I just bought a very nice conditioned SW99 in .40 SA& for $198. It came with the factory box and fired casing. The date on the casing is 05-16-2001; so this pistol had to have been made in either 2001 or 2000.
It shoots mighty fine, the double/single action for a striker fired pistol is pretty cool along with the decocker feature. The grip is comfortable and it’s a nice size pistol and easy to carry as a CCW piece.
I know that the NJSP had numerous issues with the gun but they also had a strange requirement. A SW99 in 9mm without the decocker. It was the DAO version or the other version that was a one to one clone of the GLOCK striker system. It was the traditional DA/SA Striker without the decocker. Also I believe that the Charlotte Mecklenburg PD had issues with their guns. Note sure if it was a funky design requirement like the NJSP.
But what gets me is that mine is a smooth shooting shooter and doesn’t have any issues at all. Is mine a fluke? Did S&W make a good gun and sadly some bad press and bad timing hit them? Does anyone still issue the SW99 or are they all on the used market? I know that S&W made a compact version and also a .45 ACP version… but they stopped making them correct? Don’t see them on the website anymore.
I love them. Whether it is a good pistol or not I don’t know. But mine has been perfect from the first time I pulled the trigger. Super accurate and I like the sa/da trigger and the decocker. I have had the plastic bottom break on a couple magazine bottoms so I called S@W and they sent me out several.
An agency customer got screwed into them, can’t seem to negotiate any kind of a reasonable deal to get out of them, and grits their teeth at their continued presence. A few boxes a year through each demonstrates that they’re mostly reliable enough to carry much and shoot little.
They show up to classes here and there. They run for a few boxes, then manifest various issues.
In a world of great options, I’m left with little more than, “why?”.
If you like yours and it’s working well for you, congrats! It was my first center fire pistol, and I never got along with it. It was reliable for me, but I couldn’t stand the trigger and I didn’t find it very accurate.
