Smith and Wesson 1006

 

A random stop by the ol' 10 Ring over at Glock Talk led to my purchase of the robust Smith and Wesson Model 1006.  Not completely satisfied with my ability to make consistent groups past 50 feet with my stock Glock 20 Gen4 led to me considering the tank of the 10mm family of firearms.  Prices for these pistols have been climbing steadily in the used market the past couple of years.   So I was able to pick one up from a fellow forum member at a very reasonable price.  While reading this blog piece, try to forget how difficult it can be to find a Smith and Wesson 10xx series for sale as I voice my opinions. 



A Smith and Wesson 1006 with fixed sights

First Impressions

The gun has some heft to it.  This was the first all steel semi-auto handgun I ever owned.  The 3rd Gen S&W 10mm pistols have a flair and mystique surrounding them.  While the model 1076 is most famous for having been issued to FBI agents in the early 90's, the 1006 was issued to some local law enforcement agencies and was the most produced 10xx series pistol.  These are single stack magazine pistols, but even wearing the stock grips this pistol takes up every bit of your hands while holding it.  Tossing some hogue rubber grips on this bad boy provide a more contoured grip, but require every square inch of my average-sized hands to grasp the pistol.

From an aesthetic standpoint, the 1006 is a very handsome pistol.  My model in particular has the adjustable sights, but the variants with the fixed Novak sights are dead sexy.  The slide is beefy, the frame is beefy and while the gun does feel large, it is a very well built piece of equipment.  Replacement parts for the 3rd gen Smiths are getting harder to find.  S&W still makes new magazines, but barrels are hard to come by and NOBODY makes 3rd party barrels without a minimum order of 50.  The production numbers of the three 5" barreled 10mm pistol variants is right around 30,000.  So finding 50 people at any given time who are willing to do a group buy of barrels is nearly impossible.

The FBI phased out the 1076 and 10mm Auto after a few short years.  People who are familiar with the 10mm Auto and look at the 10xx series of pistols in awe and wonderment are confused why the FBI did away with such a glorious combo.  Well, I'm here to tell you that while I like the way the 1006 shoots and love the 10mm Auto - I understand exactly why the FBI phased these out.

A Smith and Wesson 1076

Function

The S&W 1006, and by proxy all 10xx pistols, take up every bit of my hands when I grip the pistol.  I'm 5'9" (I was always 5'10" in press releases though) and have average sized, yet strong hands.  I have been a regular shooter of the 10mm Auto for about 6 years now and popular handgun calibers since I turned 21 way back in the late 90's.  Considering my experience, and tossing it out the window, I would HATE the 10xx pistol if I was not a recreational shooter and had to use this beast to qualify for field duty - and like most field agents, only fired this thing during qualifications.  The FBI field agents aren't a bunch of gun toting ex-commandos rotating out of military service.  They are white collared, private university kids who were either accountants or dudes who can speak 4 languages.  A lower percentage of those folks are shooting hobbyists.  And while I have the 1006, the 1076 was only 3/4" shorter in length than the 1006 and the other dimension were the same.

The stock grips that came on my 1006 can suck my @$$.  The first 100 rounds I put through the pistol were medium-highish level 150 grain hand loaded Noslers, and I got slide bite - for the first time EVER.  Slide bite sucks.  I can shoot my Glock 29SF with these loads all day and not bother the web of my hand one bit.  However, the recoil of the 1006 pistol is very manageable and firing the hottest stuff was a more enjoyable than in my Glock 20 Gen4.  Its the thinness of the stock 1006 grip mixed with the length of the grip that channels felt recoil into the web of my hand. Despite that, the the big ol' 1006 soaks up the recoil for sure.  Switching to my self defense load -165 grain Gold Dots over 11.2 grains of 800x loaded to 1.260 - this pistol behaved exceptionally well.  No pressure signs with this or any barrel.  With this load in particular, and as Sir Isaac Newton proved, you freaking know these things are hot when you squeeze them off.  The Glock in general has a more snappy feeling recoil, but my hand position and the design of the Glock make follow up shots manageable.  The 1006 has more of a rise in it's recoil impulse.  Follow up shots took a little longer, but that is a function of the sights and my eyes - not the pistol.  The perceived recoil in the 1006 is less that my Glock even with rounds creating over 700 ft/lbs of energy.

