I am starting read things about how certain people are not digging on the M&P’s anymore due to various reasons. I am wondering what those reasons are and how should they be remedied?
I own two M&P’s(9FS and 9C, both LEO guns) that have had many thousands of rounds through them with no malfunctions that werent due to my, at times, marginal reloads. I know my sample size is small, but its all I have and not to many people around here shoot M&P’s.
from my sample size of one (full size M&P 9mm) - i had to send it back to the factory for a tight chamber (would not always go into complete battery) and rust on the slide. it got fixed promptly - S&W customer service was great.
i really wanted to like the M&P when it first came out, and bought it to replace my G19. however, i cannot shoot it as accurately as my other 9’s, and i don’t think it’s me. i just could not achieve my normal level of accuracy with it, and when i switched to other pistols, everything was back to ‘normal’. i tested it side by side at an indoor range with my G19 with two different types of ammo, and i could not hold what i feel to be my normal group size that i can hold with most of my other handguns. group size was at least double that of any other handgun.
accuracy is a touchy subject, and most of the time, i’d look at myself first as the cause of any accuracy issues. but this time, it doesn’t seem the case. i’ve gone back to my glocks.
I dont know where you have been reading… but what I read is many people like m&p. I have a mp9, almost 4000 rounds in 5 months and 0 issue. I like it.
I am not saying it is the best gun… but it is pretty good and reliable as many other brands. and not many people have to like it, but I think it is getting more and more popular, and some mp can have some issues like other brands.
for me it feel more comfortable in my hand, less recoil/muzzle flip…
the only 2 things I would like is a mp mid size like glock 19… my hands arent so big and the g19 fit my hands perfectly and conceal a little better than the mp. I live in FL, so it is hot almost all the year…
other thing I would change is the trigger reset.
inconsistent factory triggers is one thing that scares me I have been doing some shopping around at local stores and every gun feels different dry firing them.
I switched back to a Glock 19 Gen 3 after almost a year (maybe a little less) with my M&P9.
I didn’t find anything particularly “wrong” with it. I simply prefer the size/weight, the trigger (I’ve tried Apex components), and I how I shoot with the Glock 19. I try to be as objective as possible when it comes to the evaluation of a product, especially when my money is on the line, but I have a very subjective preference for the overall handling and shooting characteristics of the Glock. I don’t have multiple trials and test data on the range with a timer comparing split times, and the like; though, I wish I had for the sake of having the data available.
I didn’t notice any discernible difference in accuracy between my two samples, so I can’t comment on that.
Sucky triggers… but mine has been reliable so far.
My wife got the first M&P in our house, a 9C. She probably has about a case through it so far, her big complaint is the lack of a tactile trigger reset. Unfortunately, as this is an agency approved alternate carry/BUG she can’t put an APEX kit in it. She is hoping for a S&W installed FCG in the future to correct the problem. It was my exposure to her pistol that convinced me that I wanted one. Me, I just pulled the trigger on a VTAC 9mm for range use, it’ll probably end up with an APEX kit in it, we’ll see after I shoot it.
The problem I see with the M&P is that it is a pistol that is almost there, hopefully S&W listens to users and makes a few factory tweaks. The M&P is the only domestic polymer pistol and the only real competitor to the Glock, which is also suffering from recent growing pains but is still the standard for ease of use and price point.
Personally, I am a big HK fan. I have or have had four as duty weapons. They have never let me down, they are unfortunately the most expensive handguns I have ever owned. I wish there were other quality striker-fired or LEM type polymer handguns out there to pick from, God knows the P250 and the XD aren’t it when it comes to M&P or Glock alternatives. I think the FN’s hold a lot of promise, the DA/SA’s I have shot have been excellent pistols for the money but I am not a DA/SA guy so they offer little for me. If they can get a striker-fired pistol to the U.S. market, FN will be a company to watch. Till then S&W is the only real contender to Glock for a duty grade pistol at that price point, warts and all.
It doesn’t come in Glock 19 sized 9mm and .40S&W packages.
That’s the biggest failing in the series as I see it from a non-LEO perspective.
