Smith & Wesson 5906

[ml1209]

Worth the price paid? Came with one 15-round magazine.

[RPBrown]

I am seeing them from $329.00 to $550.00. If the engraved info is not yours, I would consider getting some engraving work done to cover that up though.

[Excaliber]

That was my last duty gun when I was a full time LEO.

I was also in charge of the armory. Per S&W we had to fully tear down each of our 200 or so guns, run them through the ultrasonic cleaner (with parts baskets for the 70+ parts for each gun because the parts were not necessarily interchangeable), reassemble it, and have it function tested by our armorer each year. That process always yielded several that failed function tests and had to have repair parts installed or adjustments made, even though very few of them fired more than 600 rounds in a year. That's way more complexity and maintenance than any of the more recently produced major manufacturers' products require.

The DA/SA trigger was something you either loved or hated. I was in the latter category, and I wasn't a fan of the decocker/safety, although it did have some advantages.

The gun shot OK and was reasonably accurate, but too big and heavy for concealed carry for my tastes. (Most of my use was in uniformed holster carry, so this wasn't an issue).

It's worth what you paid for it, but I would suggest having it inspected by an S&W certified armorer before trusting it for defensive purposes.

[srothstein]

It's worth what you paid for it, but I would suggest having it inspected by an S&W certified armorer before trusting it for defensive purposes.

I would strongly recommend you have the gun checked by a competent gunsmith to make sure it is safe. I could be wrong, but that engraving on the left side of the slide looks to me like a case number and badge number. I think the weapon was confiscated as evidence somewhere, which meant it sat in a property room without any care for some time.

Excaliber, could you look at the photo of the left side of the slide and see if you agree on the engraving, please?

I could be wrong about the engraving, since the picture is not very clear on my screen. It doesn't make a difference to me about the engraving or how the police came into it if I am right, just what the time spent in a property room being neglected could have done to the weapon.

[Excaliber]

It's worth what you paid for it, but I would suggest having it inspected by an S&W certified armorer before trusting it for defensive purposes.

I would strongly recommend you have the gun checked by a competent gunsmith to make sure it is safe. I could be wrong, but that engraving on the left side of the slide looks to me like a case number and badge number. I think the weapon was confiscated as evidence somewhere, which meant it sat in a property room without any care for some time.

Excaliber, could you look at the photo of the left side of the slide and see if you agree on the engraving, please?

I could be wrong about the engraving, since the picture is not very clear on my screen. It doesn't make a difference to me about the engraving or how the police came into it if I am right, just what the time spent in a property room being neglected could have done to the weapon.

Great catch, Steve - I didn't look closely enough to notice the engravings until you pointed them out and I enlarged the photo.

I definitely agree that those look like evidence markings, although I can only actually make out a few of the characters They're certainly not factory markings. If the markings are legible and the agency that made them can be identified, some interesting history may be available through the detective division or the property room officer. The dealer it was purchased from may also have some information on how it got into the used gun market - probably through a police auction at some point.

I would be more concerned about how the pistol was treated by the former owner(s) than anything it may have suffered while sitting in an evidence room (unless it was at NOPD, which has a history), although that may be simply a matter of degree of concern.

The markings are further confirmation that it should be carefully torn down and inspected by a S&W trained armorer before it is trusted for serious social purposes. The maintenance requirements will make it an expensive gun to own.