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Old 08-22-2018, 01:16 PM
yanici yanici is offline
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I have read a lot of quite a few folks having problems with their 380 EZ stovepiping a live round occasionally and most often on the last round in the mag. Most believed that the EZ mag springs might be too weak and causing the problem.

Has anyone heard whether S&W has come up with a fix for this?

I'm interested in the gun but not if the problem still persists.

Thank you.
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Old 08-22-2018, 02:41 PM
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I believe it was from the mag springs being too strong. I had a few of these early on, but have had none in the last 500 plus rounds using various ammo through my EZ. I may be wrong about the springs, but the problem went away with use...

Edit: I should clarify. The issue I had early on was occasionally (maybe 5 times) the last round in the mag would not load into the chamber. Rather, it would be sitting upright (bullet end up) with the casing caught in the ejection port...as though the round was pushed too far up or up too quickly.

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Old 08-22-2018, 02:50 PM
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Quote:
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I believe it was from the mag springs being too strong. I had a few of these early on, but have had none in the last 500 plus rounds using various ammo through my EZ. I may be wrong about the springs, but the problem went away with use...
Funny that you should say that. I'd read where some guys actually increased the spring pressure to cure the problem by shimming under the bottom of the spring or under the bottom of the follower to in effect add more tension.
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Old 08-22-2018, 03:44 PM
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This is a wonderful gun with an irritating issue. Last time at the range, mine stovepiped the last round of every magazine (50 rounds WWB). Didn’t matter which of the factory mags I used, both had this issue. I also think it’s a spring issue, too loos, too strong IDK. we are going to the range tomorrow again and I am going to shoot keeping my thumbs completely off the gun. Could be one of my thumbs touches the slide as it recoils back, with those light springs, maybe preventing proper action. If I can’t figure it out, I’m just going to sell it. I have an M&P Shield 9mm that I just love.

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Old 08-22-2018, 04:48 PM
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I have not had any problems with mine,over 900 rounds through it. Give smith a call they will take care of it.
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Old 08-22-2018, 05:14 PM
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Originally Posted by yanici View Post
I have read a lot of quite a few folks having problems with their 380 EZ stovepiping a live round occasionally and most often on the last round in the mag. Most believed that the EZ mag springs might be too weak and causing the problem.

Has anyone heard whether S&W has come up with a fix for this?

I'm interested in the gun but not if the problem still persists.

Thank you.
Try different brand ammo until you find the one that functions best in the gun... people are so quick to start fidgeting with the mechanics on a firearm when really the solution is so simple. It even states that in the owner's manual..
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Old 08-22-2018, 05:35 PM
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I have 5 magazines, 4 have been used to fire 700-ish rounds. I have one new (unused) magazine and plan to go to the range tomorrow specifically to see if I have any issues with the new mag. Again, the older 4 mags have been fine since my 1st couple of range sessions. I've used a wide variety of ammo and I don't know what causes the problem, but do believe that it's mag follower/spring related. I wouldn't hesitate to contact S&W, if the problem persisted...
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Old 08-22-2018, 05:40 PM
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My wife's shoots SIG .380 without any drama.
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Old 08-22-2018, 10:51 PM
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Agreed. The Sig Elite Ball 100gr is great in the EZ. Never had an issue with that ammo.
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Old 08-23-2018, 09:39 AM
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I'm certainly not going to go out and purchase the EZ if it's super fussy on ammo just so it doesn't kick out live rounds. I already own a Sig P238 which I love but wanted to be able to recommend this gun to a friend that needed a gun that was easy to rack. In all good conscience I can't do that at this time unless the cure is in.
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Old 08-23-2018, 10:08 AM
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I would definitely try different brands of ammo that is comfortable with your gun. Most of the firearm manuals suggest using different brands of ammo for your gun to see which one would run smoothly. Another method is taking the spring out of the magazine and give it an attitude adjustment, that is stretching the spring, and reinserting back into the mag. This will keep the rounds tight and close together when the last round exits the mag and into the chamber. Also, you may want to look into the Springfield XDE 9mm with the exposed hammer. It is very light and with a three inch barrel conceals nicely. The slide is very easy to rack and chamber a round. That is my EDC and the gun has never failed me at the range. Just another avenue to pursue for other firearms on the market. Also, because someone recommends a gun doesn't mean it is for you. The gun needs to fit your hand just as a pair of shoes fits your feet. I recommend trying several guns that are available at Firearm dealer with a range to check fit and ease of the firearm. Sometimes, It may take up to 200 rounds to finally break in a gun. Just a few things to think about when looking for a gun.