Have five (four 9’s, one 45acp). No complaints. The more I shoot them, the more I like them. IN fact, I’ve decided to retire my 1911’s and sold off all our Glocks due to our positive experiences with the M&P’s. A friend of mine bought an early 9mm for his son, who was the IPSC junior champ in Kentucky a few times and the kid put well over 9,000 rounds through it in a very short period of time without a hitch. He’s at least tripled it by this point, again, without a hitch. His dad, a diehard 1911 guy, was so impressed, he got himself an M&P 9 too. I have come to believe that some people just can’t say anything good about any handgun without the Glock logo. My M&P’s shoot every bit as well as any Glock I’ve ever owned or shot, and have been every bit as reliable/durable. Actually more so. I have personally had problems with FTF with 5 different Glock 23’s, and had a Glock 19 throw it’s plastic rear sight off every few rounds, but of course, it must have been me or the ammo, as we all know Glocks are perfect. I know of several large midwestern PD’s who have changed to them and have nothing but good things to say. KY F&G went with the 40 M&P a few years back and they have been nothing but favorable in their comments. The only negative I ever heard from the F&G guys was they wished they had waited for the 45acp, as their previous handguns were in that caliber and these guys swore it dropped wounded game better than the 40(anecdotal only). My M&P 45 Mid-Size shoots right along with my custom 1911’s, including the one with the Kart barrel. That means it’s accuracy is downright scary. I cannot tell any difference at the 25 yard line between my most accurate 1911 and my stock M&P 45. My M&P9c shoots just as accurately as either of the Glock 26’s we had, but has been more reliable. As with all things made by man, YMMV, but only one of the five has had any work done on it (Bowie Tactical), though the remaining four are going to Dave as soon as the Leupold Deltapoints show up, as my aging eyes need help these days.
My wife, who has owned Glocks, XD’s, Walther P99, custom 1911’s, etc., says she has finally found a pistol that is perfect for her. She’s only 5’1", and the M&P is one of the only full size pistols out there that she can easily manipulate the slide. Hers has been nothing but reliable and accurate and at this time is our only Bowie conversion. Her M&P 9c is going out with my pistols to Bowie to have it done exactly like her service model. As I write this she commented that she soesn’t understand all the griping.
I intend to buy two more as soon as funds allow. I no longer own any Glocks.
I think David Bowie needs to chime in here, as he and I have had a few discussions about this and he has some very serious facts he may want to present.
I have had zip problems with concealing the full size 9mm, and don’t find it any harder than the 19. The Mid Size 45 is also easy to hide, but after over thirty years with a full size 1911, various Glocks, etc., I’m used to concealing full size pistols and don’t understand all the hoopla. Concealment has nothing to do with comfort or fashion. If you can hide a Glock 17, 19 or 1911, the M&P is no problem either. If Smith came out with one to match the 19, someone would find something else to gripe about it.
Though a former LEO, I spent more years in manufacturing than LE, having retired as a QA Mgr. Having seen hundreds of thousands of jobs in our sector sent to Mexico and China, I’d think we’d all be tickled pink to have an American made pistol that was as good as the foreign competition, but then, maybe you’re one of those on the public dole and don’t care about saving jobs.:suicide2:
Take what you read about the M&P hate at face value. There is probably more going on behind the scenes than we really know about.
The guns are not perfect, not even close but they’re PRETTY darned good for what they are.
Ive owned quite a few, currently down to three and i will never, ever sell what i have left.
5 inch pro 9mm
4.25 inch 9mm
9c
The 4.25 inch gun has well over 40k rounds at this point and it still has ALL of its original springs minus the trigger return spring and recoil spring. Neither of these parts broke i just figured i should probably do some PM on them.
The 5 inch pro is approaching 10k and this is my newest M&P. No issues to report on this one whatsoever.
The 9c has been utterly reliable although my only real gripe is that i cannot get a spare recoil rod assembly and spring due to the fact that S&W has been backordered for more than five damned months.
I have had zero parts breakage other than one striker on the 4.25 inch gun which was a black striker dry fired on a NIGHTLY basis at least 200 reps each night. I also did the majority of my dry fire sans snap caps. I replaced the striker with a silver striker and went on my merry way.
I have some rust on the 4.25 inch gun as this was one of the guns from an early batch that had a bad melonite coating applied. I never opted to send the gun in as it is merely surface rust and it does not impede the guns ability to fire, nor does it cause any real issues with carry.
The triggers were worked with in stock format until Apex released parts at which point i said screw it, im going all Apex. I have never looked back. Can i shoot a stock M&P with no trigger work? Absolutely, in fact i believe the triggers are on par or BETTER than any stock Glock. Yes, the reset sucks but it has never impeded my ability to shoot accurately or quickly with my M&P’s.
