Picked up a Bodyguard 380 today. The gun is a pleasure to shoot. I had the Ruger LCP and HATED it. The Bodyguard was very accurate (after adjusting the laser) and no FTF with 100 rounds of American Eagle.

BUT.......

Twice while shooting it the assembly pin came out about 1/8 of an inch. Far enough out that it couldn't be just pushed back in easily. I called S&W and they are sending a FexEd to overnight it back to them. A little upset that I can't shoot and carry my new gun, but I have faith in the excellent service that I have always received from S&W that it will be make right.

I would expect some issues with a brand new model. The key is will this be a one and done issue, or the first of many.

Question: Does the bodyguard .380 have a magazine disconnect safety feature?

No mag disconnect on mine. I've yet to shoot mine tho. Got it Saturday and it's just been too hot and wet here.

Every once in a while I get upset about the continual stream of **** that seems to make it out the door at 2100 Roosevelt in Springfield. S&W should start a program of sending you a loaner while your pistol is in for service. Just like when you take your car in for service. It might not be the same model, but at least you are not without while your gun goes back to have stuff fixed that never should have gone wrong in the first place. Too bad BATFE won't approve of such.

It seems that the issues with the M&P autos just never end: Failures to fire, ejecting magazines during shooting, broken firing pins, redesigns here, there and everywhere.

30 years ago you NEVER heard of failures to fire with S&W revolvers. Now, hardly a week goes by between complaints that primers are struck to no effect with these new firing pins that barely protrude through the frame. If you don't understand the problem, feel free to just look at how much firing pin protrudes through with the new system versus the old system. Yeah, I know they supposedly put in more travel so the hammer builds more momentum, but that depends on a fast shallow slap to the primer, rather than a deep hit. I will take the deep hit to the primer, thank you.

If S&W did it correctly there would be no need for their "super secret Performance Center firing pin" that you get if you ask, or the equivalent APEX or Cylinder and Slide product.

Internal locks fail just enough to make you not quite confident of carrying a lightweight revolver. Add that to too-frequent misfire complaints, and all of a sudden you start to think that the world's best revolver has become the world's most scary unreliable revolver.

Jerry, we are now shown, removes his internal locks. We all should, and we should send them to S&W.

S&W cannot get its version of the Swartz grip safety on its 1911s to function properly. Even though this problem was identified in the first batch of 500 1911s, you still read about it happening to new pistols.

Lack of firing pin impact energy has been an ongoing issue with S&W ever since the 459s they submitted to the XM9 trials in the early 1980s were disqualified because some engineer cannot seem to "round up" and get the impact energy enough above the threshold to cover any potential weak springs, etc.

Now, we will undoubtedly read a stream of issues with the new Bodyguard Series guns as loyal S&W customers get used as the test market to sort out problems that should have surfaced during design and testing.

Speaking of, have any of you experienced the annoying little problem with your Bodyguard revolver NOT rotating its cylinder when you pull the trigger UNLESS you are very careful to close the cylinder "just so" in order for the little wheels on the breech face and the cylinder to properly interface "just so?"

Perhaps this will be consolation. There might be an issue with the design of the assembly pin, it is a new model after all. Their engineers will undoubtedly examine your pistol to see if there is a problem and create a fix. Don't give up on your pistol, I'm really interested in this one and I hope it lives up to expectations. That said, I've seen S&W using some of the "rush it to market and fix it afterward" mentality lately, i.e. 15-22. I hope their QC procedures are staying up to par.....

I'm willing to give S&W the benefit of the doubt on this. I have contacted them before and received excellent customer service. Their reputation is second to none.....will keep everyone posted.

>30 years ago you NEVER heard of failures to fire with S&W revolvers.

Shawn, not to disagree with any of your observations, but consider one thing -- 30 years ago, we had no Internet, and a person who owned a particuar gun, be it a masterpiece or a lemon, might go his entire life without comparing notes with a single other owner of the same model. If he did have a problem, real or imagined, he shared it with S&W and maybe one or two others.

Nowadays, there are folks who will take a brand-new gun out of the box, notice it was not meticulously cleaned after test firing, and immediately launch a vituperous anti-S&W screed worldwide. I am one who believes that for the most part S&W guns are as reliable as ever -- which is to say most are fine, and a few are lemons -- but we hear about every possible problem , creating the impression that they're ALL junk, which just ain't so.

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Pisgah

Me too, when I get one of the lemons. But there is a bigger picture.

Before everyone starts lashing out on the internet, I wish the folks who complain the loudest would ask themselves: Have you ever tried to run a company as big as S&W that manufactured a product as complicated as a pistol (which is really not a very complicated thing)? Or even been around an enterprise like that on a day-in/day-out basis for a couple years? It is a tough thing to do, and it would probably surprise most people to learn that if they were the boss, they wouldn't have nearly the "control" of the manufacturing process that they would think they would have. Companies spend millions and millions of dollars putting equipment in place that should be capable of making perfect, or nearly perfect, components. But all of this equipment is operated by humans, and humans can and will find a way to screw up anything - sometimes accidentally, sometimes deliberately. None of us will live long enough to see the short comings of human nature overcome in the manufacturing process.

