the 4006 or 4566 if other calibers are options.



Sent from my iPhone 4s using Tapatalk
 
If it was open duty carry I'd go back to my M645 or newer brothers 45XX. But I believe the OP was referring to Off Duty carry. I realize there are fine double stack compacts & hold more rounds if one actually got into an off duty situation where back up is minutes away. But because of my small hands & the bulk, I'd go with a single stack 3913.
I used to qualify with my 645 & 39-2...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

BB57
What makes a modern pistol “better”?
4 5 6
Replies
106
Views
5K
LVSteve
LVSteve
B
Introduction-LONG post warning
2 3
Replies
43
Views
2K
ISCS Yoda
ISCS Yoda
D
Korth Mongoose Range Report (3")
2
Replies
31
Views
6K
Protocall_Design
P
D
  • Locked
**SOLD** 3" Korth / Nighthawk Mongoose .357 Accessories & Ammo
Replies
2
Views
1K
lowriderfxr
lowriderfxr
BB57
Beretta 80X
Replies
5
Views
3K
ISCS Yoda
ISCS Yoda

Latest posts

Back
Top