I found by accident that my .40FS MP can be taken down by locking the slide back, turning the takedown lever down 90 degrees, releasing the slide and pulling the trigger. When the trigger is pulled the slide nearly pops off the rail. Am I hurting the pistol? All of the info I've seen tells me to use the tool in the handle to flip up he seer (don't know if this is the right spelling) and release the slide. Comments are appreciated.

No what you are doing is the same as what a Glock owner would do to break down their weapons, but if you follow the instructions provided by Smith and Wesson then you would be pretty certain that the weapon is in fact unloaded (magazine out and no round in chamber) then press down the sear deactivation lever and slip the slide off the rail.

Personally I follow the instructions as per the manual except I use an ink pen or even a toothpick or screwdriver to lower the sear deactivation lever.

The main reason for this instruction is for legal cases involving negligent or accidental discharges of the weapon being cleaned, personally pulling the trigger on a gun to me should always result in a boom with a bullet going in some direction!

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59,M&P9,40,40C,357,(2)45,G26

I use the "trigger pull" method on both my FS & compact.

So the "trigger pull" method won't cause any harm to the gun? I just find the factory prescribed method out of touch compared to other pistols I've owned.You shouldn't need to use any tools to field strip.

Our instructors a the LEO academy were glock guys and required the trigger pull method on th line. Course some of them now own M&Ps

The trigger pull method works with MOST of the M&P line except those that have the magazine disconnect. In that case you must flip the lever to remove the slide. As written, the takedown instructions work for the entire product line, which makes it less confusing.

OR put an empty mag in before performing the takedown.

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Gerry