Brownells sells "Magazine lip tools" for adjusting mags. Here's a search of them. Don't know which one would do the job.??

Magazine Lip Tools at Brownells

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Steve....

Yeah, nothing there (that I see) seems obvious for use with an EZ mag...

I just use specialty needle nose or needle nose type pliers what I mean by specialty is they have no grooves to the surface are flat Steel! Basically this is just to see if it will help or cure the problem. Nothing special about what you need to try it with one mag. And if it don't work you can put it back where it was easy enough. Between that and checking the extractor as to how tight it holds the cartridge in the slide. Those are the two things that I would check the EZ. As a mentioned.

A mag lip tuning video:

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Steve....

Good morning brother EZ owners. I hope the moderators are not upset about this info. Over on M&P pistol forum, one of our fellow owners has captured a picture of a round, nose up, before the slide has traveled completely to the rear. No engineers employed at S&W ????? Quick

Can you point me to the video? Put up a link, URL! So I and others can see this. Thanks George

Here is the video on YouTube:


And a sequence of 10 frames from the video (click for full-size view):

New member here to add another data point to this discussion. I bought an EZ about 10 months ago for my girlfriend, who has both weak hands and arthritis. I took the gun out by myself for a couple range sessions to make sure it was working correctly. First session was 50 rounds of American Eagle ball ammo and I had two or three live round stovepipes on the last round of the magazine. Next session, same ammo, I had no stovepipes, gun worked without issue. I then did a light cleaning and started teaching my girlfriend how to use it. She has run 200 more rounds through it with zero issues. Those rounds included American Eagle, Sellier & Bellot and Hornady Critical Defense. She had given up shooting years ago because she couldn't operate her Glock 26 anymore. She is thrilled with the EZ and loves going to the range now. I am no firearms expert, but wonder if the magazine springs are inconsistent because the problem seems to be inconsistent.

Sure looks like the magazine feed lips aren't holding that last round properly and the follower is kicking the round out of the ejection port. That 7th frame posted above (frame #70 of 74) shows the new round nose higher than where it should be (actually 5th, 6th, and 7th frames show that) and the 8th frame shows the nose of the round exiting the ejection port without being touched by the slide.

I'm "still" waiting for S&W to ship my replacement mags. Been more than a month...they claim the delay is due them moving their distribution center. Seems like a ridiculously long delay to me. Depending on how the new mags do, I may try adjusting the feed ramps on one of my 7 magazines. I believe S&W should redesign the magazines for the EZ...would love for that to be the real reason for the delay!

I'd like to see the same photo sequence but shooting the 3rd round of the magazine and compare.

I'd rather see S&W come out with fix for the people who are having these failures..........

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Steve....

update on 2nd range outing:

Shot the EZ this AM at the range. 100 rounds. One box of the steel ammo from Monarch and another box of Aguila 95 grain FMJ. My gf had one no slide lock on one magazine other than that no issues on this outing.

Somebody should check they're extractor tension. Take this slide off insert a live round in the slide and it should not be really tight nor should be snug. Similar to the 45 hold a slight upright and give it a few good shakes it should hold the round showing a little looseness. This could very well cause that last round to do what it's doing. My two cents worth. I don't have an easy but I've had this issue with a number of different guns. Generally I shorten the extractor just a tad till it feels right. Most of the time you don't even have to take the extractor out of the gun a Dremel does fine just be careful less is more! My two cents worth! Smith & Wesson should truly be addressing this issue publicly for all the people that are having issues with it even if they don't have a fix yet that's my opinion. Best of luck! George

How to check extractor tension:

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Steve....

I gave up on mine,wen't back to the 9mm 3.6 compact, 380 ammo cost to much anyway.

You know this is a good point actually, if you're going to carry a 380 of this size why not just go to the 9mm. Sure I get slide pull and less recoil and all but when you really think about one chambered bad person with bad intentions you won't remember recoil. Sadly you likely won't remember if your gun fails to go bang or if you do remember it won't be a fond memory. Just my most humble opinion and for the record I do sometimes carry a BG 380.

