M&P Shield 9mm frame cracked

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Mcheng1021

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I bought a 9mm Shield last Thursday and yesterday I went and shot it for the first time. I went through the first 8 rd mag and it had problems. The mag kept falling out and a had a few FTE. Not thinking anything about it I put in the 7rd mag and same thing happened except half way through that mag the trigger wouldn't reset. I let the guy at the local gun range take a look and he said he thinks the trigger spring broke. So I decided to take it back to the shop where I bought and they said they would either fix it or send it to S&W for me. They called me today and told me that the frame was cracked and that It caused enough gap to not let the trigger reset. CRAZY!! I've done tons of research on this gun before I decided to make the purchase, and never heard of this happening. Luckily the shop traded me out into a new one and they are sending it back to be repaired. Has anyone else seen this or had this happen to them?

btw. I was shooting new ammo, federal 115g.
 
Not personally, but as a mechanical designer, it's not uncommon. Nothing is perfect, and Smith has excellent customer service
 
Sure is a shame that this happened...but the good thing is your LGS stepped up for you. You hear about so many these days that just tell you to deal with the manufacturer & distance themselves from the transaction.
 
I've seen a plastic S&W that arrived with a chunk broken out of the front of the frame's dustcover (according to the buyer, anyway, after he'd picked it up and taken it home). Never personally seen or heard of a NIB plastic S&W arriving with a cracked frame.

I have, on the other hand, learned (in an armorer class) of a cop using a plastic pistol (SW9940) for normal quals, and somehow managing to experience an ammo-related issue that cracked the frame without him supposedly even realizing a problem had occurred. The instructor connected to the event was reported as having been watching the shooter (some 1-on-1 time) and was able to confirm each trigger press resulted in a hole in the target, so it wasn't thought to have been an obstructed bore. The only reason the shooter eventually realized something was amiss was because the frame crack spread under recoil and started pinching the shooter's hand with each shot.

Moral of the story? No way to know without examining the gun and ammo, but ammo related events have caused occasional issues, eve if unrecognized at the time by the shooter ... and sometimes a manufacturing defect may slip out the front door of a gun company.

FWIW, since the M&P trigger bar assembly puts the trigger spring right under the locking block (concentration of recoil shock) and barrel feedramp (hot gases if an over-pressure event occurs and releases them through a failed case, ruptured primer, etc), the spring gets exposed to different forces that if were placed at the rear of the frame. (Which is why the fiber insert is used to dampen shock force, BTW).

On the other hand, if the frame spread from a crack in a manner that might exert too much force on the spring, in an unintended direction (spring shifting outside it's normal position during operation), maybe the coil at one end would break.

I have NO idea what happened with your gun, but guessing is inevitable among shooters, right? :)

Are they offering replacement under warranty, or did they say it was possibly caused by something other than the gun's manufacture (ammo)?
 
Mcheng1021 said:
The dealer I bought the gun from just gave me a new one.
Click to expand...

Nice. He'll probably get a new one back for his inventory under S&W's warranty (which would mean he won't have to be selling a Used gun). You just had to pay DROS fees and can start fresh, right?
 
damn I really want to buy a shield to add to my Fullsize 40 but I keep hearing about this on this website.. Im not sure I can get my head past the posts... what should I do
 
Did you take a good look at the gun before shooting it? Notice any small cracks? Were you shooting reloads?
 
Roger S&W said:
Did you take a good look at the gun before shooting it? Notice any small cracks? Were you shooting reloads?
Click to expand...
The original post states he was shooting new ammo, federal 115g.
M&PmikeC said:
damn I really want to buy a shield to add to my Fullsize 40 but I keep hearing about this on this website.. Im not sure I can get my head past the posts... what should I do
Click to expand...
Two options:
1. Sit back and wait, to see if this is a fluke, or part of a 'bad run' that may be recalled.
2. Figure it IS a fluke and go ahead and buy one.

Of course, there's the age old words of Robert Heinlein...
"When in danger or in doubt, run in circles, scream and shout" (1973 book "Time Enough for Love") ;) :)
 
Mcheng1021 said:
I bought a 9mm Shield last Thursday and yesterday I went and shot it for the first time. I went through the first 8 rd mag and it had problems. The mag kept falling out and a had a few FTE. Not thinking anything about it I put in the 7rd mag and same thing happened except half way through that mag the trigger wouldn't reset. I let the guy at the local gun range take a look and he said he thinks the trigger spring broke. So I decided to take it back to the shop where I bought and they said they would either fix it or send it to S&W for me. They called me today and told me that the frame was cracked and that It caused enough gap to not let the trigger reset. CRAZY!! I've done tons of research on this gun before I decided to make the purchase, and never heard of this happening. Luckily the shop traded me out into a new one and they are sending it back to be repaired. Has anyone else seen this or had this happen to them?

btw. I was shooting new ammo, federal 115g.
Click to expand...
What is the date of manufacture of your pistol? (look on the spent casing little envelope)
 
Meanwhile, the new Shields and M&P's our folks are buying are doing just fine ...

For every breakage or other problem I learn of as an armorer, so many other similar guns don't have those isolated problems.
 
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