2nd bodyguard 380 broken firing pin DONT DRYFIRE

[ekrauos]

my theory is dry fire with a snap cap should be fine on any pistol meant to fire live ammo. But there could be some weird thing happening where the recoil of the pistol is actually lessening (reversing) a force concentraion on the firing pin. Maybe I won't dry fire when it returns, But that just makes me uneasy, will the FP break when duty calls? Maybe I'm just so familiar with dry firing since that is what I do with my 1911, I just carried that habit over to the BG380. I don't NEED to dry fire, it's just someting I do save $$.

On the radius. on mine there appears to be a double radii, as if the cutting bit did not come in close enough to make one clean radius, there are two smaller radii. Not sure if that was intentional or an accident. Either way the part still failed.

 

[AABEN]

Dry firing with snap caps did not prevent my firing pin (S/N EAHxxxx) from breaking after about 300 dry fires. It's been fine since S&W replaced the firing pin, with about 300 live fires since on the new firing pin. I dry fire very little now.

Judging from the broad span of broken firing pins across a wide range od S/Ns, it's my opinion that the 380 firing pin has a design problem, which results in a stress point where all these things seem to be breaking.

The metal injection molding process is a widely used and accepted manufacturing process when done correctly, so I'm not so sure it is the source of these problems. However, problems with the MIM process could make a design problem worse. From what I've heard S&W tells everyone with a broken firing pin that their problem is an isolated case. I would recommend against much dry firing, even with snap caps.

Dave

I was tought to NOT dry fire any gun! I do not see why you would have to dry fire a gun. I will hold the triger when closing all of my long guns. on the auto I use a smap cap or and empty brass.

 

[MKE]

I purchased mine a couple of weeks ago, serial EAYXXX 500 plus rounds through and no problems

 

[Fastbolt]

FWIW, the person with whom I discussed the matter didn't pretend it was an isolated case, but neither did it sound like he'd been hearing about a lot of them, either.

You also have to remember that the bank of customer service phones are receiving calls for ALL S&W products and services. I've been told this might mean some days there are less than 20 people manning the phones, or up to 35 people on other days. These folks might be new employees, or they might be folks who have worked elsewhere within the company for over more than a 30 year career. Just depends. I've called and spoken with a regular CS person for minor things I needed (instead of waiting to connect with a designated, more experienced LE contact person), and had them tell me they were completely unfamiliar with what I was talking about or asking for. It can happen. I either had them hand me off to someone else, or I waited and discussed my needs (or problem) with the LE contact, spoke to technician, etc.

It doesn't surprise me at all that someone there might answer the phone and not have heard of a specific complaint or reported problem with one of the numerous products and services they market, let alone one involving one of the many, many firearms they sell.

 

[Gemlin]

It took me two days to get a hold of a customer service person on the phone.

I point blanked asked them are they getting a lot of bodyguard back due to pins breaking. He told me I was about the 30th Bodyguard 380 owner this week that hes talked to that had a broken pin. Most his calls are bodyguard 380 related.

That doesnt sit well with me.

You'd think my bodyguard 380 would last longer than 18 shots.

 

[Fastbolt]

He told me I was about the 30th Bodyguard 380 owner this week that hes talked to that had a broken pin. Most his calls are bodyguard 380 related.

That doesnt sit well with me.

Lucky him.

I you actually have a problem with yours, why not just send it in and let them install the latest firing pin revision?

Remember when it seemed everyone was saying that M&P strikers were breaking all over the place? Well, it wasn't exactly that bad, but they did redesign their striker to make it less susceptible to damage if subjected to dry-fire. I ran a few thousand rounds through my couple of M&P's using the original strikers and never had a problem, and I know a fair number of other folks who could say the same. The company saw a way to make the striker stronger and more robust, though, and incorporated the change (as well as covering any broken strikers under the lifetime warranty). Still a lot of the original design strikers out there providing normal service, too.

 

[sdcromer]

My serial number starts with EAZ and my firing pin broke Monday. I had just got it back from S&W that very day and now it looks like another trip back up North.

 

[Fastbolt]

Make sure you point out to them that it's the second firing pin, then hopefully they'll make sure one of the new revised firing pins goes into the gun (since those may not have entered the regular spare/repair parts chain, yet).