A lot of people seem to enjoy hammering S&W here on the internet because of a few defects. Yes, they are selling a product that can mean the difference between life and death. Given that, doesn't prudence indicate that, since it is the buyer's life or death, he had better check out his purchase thoroughly before he puts it to use? The OP with the Bodyguard 380 was doing just that. Hopefully S&W will fix things for him and he'll be OK at no out-of-pocket expense to him, and get many years of service from the pistol.

I have examples of the new M&P autos, and the S&W 1911s. They have been pretty good guns. I also have had S&W revolvers bought new-in-the-box thirty or more years ago that had to be returned for repair. My older friends will tell you they had similar problems with guns made in the 50s and 60s. I have one Model 29 I bought new that could not even be dry-fired on all six chambers when I got it home. The cylinder would bind on the same chamber every time and fail to rotate into position. Back to S&W. Guess what? That was in the mid-70s and after a trip or two, the gun is functional but still not "like it should be." Sometimes we humans just disagree on what is and what isn't acceptable. And I can tell you, those two or three trips this gun made to Springfield were not at "no out-of-pocket expense" to me. I paid for shipping both ways back then, and maybe a little labor on the last trip.

Bottom line is, people make the guns and until you figure some way to have a factory full of perfect people, it is going to be tough to get perfect guns. The job of S&W's leadership is to keep an eye on what is commonly referred to as the "cost of poor quality" (and you can bet they do), and to try to constantly reduce that cost. Since we don't have the numbers on that, it is nearly impossible to tell how things are actually going in Springfield, but it would be interesting to know. Even if we did, and the results looked favorable, it wouldn't satisfy most of the internet critics - or me, when I am the one having the problem.

If you don't like the new designs, don't buy the product. That's the simple part.

I had a pin work out of my Glock 22 when firing. New pin fixed it ever since. I have had two students that had Springfield XD''s that developed problems. The only two XDs I have experience with. As such, I do not hold them in high regard, but a lot of other people do. I have two 627-2's, one was consistent in that it had hand/ratchet interference on every chamber. The other had interference on a couple and did not carry up on a couple! It went back for a new extractor and a Master action job. I was disappointed in the action job and it took me awhile to work it out myself. Now both guns are actually quite good. There is certainly no perfection in manufacturing, and if there was, we could not afford to purchase it!
When we get a bad gun, we have a sample of one, maybe the bad one of 1000 that were made that day. Only the company knows the percent that are returned for rework.

I hope the .380 is a good product. I would like to rid myself of the Kel-Tec for a new BG.

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Richard Gillespie
FBINA 102

You are exactly right! I didn't post my issue to slam S&W...actually just the opposite.

Although I'm relatively new to these forums, I have owned a 642 for 3 years. I have put 3000 rounds through it and it has gone bang EVERY time. I did have a few questions about the heavy trigger pull when I first got it and the customer service rep I talked to was extremely helpful and spent a lot of time with me on the phone.

When I called S&W about the issue with the takedown lever on my BG, the CSR didn't hesitate and said to sent it back because "that isn't right" (his words). Contrast that with a Taurus I bought a few years ago that had numerous FTE. The Taurus rep kept insisting I oil different parts and go back to the range to see if that helped.

I will keep this board posted on turn around time and what S&W does/says about my issue, but I'm pretty optimistic I won't be without it very long.

I have a bodyguard 380, but have not fired it yet, so I don't have full first hand experience yet. But I can tell you after taking it apart for the initial clean/lube, and to familiarize myself with it, I can see how the pin may have not been in all the way. I noticed that you have to have it in there just right for it to "click", and fully seat its self. Also depending on how you grip the gun, you could move the take-down pin/lever downward when the slide is locked back. I will definately take note of this, and watch my gun when I'm able to shoot it. But overall the gun seems to be top quality, giving you more to hold onto than the LCP, Kahr P380, or Kel Tec, while still being small enough to put in your pocket if want to.

Bob is correct, the takedown pin has to be in a certain position to be snapped into place. I've fumbled with it putting mine back together a few times. But once in place it has never worked loose. All in all I think this is one of the neatest most innovative pistols Smith has come out with. Yesterday I did a long range session with it's brother, the BG 38 which is another great S&W. I admire the company for staying cutting edge and trying new things. With concealed carry now in most states they are going to sell a lot of Bodyguards. For those of you who really like J-frames I recommend you give the BG 38 a try also. My bid decision before venturing out into the world now is which one do I want to carry today.

You are certainly correct about the internet being a place where everyone can write up the bad experiences and it SEEMS worse than it is.

