Fans of the Shield .40

nanney1 · #1 10-08-2020, 09:10 PM

On a whim I dropped in on a local pawn shop to see what they had of interest. What interested me were two Shields in .40, both 1.0 models. One priced at $329 with a Fobus holster and the other priced at $349.

Didn’t find out what was the difference between the two and the $20 difference as no one asked me if I needed to see anything.

Considering today’s price jumps, I guess those are decent prices on used Shields in .40. Maybe, maybe not.

Any opinions on these pistols or whether the prices are fair?

bloodlord77 · #2 10-08-2020, 10:47 PM

I see alot of praise for the shield .40. I had a 1.0 version that was extremely picky with ammo. I've had every round in the 6 and 7 round magazines fail to feed with 180 gr. Ammo. I've also experienced flawless feeding with 165 and 155 gr. Ammo. All in all, I could not trust it enough to carry. Some people get excellent reliability with it, but not so much with my sample size of 1. I sold mine and switched to a 2.0 subcompact for carry. Haven't looked back since. I do, however, love my 2.0 40 fullsize.

I would say for that price, you could always take a chance.
If it doesn't work out for you, you could probably recoup that amount selling it in today's climate. Best of luck with whatever you decide.

ken158 · #3 10-08-2020, 11:03 PM

Sounds like they give you a $20 discount if you take the Fobus with you... And I don't blame them.

CB3 · #4 10-08-2020, 11:25 PM

Do you need one in the next three weeks? If not, wait. If you do, any port in a storm.

GB · #5 10-09-2020, 03:21 AM

I bought a Shield in 40 a couple of years ago. It was used and has run flawlessly. Steel case, brass, aluminum no difference. I only mostly shoot 180s but have shot lighter(they don't shoot to point of aim for me) I love mine and it is one of two primary CCW guns that I use. The other is a 9mm. I like the 40 S&W cal. In this part of the country, the price you mentioned is very good.

nanney1 · #6 10-09-2020, 08:09 AM

A new Shield 2.0 in .40 can be had for $449 at another local shop. If the used ones I saw yesterday were 2.0’s I would have bought one on the spot.

I will need a carry gun in the next three weeks as I’m giving my current edc to a family member.

BillyMagg · #7 10-09-2020, 08:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nanney1

A new Shield 2.0 in .40 can be had for $449 at another local shop. If the used ones I saw yesterday were 2.0’s I would have bought one on the spot.

I will need a carry gun in the next three weeks as I’m giving my current edc to a family member.

Buy the new one, the warranty might come in very handy!

robrossk · #8 10-09-2020, 09:01 AM

Prices seem good/fair. I have had the Shield 40 since the day they were first available. It has been flawless with any ammo. I feel 100% confident with its reliability. Just last week I ran Tul 180gr steel cased FMJ (want to finish off what I have) followed by Wolf Gold 180 gr JHP.

panther · #9 10-09-2020, 09:03 AM

I've had 2 Shield 40's, both the 1.0 version. Both were great shooters and accurate. I wound up selling both to co-workers who were wanting good carry guns. I've been staying with 9mm since.
They were easy to carry, easy to break down and keep clean, good triggers, reliable.
There are carry guns that hold more rounds but the Shield is a well made, dependable pistol.

serger · #10 10-09-2020, 09:22 AM

I've had my ver.1 40 Shield about 3 1/2 years.

It's only got about 1800 rounds thru it. All of
them 180 grain. Of that, 50 were factory and
the rest have been Lee 180gr cast (it's the
175gr 90433 mold but my alloy gives 180 gr
bullets with powder coat) .

The pistol runs flawlessly. And It fits my hand
well. Very accurate to 50 yards. No complaints
at all. That's my anecdotal experience with mine.

I would go back to the pawn shop and see if
they would take 329.00 out the door for the
one with the Fobus holster. If not, that's still
a decent price. They are going for that on
Gunbroker but you have to pay shipping and
transfer costs. This time last year, no way.
But now things are different.

ROB94045 · #11 10-09-2020, 09:47 AM

I can't speak to the 1.0 but I carry the 2.0 Performance Center version with tritium sights and am very happy with it.

Sent from my ONEPLUS A5000 using Tapatalk

MyDads38 · #12 10-09-2020, 10:15 AM

The 40 Shield was my first Shield, LNIB @ $300; but that was several years ago. So, IMO $329/$349 is a good price these days for that handgun

From 3-7 yds, mine will put 13 rounds into a single hole/cloverleaf. Accurate and reliable and I have a Fobus holster to boot lol. :-)

nanney1 · #13 10-09-2020, 02:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BillyMagg

Buy the new one, the warranty might come in very handy!

Does S&W not honor the warranty on a second owner?

bloodlord77 · #14 10-09-2020, 10:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by nanney1

Does S&W not honor the warranty on a second owner?

The warranty follows the firearm.

BillyMagg · #15 10-13-2020, 06:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bloodlord77

The warranty follows the firearm.

Nyet Comrade! to the original owner of the firearm,, sad, but they have to do that to protect themselves from all the "closet gunsmiths".

Smith and Wesson is not the company we grew up with sadly.

Miami_JBT · #16 10-13-2020, 08:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bloodlord77

The warranty follows the firearm.

Nope, it only applies to the original owner and they don't even honor lifetime warranties anymore either even if you are the original owner.

BRL40 · #17 10-13-2020, 08:08 PM

Count me in as a fan!

Did a little customizing on my 1.0 to make it mine, but I'm sure glad I bought it.

RRH · #18 10-13-2020, 09:07 PM

Are there significant differences between the v. 1.0 and v. 2.0? Any distinguishing characteristics?

Also, could someone provide the serial number range for 1.0 ending and 2.0 beginning? Thanks in advance.

nanney1 · #19 10-14-2020, 11:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RRH

Are there significant differences between the v. 1.0 and v. 2.0? Any distinguishing characteristics?

Also, could someone provide the serial number range for 1.0 ending and 2.0 beginning? Thanks in advance.

2.0 models have a more aggressive grip texture. And 2.0 models have a somewhat lighter trigger pull with a much more tactile and audible reset.

You can visibly distinguish between the two quickly by looking at the grip texture. M2.0 is also printed on the slide.

sandog · #20 10-14-2020, 04:42 PM

My first Shield in 2016 was a Performance Center .40. It had a nice trigger, I liked the fiber optic sights, and I think the porting helped the .40's recoil a bit.

I haven't shot a non ported .40 against it, but have shot ported and non ported 9mm and .45 Shields side by side, and in those calibers I couldn't tell any difference.

A couple months after I got the PC .40, I bought a .45 Shield, then a 9mm.
I like the slightly bigger grip and rougher texture of the .45, and I took them to my range 3 weekends in a row to see which I liked better.

It seemed as the ranges increased, the .45 was better and better.

50 yard target with the .45:

I ended up thinking I liked the .PC .40 slightly better, so I sold the .45 (and gave the 9mm to my daughter).
I've now come full circle, this spring I remembered how much I like the .45 Shield, so I bought another.
I started liking the .45 more, I am more accurate with it, and the recoil is more of a slow push than a violent snap.
A co-worker was looking for a first handgun, so I sold the .40 to him, and my .45 Shield is my main carry gun now.

Since my Shield .40, (and now my .45) is a nightstand and camping gun, they have a light/laser on them.
I really like the LaserMax mint green light and green laser, nice unit and more compact then the TRL-6.