Smith & Wesson M & P Shield<\/h2>\n
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The concealed carry scene is dominated by small guns that are capable performers, but there are often some basic sacrifices that come with small guns. For the most part, 380s are,\u00a0 small.\u00a0 Yet that is their only asset.\u00a0 The .380 round doesn’t compare favorably with larger calibers.\u00a0 Yet the relative size has made the .32 and .25 all but obsolete.\u00a0 Could it be that the new spate of 9mms will crush the .380?\u00a0 The new Smith & Wesson M&P Shield will help in the effort.\u00a0 This gun is a rock star.<\/p>\n
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<\/a>The sight picture is clear and bright, and the sights are tall enough to actually use.<\/p><\/div>\n
Model: M&P9 Shield\u2122<\/strong> The barrel tilts up noticeably, which adds to the muzzle flip.<\/p><\/div>\n Let\u2019s start with the basic appeal of the Shield.\u00a0 The Shield line is thin enough to conceal.\u00a0 The short length makes it easy to tuck and draw.\u00a0 The magazine holds either\u00a0seven or\u00a0eight rounds of 9mm, which gives it a leg up on comparably sized revolvers<\/a> (and some of the semiautomatic competition).\u00a0 With the clean trigger and the utilitarian sights, the Shield shoots accurately.\u00a0 In all, the Shield is more than capable. \u00a0The humble Smith & Wesson is underrated.\u00a0 Plain and simple.<\/p>\n The latest version has made a big leap forward for folks like me who don\u2019t want a safety on a concealed carry gun.\u00a0 For the rest of the world, the Shield is available with a thumb safety or without.\u00a0 I\u2019m always going to go for the simpler version, when available.\u00a0 I don\u2019t want anything standing between me an adrenaline-laced defensive handgun use.\u00a0 When I\u2019m at the range and kicking through rounds, or simply practicing, I can pull a gun and drop the safety.\u00a0 Yet the effort always requires a small percentage of brain activity.\u00a0 I\u2019ve trained in situations that add external stress, and I find those stresses demand as much attention as I can give them.\u00a0 The safety then becomes one more step that I can screw up.<\/p>\n The external extractor gave us no trouble, at all.<\/p><\/div>\n Maybe that\u2019s why I\u2019ve ignored the Shield for so long.\u00a0 I\u2019d never seriously considered it for personal use precisely because of the additional safety.\u00a0 I tend to carry the guns I review.\u00a0 I want to know what it is like to live with them, wear them, depend on them.\u00a0 I wouldn\u2019t carry a Shield with a thumb safety (unless it was truly my only option), which would keep me from reviewing it as completely as I\u2019d like.<\/p>\n I\u2019m finished with that rant.\u00a0 Clearly I wasn\u2019t the only one making it, as S&W listened.\u00a0 The gun is now much more in line with the rest of the subcompact 9mms on the market, and even better when you consider some of the extras, like the trigger.\u00a0 This trigger has a safety built in that is all but impossible to screw up.\u00a0 The trigger itself breaks just over\u00a0seven pounds.\u00a0 It has a bit of take up, and a crisp break.\u00a0 There\u2019s no creep, at all, and the over-travel is limited.\u00a0 The reset is also relatively short, which makes the whole package one of the absolute best I\u2019ve seen in a polymer-framed 9mm.<\/p>\n The trigger is hinged, and it won’t pull unless the tip is engaged first.<\/p><\/div>\n This crisp break, even at\u00a0seven pounds, allows for surprising accuracy.\u00a0 Triggers are often the deciding factor in a gun like this.\u00a0 A bit of creep can really throw off shots.\u00a0 A heavy pull will obviously equate to sloppy shot placement.\u00a0 And a long reset will require so much hand movement that follow-up shots take more time.\u00a0 Yet all of these things are really subtle, and shooters often make excuses for the poor performance.\u00a0 Sloppy guns are \u201ccombat accurate.\u201d\u00a0 To an extent, this is true. When I\u2019m testing the accuracy of a pistol, I want to shoot at a paper target.\u00a0 I want to see it print on the paper.\u00a0 Yet when I\u2019m working from the holster or really pushing the potential of a defensive handgun, I want to shoot steel torsos.\u00a0 If I hear the ring on the steel, I don\u2019t care where the actual shot hit.\u00a0 Speed and agility are as important as accuracy, maybe more if someone might be shooting back. Still, the Shield doesn\u2019t ask you to compromise.\u00a0 Shoot fast.\u00a0 Shoot accurately. You don’t have to choose.<\/p>\n Just an aside\u2026.\u00a0 We\u2019ve recently moved our primary test range from Virginia (where I often used two well-equipped private ranges), to Arkansas (where we are going to equip our own).\u00a0 We don\u2019t have the full set-up in place yet, so we had to do some improvising.\u00a0 We ran the Shield on paper, mostly, but also shot up a couple of 12-inch steel plates.<\/p>\n The Shield shoots incredibly well for such a small gun.<\/p><\/div>\n We had no difficulty with the Shield.\u00a0 The magazines drop free.\u00a0 The release is easy to use.\u00a0 The grip is textured in the right places, and not so aggressively textured that it wears on the hands.\u00a0 There is just enough gun to hold, and not a smidge more.<\/p>\n The slide release is a bit stiff.\u00a0 I expect that to wear in a bit, but it is hard to drop with your thumb.\u00a0 If you are in the habit of dropping the slide with your off hand, that shouldn\u2019t be noticeable, but if you run the slide with your thumb you may need to start doing some strengthening exercises.<\/p>\n The muzzle flip is pronounced.