I really dont understand where all of the griping is coming from. I just bought a Gen 4 G19 and i had a myriad of issues on its first outing. None of the M&P’s i have ever owned have had as many malfunctions in one night. I also found the stock glock trigger to be akin to compressing a shock absorber on a farking car. It was terrible, positively terrible but still shootable like the M&P.
None of the known issues are MAJOR show stoppers other than a small number of out of spec chambers that required reaming after cases repeatedly became stuck and failed to extract.
The major issues are listed below:
Tight chambers leading to failures to extract. This requires a trip back to smith but reports of this are not really as widespread as one would be led to believe.
Right side slide catch breaking. Ive never seen one break in person but even if it does snap off, so long as the part does not make its way into the action, the gun will still function and the most important part of the slide catch is on the left hand side anyway. If it breaks, treat it like a Glock and deal with it.
Improper grade of steel or improper melonite coating leading to rust issues. EZox, oil, whatever moisture absorbing cloth you have on hand. Wipe down the slide and call it a day or send it back to smith to have the slide replaced.
Broken strikers. Non issue, the silver strikers are robust as hell. There is ZERO wear on any of my silver strikers, its almost eerie. The old black strikers would show peening after a few thousand rounds. The newer silver strikers dont even hold onto dirt let alone peen.
The bottom line to me is that both the Glock and the M&P are great guns, both have issues as they’re made by man and quite frankly, neither is particularly better. Choose what you shoot better, buy a few spare parts and call it a day. Any way you slice the pie you’re going to end up spending money on spare parts, replacement parts, sights, etc whether it be for the Glock brand or S&W.
what’s this got to do with a technical discussion? just because not everyone has the same positive experience with their M&Ps as you have doesn’t make them glock kool-aid drinkers, as you implied with this other statement “I have come to believe that some people just can’t say anything good about any handgun without the Glock logo.”
no one in this thread has implied that they dislike the M&P just because it’s not a glock.
i’d be tickled pink if i could shoot my M&P as well as my glocks, brownings, sigs, 1911s etc. i’m honestly disappointed that i can’t.
i think that the bottom line is that NO manufacturer puts out pistols that are all problem free, and that new releases (such as my early M&P or Gen 4 glocks) are subject to teething problems. let’s leave any glock/smith/whatever love/hate out of the discussion and just share our personal experiences, positive and negative, and leave emotion out of it.
Mine has been very reliable…5K plus with zero stoppages/malfs, and much of that with no cleaning and minimal lube. Not terribly accurate, though.
Overall, I am happy with it. However, I am switching to the P30, albeit for reasons unrelated to the M&P’s performance.
Jay
I forgot to add that I had rust issues as well. Factory sights developed some rust, as did the front and rear left side serrations. I assume appendix carry exacerbated the problem, as my crotch gets sweaty in 110 degree heat 
If you chop the beavertail off they are essentially the same size. Something like 0.45" longer grip.
they had some teething problems.
i think it’s a very cool platform at a fair price though.
I’d say glocks are a little nicer fit and finish internally, and generally more consistent in feel of controls.
also the M&P trigger blows. though i guess the APEX kit can give it something resembling a real reset.
if i didnt’ like glocks for some reason i’d definitely check out the M&P.
Yeah, I’d like to add that literally the ONLY reason that I chose M&P is because I have absurdly small hands and I had problems with the Glock grip. If the Gen 4s were out (and worked) when I started really shooting pistols, then I would have gotten a Glock 10 times out of 10.
it’s awesome that there’s now a pistol to recommend to the small handed that’s along the same lines as a glock in terms of price, features and availability.
i actually recommended an M&P to my friend because he is left handed. he wasn’t liking the right hand only slide stop on the glock.
I did leave emotion out of it. I was speaking rather matter of fact. If you take it any other way, that’s your problem. Maybe you had a bad experience with an M&P, but have you tried them again? I’ve had bad experiences with nearly every major handgun made, but have also had good experiences with them too – just as you say in your last paragraph.
Don’t be so thin skinned. If I hit a nerve, it wasn’t intended. By the way, what was so “technical” about any post here? Coming from primarily a background of mathematics, statistics and science, I sure didn’t notice anything particularly technical in any of our comments. We all just stated our experiences and truthfully, none of us has a sample size large enough to really say much of anything. You of all people should know this.
a half inch in grip length is fairly significant… i tend to carry at 2:30, so if if the grip is too long it definitely prints. i really can’t go any bigger than a glock 19 with this method unless i wear giant shirts.
It CAN be significant…not necessarily so for everyone. Some people can strap on a pistol with a half inch longer grip and you wouldn’t notice anything.