| |
|
|
|
|
 |
The Smith & Wesson SD40
by Paul Rackley, Associate Online Shooting Editor
Since the early 1990s, firearm manufacturers have been producing polymer semi-auto pistols in a variety of calibers for both law enforcement and self-defense markets. These “plastic” pistols have become highly popular over the years because of their simplicity and reliability.
Many law enforcement agencies are issuing some type of striker-fired polymer handgun because the guns are accurate, affordable and, most importantly, easy to use, which also translates well for the home-defense gun owner.
Smith & Wesson has been covering both the high and low ends of the polymer-gun price spectrum with its M&P and Sigma lines, respectively. Then, during the 2010 NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits in Charlotte, S&W introduced a mid-range polymer pistol to meet the needs of the home and self-defense shooter.
“If you look at our polymer pistol line, we had the Sigma, which was a price-point polymer, and we had the full-featured M&P duty gun,” said Jim Unger, S&W product manager. “There was a $200 gap between the two and a huge difference in features. We wanted a gun that hit in the middle and provided the features needed for self-defense.”
Self-defense is the entire theme of the SD Series as it’s available in two effective self-defense calibers—9 mm and .40 S&W—along with multiple features popular with the self-defense crowd such as a 4-inch barrel, Trijicon front sight, white-dot rear sights, loaded chamber indicator and an accessory rail for attaching a light, laser or even a bayonet. The SD also comes with a black Melonite finish to reduce glare, which according to S&W provides a surface hardness of 68 on the Rockwell scale.
The grips are fairly slim and ergonomic with a good angle—18 degrees—for both point shooting and aimed fire with aggressive diamond-shaped checkering on the front and backstraps and rough texture on the sides. Serrations on the slide are deep and slightly angled toward the muzzle providing a good gripping surface for chambering a round. Just below the steel slide is a textured finger locator to help shooters keep their fingers off the trigger until the pistol is lined up on the target and ready to fire.
Both the SD9 and SD40 have an unloaded weight of 22.7 ounces and come with two high-capacity magazines—the 9 mm version holds 16+1 rounds while the 40 S&W contains 14+1 rounds—or two California-legal 10+1 round mags. Both versions come with S&W’s lifetime service policy.
While the night sight, checkering and rail are all good for both carry and home-defense guns, according to Unger, the most interesting feature is the Self Defense Trigger. The SDT was designed to provide a smooth, consistent trigger pull every time, which enhances confidence by improving accuracy for the user.
“The self-defense trigger is light enough to be accurate, but not too light,” said Unger. “The front sight is nice, but having a trigger designed for self-defense makes all the difference in the world to people fighting for their life.”
The SD series contains no manual safety. Instead, its only visible safety is on the bottom half of the trigger, which must be depressed before the striker can be engaged. A sear prevents the striker from hitting the primer unless the trigger is depressed. The striker is brought fully to the rear with each trigger pull before releasing and striking the primer. Because of the safety, the trigger has a slight amount of rearward play before engaging the striker, but once engaged, the trigger pull becomes very even, breaking at just over 8 pounds on the test model.
In accuracy testing, the SD40 performed OK. Since the gun is designed for self-defense, accuracy was checked using Cor Bon, Federal, Hornady and Winchester self-defense rounds applying the American Rifleman standard of five groups of five shots from a bench at 25 yards. In addition, I shot one 10-round group at 25 yards with each load. All shot well with the Federal 135-grain Hydro-Shok performing best by averaging just under 4 inches in the five 5-shot groups. The 10-shot groups obviously opened up, but easily stayed within the limits of a self-defense grouping.
In addition to accuracy testing, I decided a self-defense handgun needed to run through some self-defense drills to learn its true potential. To do so, I dimmed the range lights to perform low-light drills both with and without an attached light.
With a SureFire X300 Weapon Light, it was easy to see both the target and the sights, and the added weight on the front helped with muzzle rise providing for faster follow-up shots. Of course, since the SD40 comes with a Trijicon front sight, the real test was conducted without a light. In even the faintest light or pure darkness, the tritium front sight was clearly visible. At the same time, the white-dot rear sights stood out fairly well if there was some light, which provided a good sight picture for firing. However, as the room became darker, the rear sights were practically useless. Since I wouldn’t fire at an unknown target anyway, this wasn’t very concerning.
Throughout it all, the SD40 never malfunctioned with more than 300 rounds fired in a variety of both speed and action drills. This bodes well, as the most important requirement of a self-defense handgun is reliability.
Overall, the SD40 performed well. Reliability, feel and function were terrific, while accuracy was just acceptable. I didn’t get great groups with and no matter how I shot—bench, standing or drills—or the type of ammunition used, the SD40 shot low. At 25 yards, the difference between aim and shot was about 3 to 4 inches. As I decreased the range, the difference obviously lessened, but regardless of range, the SD40 shot low enough in my hands to be apparent.
The SD has a solid feel to it with a good grip angle. It’s easy to use and has many features of the M&P along with a much better trigger than the Sigma. However, S&W claims the SD Series is not a combination of the two.
“There is not a lot of commonality between the two in reality,” said Unger. “When describing the polymer guns to dealers, we lay out the features of all three and compare them to one another. This was a fresh sheet of paper.”
Manufacturer: Smith & Wesson, www.smithandwesson.com
Caliber: 9 mm and .40 S&W (tested)
Action: striker-fired semi-auto pistol
Frame: polymer lower, steel upper
Finish: Black Melonite
Barrel: 4”
Rifling: 1:18.75” right-hand twist
Magazine: two high-capacity (16+1 9 mm, 14+1 .40 S&W) or two 10+1
Sights: Trijicon front, white-dot rear
Trigger Pull: 8 lbs., 2 oz.
