After reading good things about the Shield .45 on the Forum, I rented one at my range. I placed the target at 15 yards, and put 12 out of 14 shots (86%) within two inches of the bullseye. I had never shot that well with any gun, so I moved the target to 20 yards. At 20 yards, I placed 17 out of 21 shots (81%) within two inches of the bullseye, beating my best shooting ever with any gun at that distance by 15 percentage points. Finally, I put the target at maximum range, 25.5 yards, and put 8 out of 15 shots (53%) within two inches of the bullseye. This equaled my best shooting with my FNX-45 Tactical with its 5.25 inch barrel and Vortex red dot.

Thoroughly impressed, I bought a new Shield .45, cleaned and lubed it, and took it to the range. It was awful! I couldn't hit anything with it. I knew from my experience with my Shield 9 that there can be considerable individual differences between these mass-produced guns, but the difference between the rental Shield and mine was ridiculous. Nevertheless, I was determined to give it a chance, so I continued to shoot it. After I had the badly misaligned front sight adjusted (how did it leave the factory that way?), and the trigger smoothed out, it started to shoot much better. On my last range visit, I was able to place 70% of my shots within 2 inches of the bullseye at 20 yards. I also was able to put an end to occasional failures to feed (nosedives into the lower feed ramp), by polishing the lower feed ramp and lightly lubing the insides of the magazine tubes and as well as the followers.

With 2100 rounds through it, my Shield .45 has become the accurate, reliable weapon I expected it to be, and I continue to get better with it. While I doubt that it will ever be as accurate as the range rental I shot (I should have bought it, but who knew?), it is now very accurate, and I don't hesitate to carry it.

If you buy a Shield .45, I think you'll like it. Most of them are great from Day One. But even if it isn't great right off the bat, keep working with it. It has a sound fundamental design, and if you stick with it, it should serve you well in the long run.

I'll update this thread if necessary, but for now, I'm happy with my Shield .45.

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What, me worry?

Misaligned sights will still shoot accurate just not where you want them but they will still group wherever they're pointing.

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Was it the ammo perhaps that the range gun really liked?
Glad to hear yours has come around for you, I really enjoy how well mine shoots (or how well I shoot it) depending on how you look at it

If you get a chance drop in the Apex sear, you might shoot it even better!
Karl

You're right. I was getting good groups 3-4 inches left of the bullseye at 15-20 yards. I learned to hit the bullseye area consistently by aiming right, but I got tired of it. On a slow day at the range, a friendly range officer asked me how I liked my new Shield. When I told him my problem, he whisked it away to the range's sight adjustment guy, and 30 minutes later, I had a properly aligned sight, no charge. I've got a great range!

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What, me worry?

I just put 220 rounds through my brand new Shield 45. No complaints except for the blister on my right thumb (which I popped with my pocket knife after shooting) I got loading my 5 magazines. I thought people were just being whiney when they complained about how hard loading the magazines is on this weapon. I found out people are right. Hopefully they will load easier with time.
I found the gun to very smooth and accurate, especially for having a 3.3 inch barrel. I shoot my M&P 45 as well as I shoot my Glock 30 (also .45 ACP) which has a 3.77 inch barrel. Oddly enough, I shoot my Glock 30 better than any of my 9mm handguns.

The ammo in the rental gun was Sellier & Bellot. I tried it in mine, but it didn't make any difference. After my sight was fixed, I experimented with various target ammo, and I've settled on American Eagle FMJ, as it's the most accurate for practice. I've also experimented quite a bit with self-defense ammo, and Federal Tactical Bonded has consistently been the most accurate, so that's what I carry.

I have an Apex DCAEK in my M&P 40 compact, and I like it, but my Shield trigger so far is good and getting better, so I'm going to wait a bit more to see how good it gets. I really enjoy shooting it now. I'm reluctant to go Apex because I don't need the hassle if I ever have to send it back for warranty work.

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What, me worry?

Regarding your blister from the Shield .45's ultra-stiff magazines, there is a one-word solution: Uplula. More shooting, less blister.

Likewise, my two .45s (Shield and FNX), are the most accurate of my nine pistols. Very close behind is my new SIG P320 .357 SIG. I expect it will catch up with more practice.

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What, me worry?

I am absolutely amazed at how well my Shield .45 shoots. The group in the pic is 30 rounds fired at 20 meters and is about 3.25". The cluster at 2 o'clock in the 10 ring is 12 rounds and can be covered by a quarter. Not as accurate as my revolvers or my P220 but for a lightweight subcompact .45 I think it's pretty darn good. Well, I can't figure out how to attach a pic from my computer but still...

One word... "Uplula". If you don't have one you should get one. It really makes mag loading a whole lot easier.

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I have the Uplula but tried the Caldwell loader. Much faster and easier. It is LARGER but definitely faster & easier. Handles from 380's up to 45's. $30-something on Amazon.

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Why is the Shield 45 so much more easier to shoot accurately then the Shield 9? I can't group my 9mm any where's close to that of the .45! Is it just me or is it the same for everyone?

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It's The Carbonaro Effect!

Could just be the difference in the size of the guns. Perhaps the 45 fits your hand a little better than the 9mm. Might possibly have something to do with the barrel as well. I know my M&P 2.0 is noticeably more accurate than my older M&P so maybe something has changed in S&W's barrels with the newest additions to the M&P line.

While polishing the feed ramp may help, lubricating the magazines is not recommended.

The magazines need no lubrication. In fact, lubrication in them could be bad. If any oils or grease worked it's way into the cartridge, it will prevent them from firing or worse, cause a squib load.

I would recommend cleaning the oil/grease out of your mags. See if you still have the feeding issue. If you do, the gun or your mags are defective and need to be fixed.

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Freedom isn't free.

