Smith & Wesson SD9 VE Review

[Clobbersauras]

I posted this in a thread on another forum and thought I would share here. I will be posting updates randomly as I put this thing through it's paces. I'll be running it through a 2000 round challenge (2000 rounds without additional lubrication or cleaning) and post results here.

I basically purchased this pistol as a winter diversion from my competition guns just to keep me motivated to continue shooting. It was also dirt cheap. I paid $449 - taxes and shipping included - brand new with a third mag.


The gun is attractive and appears well made. The satin finished slide is very nice. The front sight is steel and measures .137. The rear sight is plastic of some sort. Honestly, I don't really know how to feel about that. I guess I would prefer steel, but out of curiosity regarding the durability of the rear sight, I racked the slide half a dozen times off the rear sight on my work bench. Then off my shoe, belt and holster. It worked fine and didn't ding up the sight any. It didn't move, so I guess I'm ok with it.

The mags seem well constructed.

They are crimped to only allow 10 rounds and are quite a bit shorter than B92 mags.

They fit like a glove in the mag holder I had made for my 92. Bonus!

The frame is less shiney than others I have seen. It has the best texturing of any plastic frame pistol I have handled. The front and rear back straps are sharply textured and the side panels are grippy. Of course they end the texture below the mag release, which is frustrating. I don't understand why gun manufacturers refuse to texture the frame up where it is needed; higher up on the grip panels!

The SD9 is quite small compared to the 92 D Centurion. The pics don't do it justice, but it is slim, compact, and light in comparison. The grip length is quite short, but the base plate on the mag sticks out a little farther than I am used to. I will be repurposing an old holster for it.

One added bonus is the mag well. It is nicely beveled and I really can't wait to practice reloads with it. It is actually larger than the beveled mag well on my Elite II. It measures .984 from bevel to bevel, where the Elite II measures .908. An added bonus!

The trigger pull out of the box was approximately 8.5lbs on my trigger gauge. In comparison, my 92D is just under 8lbs. I really don't mind the feel of it, but it is a little bit crunchy. Looking at the trigger bar and it's engagement surface, it looks like it could use a bit of polishing to clean it up some.

I measured th SD9 trigger length vs the 92D by measuring the distance from the face of the trigger to the leading edge of the frame.

The 92D measured .920

The SD9 measured .649 (about 70% of the Beretta)

Both triggers broke near the end of the total travel. Note the "speed bump" type nubbins on the trigger and frame of the SD9.

Reset of the SD9 is .524.

Rest on the 92D is much longer at .903.

So the SD9 VE trigger has quite a bit shorter length of travel than the true DAO trigger on the 92D. But, it is still rather long and reasonably heavy. I'm not sure what that means, if anything, but it's not a super short trigger stroke by any means. Reset is pretty long on the SD9 VE and it will be interesting to see what kind of splits I can get with this thing. One huge benefit of the SD9 trigger is that is doesn't go totally dead when you pull the trigger in dry fire. It doesn't reset without working the slide, but it springs out to full length, allowing you to work the trigger in dry fire. The pull without the reset is about 5lbs on my gauge so it is actually kinda useful, especially in dry practice. I'm pretty happy about that actually.

That's it for now. I'll post more discoveries as I make them.[/QUOTE]

 

[Clobbersauras]

I couldn't resist doing some dry practice with the gun after 20 minutes of dry practice with my Elite II.

The SD9 points a little high on the presentation to the target. It's not as bad as a Glock but it is noticeable.

The grip is small for sure. I have no chance of getting any contact at the rear of the grip with my support hand, my fingers are just too long (this is why, for all those gun designers who may be reading this derpesque post, you need to put texturing on the grip above the mag release!!!). That is the only part of the grip, besides under the trigger guard, that I can get any contact with my support hand.

I did some reloads with my competition gear. The generous mag well made sub one second reloads rather easy for a compact pistol. I got very close to .8 a couple times. The mag well is very generously sized for the small mags. The mag release spring feels weak and mushy. I didn't have any problems with it but it was noticable for it's lack of tension. There is also no tension on the mag whatsoever when it is in the gun and the mag does not spring out under tension as it does with my Elite II. This took a few reloads to get used to as I had a few instances where I beat the mag coming out of the gun and had to double clutch before I could get the fresh mag inserted.

All in all, it was a pretty favourable session.

 

[Clobbersauras]

More random musings:

The internals of this thing seem nicely machined. Those of you that own Glocks will notice the similarities. You have to pull the trigger to disassemble it (comes apart exactly like a Glock).

