Went to a gun shop yesterday and they had a used M&P 45 with 4.5" bbl. in the case. Gun came with all accessories including plastic case, manual, paperwork, etc. and even included a S&W 14 round mag. The fired cartridge envelope was dated 5-13-2013 as test fired date.

Price was $450 but is negotiable, probably $400-$420 + tax.
Appears to be in good shape, trigger feels good. Only thing that bothered me was the rear sight was adjusted all the way to the right of dove tail. Should I be concerned? I would drift the sight back to center before I even took it to the range, if I were to make the purchase.

Looking for opinions, concerns, etc. Has anyone ever had an M&P that needed this much sight adjustment? Would appreciate any info. as I'm on vacation next week and would like to purchase this gun and get some range time with it.

Do it. $450 is not bad, especially with the extra big mag.

If there is a problem with getting POA to meet POI, most likely Smith & Wesson will help fix that, even though you are not original owner.

I have yet to be challenged on any of my used Smiths going back, but then again, I have never tried to get something big done, ie new barrel or slide, etc.

Good luck

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"Only hits count." - Air Power

Too expensive in my opinion, especially with only one mag. You can get a brand new one from on-line dealers for not much more than that. A used M&P shouldn't top $375 in my book with two mags.

I've never needed to adjust my rear sight anywhere near as much as you describe. I would insist on shooting it first.

Many times the original owner doesn't fill out the warranty card. Most warranty registrations are done on line now. I have several guns that I purchased used where I went on line & registered the warranty in my name, as the original owner did not. A few guns were 10+ years old. GARY

Used are about $400 here

The previous owner could have taken his sights off and put the old ones back on, prior to sale, and never bothered to adjust them. Just put back in place

My bad, I got the impression that the price included the original two mags that came with the gun as he mentioned case. Thought the 14 Rd mag was an extra, not the sole mag.

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"Only hits count." - Air Power

No, the gun comes with the 2 original mags plus the 14 round mag.

Well then, $400 would be about right IMO. I'd still want to test it due to the sight issue.

If the rear sight is all the way one direction, is the front sight still centered?

Sounds like someone tried to compensate for a bad flinch with the sights instead of proper technique.

If the rear sight is all the way to the right, and the front sight is centered, you should be shooting hard right. If that's the case, center the rear sight back up and have a go at it...sounds like a good price.

Sounds like a "FAIR" price, not great, not bad, just FAIR. Plus side, a real nice Smith, I really like mine. The 14 round mag, is ugly, but makes for a nice bedside piece.

Interesting how the price fluctuates around the country. Around here that is a killer price and I wouldn't hesitate; I'd buy it. Especially with an extra mag.

I wouldn't worry about this at all. This is most likely a shooter problem and why the gun was sold. Let me explain...

A quick search will show many, many threads with a "hitting low/left" complaint. These are all right hand shooters and they are all "flinching" the gun down and to the left. It's a super common problem for right hand shooters.

Most try to compensate for this by moving the sight. If the problem is caused by a flinch, moving the sight won't help.

This happens a lot with the M&P because of the stiff trigger and too much over travel. There are two cures. Spend a bunch of time working on trigger control through dry practice or, install an Apex FSS kit. The later will help, but still requires practice with trigger control.

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Freedom isn't free.

I know from talking to the guy at the shop that has this, price is negotiable, and I'm guessing $400-$420 plus tax. Includes everything you would get with a new gun, in addition to the 14 round S&W mag. Fired cartridge/test fire date was 5-13-2013.

I know full well about flinching/pulling your shots; I was away from shooting for a number of years and had to re-learn some of the basics! Once you relax and settle in to the basics, you start getting your accuracy back and start hitting where you aim.

How much trouble/effort would it take to get the rear sight back to center? I wouldn't want to scar up the sight or the gun with hammer & punch.

Yes the front sight is still centered. My question now would be how hard is it to adjust the rear sight back to center?

Go up to the local Lowe's home improvement store. They have little 1" square pieces of Corian or similar countertop that they give out for color samples. They work well as a non-marring punch. (Don't use granite!)

Really, if you lubricate it first moving the rear is no biggie. If you remove it first you can even file down the interference fit rib most M&P rears have to make them more snug - the ones I've seen have been on the front of the dovetail. Then you'll be able to adjust sights with just a wrench and a few light taps with a nonmarring mallet.

I have a sight pusher, but they really aren't essential.

Unfortunately, the answer is, it depends.

My .45 rear sight can be moved by hand once the set screw is loosened. Others have not been that easy.

There are a few methods to move that sight. First, loosen the set screw and see how tight it is. Since it has been moved once, it might not be that hard. If it is stiff, mount the slide in a vise and tap the sight gently with a brass punch.

Another way is to use the vise itself. You'll just need a small piece of material that's about the width of the sight channel. Place it on the side of the sight as you close the vise jaws. This is a little more difficult than the punch method, but it applies more force.

I have a sight mover. If you can't get it to move with these methods, you can send me the slide and I'll center it up for you. Also, a local gun store/smith might have a sight mover as well. They can often do it for a very small fee.

__________________
Freedom isn't free.

Why not pay 100 more for brand new?? No worries on anything.

See if the shop can put a laser bore sighter in it and adjust it back to where it's supposed to be. I laser bore sight all my guns after buying them weather new or used. 99% of the time they're right on, but some need a little tweaking. It saves a lot of ammo at the range and will save you time repeating the cycle of adjust,shoot,adjust,shoot, etc until it's right.

My guess would be that the previous owner didn't know how to shoot and adjusted the sight to compensate for his poor grip and/or trigger control.

I bought both my FS45s used. Both were around the $400-$425 mark. They both came with the case and everything else as if I bought them new. Both are very accurate and 100% reliable so I wouldn't worry about problems unless they're apparent when you inspect the gun yourself.


In case you're wondering why I bought two? I liked the first one so much I instantly said "I'll take it!" when I saw the second one in the used case. One is my HD pistol and the other is a back-up or when I open carry.

Where can you get a brand new M&P 45 for $500?

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Freedom isn't free.

There are a few local stores around my area for $500-550. Unless you wanna get ripped off I wouldn't pay more than that.

S&W M&P45 10+1 45ACP 4.5" $501.00 SHIPS FREE

S&W M&P45 10+1 45ACP 4" $463.00 SHIPS FREE

Man would I love that chance..... Down Under 45s are pretty much not available due to legislation, which pretty much limits you to a maximum .356 projectile for pistol (for pretty much everything) and the maximum mag size allowed is 10 Rds. I run a 9 mil M&P ( which was my first pistol, and will always be my baby), which retails brand new at around 900 - 1000 bucks........ I dream of a 500 dollar M&P 45 with a 14 round mag, new or second hand....


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HDK, Hey thanks for the links! Never dealt with Bud's before, but looks like several gun shops in my area that are on their list to do transfers.

Now have to decide whether to make an offer on the used, or try to get the best price through Bud's plus cost of transfer.