Yeah, I know. I've never lubed a magazine before, ever. But after experiencing ten nosedive failures to feed in the previous 600 rounds, I was thoroughly annoyed. My Shield had 1900 rounds through it at that point, so it shouldn't have had such break-in type problems. I didn't care if the FTFs were due to a rough feed ramp, or balky magazines, or both, I just wanted them to stop. I knew it wasn't the ammo, because the FTFs happened with four different brands of high quality ammo, two FMJ, and two HP.

I used an extremely light application of TW25B lube in the magazines, and then buffed most of it off. TW25B is almost a dry lube. It goes on wet, but transitions to a semi-dry state if it's thin enough. Afterwards, I worked the followers up and down, and they functioned noticeably more smoothly. I'm going to shoot another 100-150 rounds to check if dirty magazines still work well, then I'll clean them to see if they can reliably function unlubed. I hope so, because I don't want to have to take apart and reassemble those blankety-blank 7-rounders any more than necessary.

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What, me worry?

I'm glad you said something postitive about this. When I first saw it I thought too many things to break. I have an uplula, but I will get one of these.

On the topic of 'lubing' magazines my thought would be to apply powdered graphite, work them by loading to full and hand feed empty then wipe off outside completely. The graphite will not leave any residue, is excellent at reducing friction on any parts making contact and tends to work into the pores of metals for a long lasting slickness.

Just a thought on the subject understanding 'wet lubes' are likely not good to use.
Karl

If I were to use a lube at all on my mags, which I wouldn't, it would be something like Frog Lube. A product where you wipe it on and then almost completely remove it. It's more like a wax and won't get in your rounds.

Even so, mags don't need lube, ever. Cleaning, yes. Lube, no.

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Freedom isn't free.

Looks like a staple gun. LOL. I'll have to check that out. One can never have too many gadgets.

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Why not experiment with clipping magazine wire coils one at a time?

There is no sense at all having the magazine springs as long as some manufacturers put in them. ( are you listening Kahr? ).

When I was shooting Kahrs a lot several years ago, I learned that clipping 2 to 5 coils from the magazine spring at the first sign of jamming worked wonders.

My Shield has a great trigger, almost feels like single action. When I switch from a gun with a heavier trigger I have to be careful not to squeeze one off too soon.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

I went to the range yesterday and fired 120 more rounds, 100 AE FMJ, and 20 Fed Hydra-Shok HP. My only prep work was a normal clean and lube. The magazines were not touched and no further polishing was done on the feed ramp. All rounds fed, fired, and ejected perfectly. That's now 290 consecutive rounds without a nosedive failure to feed. I'm hoping that's the end of it. I'll let you know one way or the other after some additional range time.

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What, me worry?

Same with me!

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It's The Carbonaro Effect!

That's because it is a single action.

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Freedom isn't free.

I was thinking the same thing. If I shoot 200 rounds or more a month, the trigger will continue to improve. Also, I don't want to have the problems some mentioned here. If it was just a range gun, it would be different.

I think people shoot the Shield 45 better than the Shield 9 for basically two reasons - the very grippy surfaces of the gun, which means it is less likely to move erratically in your hand during recoil, and generally it's just a more accurate gun.

I haven't had my Shield 9 out of its box since the 45 came along. Owing to the magazine spring problems I've had with the 9, I don't feel like trusting it, and it's not the type of gun I enjoy shooting just for fun. Fortunately, the Shield 45 has made up for the disappointment of the Shield 9. One just terrific, the other miserable by comparison.

One of the first things that surprised me with my new Shield 45 is just how much fun it is to shoot. I have heard of others having problems with the aggressive grip texture but I haven't noticed it other than it really helps me to keep ahold of such a small pistol.

I recently bought a shield 45 and my first time at the range was not very impressive, to say the least. I watched videos on how accurate the shield is and it just wasn't matching what I did at the range. In my case I think the problem is me, not the gun. I'm a long time 1911 user and this being my first striker fired pistol presents a learning curve. I used a lighter mainspring in my 1911 to reduce trigger pull and wasn't expecting the heavier trigger pull of the shield. I think this is the primary reason my rounds on target were all over the place. The only cure for that is practice, lots of practice. I have only put 50 rounds or so through the pistol but will add significantly to that today when I hit the range. Other than my inexperience with this type of firearm, I love the little guy. Shooting is easy for me and I like the way the grip feels. I have not fired it enough to know how I like the sights, but they seem fine so far.

Aside from initially disassembling and deburring magazines, the "secret" is to clean them with CRC Silicone spray while disassembled and wipe it all off. All that's left is a slight dry residue of silicone powder, and the Heptane (white gasoline) in the spray is a super solvent. NO SMOKING!!!

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Science plus Art

mac6150, when I first got my Shield 45 I thought the trigger was more than sufficient for defensive work. I like to shoot my pistols though and decided to install the Apex Hard Sear. It noticeably improved the feel and reduced the trigger pull. For the $40 or so I paid it made it's monies worth of difference. I also installed a set of TFX sights which are much easier for me to see and reduced the time it takes me to re-aquire my target. I have approx. 1100 rounds downrange now and if I move up to 50ft (I typically shoot at 20 meters) I can pretty much keep all rounds within about a 2.5" group if you don't count one or two fliers that are my fault. In my experience the little .45 can shoot well above it's price and size range.

Well, just fired another 75 rounds through my shield 45 and what an improvement. After a thorough cleaning my most recent trip to the range showed improvement. Now instead of being all over the target my rounds are clustered within a three inch group, with most holes on target touching with a few flyers. The only thing I noticed is that its shooting a little to the left. Its still too early to decide if its the gun or me causing this. I'll give it a few more trips to the range before attempting to adjust the front sight. I do like the feel of the gun in my hand. It feels like a natural extension of my arm.