They barrel and RSA are nice too. They use a flat wire spring in the RSA so it's longevity should be very good. Guide rod is plastic.

The locking block seems small. The frame rails are small as well. I have no clue what the green and red bands are for.

The trigger bar and whatever the trigger bar rubs on (technical term) looked to be stamped metal of some sort. Note the grainy texture on the edges, I think that is what is causing the gritty feel in the trigger.

The mag release spring is a leaf style, which maybe explains why it feels so mushy.

The rear sight, though it is plastic, seems well done and fits with no gaps.

I used an old IWB Beretta Elite II holster as a project to make a holster for the SD9. The key is proper preparation!

A few minutes moving a heat gun around it opened up the holster nicely. Then I bubba pressed it...the cooler was needed for stabalization(patent pending).

I need to do some clean up around the trigger guard and mess with the belt attachment a bit but it seems to work good and retention is fine. Yes it is ugly and crude, but it was cheap, which just felt right for this project.

 

[Clobbersauras]

I fixed the sights to my liking tonight. The SD9 comes with three dots sights for shootin' thangs more gooder....

Thanksfully, it's an easy two minute fix.

I actually find this particular paint brighter than fiber in every lighting condition other than bright sunlight.

 

[Greenhorse six]

Neat trick with the sights , where do you get that paint from ?

 

[Clobbersauras]

Neat trick with the sights , where do you get that paint from ?

I think it was a local craft store, Michael's maybe?

The trick is to rough up the original white dot with the 3/32 drill bit. Just a few turns by hand will do to take the top layer off the paint so the new paint will stick. Don't remove all the original paint, just a little bit off the top layer. You need the old paint for the new paint to stick to. Then use the small nail to dab paint onto the white dot/hole. Use the Q-Tip to whipe excess paint off the front sight and leave only the new paint in the hole.

After a day or two, you might need to apply more paint as the first coat dries and contracts. Then it should last thousands and thousands of rounds. A bit of water on the end of a Q-Tip will clean any carbon off it.

 

[phin11]

I could never get used used to the trigger on mine and random reset travel. Sold after 300rnds but got back what I paid . Otherwise it was a well built pistol . I later got a Walther ppx I thoroughly enjoy.

 

[Clobbersauras]

I could never get used used to the trigger on mine and random reset travel. Sold after 300rnds but got back what I paid . Otherwise it was a well built pistol . I later got a Walther ppx I thoroughly enjoy.

Well, I actually bought the pistol because of the "poor" trigger.

I'm a big fan of DAO's and learned that the SD9 VE trigger is quite unique amoung strikers in that instead of a fully tensioned striker it has a 1/3 tensioned striker and essentially a "DAO style" striker trigger with an almost full length reset.

 

[B]

Those things are so cheap lately it's hard not to buy one.

 

[Uisge]

I put an apex trigger in one and it was greatly improved, also added the metal rear sight off an m&p.

 

[Clobbersauras]

I got the gun out about a month ago. Results:

253 rounds. 200 rounds remanufactured 124g, and 53 rounds AE 124.
Stoppages: 9 ( all failures of the slide to lock back due to improper grip).
Malfunctions: 0

I wanted to run some standard drills through the SD9. I ran FAST's, and "The Test".

More info about the FAST test here:

http://pistol-training.com/fastest

More information about "The Test" in the video below. I ran it a little different than Mr. Hackathorn in that I ran it from the holster under a polo, so time constraints were a little tougher.

I did numerous 25 yard B8's and some 2 inch dots, and had a mini popper to ring as well.

Here is a video of the FAST's and "The Test" runs. The first FAST was the first six rounds I have ever shot out of the gun and was run cold (had not shot for a week or so). The "Test" was run from the holster under a polo shirt and I only ran two of them.

Pic of the first 25 yard B8 I shot.... The gun shoots six inches high and 6 - 8 inches to the left. I used a drive the dot hold. I'm a low 90's B8 shooter with my competition guns.

After a bunch of frustration at 25 yards I reluctantly benched the gun. This was the result of holding the edge of the front sight at the bottom of the B8. Not good.

I think there are a few things going on at 25 yards. First, the front sight is NOT a target sight. It covers all of the black of the B8. Second, the sights are not regulated well, which tends to make group shooting (for me anyway) virtually impossible. Third, there's that trigger.

