I recently got an XDS 9mm with the free magazine promo and if I had the spare cash right now I'd buy another Shield. That deal is good, it hurts to not get in on it.

I picked up a 9mm and a 45, both no manual safety. The 9mm came in today and I went by to get it and also got a Pearce base plate extension for the shorter mag. My XL hands fit nicely with the Pearce on there.

The trigger is terrible. The slide hangs up and won't go into battery without help from a tap on the back. Of course, some cycles racking the slide will help smooth that out.

I bought this for a cheap carry gun. The temptation to put an Apex kit in it is strong. That makes it a not-so-cheap carry gun. We'll see how the 45 trigger compares...its supposed to be better.

quote:

Originally posted by PGT:
The trigger is terrible. The slide hangs up and won't go into battery without help from a tap on the back.

You accepted delivery of a new gun with immediately obvious defects .....

Evidently, people have purchased almost 2 million of these with the identical "obvious defects".

Apex Tactical isnt making a profit because these guns are well built.

quote:

Originally posted by 18DAI:
Evidently, people have purchased almost 2 million of these with the identical "obvious defects".

I don't remember voluminous complaints about "The slide hangs up and won't go into battery."

The slide won't go into battery complaint about most any pistol is probably due to operator error. I've seen quite a few people, myself included, ride the slide and it doesn't go fully forward. Smaller pistols, in particular need the full movement of the slide.

I ordered one this week. At the current price and rebate it's almost as hassle free to buy it shoot and then trade it if I don't like as it is to rent one (I don't really like indoor ranges). I will do a side by side comparison with my G43 and see which one I like best.

Picked on up today for $315 after the rebate will be $240. Kind of hard pass that up. Trigger isn't terrible, right around 6.5lbs out of the box, hopefully will lighten up with some rounds down range. Hope to get out and put a few 100 down range tomorrow.

Picked up a BG yesterday and am hoping to shoot it later this week. Very happy with the size.

quote:

Originally posted by gc70:
Probably two million out the door by the time version 2.0 comes out. Somebody must like them.

Cheap sells well, which is why Lorcins and other Saturday Night Specials still make top sellers. Junk, but sells well. Never a metric for what's best for personal use.

I bought one of the Shields on sale recently, got it from Palmetto for 319, and applied for the rebate. I already had a Shield; it's a broken paperweight in my safe, having split the frame with less than 200 factory rounds through the pistol. That one was a .40. I decided for the price, I'd try a 9.

For a pocket pistol, it's not going to replace my G43, which has proven very reliable.

quote:

Originally posted by sns3guppy:

I bought one of the Shields on sale recently, got it from Palmetto for 319, and applied for the rebate. I already had a Shield; it's a broken paperweight in my safe, having split the frame with less than 200 factory rounds through the pistol. That one was a .40. I decided for the price, I'd try a 9.

The Shield with the broken frame needs to go back to S&W -- they are almost certain to give you a free replacement!

As for the Shield -- many complaints about the trigger being too stiff. But, this is not a range gun or a target pistol. A stiffer trigger is, within limits, desirable in a self-defense pistol. And, a stiffer/longer trigger can be mastered, much like the double-action trigger on a revolver, to yield good results. And it will get smoother as it breaks in.

The quality of build in the Shield is, to me, on par with other striker-fired polymer molded guns. Always best to take the pistol you plan to carry and shoot the snot out of it with the ammo you intend to use, then make the decision if that particular one exhibits adequate reliability for the intended purpose! Then, like with any small semi-auto, put a new spring in the pistol periodically.

quote:

Originally posted by RoverSig:

The Shield with the broken frame needs to go back to S&W -- they are almost certain to give you a free replacement!

Indeed it did.

As S&W has done with numerous other Shields with fractured frames, no replacement was forthcoming, and there was no honoring the warranty.

Every other account I found had the exact same response; the owner sent the pistol to s&w, and were told it went to the "met shop." Then they were told that s&w would not repair the pistol, and that it was faulty ammunition. s&w offered a "replacement" which was that the purchaser buy a new pistol.

The exact same thing happened in my case. I was told that s&w could find no cause for the failure and as a matter of routine, blames all failures that can't be explained, on ammunition and refuses the warranty. I have a letter from them saying the same.

They offered to "replace" the pistol, but the replacement cost was that of a new pistol, new serial number, and they wanted to keep the old one. In fact, I could get a better deal on the pistol new from Buds Online. I told them to pound sand, send back my pistol, and it still sits in my safe, cracked.

quote:

Originally posted by sns3guppy:

quote:

Originally posted by RoverSig:

The Shield with the broken frame needs to go back to S&W -- they are almost certain to give you a free replacement!

Indeed it did.

As S&W has done with numerous other Shields with fractured frames, no replacement was forthcoming, and there was no honoring the warranty.

Every other account I found had the exact same response; the owner sent the pistol to s&w, and were told it went to the "met shop." Then they were told that s&w would not repair the pistol, and that it was faulty ammunition. s&w offered a "replacement" which was that the purchaser buy a new pistol.

The exact same thing happened in my case. I was told that s&w could find no cause for the failure and as a matter of routine, blames all failures that can't be explained, on ammunition and refuses the warranty. I have a letter from them saying the same.

They offered to "replace" the pistol, but the replacement cost was that of a new pistol, new serial number, and they wanted to keep the old one. In fact, I could get a better deal on the pistol new from Buds Online. I told them to pound sand, send back my pistol, and it still sits in my safe, cracked.