For what it's worth I have my share of M&P'S and love them. But also have a older-model Ruger LC9 Hammer fired which I love ,9 mm nice and small I am not recoil sensitive. My wife has arthritis she can even shoot it. Granted it is difficult to pull back THE slide back for her. Decided to get her a Ruger LC380 also is a gun much smaller than the LCP 9 that I have which is wicked small. Slide much easyer to operate again it's hard for me to tell the difference in Recoil it doesn't bother me. Her with her bad arthritis can fire that 380 with no problem at all. She's more fearful because of anticipation from arthritis pain. Slide easier to operate much easier then the lcp9 I have but still difficult for her. Both guns come with a double recoil spring I decided to cut back the inner smaller recoil spring on her 380 so she can have an easy time with starting to operate the slide that makes all the difference. Both guns fire flawlessly 0 problems with them for years hundreds and hundreds of rounds through them. Something to think about! I know shortening a spring on the 380 might compromise gun life. It's not a Target gun and when used for one the regular spring will go in I will Chamber a round for her. But I've run that gun with target loads and high-powered defense loads would 0 issues no battering that I can see I am sure over time it would take its toll on the gun but I don't care if it's used in a defense situation and does its job I really don't care what happens to the gun! I know this has nothing to do with the subject other than Maybe trying a different gun these guns are much smaller than the Smith & Wesson EZ. Or Shield . Just food for thought for those who want something small accurate 4 a defensive weapon and reliable! Inexpensive also!

Can't speak for others here, but I have no intention of ever carrying the EZ. I just bought it as something my wife might be interested in shooting at the range. Besides, the reliability of my EZ guarantees it will never be a carry gun.

My carry guns are Sigs and CZs in 9mm, though I occasionally carry a .357 magnum revolver.

Chris, I agree with you! If a gun is not reliable it should not be a carry gun. I also have my share of carry guns which vary widely depending on weather what I'm wearing what I'm doing where I'm going. Kind of like women and Jewelry! To a point of course! All of which have been a hundred percent reliable! My preference is the 45 Colt of course but most of the time I carry is a 45 ACP and you can go down to a 380 pending on what I'm wearing where I'm going what I'm doing so on so forth. I wish Smith & Wesson would just come out with something like we know there's an issue with a particular run model numbers or whatever and we're working on a fix. For me that would make all the difference. So many companies these days excuse me but are so stupid knowing full well with the internet everybody knows of the issues I don't care if it's guns cars or whatever yet they deny or will not admit to them. There's definitely issues with at least some of the EZ's and a statement from Smith & Wesson would certainly make it easier to swallow for the people having issues and also strengthen their integrity for people interested in them. Sorry for some of my posts as I use text to speech from my phone and sometimes it plain sucks and will say completely different things. In any case. Absolutely carry what Suits You! George

If S&W function-checked the guns before boxing and shipping them, this whole problem disappears.

Nope don't believe function checking would solve the whole problem. Numerous EZ's went back to the factory for function checking getting checked out more than once and they still cannot fix the problem. Or they say gun functions fine. I believe when a gun is sent back find the best way to replicate your problem and explain that the Smith & Wesson so they can do the same. Who knows if they'll do it but at least it's a attempt to get them to duplicate your problem. Lot of good suggestions on the board 4 people who's Smith also. I believe it'll be up to one of us to solve the problems in the near anyway. I wish Smith & Wesson would own up to it. George

While its not a 380 EZ, I cured the feeding problems with my Colt Pocketlite 380 by feeding it only full-length, round-nosed ammo. Anything much shorter than .980" OAL would jamb the last round of the mag into the top edge of the barrel.
I reload and I can make that adjustment.

I just read all 122 post on this, but I've never held let alone shot a EZ so this is just a WAG.
Has anyone here only loaded their magazine, chambered a round then shot the gun without topping it off every time since new.
If you have did you have the same problem's?

