I was struggling to get the 7th round in. So I took the mag apart and found this:


Has anyone had this happen to them?

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Hmmm... That will *not* grow back.

How many rounds through that mag?

I don't know how many rounds I have through that mag specifically, but I only have a total of 50 rounds through the gun. So, a reasonable guess is <25 rounds fired using this mag.

I have loaded and unloaded the mag about 10 times at home.

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Wow, how in the world could that have happened?!?!

Have you disassembled that particular magazine since first getting the gun? If so, nothing visibly out of kilter?

Barring an assembly issue (misalignment of spring under follower), I'd suspect a defect with the spring.

I've heard of a weird spring deformation being attributed to a possible problem with heat treatment.

One of my first M&P 45 mags, with the orange springs, developed a bizarre rearward kink at the transition from the large coils to the smaller coils. One day when I removed it from the mag body (for cleaning), the top of the spring assumed approx a 90-degree rearward bend. No functioning issues noted during the last range session, either.

Warranty issue (unless you introduced some creative spring gymnastics if you disassembled & reassembled the mag ).

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I only disassembled the mag after not being able to get the last round in.

What I think is happening is related to the spring geometry. At the top, the spring has smaller coils. When the spring is compressed by a full mag, the smaller coils seem to nest inside the larger coils. It is my belief that this particular spring has something wrong with it. As it's fully compressed, rather than nesting, it tilts and that tangles the coils.

I've sent an email to S&W with the picture posted above. I'm curious to hear what they say.

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FWIW I've had the same problem with a mag spring in a Glock G21 mag (.45acp). That spring is also a single 'nesting' spring, with the top smaller than the bottom.

The mag had always operated fine with the stock factory spring. But the replacement Wolff spring I dropped in failed after only several loads. I later added another spring from Just Right carbine and it's never failed since. So not a bad mag body or follower. Either just bad luck, bad spring, or I didn't install it properly.

This is also why I don't force the last round in any mag, especially when new. Might be harder to do by hand but I use an UpLula pistol loader and it can apply a lot of force.

S&W is sending me two new springs. I'll update this when I get them.

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I had the same issue with my 9mm shield. Never even noticed till I took the mag down for routine cleaning. Found it odd I never had issues with the spring like that.


I tried straightening it out and putting it back together but it folded back over.


Called s&w about it and they sent me a new mag spring free no questions asked. Received it in about a week


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Same happened to me. Except S&W says the spring is on backorder. No estimated time of delivery. I ordered one from Woolf but their site says expect 3 weeks because they are so busy. Still a better pistol than my Ruger LC 380 by far.

This is the 4-5 time I'm reading about this spring issue with the shield. Anyone know if it was a bad batch of springs...and where to get replacement springs? Anyone know if the mag guts spring kits are good?

I've had excellent results with the Magguts kits. Most reports seem to be positive on the product.

S&W will send you springs for free. Just contact them and let them know your issue.

I received my replacement springs last week. I just forgot to update this thread.

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Are the springs identical to the old ones?

Except for not being twisted in a knot, yes.

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Mine did the same. Took it apart today and the spring was bent. I bent it back and I was able to get eight rounds in but I'm definitely going to replace the spring. This was a brand new 9mm shield first time out.


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Hmm. Ok. I'm ordering some Wolff springs to see how they are.

Hmmm. I have a new shield too...I loaded and unloadd mags many times and the spring didn't get tweaked....but now I'm worried. And I ordered spare mags too. Those springs need testing as well now. I bought Wolff springs and I'll update here when I get

I took apart a few mags to clean, had them for sometime, same issue, springs where at a a 45 degree angle but still worked, going to call Smith and Wesson next week.

The Wolff springs appear to be the same as the original springs in size and shape. The color of the metal is different though. So prolly a different metal. If I test them I will update. My original springs have not twisted up.

I've asked if David Tubbs could make some flat coil magazine springs. Think Magguts but flat coil springs should never need replacing and I'm thinking with flat coil springs, you could get extra capacity with just replacing the spring, plus more consistent magazine pressure (more pressure than stock on that last round to lock your slide back).