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Old 08-23-2018, 10:29 AM
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Ammo brand can certainly make a difference. But it seems to me that the problem you mention generally sorts itself out after a few hundred rounds are fired from these magazines. You could be having a problem that is a combination of both. I never get excited about this kind of problem until it hasn't gone away by around the 500 rounds downrange time. All new guns need firing a good bit for things to settle down and smooth themselves. My wife's copy had similar problems with the last round in the mags but it had disappeared after 300 or so rounds were fired. Go shoot it.
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Old 08-23-2018, 11:01 AM
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As with any small semi auto, a firmer grip can work wonders to eliminate stovepipes.
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Old 08-23-2018, 03:12 PM
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Ok, so we went to the range today. In my EZ, I used Blackhills Honeybadger 60 gr and Hornady s American Gunner 100 gr. I also had decided mine might be stove piping the last round due to the slide coming back and my thumb keeping it from cycling back far enough, but then again, why would it just be the last round. So I kept both thumbs off the gun. I shot 50 rounds, no issues whatsoever. Course, if ammo caused the stovepipe issue, the Honeybadger is way too expensive to continue for range practice. We bought the Hornady in a bulk carton, so reasonable enough. Definitely no more 380 WWB. I’m much happier with this gun now!
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Old 08-23-2018, 05:42 PM
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Went to the range today. Shot 50 rounds of Winchester White Box, 100 rounds of Perfecta, and 100 rounds of Magtech. No issues. Used my brand new magazine along with my other four...no difference in performance, though the springs in the new mag seemed stiffer than the others. Of these 3 ammo brand, I prefer the Perfecta. The Magtech was extremely dirty and the WWB was, well, WWB.
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Old 01-11-2019, 11:50 AM
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Well, things had been going pretty well with my EZ until yesterday. I went to the range and fired 200 rounds of Perfecta and a magazine full of Federal Premium HST. Unfortunately, I experienced 8 to ten incidents where my last round didn't chamber and instead was caught in the ejection port pointing straight up. It happened with both types of ammo. (Otherwise, the EZ functioned flawlessly as usual.)

I contacted S&W this morning, described my issue, and asked if there had been any revisions made to the EZ magazine springs. The customer service rep said he was unaware of any changes but offered to send replacement springs to me for all my mags. So, once I receive the new springs, I'll let you know if I notice any differences and any improvement in last round performance.
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Old 01-11-2019, 12:19 PM
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Light pressure on that grip safety will also cause a stove pipe! It did on mine a couple of times when I first bought it. No problems since.
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Old 01-11-2019, 12:53 PM
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I have well over 1000 rounds through my EZ and have only experienced this issue on the last round in the mag (and not so frequently until yesterday.). I have 5 mags and it seemed to happen with all of them yesterday. Maybe it was my grip, but I'm far from an inexperienced shooter, have a large number of handguns, and make weekly trips to the gun range. We'll see.
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Old 01-11-2019, 02:58 PM
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Seems like if it was a grip issue, the malfunction would occur anytime. Not just on the last round.

Unless yiu get tired and losennthe grip after each shot and limp wristimg by the last round. Or the gun is getting lighter and mightwr after each shot and this the recoil increases slightly each time. But both of those situations seem so insignificant that it is unlikely to be the cause. At least in my opinion.

The fact that some people seem to report the last shot issue reaolving itself over time. Suggests to me that as the springs take a “set”, the problem went away.

Which would lend some credence to the idea that the springs are or may be too strong. As the “set” that takes place by shooing sufficient number of rounds.

When I get a new gun or mag. I presonally leave the slide locked back, and fully load the mags and then leave them sit in the safe, that way for two weeks or so. It seems like this lets both the mag springs, and the RSA spring to take a set. Without having to shoot as many rounds to break in the springs.

I also have never had any problem with hand/finger loading the mags to full capacity. In fact when I bought an additional mag for my shield months later. After leaving the mag sit fully loaded for ancouple weeks, I could not really discern the mag spring difference of the new mag, compared to my other mags with substantial use.