I'm not sure I understand "without topping it off every time since new" (I've only topped off the gun a few (10 to 20) times if that is what you are asking), but I've loaded 8 in the mag (plus one and not), 5 in the mag, 4 in the mag, and 2 in the mag and had trouble 10 to 20% of the time no matter the number loaded...always a live last round stuck in the ejection port or completely ejected from the gun. Have had the issue with 6 different magazines and with 8 different brands of ammo. Replaced mag springs, then replaced mag springs and followers and recoil spring assembly, then returned my gun to S&W, then received 2 new mags...same trouble. Still waiting for additional new replacement mags... I now have over 3000 rounds through my EZ and have been communicating/working with S&W about this issue since January and it's still not resolved 6 months later. They clearly don't know how to fix it or perhaps find it too costly to fix...very disappointing!

christak,
Stay on top of them (S&W) and make sure they know it has gone viral on the internet. Send them links of searches with google if necessary. On a side note I talked to "Wolff Springs" tech support yesterday. They said they are aware of S&W's mag trbls and are looking into +5% & 10% percent stiffer springs for the S&W EZ pistols line.

Finger's crossed.
Steve

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Steve....

I haven't had the pleasure of trying a 380EZ but these problems sound like those of a poorly tuned 1911 with weak magazine springs.

Are there normal strength mag springs available for these? Is there a way to increase the extractor tension? Is the ejector not long enough?

Lastly, are there different poundage recoil springs available?

It sounds like it's an easy fix but S&W isn't offering an actual fix.

JMO

I'm pretty well convinced that this is purely a magazine design/spring issue. I've seen no alternative springs available. S&W hasn't offered any real solution. The frame by frame photos from the video above (post #107) illustrate the live round getting kicked out of the mag improperly. Follower, springs, or feed lips issues...I don't know for sure, but I'm tired of it.

I was about ready to "pull the trigger" and buy a M&P .380 EZ - but after reading a good many comments on this last round not chambering issue, I'm not so sure. Another issue is I'd like the EZ grip to be just a tiny bit longer for my larger hands. Has anyone had any experience with the Galloway magazine extender (Galloway Precision - Page Not Found I don't really like the idea of giving up the stock magazine buttons that help with reloading, and even more important, the fact that this extender does not allow the slide to lock open after the last shot. Is there any other way to make the .380 EZ grip just a little longer?

I bought a 380 EZ today at Academy Sports, and the guy at the counter said they sell a lot of them. That is just one data point, but the 380 EZ does fill a niche with few direct competitors: "mid" size, full grip 380, with EZ rack slide and EZ mag loading.

Btw, I limit my posts to once every 5 years. See you in 2024.

I admire your discipline.

I hate to give up on this issue. I was going to send mine in but after the results that forum members are having decided to just wait to see if S&W figures it out. My thoughts are that it is surely the magazine but not especially the springs. The lips are farther apart than a 9m mag. the magazine rides too high in the frame pushing that last round down far enough to pop up before the slide pushes it into the chamber. The feed lips only contain a little over half of the cartridge case on this 380 and a 9m single stack supports almost the full length of the cartridge case. Having been a Quality inspector for years drives me to locate all the faults. So, I guess I will have to wait as everyone else is doing. Old saying," Wish in one hand------------. Quick

S&W can't even seem to ship magazines at this point. I've been waiting for replacement mags since May. I have no confidence in S&W at this point.

Went to the range today, shot 50 rds. 2 stove pipes, one on last rd. from a mag. and one next to the last rd. from a mag. Ho,Hum. Quick

My latest range report:

When I first got my .380 EZ I experienced last round issues: a couple of stovepipes, a few FTFs, and at least one live round ejected (I think, never did find the round).

But these problems disappeared by the 3rd time through each magazine.

Yesterday I shot each magazine three times through, flawless performance.

In total I have put not quite 3 boxes of ammo through the EZ, with no problems experienced since the first box of ammo.

Still a small sample size, but I'm getting more and more confident that, in my case, the magazines required a brief breaking in period.

Given the performance I have experienced over the last hundred rounds, I'm not anticipating any more issues.

That sounds encouraging.......

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Steve....

Well, today I fabricated an aluminum follower with a deep groove for the round to lie in at the same configuration as the plastic original except for the groove. It functions right with snap caps and dry fire. Will need another fix to activate the slide stop but will go to the range in the a.m. to test before completing. Sure wish S&W were trying correct the stove pipe. Quick

Would be interested in seeing pics of the factory follower and yours.

