I love the stock trigger that's on my Shield 9mm. It's a lot better than the stock trigger on my 9c and 9FS. If I decided to install the Apex (SCK) for the Shield, how much better can it get? Would it be worth it?

Less pull and faster reset..I have the Apex sear on all my M&P's.Felt like the sear replacement was enough for me.

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JR

Based on your first sentence, no I would not suggest the Apex.

I did not love the Shields stock trigger. It was good, but not what I expected after seeing reviews. Never tried other M&P's for comparison. Sent it back to S&W for other repairs, and had them clean up the trigger while it was there. While it was gone, ordered the Apex Shield kit after reading all the glowing reviews, as I did not expect much more with the trigger from S&W. The repaired Shield returned from S&W with an excellent trigger (and for zero expense). Installed the full Apex Shield carry kit to see how much better this could get. Very minimal improvement for around $90 (luckily I was able to beat out rear sight with minimal damage and install kit myself, otherwise another $50 or so). The kit was too much money and effort for what it does for the Shield. Perhaps $20 for a sear might have been worth it, but still, you love what you already have, so....

I would definitely send it back to S&W for a free trigger job before spending money on aftermarket parts that might need to be removed if any warranty work is needed in the future.. Only took 4 days.

I installed the Apex blocker and sear, not the whole kit, in my Shield 40. If you use the full kit and the Apex included sear and trigger springs, you will net a trigger pull of 5 to 5.5 pounds. I wanted a lower trigger pull weight and Apex advised that by using the stock Shield springs, along with the Apex supplied low pressure blocker spring, the trigger pull would drop to 4 to 4.5 pounds. I got an actual 4.25 pound pull.

Check out post #7 that I made recently, for more information about the results of the Apex install:


Advice for Shield .40


Bob

I installed the whole Apex trigger kit and am getting that 5-5.5 lb pull. MUCH better than the original - to me at least. I might try Robkarrob's option on the springs to lighten to pull a little mor but so far so good.

I did not want to mess with the removal of the rear sight to do anything with the striker block, nor did I want to change any springs. I went with just the Apex hard sear and my trigger is now 5-3/4#, down quite a bit from MY Shield factory weight. Take your time (about 20 min for a novice first timer) follow the you tube video from apex. The safety removal for inserting the sear pin can be found at about 4:50 or so, in the you-tube video I linked. The hardest part for me was reinserting the firing assembly back into the frame. Take your time. It will slide in relatively easy if you are patient. Overall the very slight grittiness just before the take up stops, will not really smooth out much, but the much improved pull weight and crisp let off, made it totally worth it to me.

M&P Shield Manual Safety Removal - YouTube

I had the gritty pull in my Shield 40. Pulled the blocker and found a burr on the blocker hole. When I removed the bull, the gritty pull went away. Sorry but to get to the blocker you have to remove the rear sight.

Bob


http://youtu.be/6_r-J4zAJHo


M&P Pistol Gritty Trigger Pull -- Striker Blocker Fix - YouTube

Bob, first off, thank you for the great video's. You have done a great service by sharing these!

Gritty trigger is not something I see mentioned by original poster, and what you describe with a burr is definitely a warranty issue.

If someone has a gritty trigger, they should send it back to S&W to fix for free. Only took them 4 days to correct my trigger. I did end up installing the full Apex kit since I had ordered it while gun was gone, but after getting the Shield back from S&W, found the work they did would have been enough. The kit added very little improvement over the free factory trigger job. The Apex Sear was all that really changed things, and that was just barely. S&W corrected grittiness and lightened the pull a good amount.

Removing the rear sight is not for the faint of heart. With the Shield, best left to a gunsmith, which brings the cost of the full Apex Shield Carry kit to well over $100 - $130 installed. I was able to beat mine out with some friends help at a fully equipped retail auto repair garage, and the damage occurred only while reinstalling the sight. If you want the best, and have money to burn, the Apex kit will give you a better trigger than stock. If just replacing the Sear, that is a quick and very easy task that requires no special skills or tools.

Rob,

I too have a "gritty" trigger. What is the process of sending the pistol to Smith and Wesson? Do you have to utilize a gun dealer to do it?
What did you send them for correspondence to get them to look at the trigger action?

The trigger on my shield was gritty and bit too heavy for my liking, the apex DACK took care of it, very pleased with it. If you are happy with yours I wouldn't change it.

You need to contact S&W directly first, explain your issue and they will send you a prepaid shipping label, drop your gun at the designated shipping carrier , and that's it.

Not a fan of the M&P 2-piece hinged trigger. I have a Apex aluminum trigger shoe in both my Shield 9 and my .45 trigger is on the way. The Apex trigger shortens takeup and overtravel.

Don't care what they say about the triggers on the M&P they need to be worked on. Even on the 2.0 I feel the apex system is better and you need better so I won't hesitate to switch out the trigger on all M&P's I buy... just like glocks I have all mine worked on and they feel better. Just something I like to do..