Maybe I have nust been lucky.
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Old 01-11-2019, 04:07 PM
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I've got over 1200 rounds of Remington 95 grain ball thru my EZ during the past year with no problem shooting at the range. I have 6 mags and no issues.
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Old 01-12-2019, 12:05 AM
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I have about 700 rds through mine, no problems....
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Old 01-12-2019, 12:45 AM
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Mine had a bumpy first few range trips and since then its been perfect. A really good cleaning and lube job and leaving the mags loaded for about a week were the only things I did.
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Old 01-12-2019, 04:12 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by christak View Post
...experienced 8 to ten incidents where my last round didn't chamber and instead was caught in the ejection port pointing straight up.
This is why I don't trust the 380Auto. This error is common and regular. Some claim they haven't had this issue, but I believe they will. I hope it doesn't happen in a self-defense situation.
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Old 01-13-2019, 12:32 AM
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This is why I don't trust the 380Auto. This error is common and regular. Some claim they haven't had this issue, but I believe they will. I hope it doesn't happen in a self-defense situation.
Wouldn't currently trust my gun for EDC, though with one in the pipe, I would have 8 good rounds before the potential (9th round) issue would come into play.
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Old 01-16-2019, 07:34 PM
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Ok, i received my new magazine springs from S&W. The new springs have a bit of yellow paint on a portion of them. The new springs are significantly longer than my original springs, but otherwise they look the same. My 5 original springs and a new spring are shown in the attached photo. My original springs varied in length, because of the extent each was used I assume.
My guess is that I have around 1200 rounds of total use spread across my 5 magazines. I wouldn't expect magazine springs to show this much wear (change in length) with such a small number of rounds of use. Maybe that is normal...who knows?
I haven't had a chance to get back to the range with the new springs installed, but we'll see if the new springs help with the issue. Hope so...
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Old 01-17-2019, 06:51 PM
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Went to the range today. 200 more rounds of Perfecta. New magazine springs in all 5 mags. 3 mags had no issues at all. 2 mags had one last round issue each... Guess I'll try different ammo again to see if that matters now. Bit of a frustrating issue, but the EZ is still a lot of fun to shoot.
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Old 01-18-2019, 02:30 PM
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Wouldn't currently trust my gun for EDC, though with one in the pipe, I would have 8 good rounds before the potential (9th round) issue would come into play.
But you can't count on that. You can only count on the first shot and this...
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2 mags had one last round issue each...
...shows us you still have an issue.

This is my issue with .380Auto, they're just finicky. I'm sure they can be good guns, it's just that I see so many have issues.
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Old 01-20-2019, 09:14 AM
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I have close to 1000 rounds thru my EZ and the only issue I had with stovepiping was when my (adult) daughter was shooting it and not getting a strong, firm, grip on the grip. I personally have not had an issue. I shoot the cheapest, whatever is on sale, ammo at the range and Hornady personal defense as my carry ammo.
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Old 01-20-2019, 10:02 AM
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I had a couple decent range trips but the issue has resurfaced. Just about every magazine had a loaded round stovepipe. Gun was not squeaky clean which is all I can see as an issue. I'll clean it up good and see if the next trip is any better. At this point it's a plinker until the reliability issue can be solved and I'll not recommend anybody buy one for a defensive pistol.
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Old 01-20-2019, 05:47 PM
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Gun was not squeaky clean which is all I can see as an issue.
The gun should not need to be squeaky clean. It shouldn't be filthy either.

Any gun worth having, even if it's just for plinking, should have no trouble going a few hundred rounds without being cleaned.
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Old 01-21-2019, 09:16 AM
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Exactly! It shouldn't have to be boot camp clean to function but nothing obvious is wrong. The magazine seems the most likely problem but Christak got new springs from Smith and that didn't solve the issue either. Obviously a specific issue that causes this particular malfunction with so many people seeing the exact same problem. Being a beta tester has it's challenges for sure and I don't like to do it often.
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Old 02-03-2019, 12:17 PM
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Hello, new to forum but not to newly released guns...the last time I had issues like this was with the Glock G42. I bought it when it was just released.

Back tot he 380 EZ. Cleaned the gun before shooting as it felt really gritty. First two mags, were all Failure to extra, Failure to Eject and stove pipes. By the 3rd mag, it would at least fire and cycle a few rounds but at least 4-5 times it would have an issue. I was shooting PPU brass ammo. Never had any issues with this ammo on any of my other 380s. Strange that after maybe 100 rounds, I ran a few mags of cheap Steep Monarch ammo and it ran flawlessly. I'll go back to the range soon and see how the gun runs with Fiochi ball ammo.