There's no damn way I would have bought another Smith after that.

Did you seek resolution from the ammo manufacturer? That is why I avoid dumping ammo into a big bowl or container...that way, I have the box with the control number on it for query with the manufacturer.

quote:

Originally posted by Beanhead:
Did you seek resolution from the ammo manufacturer? That is why I avoid dumping ammo into a big bowl or container...that way, I have the box with the control number on it for query with the manufacturer.

I didn't dump anything into a big bowl, and am quite certain that nothing I said inferred having done such a thing.

There was nothing wrong with the ammunition. It was Remington UMC from a freshly opened crate at a range. There was no indication of an overpressure, no indication of an ammunition problem in the shooting, handling of reaction of the pistol, nor in any of the brass.

The actual problem wasn't discovered until after leaving the range. At the time, a number of people examined the pistol, and didn't see the crack. I didn't see it, and learned about the problem after doing some searching online. I came across a picture of another Shield that had an identical description of the problem, and there was the crack. I checked under bright light and found it...exactly the same place, exactly the same crack. Less than 200 rounds.

S&W couldn't find a problem, and couldn't cite the cause. They simply stated that it's their policy to blame the ammunition.

I was on the road, using a range in another state. I was no longer at the range and no longer had access, when I found the problem. I contacted s&w, sent the pistol per direction, and waited. The events that followed played out exactly as others had described their handling, right down to the refusal to honor the warranty, and the offer to "replace" the pistol by selling me a new one...at a higher price than I could find elsewhere.

quote:

Originally posted by sns3guppy:

quote:

Originally posted by RoverSig:

The Shield with the broken frame needs to go back to S&W -- they are almost certain to give you a free replacement!

Indeed it did.

As S&W has done with numerous other Shields with fractured frames, no replacement was forthcoming, and there was no honoring the warranty.

Every other account I found had the exact same response; the owner sent the pistol to s&w, and were told it went to the "met shop." Then they were told that s&w would not repair the pistol, and that it was faulty ammunition. s&w offered a "replacement" which was that the purchaser buy a new pistol.

The exact same thing happened in my case. I was told that s&w could find no cause for the failure and as a matter of routine, blames all failures that can't be explained, on ammunition and refuses the warranty. I have a letter from them saying the same.

They offered to "replace" the pistol, but the replacement cost was that of a new pistol, new serial number, and they wanted to keep the old one. In fact, I could get a better deal on the pistol new from Buds Online. I told them to pound sand, send back my pistol, and it still sits in my safe, cracked.

I find this difficult to believe. S&W has a lifetime warranty and a reputation to protect. I would call the company and ask to speak to someone with some authority.

Ask owners of S&W 3rd Generation semi auto pistols about that so called "lifetime warranty".

The current company calling itself S&W is not our daddys Smith & Wesson. Regards 18DAI

quote:

Originally posted by maxwayne:

quote:

Originally posted by sns3guppy:

quote:

Originally posted by RoverSig:

The Shield with the broken frame needs to go back to S&W -- they are almost certain to give you a free replacement!

Indeed it did.

As S&W has done with numerous other Shields with fractured frames, no replacement was forthcoming, and there was no honoring the warranty.

Every other account I found had the exact same response; the owner sent the pistol to s&w, and were told it went to the "met shop." Then they were told that s&w would not repair the pistol, and that it was faulty ammunition. s&w offered a "replacement" which was that the purchaser buy a new pistol.

The exact same thing happened in my case. I was told that s&w could find no cause for the failure and as a matter of routine, blames all failures that can't be explained, on ammunition and refuses the warranty. I have a letter from them saying the same.

They offered to "replace" the pistol, but the replacement cost was that of a new pistol, new serial number, and they wanted to keep the old one. In fact, I could get a better deal on the pistol new from Buds Online. I told them to pound sand, send back my pistol, and it still sits in my safe, cracked.

I find this difficult to believe. S&W has a lifetime warranty and a reputation to protect. I would call the company and ask to speak to someone with some authority.

I did. I have it in writing. S&W does not honor their warranty.

They were not in the least concerned about reputation, nor did it bother them with others who experienced the same thing. After all, as long as people keep buying, why should they care?

quote:

Originally posted by sns3guppy:
There was nothing wrong with the ammunition. It was Remington UMC from a freshly opened crate at a range.

This is Remington UMC (.380) too, fresh from the box.

quote:

There was no indication of an overpressure, no indication of an ammunition problem in the shooting, handling of reaction of the pistol, nor in any of the brass.

Fair enough -- in my case it refused to chamber, so there was plenty of indication of a problem. I'm just saying that Remington UMC isn't the most reliable ammo.

quote:

Originally posted by toivo:

Fair enough -- in my case it refused to chamber, so there was plenty of indication of a problem. I'm just saying that Remington UMC isn't the most reliable ammo.

I'm well aware. It was what was available at that location for .40 range ammunition. There was no problem with the ammunition.

It's common reaction, though. Nobody wants to believe it was the pistol, and the failure is excused on reloads, the shooter, bad factory ammo, and of course the ever popular it-can't-be-true-because-(pick one)-mine-never-did-that or because-they-sell-too-well--for-that-to-ever-happen.

Maybe .40 is too much for the shield. Maybe 9X19 will be kinder