 

[Gemlin]

My serial is EAZ also. Seems to be a epidemic with firing pins breaking on Bodyguards.

Heck, I'd be happy if they fix it and include 2-3 extra pins in the box when they send it back to me.

 

[GeorgiaShooter]

I held off posting more to prevent any bashing of Smith but honestly the last time I got my BG back from repair with the second firing pin broken it began light firing which was my original issue when I bought it.

I fixed it again then traded it into the dealer at a 60% $$ loss and bought a SIG P238 that has not even hinted at malfunction in 1000 rounds now, I am gloriously happy and a sense of relief getting rid of the BG.

I still LOVE LOVE LOVE my other two Smith's but honestly I will never trust a BG again. And with the truglo TFO night sights with fiber optics on the Sig Equinox I dont miss the laser one tiny little bit.

In fact I have a full unopened BG380 laser kit with tool, laser unit, new buttons if anyone wants a deal on a complete spare laser unit and parts unopened.

 

[sdcromer]

I'm seriously considering turning my Bodyguard 380 into a P238 when it gets back from the factory

 

[Fastbolt]

It's all well & good to decide to try another make/model of some other firearm when a particular one has required a couple of repairs. Frustration & some amount of annoyance is understandable.

I've certainly owned some guns that made me feel that way. For example, many years ago I got rid of a pair of '80's vintage Bulldogs due to assorted problems, the last of which I traded in after it's 3rd trip back to the factory for the same problem - seizing cylinder - when it exhibited the same problem when I removed it from the shipping box after it's latest trip and I couldn't get once around the cylinder doing dry-fire without it locking up.

I've had other guns ... both those I've owned and those I've helped support ... which require one, two or even 3 repairs for a problem before the problem was resolved. That's why they train armorers, you know.

Personal experience can work both ways, though (can't it always? ) ...

One make/model of gun drives a small number of dissatisfied owners to another make/model, with which they have an acceptable experience, while they may not realize that there's another whole set of dissatisfied owners who have switched from that make/model due to bad experiences ... and who are perfectly satisfied with good functioning examples of their "new" choice, even though the first group of owners for that one may have had bad experiences with it.

I have a friend (another instructor) who had great expectations for his new LC9. He had to return it for light strikes and magazine drops. He returned it for repair, and after it was returned (he was told the hammer spring was too light and the mag catch needed replacement) he told me it was not good-to-go after the first range test, and the problems seemed to have been resolved. Then he tried it for another range session after that, and the light strikes were once again occurring. (He was using duty loads which exhibited normal function in all the other 9's.) He got rid of it without being willing to let them try to repair it again.

Sure, you can find a small number of reportedly unsatisfied owners of that new Ruger, but you can find more satisfied owners.

Me? I've made it a practice to commonly avoid the first 1-2 years of a new design's production when it comes to firearms. Sure, you might get one that's fine. Then again, you might not enjoy being the Beta tester if the one you bought exhibited some teething pains. (I haven't enjoyed that experience, myself, which is why I prefer to wait until any new designs have been out and in the hands of the eager folks looking to be the first ones on their block to own the latest & greatest. )

Wouldn't it be great if all new guns that hit the market were perfect?

 

[Narkcop]

How have LAPD's Bodyguards been performing?

 

[ESSJack]

My Bg is sn# EANxxxx. Although 500 rounds with no problem,do not want to chance a failure when needed. I plan to call S&W CS but likely will trade very soon. This is the first time in over 40 years in LE that I lost confidence in a S&W. Started with a 4" Mod. 10 in 1971 and still have a 638.

 

[Mambeaux]

I just bought one and have never fired it. The serial number starts with EAZ. Now y'all have me thinking about trying to take it back. Is the later ones better than the first ones out?

 

[eclypse]

Just shot 213 rounds through my EBB serial Bodyguard. Only dry fired and handful of times so far. No issues to report.

 

[Mountain14]

Excellent points and post.

This issue for me is that this gun has been out for 2 full years and S&W still has not addressed the firing pin problem, perhaps the most crucial issue afflicting the gun. I did not purchase my BG as soon as it was released, but rather after it was well into production. I really liked it, wanted it to work properly. It did not.

For a .380, I bought the Sig p238, as Sig Sauer addressed the issues the gun had - and as your post noted, it was a gun in new production that had issues.

The Bodyguard is not, as your post asserts, a new gun that just hit the market.