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Old 02-03-2019, 12:25 PM
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The only issue I've seen is with the live round stuck in the ejection port, like your 2nd photo...and only with the final round from the magazine...annoying.

Last edited by christak; 02-03-2019 at 12:27 PM.
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Old 02-06-2019, 03:03 AM
familyman357oh familyman357oh is offline
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I bought my EZ back in October. The magazine springs had the yellow paint on them. I had a very consistent problem wherein the seventh round in the magazine upon firing would eject just fine but the eighth (last) round in the magazine wouldn't feed. It would go nose-up and get stuck like a stovepipe just like in the above photo. I wasted about 300 rounds of various-make brass-cased ammunition trying to figure out what the problem was.

Suspecting a lack of magazine spring strength not putting enough pressure on the last round against the magazine feed lips, I just put a snap cap between the magazine floorplate and spring. Sure, I lost a round of capacity, but my now seven-round magazines behaved like they should.


Somewhat disgusted overall, I left the magazines loaded (seven rounds over a snap cap under the magazine spring; in essence fully loaded) and moved onto something else for a while. It was a little over a month before I even felt like messing with the EZ again. I took out the snap caps... and now the magazines seem to feed all eight rounds just fine (same ammunition, in fact some of it was leftovers from earlier). I don't know what the heck's happening or what might have changed, but so far so good.
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Old 02-06-2019, 11:47 AM
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S&W sent replacement springs to me for all my mags...the new springs all had the yellow paint. As mentioned above, 2 of my mags still had an issue feeding the final round and the other 3 mags functioned flawlessly (so far).
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Old 02-07-2019, 11:44 AM
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My wife's shoots SIG .380 without any drama.
Sig ammo or Sig gun?
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Old 02-07-2019, 06:22 PM
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For what it's worth, I went to the range today and shot 200 rounds of Sig Elite Ball FMJ 100gr through my EZ. No issues. That makes 400 total rounds of that Sig ammo without any issues. Other ammo hasn't been as reliable regarding the last round stovepipe. I wish the Sig ammo was less expensive.
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Old 02-07-2019, 07:25 PM
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For what it's worth, I went to the range today and shot 200 rounds of Sig Elite Ball FMJ 100gr through my EZ. No issues. That makes 400 total rounds of that Sig ammo without any issues. Other ammo hasn't been as reliable regarding the last round stovepipe. I wish the Sig ammo was less expensive.
There's another bonus for using SIG Elite Ball -- its accuracy. I have a SIG P250sc (No stovepipe worries with it!) in .380 with over 2,500 rounds through it. I've tried a bunch of different target ammo, and SIG Elite Ball results in a significantly higher level of accuracy compared to the others. So when you want to shoot your best, the extra cost of the SIG elite Ball ammo may be worth it.
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Old 02-09-2019, 10:55 AM
puredrive888 puredrive888 is offline
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Originally Posted by familyman357oh View Post
I bought my EZ back in October. The magazine springs had the yellow paint on them. I had a very consistent problem wherein the seventh round in the magazine upon firing would eject just fine but the eighth (last) round in the magazine wouldn't feed. It would go nose-up and get stuck like a stovepipe just like in the above photo. I wasted about 300 rounds of various-make brass-cased ammunition trying to figure out what the problem was.

Suspecting a lack of magazine spring strength not putting enough pressure on the last round against the magazine feed lips, I just put a snap cap between the magazine floorplate and spring. Sure, I lost a round of capacity, but my now seven-round magazines behaved like they should.


Somewhat disgusted overall, I left the magazines loaded (seven rounds over a snap cap under the magazine spring; in essence fully loaded) and moved onto something else for a while. It was a little over a month before I even felt like messing with the EZ again. I took out the snap caps... and now the magazines seem to feed all eight rounds just fine (same ammunition, in fact some of it was leftovers from earlier). I don't know what the heck's happening or what might have changed, but so far so good.

I'll load up the magazine and let them sit. The plan is to go to the range next weekend.