It's also worth noting that unless you can palm and NBA basketball, you can't operate this pistol with one hand. Operating the 1006 with two hands is clumsy at best. The slide release is miles from my right thumb.  The slide mounted decocker is impossible to reach with one hand unless you have Hickok45 hands.  Reaching for the slide mounted decocker with a second hand is just an invitation for some sensitive piece of webbed flesh to get pinched by the retreating hammer.  And you can't engage the safety with the hammer back. I've never disassembled this pistol for cleaning without pinching my fingers between the barrel hood and slide.  The mag release is in a tough spot and can only be reached by putting the pistol in an awkward position.  NBA players don't have a problem manipulating the controls, 5'9" ex-hockey players do.

My 1006 wearing Hogue Grips

But once you get past the dry-heave inducing double-action trigger pull and the not entirely ergonomic controls of the pistol, what you have in the 1006 is a nice shooter.  Accurate, consistent, and the single action trigger pull is smooth - assuming you keep all the parts in the trigger mechanism grit-free. The trigger reset is very short, but not dangerously short.  My groupings were very consistent even while learning the sight picture with the 1006 adjustable sights.  With the 1006 and shorter barreled 1066, you have the option of cocking the hammer and going straight to single action shooting.  But the hammer is an awkward pull with one hand and I imagine only shooters who take their craft seriously could be expected to cock the hammer while drawing from a holster.  The 1076 has a bobbed hammer, I assume that cocking the hammer while drawing was even more of a challenge, meaning most people using the 1076 were dry-heaving while squeezing the 472 foot long double action trigger pull.  Given that the combination of the potent Norma 10mm specs, the crappy grip on the stock 3rd gens, and the fact that the pistol is literally a handful to hold - I can see why the FBI moved away from the 10mm and 1076 altogether after some complaints.  Reducing the front-back distance of the grip and removing a little girth from the frame would have made this series of pistols much easier to operate.  I understand that my assumptions on the 1076's usage with the FBI is based on my experience with the 1006.  While it's not entirely apples to apples, the 1076 has less mass and weight and it's logical to assume there would be slightly more perceived recoil. 

For me, the 1006 is a heck of a range gun, and probably a nice pistol to hunt with.  But if this hunky thing was my service pistol, I'd whine about it. Even hacking 3/4 of an inch off in the 1076, this thing is still pretty robust for accountants and law-school dropouts to carry.  I don't know much about constructing a weapon system, but If I hopped in Uncle Rico's time machine and went back to the late 80's to design this thing, I'd cross-breed the 1006 and 1076.  My creation would retain the slide mounted safety that would allow you to carry the pistol with the spurred hammer back with the safety engaged. There would also be a frame mounted decocker from the 1076.  I'd even leave dry-heave inducing double action trigger for those agencies worried about accidental discharge with the hammer back.  The slide mounted safety is something that is easy(er) to manipulate when drawing, and the slide mounted decocker can be easily manipulated with hands in a shooting position.  Again, I don't know how feasible and reliable a weapon system like that would be, or if it's even possible, but that would be the ideal 3rd Gen 10mm variant for me.  For people who aren't shooting different guns all the time, the 10xx series pistols and full power 10mm ammo can quite literally be a handful - but not over powering. 

I can understand why the FBI went away from the 10mm and 10xx pistols.  If Smith & Wesson have tweaked the size of the grip down just a bit, I think things could have been different.  But without the 10mm and the FBI story, we would never have the polarizing 40 S&W.  For me, the 1006 is likely never going to be more than a range gun and maybe one I'd hunt with.  It is a well built pistol that can handle any 10mm loading out there.  Accurate and reliable, no doubts there.  A dedicated recreational shooter can master this pistol with most loads, even a shooter with hands my size.  But for me, it's too bulky to conceal carry and the controls are too spread out to manipulate in high stress situations.  Ten years from now I don't know how easy it will be to get replacement parts or factory service for this pistol.  S&W still offers "tune ups" for 3rd Gen Pistols at a reasonable price.  But, Glock 20 parts and service will be around for the foreseeable future.  The 1911 based models and aftermarket parts aren't going anywhere as long as 'Merica is around.  If I can ignore how rare and majestic the 10xx series of pistols are, there is little reason I keep this pistol long term since I don't "collect" firearms.  But this IS a rare and majestic pistol, handsome to look at, and for no practical reason should I keep this pistol.  But I am; for now...

I've just slapped some Hogue rubber grips on this puppy in hopes that it will help with the hand fatigue.  I'll report back over the weekend to see if the Hogue Grips make a difference.