I haven't handled one of these but I'm interested once the problem is addressed

Could you dremel an original follower and accomplish the same thing? Don't know if the original follower would be thick enough to allow for the dremel work. I'm still waiting for my replacement mags (since May), but I have extra followers. Not likely that Smith is going to even look at this issue. Frustrating.

The original follower is too thin at the top surface to do any work on. I went to the range today and fired 50 rds. without one problem with the follower that I made. Just finished affixing the slide stop feature to the follower. As is I will lose a round unless I put extra pressure on the spring upon loading a full mag. Will continue a few more ideas to get a full mag. with less pressure on the spring. Quick

Maybe you could post a photo or two of your follower...

Never been able to send pictures on these forums. Drop me a PM and I'll see what I can do. I really shouldn't go too far with this until I can give it a few more try outs. Quick

I think it's pretty clear that there is an issue here that S&W isn't copping to. And since this gun is marketed to women and weaker people who have issues with racking a slide, and by and large, members of those groups don't shoot all that much (yes, I know there are exceptions), S&W isn't all that interested in putting the money into fixing it in a timely manner since they know most of the owners will probably never even discover it. Will they fix the issue? Eventually as they roll out newer models, but those who already have them aren't much of a priority, in my opinion.

S&W has offered to send me a new Mag. and springs. I agreed to try them if that is their positive fix of the problem. Others here have not had the best of luck with that. Still working on my own ideas. Quick

Never discover it or never think it's a problem in the first place.

My dislike of the .380Auto round is no secret. The issues with this gun just highlight my concerns. Whether we choose to admit it or not, the vast majority of people who have issues with semi-auto guns, don't see it as an issue.

One malfunction during a shooting session isn't a problem for most people. They usually just see it as no big deal. What they don't realize is that 1 issue in 20 shots means a 5% error rate. If the purpose of the gun is just for fun at the range, this is no big deal. If its purpose is self-defense, this could get you killed.

The .380Auto is a low power, finicky round. For any gun to work well with this round, the gun needs to be tuned properly. A mass produced gun just won't have the fine finishing necessary to be really reliable with this round.

So far, it seems that S&W isn't going to produce a fix for this issue. They will just handle the small number of guns sent in for repair and maybe will change the design in some future update or new model. The majority of owners won't bother to send their guns in for repair. S&W knows and is counting on this.

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Freedom isn't free.

Mass produced pistols have been reliably digesting .380 cartridges and spitting bullets out for over a century. Until recently, they were all blowback designs. Whether it's easier to tune than a short recoil action, I don't know - I wouldn't think so. I've put a small mountain of .380 through a Glock 42 with absolutely zero issues, and that's recoil operated. I don't think it's that hard to get a mass-produced .380 pistol to operate reliably. S&W, very surprisingly, doesn't seem to have managed that with the otherwise excellent .380 EZ.

I took the wife's 380EZ out again today, 100 rounds of American Eagle 90 grain. Every round fired with no issue, no stovepipe jams. I haven't shot this gun in about a month. Two of the three mags were sitting loaded in the safe, the other empty.

Just got back from the range with a brand new 380EZ, serial RCB9xxx.

150 rounds of very smokey Magtech ball.

No stovepipes or feeding failures.

I did have four instances where the round failed to cycle the slide. I'm going to chalk that up, for now, to either underpowered ammo or to new gun break-in. I have some WW WB that I'll try next time.

Overall, I'm very pleased with the pistol and think it will do what I bought it to do very nicely - a perfect tool for working on trigger control.

Stopped at the range this afternoon and put another 150+ rounds of various types and brand through the pistol. Zero issues of any kind. That includes the last few magazines fired by a woman in the next lane who'd never fired a pistol before and was there to inaugurate her birthday present, a subcompact 9mm. (!) I don't think that's how I'd start a new shooter. I figured the 380EZ would give her a little bit of an on-ramp.

Can anyone "decode" that serial number to a date of production.????

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Steve....

I can't, but will say mine is an NCA1xxx and it was purchased on 4 April 2018.