\u00a0 That may be the one element that stands between me and really fast follow-up shots.\u00a0 With a relaxed grip, this pistol will jump.\u00a0 If you hold it down, double taps are easy enough, but I find the spread between the shots to be a bit larger than I like (which means I\u2019m not getting it all the way back home before I\u2019m hitting the trigger for the second shot).<\/p>\n While the kick is manageable, the muzzle flip is sharp.<\/p><\/div>\n As far as obfuscation goes, the Shield ranks very well.\u00a0 The short overall length means it disappears well, yet the grip (even with the\u00a0eight-round magazine) isn\u2019t so long that it prints.\u00a0 The width is minimal, so it hides well in the small of the back or appendix carry.\u00a0 We got this Shield in on the same day that we were headed out to the new range, so we haven\u2019t had time to work with a holster made specifically for the gun. But we did try it out in a Sticky Holster, which worked predictably well.\u00a0 We\u2019ll have more on Shield-specific holsters in the next few weeks, so stay tuned.<\/p>\n The Shield comes apart easily.\u00a0 The lever rocks down toward the trigger guard.\u00a0 You have to drop the magazine to get the gun apart, and you also have to pull the trigger.\u00a0 There are many who consider this to be a liability, understandably.\u00a0 Yet the sequence helps insure that there are no potential pitfalls.\u00a0 You drop the magazine.\u00a0 You pull the slide way back.\u00a0 Then you rock the lever down and let go of the slide.\u00a0 If there had been a round in the chamber, it would get pulled when you pull back the slide.\u00a0 With any amount of common sense, the next step (which is pulling the trigger) should be foolproof.\u00a0 But fools exist, so watch yourself.<\/p>\n Take-down and basic cleaning are easy, and the parts are captured.<\/p><\/div>\n I\u2019ve had this gun in hand for two weeks or so now, and my opinion of it continues to grow.\u00a0 When I unboxed it, I was curious and optimistic.\u00a0 When I pulled the trigger, I was much more optimistic.\u00a0 After three trips to the range and more than 500 completely trouble-free rounds, I\u2019m going to give it the full-on thumbs up.\u00a0 I\u2019ve yet to carry it for any length of time, and I\u2019m going to put a lot more rounds through the gun before I make any final judgments, but I\u2019ve not been this pleased with the initial performance of a pistol in this class in a long time.<\/p>\n The best part?\u00a0 Many out there will think it is the price.\u00a0 The MSRP is $449.\u00a0 The guns\u00a0are selling for $75 less in many places.\u00a0 That places this gun well below the price point of much of its competition.\u00a0 With features that make this gun run better than the competition and a price that makes it less expensive, I can\u2019t find much to complain about.<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n The feed ramp on the Shield fed everything we had on hand.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half]<\/p>\n [one_half_last]<\/p>\n The magazine holds eight by allowing a slight double stack.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n The Shield thought about having a front rail, but changed its mind.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half]<\/p>\n [one_half_last]<\/p>\n I’d rather not have the entire manual printed on the slide, but I’m forgiving when the gun shoots like the shield.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n The frame has been cut down to avid any unnecessary width.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half]<\/p>\n [one_half_last]<\/p>\n The traditional three dot sights make target acquisition fast.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n The sharp back of the front sight can drag on leather, but clears well from Kydex.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half]<\/p>\n [one_half_last]<\/p>\n The rear sight is streamlined, and adjustable.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n The magazines are clearly marked, which is helpful for those of us who own a variety of pistols.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half]<\/p>\n [one_half_last]<\/p>\n The trigger on this Shield breaks just over seven pounds, but you would never know it. It is a truly great trigger.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half_last]<\/p>\n [one_half]<\/p>\n The short barrel doesn’t maximize the performance of the 9m round. That may be the only down side.<\/p><\/div>\n [\/one_half]<\/p>\n [one_half_last]<\/p>\n
\n Frame Size: Compact<\/strong>
\n Caliber: 9mm<\/strong>
\n Action: Striker Fire<\/strong>
\n Capacity: 7 and 8 Round Magazines<\/strong>
\n Barrel Length: 3.1\u201d (7.9 cm)<\/strong>
\n Front Sight: White Dot<\/strong>
\n Rear Sight: White 2-Dot<\/strong>
\n Trigger Pull: 6.5 lbs +\/-<\/strong>
\n Overall Length: 6.1\u201d (15.5 cm)<\/strong>
\n Frame Width: .95\u201d (2.4 cm)<\/strong>
\n Overall Height: 4.6\u201d (11.7 cm)<\/strong>
\n Grip: Polymer<\/strong>
\n Weight: 19.0 oz. (523.7 g)<\/strong>
\n Barrel Material: Stainless Steel<\/strong>
\n Slide Material: Stainless Steel<\/strong>
\n Frame Material: Polymer<\/strong>
\n Finish: Black\/Durable Corrosion Resistant<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"Shield\"](\"https:\/\/www.gunsamerica.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/06\/Shield8-400x266.jpg\" "\\"The")
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<\/a>Shooting the Shield<\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Take-down<\/h3>\n
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<\/a>Conclusions<\/h3>\n
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