I suppose I am guilty of sharing the bad and not the good, but I do so in the spirit of getting information out. There are many issues that might not have seen the light of day if it were not for many people relating bad experiences. The improvement in the product is a positive by product of internet whiners!

I picked my BG .380 up Monday; I've put 150 rds through it w/no hiccups. Only thing--when you lift the laser module out, you'll probably have to sight it in again, and the single screw that secures it can take a few tries to find its way back in. I'm happy with the gun. Easiest to clean I have--just a bore snake and a little oil and easy reassembly. The pin does have to snap in all the way.

How many rounds or shooting sessions do you consider adequate before you consider is qualified for carry?

I have over 250 rounds through my bodyguard. I am experiencing the same issue with my assembly pin, but mine is coming completely out and dropping. I am not sure if this is related, but 4 times, the first round initial strike either missed or did not hit the primer. This was cheaper Herter's ammo, and I am not sure if this had anything to do with it also.

I really like this gun other then these 2 issues, and I think out of all the 380s, this has the most features that I like. My trigger has smoothed out and the gun is accurate, I do not care for the lazer over my crimson trace on my m&p 340. I feel as though it is not as bright. I purchased this gun as strictly a backup piece for my back pocket. I do not carry spare ammo on me, and I think it is just easier for me to pull out another piece then to try to reload under stress.

If I do keep it, I plan to ask s&w for night sight replacements, and if none will be available, just paint the sights. It is an accurate gun, and so far even with the problems, more reliable than the Sig P238.

At least 300 - 500 flawless rounds should be sufficient...that's around 8 trips to the range.

The 300-500 rounds figure sounds reasonable. I was planning on 200. I did get the BG380 to the range last evening. Other than being a bit small for my long, thin hands, it was a pleasure. It is much more comfortable than either my LCP or P3AT. It now has 50-rounds under its belt without the slightest problem. I think it is going to be very satisfactory.

I shot only 95-gr. ball ammunition. The gun was putting everything just on top of the front sight at 7-yards without any sight adjustment. Perfect. I had hoped to adjust the laser, too, but to my surprise found that S&W did not include an allen wrench for this purpose, and I was not smart enough to bring one of my own. I dialed in the laser as they recommend in the instruction manual when I returned home.

There is certainly not going to be anything magical about this gun. It is always going to be a .380, no matter how nice or reliable it may prove to be. But, still, a .380 is better than nothing. It needs a spare magazine or two, and some more testing, but I think the little gun is going to work out nicely.

M29since14, Someone else posted that S&W is "hiding" the wrench in the kit that comes with the BG380. You might try digging into the packaging for the wrench.

The wrench is inside the zip lock bag holding the lock.

Hey, great advice fellas - where were you guys last evening, when I needed you?

Seriously, thanks so much for pointing that out. I will have a look. Last evening was not a banner evening for me. Not only was I silly enough to go without a wrench, but when I was done policing the range, I walked away and left all of my brass! So I came home something less than a happy camper.

But the gun worked just fine. It is really MUCH more pleasant to fire than the Keltec or Ruger owing to its shape and finish. The lack of sharp edges really is a blessing compared to the Keltec, and the S&W doesn't pinch my trigger finger like the Ruger did.

I can take or leave the built-in laser, but I really like the safety lock. Even though small as it is, it can actually be disengaged using the thumb as the normal grip is acquired. It's a little harder for me to turn on the laser smoothly and quickly. The gun is really smallish in my hand, and this could be fixed with a Hogue "rubberband," but I am not sure that is necessary. Time will tell as more rounds go down the tube.

Got my 380 back Friday. 9 day turn around. I shipped the the gun without a magazine and got it back with one. Not bad!

Anyway, took it to the range Saturday and Sunday and put about 125 rounds through. No issues at all. Need a few more trips to feel 100% confident everything is OK but so far so good.

Hey j7676 glad you got everything worked out. I just got one a couple days ago and had a few problems as well. Remington ammo fixed the light primer strikes but the laser won't work sometimes, the mag release has to be pressed in in order to insert the magazine and the laser button is about impossible to press which from what I can tell is normal for this gun. I'm like you I just got this gun and I don't wanna send it back as soon as I got it but I'd rather have it fixed for good and 9 days isn't bad especially for an extra mag.

And M29 I did the same thing with my allen wrench. I just figured it was one of those generic locks that comes with every gun so why would it be in there right?!

^ my LCP was like that when I first got it, took a few dozen mag drops/inserts and it freed right up and pushing the button wasn't needed. Hope yours wears in for you.

To anyone sending a BG 380 back for repair for the locking pin problem: Ask Smith to rapid test fire the gun before returning it. My returned "fix" wasn't fixed. Same problem. It's back in their shop again. Any new model will have bugs. Just wish they'd fix it the first time. My 15 year old Smith 9 mm has worked flawlessly. I have faith in Smith to come up with a permanent fix.