At ten yards and in the gun performed well. Once I got used to trigger and the recoil characteristics of the gun it was quite fun to shoot. The remanufactured ammo I had was brutally snappy, so much so that I was getting tired of shooting the gun. The last 53 rounds of the AE 124g (my preferred ammo) made the gun a joy to shoot. I did some berm shooting to see how low I could get my splits. I got down to .19, with most split times between .21 and .23. So it definitely not the fastest trigger on the planet.

Things I liked:
1) The gun tracked well under recoil. Sights returned fast and the gun didn't bounce or wobble much under recoil.
2) I quite liked the sight picture, even though the sights aren't well regulated.
3) The trigger was decent for what the gun is. I didn't feel like I had to really work had to get the gun to perform at 10 yards and in and I didn't mind the trigger at 25 yards.
4) The grip texture really is superb.
5) That mag well.

Things I disliked:
1) The slide felt crunchy and gritty when loading the gun. Seriously, racking the slide with a full mag felt like running the slide back and forth over a gravel road. I don't know why it feels that way....but it does, even though the gun is thoroughly lubed. I don't notice any gritty sensation when firing the gun, but loading it is seriously cringeworthy.

2) The sight regulation. Obviously this is a problem. I will drift the front sight, as I don't want to mess with the polymer rear sight, and try to get it at least centered. I doubt I will buy a different height front sight at least in the short term.

3) The slide lock is very easy to depress when shooting the gun at speed. I had to concentrate on my grip to make sure I didn't depress it. A training issue for sure, but frustrating nonetheless. You can see in my third FAST where I had the run the slide after the 2X5 shots, obviously adding unnecessary time. I'll work on it.

I will have more time with the gun in the coming weeks.

EDiT: I figured out why it is shooting left. The front sight is quite noticeably right of center in the dovetail. I was able to drift it with a sight pusher and hope to test it again soon.

 

[Canuck44]

Great review and well written ....thanks.

Take Care

Bob

 

[Clobbersauras]

^^Thank you, I appreciate it.

 

[Ganderite]

Sounds like all it needs is a Apex kit for the trigger to make it a good, cheap gun.

Once it is tuned up, does the cost approach a M&P 9 2.0?

 

[drill702]

Will the frame flex when the slide is off?

 

[Clobbersauras]

Sounds like all it needs is a Apex kit for the trigger to make it a good, cheap gun.

Once it is tuned up, does the cost approach a M&P 9 2.0?

I don't really have any plans to update any parts at this point. I want to test the gun for what it is, not for what it isn't. I bought the gun because of the low cost and the trigger. I love double action only triggers due to their inherent safety features over other traditional trigger designs; namely length of pull and the ability to thumb check a hammer while holstering.

The SD9 is an interesting striker design in that it does not have a fully tensioned striker. It has a 1/3 tensioned striker and a full length reset. So as striker fired pistols go, it has more DAO characteristics than does a typical striker design. The trigger design also makes it very drop safe, which, as the Sig P320 has shown us, seems to be less of a consideration for gun manufacturers these days as everyone races to produce a striker gun with the lightest and shortest out of the box trigger.

 

[Clobbersauras]

Will the frame flex when the slide is off?

Not that I have noticed. It is plastic, so if I griped it hard enough I'm sure I could get it to flex some. Why do you ask?

 

[doc25]

I'll add my 2cents. I have one and have installed the apex spring kit in it. The spring kit improved it a bit but I was getting ftf's after talking and sending pics to apex they suggested I re-install the stock striker spring. Problem solved. The sights are decent for the self defense type shooting but leave something to be desired for more accurate shooting. As I understand it though the pistol will take m&p sights.

I've owned a few glock 17's and other than the trigger the glock isn't really any better. Think I have over 1000 rounds through this pistol and like it. I held my sons g19 g3 yesterday and much prefer the feel of the sd9ve. I have large hands.

Mine fits well in a stock fobus holster for the m&p 9.

Good write up! Keep on updating as you go.

 

[drill702]

Not that I have noticed. It is plastic, so if I griped it hard enough I'm sure I could get it to flex some. Why do you ask?[/QUOTE
I heard the frames are flimsy .

 

[Canuck44]

Not that I have noticed. It is plastic, so if I griped it hard enough I'm sure I could get it to flex some. Why do you ask?[/QUOTE
I heard the frames are flimsy .

Probably from a Glock fanboy or from somebody who heard it too. I can't see company producing a flimsy polymer frame. For what reason. The polymer frames cost next to nothing to produce.

Take Care

Bob