Loading with magazine insertion

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obiwankabaldi

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My M&P will release the slide lock when I insert and slap a magazine in place. During competition this makes for quick reloading, but is this ok, should I send it back for repair and will this in any way hurt the firearm. Not a problem since I know it does this and keep it pointed in a safe direction. Doesn't fire if you keep your finger off the trigger. Just curious what others think or know. Thanks...
 
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If I could watch you load, I could answer your question.
However, since I can't, here's some questions:
1. What happens when you push the magazine in normally, but quickly?
2. When you "slap" the magazine in, are you starting the magazine, then taking your hand off the magazine and hitting it?

The typical competitor reload is to hold the magazine with the forefinger along the front of the magazine, which is resting on the "ball" pad between the thumb and first two fingers. As the magazine goes in with a single motion, the fingers open and the magazine is firmly seated with the "ball" pad of the hand.
The loading hand continues moving up to a support grip as the sights align on the next target.
 
Many if not all M&Ps will do this. It's just caused by the slide release jarring lose when someone puts a magazine in hard. Some M&Ps will only do it if you insert the magazine up and forward at the same time. I usually try not to insert my magazines so hard that this happens. Some see it as a feature, some see it as a problem.
 
I've had other guns that did this, but my M&P has not. I wouldn't worry about it, usually it's just the force of the reload overcoming the power of the slide stop spring. You could always replace the spring if it seems weak.
 
Mine does not release the slide no matter how hard I slap the mag in. I would check to make sure the slide stop is fully engaging when the last round is fired. Thus holding the slide back in a secure fashion.

It is a very simple mechanical action. No dark art there at all. :)
 
My M&P 45 did this. The jar is just overcoming the slide stop. It's only a problem when you get used to it and then the next gun You use in competition doen't do it.:rolleyes:
 
obiwankabaldi said:
My M&P will release the slide lock when I insert and slap a magazine in place. During competition this makes for quick reloading, but is this ok, should I send it back for repair and will this in any way hurt the firearm. Not a problem since I know it does this and keep it pointed in a safe direction. Doesn't fire if you keep your finger off the trigger. Just curious what others think or know. Thanks...
Click to expand...
I was just about to post the same exact question. I just purchased the M&P 9mm a week ago and today, at the range, I noticed it would slam shut when I slapped the next full magazine into it, BUT if I slap an empty magazine in it I can slap, bump and pratically kick the dang thing and the slide doesn't shut until I shut it...??
I really hate to send the gun back, since it sounds like they all (or the vast majority) do this, so my guess is even if I was to send it back they would only replace the slide release and after a 100 rounds it would start doing it again.
As long as it doesn't start going off when it slams itself shut, I guess it won't be a problem, but I know my old G17 didn't have such a feature and that had thousands of rounds through it.
Can anyone warn me of other neat tricks this gun will do after it breaks in some more..??
PS; It started doing this after approx. 80 rounds.
 
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mrwintr said:
I was just about to post the same exact question. I just purchased the M&P 9mm a week ago and today, at the range, I noticed it would slam shut when I slapped the next full magazine into it, BUT if I slap an empty magazine in it I can slap, bump and pratically kick the dang thing and the slide doesn't shut until I shut it...??
I really hate to send the gun back, since it sounds like they all (or the vast majority) do this
Click to expand...

It's not considered a malfunction unless it releases when the magazine is inserted gently.
The follower on an empty magazine presses against the slide catch and keeps it from releasing.
When a loaded mag is inserted, then only the friction of slide catch against the slide is holding it. If you pull the slide back a fraction, or you bounce the slide, the catch drops away and the slide closes.
 
ab4ka said:
I've had other guns that did this, but my M&P has not. I wouldn't worry about it, usually it's just the force of the reload overcoming the power of the slide stop spring. You could always replace the spring if it seems weak.
Click to expand...

Just the opposite. The slide stop spring puts tension downward on the slide stop to move it away from the slide. The slide stop is only pushed upward by the force of the magazine follower when an empty mag is inserted. Once the empty magazine is removed, the slide stop is held in place by the friction of the slide and the pressure of the recoil spring. At the same time the slide stop spring is working to push the slide stop back down. In order for the slide to be released, the spring pressure needs to overcome the friction between the slide and the slide stop. A stronger spring would be more capable of overcoming that pressure. So the stronger the slide stop spring is, the more likely it will be to release when you bump in the full magazine.
 
My M&P 9 and all my Glocks close by themselves when I forcefully insert a mag after slide lock. I see this as an advantage for competition shooting as others have said. I don't see a down side to this.
 
you guys realized the M&P guns were INTENTIONALLY designed to have this happen, right? This is NOT a defect.

If you do a 'normal' mag change, where the palm of your hand slam the mag's base parallel to the barrel, it WON'T automatically release the slide, and chamber a round.