My Gf sister's bought also a 380 EZ and her gun did have a few hiccups but nothing like my my girlfriends. I'll report back and if I have problems again, I'll contact S&W Customer Service.
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Old 02-14-2019, 12:39 PM
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I watched Hickok 45 on youtube and he had the same problem on the last round, stovepipe with an unfired round sticking straight up. Interested in buying one but not until this problem is solved. A defensive pistol needs to function 100% of the time. My 4 Glocks have NEVER had a malfunction
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Old 02-15-2019, 11:09 AM
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I watched Hickok 45 on youtube and he had the same problem on the last round, stovepipe with an unfired round sticking straight up.
You got a link to that video?
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Old 02-15-2019, 11:53 AM
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YouTube
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Old 03-02-2019, 08:35 PM
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I purchased a 380 EZ, took it out of the box today to start breaking in at the range. Pretty sure I had more stovepipes and live misfeeds than came out clean.

While gunsmith was looking at mine, I used a "borrow" 380 EZ that they let me use to sell me on it in the first place. It worked flawlessly, with the same ammo I brought. I have no idea how many thousands of rounds have been through it.

Is it simply a matter of needing a few hundred rounds to cure this? I put only about 50 through today and the last one I did ended up being a jam with two live rounds in the chamber. Which I walked away from shooting the gun after that.

I have a 9mm Shield and have never had these issues. I'm pretty sure it isn't my grip.

If I don't have confidence in my handgun, I'm not feeling safe. Which defeats the purpose.

Ideas?
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Old 03-03-2019, 06:47 PM
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Is it simply a matter of needing a few hundred rounds to cure this? I put only about 50 through today and the last one I did ended up being a jam with two live rounds in the chamber. Which I walked away from shooting the gun after that.

I have a 9mm Shield and have never had these issues. I'm pretty sure it isn't my grip.

If I don't have confidence in my handgun, I'm not feeling safe. Which defeats the purpose.

Ideas?
I still have the occasional stovepipe issue "on the last round in the magazine". I shot 250 rounds from my EZ during my last range session and had it happened twice, once each from two of my five magazines. S&W sent new magazine springs to me, but they don't seem to have completely fixed the problem. I have two magazines that have not (yet) had a problem since replacing the springs. Wish I had better news, but I don't. For the record, I've never had any other issue with my EZ and likely have more than 1500 rounds through it.
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Old 03-04-2019, 05:47 PM
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I have not had any problems with mine,over 900 rounds through it. Give smith a call they will take care of it.
Still no problems at 1850 rounds,I have shot several brands of ammo. all 95 grain stuff.
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Old 03-04-2019, 07:58 PM
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I have not had any problems with mine,over 900 rounds through it. Give smith a call they will take care of it.
now at 1850, still no problems
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Old 03-09-2019, 09:36 PM
Ron Riley Ron Riley is offline
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Purchased a NEW in the Box, S&W 380 EZ Today, 3/9/2019. Bought a box of Blazer-Brass 95 grain Round Nose, ammo. Cleaned the gun, Lubed the mags, which seemed to have a "grainy feeling". Loaded one Mag with 8 rounds. Out of 8 rounds: 3 shot normally as expected. 1 extracted, spent round-But Didn't load a new round. Dry fired on empty chamber. 4 stove piped, either jamming the spent shell in the mag area, preventing the loading of a fresh round OR Jamming the Fresh round, so it wouldn't feed into the chamber. Really like the gun, WHEN IT WORKS. But when 5 out of 8 rounds FAIL TO FEED, FAIL TO EJECT, and/or stove pipe jamming the gun. I'd be better off carrying a sling-shot for defense. Does ANYONE HAVE ANY CLUE HOW TO FIX THIS PROBLEM ?
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Old 03-09-2019, 10:04 PM
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I bought a 380 EZ Today. NO THEY HAVEN'T FIXED THE PROBLEM. See my Other post reply. One mag, 5 FAILURES. 2 different shooters.
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Old 03-10-2019, 11:28 AM
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Got the call and picked up my 380 EZ after the gunsmith had it for about a week.
Said nothing was wrong. They cleaned it, lubed it and ensured no burs or other shavings were in the barrel or the rest of the gun. They shot 50 rounds without problems.

I took it directly to the range, knowing this makes about 100 rounds through. I shot another 50 without a single misfire or ejection failure. However, one time the slide didn't return to firing position and I had to tap it from the back into place. That could have been my fault as I was more into watching and feeling than proper grip this time.

I brought my 686 revolver and my 9 Shield and no problems from either of them. Grip isn't the problem here, at least for an experienced shooter, and I hope to never hear that excuse again on this EZ firearm for me.
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Old 03-10-2019, 01:33 PM
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More problems with a .380Auto. I'm not surprised.

Yes, grip is always an issue with any semi-auto gun. It can never be discounted. Grip is very important.
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