looking for a plinker and one that would make for good ccw.

sig p6 or one of the s&w 5906 (single stack) police trade ins.

what say you?

I voted for P6, but only if it had some kind of replacement grips and was certain to feed hollowpoint ammunition.

Wow, lots of differences here.

5906
double stack (15)
mag safety
slide mounted safety
all steel construction (38oz)

P6
single stack (8)
no mag safety
frame mounted decocker
aluminum frame (26oz)

For CCW, I think you should go P6. Get one produced in July of 1989 or after (dates stamped on the slides) and it should feed HPs. They changed the feed ramp angle by 2 degrees in June of 1989 in order to faciliate HP feeding.

The 5906 is far and away the better gun and I say this as a Sig fan. It's far more durrable, much higher capasity, accuracy is good on both guns, much longer service life and far more reliable with all types of ammo.

3rd gen Smiths are extreemly under rated. I feel they are a better line of pistols then the Sig line.

God info! I have never seen this or heard of this. I own 18 3rd gen Smiths and all 18 run perfect.  Did S&W fix these defective parts for you?

Sig P6 - The older ones run well.

Mike

Not with any decent hollow points.

For ccw the Sig, although I do love the 3rd gen smith's

Have owned a P6 and assorted Smiths.  No longer own a P6, but do have other SIGs.  Nothing wrong with the P6 per se but it's a bit bulky for a single stack nine, good quality spare mags can be hard to find and expensive, and hollow points can be an issue.  It's not all that much smaller than a 228 (which I do own and was the biggest reason I ditched the P6).  At their original price the P6's were a bargain, present prices seem to be in the upper 300 low 400 range and at that price point there are lots of other choices.  While I didn't hate the P6, I never really warmed to it either.  

I really like Smith nines and have had excellent luck with them.  The 5900 series is not exactly petite;  if CCW is high on your list you may want to check out the 6900 series or even the single stack 3900's.  Mags and leather are plentiful and generally fair priced.  

Accuracy, reliability, general overall quality I rate as equal.  Price is probably about a wash in the present market.  Availibility definitely favors the Smith.  Lots of them still around, P6's have dried up in recent months.  I voted Smith.

If possible try both.  If one fits better than the other go with that one.  Nothing wrong with either.

P6
slide mounted decockers suck ass!

The 225 fits my hand better than any other pistol I've handled.  I would get one now before it gets much harder to find one.

For a plinker in the same price range ($350), why not just get a used 2nd gen Glock 17 or 19?  Cheap mags, cheap parts, tons of accessories, better reliability, better durability.  You really can't lose with a used 9mm Glock.

both

update ....... got me a 1980 made p6 in very nice shape!

i am very pleased with it and will update with a range report.

Cool!  Genuine cold war era "Made in W. Germany" marked Sig goodness.  

I have one that is mfg dated 8/82...which I couldn't pass up since I was an exchange student in Germany when it was made!

Who still has P6's for sale?

My P6 didnt feed HP and had extraction issues with pretty much all ammo.  It was not the mags, I had four of them.  All factory.


It wasnt very accurate in my hands and the trigger sucked, and the grips were kind of crappy.  It concealed ok.



I traded it in on an Hk P7.  Much happier now.

I figured that once I had grips, sights, and a polished feedramp (for HP) done to the P6, it would still be ugly and I'd have $500+ into it.  The $350 does not sound like such a value at that point.  So I threw more money at the problem, and now I can be an Hk snob


I did vote P6, because it carries better than the S&W, but there are some nice 3rd gen S&W pistols for carry.