Overall Length: 7.1”
Width: 1.29”
Weight: 22.79 oz.
Accessories: hardcase, two magazines, instruction manual and safety lock
Suggested Retail Price: $530
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Concealed Carry: The Strong Side
by Paul Rackley, Associate Online Shooting Editor
As reflected by increases in firearm sales and CWP applications, more Americans are expressing their 2nd Amendment right to bear arms. This also means more people are now trying to determine the best way to carry a concealed handgun.
There are multiple factors that influence carry method such as the handgun’s size and type, the person’s body shape and clothing worn, and the carrier’s imagination. However, there are a few accepted methods such as ankle, shoulder and strong side. Each of these has its advocates, but strong side (high on the waist near the strong hand) is the preferred method of many experts including American Rifleman Field Editor Wiley Clapp: “There are many ways to carry a gun, but the one that makes the most sense is high on the waist.”
Holster Choices
There are three types of commonly used strong-side holsters: inside-the-waistband (IWB), outside-the-waistband (OWB) and belly band. Each type provides varying degrees of concealment and accessibility.
IWB—Provides good cover via shirt or coat while keeping a handgun accessible, but requires an overly large waistband to allow fit. IWB works best with medium-sized, narrow handguns.
OWB—Keeps a handgun easily accessible, but requires a long cover garment to keep the holster from showing when bending or reaching. OWB allows carry of larger handguns.
Belly Band—Deepest cover for strong side, but handgun must be accessed by pulling up or ripping open the shirt. Belly band carry is best for small to medium polymer handguns as the gun is close to the body and susceptible to sweat.
The Good and the Bad
Regardless of the type of holster, strong-side carry has some definite advantages over other methods. First and foremost, the handgun is easily accessible. There is no reaching across or around the body as the hand is already near the gun. Another strong-side advantage is that it allows the use of the weak arm for close-quarters defense without interfering with the draw. Most importantly, the strong-side draw can be simplified to its most basic motions, which, with practice, creates a very smooth, fast draw. And practice is more readily available since many gun ranges limit how shooters can train from retention (holster), if allowed at all, to strong side for safety.
Of course, every carry method has its disadvantages. Strong-side carry has three distinct problems for shooters, the most significant of which is that it is difficult, if not impossible, to start with a hand on the gun. Lifting the cover garment for the draw almost always reveals the gun to potential threats. The other issues with strong-side carry are “printing” and car carry. Care must be taken to not print (when the cover garment tightens and shows the imprint of the gun) when bending over or reaching for an item. This is especially a problem in summer months when light, airy shirts are the norm. Car carry is difficult because with the gun on the strong side, the cover garment and seatbelt combine to make drawing the gun nearly impossible, but it can be conducted with forethought and practice.
Draw Strong
There are four basic motions to drawing a handgun from the strong side: the grip, the pull, the rock and the extend. Conducted properly, these motions lend themselves to the fast, smooth strong-side draw.
The Grip: Throw the elbow straight back, bring the hand back and grip the handgun firmly with the supporting fingers while keeping the trigger finger straight along the slide, outside of the holster.
The Pull: Pull the gun up and completely out of the holster keeping the trigger finger straight along the slide.
The Rock: Once the gun is clear of the holster, rock the barrel forward toward the target.
The Extend: Extend the gun into shooting position while bringing the support hand up and forward to the gun.
Draw Often
Drawing under stress requires muscle memory created through training and practice, especially if drawing from under a vest, shirt or other cover garment.
The best way to perfect the draw is slowly on a live-fire range with a partner watching for safety and mistakes. Start with smooth, deliberate motions and slowly build up speed. When practicing, keep in mind that slow is smooth and smooth is fast. Build on a smooth draw and speed will come.
If unable to conduct training on a range for lack of time, ammo or availability, you can practice in the privacy of the home. First, unload the firearm and remove all ammunition from the area. Then, practice drawing with slow, sure motions in front of a mirror while watching for mistakes. This will not provide the full experience, but it will improve your draw and provide the muscle memory to make the draw when the chips are down.
Regardless of the carry method, one of the most important factors of making a smooth, practiced draw is consistency in both the motion and the method. Acclaimed holster maker John Bianchi once doled out some excellent advice for concealed-carry advocates: “The same gun, in the same place, all the time, makes the reactive draw second nature.”
Strong-Side Photo Gallery
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
November 05, 2013While walking down the sidewalk, a military service member was assaulted by a man he did not know. As he was walking around 3 p.m., he was approached by a stranger, who proceeded to verbally assault him before physically striking him in the head. The attack was reportedly unprovoked. The service member, also a concealed-carry permit holder, pulled out his firearm detaining the assailant until police arrived and arrested him. (The Olympian, Olympia, WA, 5/31/13)
A man who authorities say was hallucinating and talking about zombies broke into an Orange County home where he was fatally shot by the homeowner. The couple awoke to hear the intruder screaming in their backyard and the wife called 911 as her husband confronted him. The intruder threatened the couple and broke into the home by shattering a rear sliding glass door. The husband then fatally shot the intruder. (Fresnobee.com, Yorba Linda, CA, 10/29/13)
From The Armed Citizen Archives
October 1983: A would-be rapist awoke Claudine Hale in her Baltimore apartment, grabbed her by the throat and threatened to harm the children sleeping in the same room. Hale struggled with the assailant, then managed to reach a handgun, which she used to halt the attack. He fled after being shot, and a suspect was found dead nearby. Baltimore authorities declined to press charges against the woman. (The Evening Sun, Baltimore, Md.)
|
|
|
|