It's all well & good to decide to try another make/model of some other firearm when a particular one has required a couple of repairs. Frustration & some amount of annoyance is understandable.

I've certainly owned some guns that made me feel that way. For example, many years ago I got rid of a pair of '80's vintage Bulldogs due to assorted problems, the last of which I traded in after it's 3rd trip back to the factory for the same problem - seizing cylinder - when it exhibited the same problem when I removed it from the shipping box after it's latest trip and I couldn't get once around the cylinder doing dry-fire without it locking up.

I've had other guns ... both those I've owned and those I've helped support ... which require one, two or even 3 repairs for a problem before the problem was resolved. That's why they train armorers, you know.

Personal experience can work both ways, though (can't it always? ) ...

One make/model of gun drives a small number of dissatisfied owners to another make/model, with which they have an acceptable experience, while they may not realize that there's another whole set of dissatisfied owners who have switched from that make/model due to bad experiences ... and who are perfectly satisfied with good functioning examples of their "new" choice, even though the first group of owners for that one may have had bad experiences with it.

I have a friend (another instructor) who had great expectations for his new LC9. He had to return it for light strikes and magazine drops. He returned it for repair, and after it was returned (he was told the hammer spring was too light and the mag catch needed replacement) he told me it was not good-to-go after the first range test, and the problems seemed to have been resolved. Then he tried it for another range session after that, and the light strikes were once again occurring. (He was using duty loads which exhibited normal function in all the other 9's.) He got rid of it without being willing to let them try to repair it again.

Sure, you can find a small number of reportedly unsatisfied owners of that new Ruger, but you can find more satisfied owners.

Me? I've made it a practice to commonly avoid the first 1-2 years of a new design's production when it comes to firearms. Sure, you might get one that's fine. Then again, you might not enjoy being the Beta tester if the one you bought exhibited some teething pains. (I haven't enjoyed that experience, myself, which is why I prefer to wait until any new designs have been out and in the hands of the eager folks looking to be the first ones on their block to own the latest & greatest. )

Wouldn't it be great if all new guns that hit the market were perfect?

 

[Fastbolt]

From my own perspective, I consider any firearm that's only been in production, and out in the hands of actual owners/users, for 1-2 years as essentially still being a "new gun".

I'd hope that after the first couple of years the engineers and manufacturers ought to have been able to identify and address typical teething pains.

Then, there's the virtually inevitable revisions and refinements which often continue to occur over the years.

Having been through a fair number of armorer classes over the years (more than a Baker's Dozen), I've listened to folks from various companies discuss any number of ongoing changes being made to address occasional issues in some of their guns (mostly being reported by LE users), sometimes even after a model has been in production for several years.

One of the other major gun companies is still working to address reported issues with their latest product line change ... and that model line isn't as "new" as the Bodyguard line.

It took another of the companies a few years to address some reported issues with their .45 extractor design, and it appears they may still be refining the 2nd design change made after they changed the way they make their slides.

The M&P striker revision came about more than 3 years after the introduction of the M&P.

 

[Armyphotog]

I'm assuming everyone is talking about relative new guns? Have never heard of this problem with older automatics. My Plus II has been fired so much I had to replace the springs, but never any breakage. Still shoots fine. Don't understand why so much dry firing? But on a good pistol, should not be a problem.

 

[ekrauos]

From my post above, after more inspection, shear slip cracks seem to initiate at the lower of the small radius, then propagate to where the fracture occured.

Anyways, THE DAY I sent my EAK to S&W CS, my wife bought a EAX for herself. We shot 200 rounds of PPU through it, at the start of the session we had no light strikes. On the last 50rounds we started to get light strikes on PPU (hornady, speer, winchester, ALL OK every time). It may be an indication of the FP getting fatigue cracks, and not transferring all the hammer energy to the primer. On my EAK, I had light strikes on PPU from the very beginning.

I really like how the BG380 shoots, I really like that it has the same manual of arms as my full size carry (1911). I really HOPE the firing pin is fine on my wifes EAX. And if it does fail, I REALLY REALLY hope by then a robust FP is designed for replacement. (And dont tell me to get a P238, I like cocked and locked on my belt, not in my pocket) (PS, if sig made a DAO P238, I would buy two of them tomorrow) S&W, please make the BG380 right!