The 'auto' slide release will ONLY happen if you slam the new mag in and you push it at an angle. Your palm needs to apply more pressure on the mag's bottom-rear base plate area, and then kind of 'bounce' your palm off the mag, and toward the muzzle.
 
knedrgr said:
you guys realized the M&P guns were INTENTIONALLY designed to have this happen, right? This is NOT a defect.

If you do a 'normal' mag change, where the palm of your hand slam the mag's base parallel to the barrel, it WON'T automatically release the slide, and chamber a round.

The 'auto' slide release will ONLY happen if you slam the new mag in and you push it at an angle. Your palm needs to apply more pressure on the mag's bottom-rear base plate area, and then kind of 'bounce' your palm off the mag, and toward the muzzle.
Click to expand...
I'm sure I'm not the only one who would absolutely love to see any sort of documentation or even public discussion to that effect.

TFred
 
knedrgr said:
you guys realized the M&P guns were INTENTIONALLY designed to have this happen, right? This is NOT a defect.

If you do a 'normal' mag change, where the palm of your hand slam the mag's base parallel to the barrel, it WON'T automatically release the slide, and chamber a round.

The 'auto' slide release will ONLY happen if you slam the new mag in and you push it at an angle. Your palm needs to apply more pressure on the mag's bottom-rear base plate area, and then kind of 'bounce' your palm off the mag, and toward the muzzle.
Click to expand...
It isn't really a problem that it does this as long as you are forewarned, but when it is not described as a FEATURE of the gun, then it makes you feel a bit uncomfortable when it happens for the first time and you are not expecting it.
When watching an AGI S&W M&P armorers video the guy in there mentions that this happens and states that he figured S&W will probably address this issue, but back when this video was made it he was no doubt saying that it was NOT a feature of the gun, but an accidental function. This person in the video also mentioned that the gun would sometimes jam on the cartridge when the slide would shut itself with the insertion of a loaded magazine....
I think if it were intended to be a feature by S&W they would have listed it as such.
7shooter said:
My M&P 9 and all my Glocks close by themselves when I forcefully insert a mag after slide lock. I see this as an advantage for competition shooting as others have said. I don't see a down side to this.
Click to expand...
My guess is there was something worn out or weak on that Glock as I never had this happen with my G17 and have never heard of anyone else having their Glock close on insertion of a loaded mag.....?
 
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Check out Magpul Dynamic's new handgun DVD, and they have a discussion/teaching of this method. If I remember it correctly, it's on the first or second DVD disk. I don't have mine as a digital format to upload and show you the section.
 
Some useful insights here. Since this "automatic release" happens to me as well, I'm glad to see that a) I'm not the only one, and b) that it is not considered to be a problem.
 
I have a full size M&P 45, brand new with about 200 rds through it, a Ruger p345 with probably 800 rds through it, and a HK USPc 9mm with probably close to 5000 rds through it. They all do it, so I wouldn't be too concerned, although I have not shot competition level.

With that said, I have had a couple of instances where the slide does not have enough force to slam the round home and I end of with a jammed gun. Not a trick I would ever recommend for reloading in a "hazardous" situation
 
I have since figured out that if you push the mag up into the gun with a straight upward motion the slide stays put, but if you push it up in by holding towards the back edge of the mag and applying your force in the same direction as the mag slides in the handle it will make the slide close. I would have drawn up some diagrams to show what I am talking about, but felling a bit lazy right now. My M&P 9 was doing it every time I inserted the loaded mag, but once I saw the difference it makes by where you place your hand on the mag and which direction you apply the force while inserting it.....the doesn't close unless I want it to.
And I must add that this was not an intended FEATURE of the gun, it just turned out this way and many other makes and models can work the same way, but it is not an advertised feature.
 
GaryM&P said:
I wish mine did it. I can think of lots of matches that I've lost by a fraction of a second.
Click to expand...

I don't understand why you would run the gun dry during competition. Most competition shooting I've done, it is quicker to reload with the last round in the chamber. This way you don't have to reset the slide when it is open.

I've also been taught that the "slide stop" is exactly that, not a "slide release." You should not get in the habbit of using the slide stop/lock as a release...instead you pull the slide to the rear and let it cycle. By using the slide stop/lock as a release, you will wear the stop/lock and cause the slide to no longer stop/lock back with your slide stop/lock.

Just my $0.02 here...
 
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Thought I'd throw my $.02 worth in... I've never had this happen with any Glocks, Sigs, 1911's, Walthers, Rugers, Colts, M&Ps I've ever owned or shot over the past 40 years. When I got my new 5" M&P Pro 9mm a month ago, the "problem" occurred and really concerned me. I bought a new 4.5" M&P .45 at the same time and did not have a problem with that.

I called Smith and Wesson and was told that the pistol was designed originally for LE and was designed that way. Some of the pistols have this "problem" and some don't. I told him that was a pretty lame answer (some do and some don't). Nevertheless, they're happy to fix the problem if you send the pistol to them. Since this goes against 40 years of training on all manner of semi-auto pistols where I use the slide lock to release the slide or rack the slide to load the bullet, I will probably send it back so they can correct this for me.
 
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