9mm shield shoots to the left

[Jim1392]

I took my newly purchased Shield 9 out to the range this week for my first outing. I'm a revolver guy so shooting this automatic is quite a change for me. Other then shooting my M & P 22 Compact with of course a lot less recoil I only shoot my 640 Pro. My first 10 or so rounds were left to POA. But I remembered the graphic posted on the thread here and as soon as I adjusted my trigger finger it fixed my shooting to the left right out.

As a side note 150 rounds through my new Shield without a hiccup.

 

[rwsmith]

I'm not judging either way....

But I can be experienced shooting a variety of gun, but a smaller semi is kind of a world unto itself. It about made me sick watching Hickok45 on Youtube ringing his gong at 80 yards with true pocket pistols that are as big as the palm of your hand.

1st: I assume that the problem is me and try to fix that.

2nd: If it proves otherwise, work on the sights.

With me, the 1st case has always fixed the problem and I've never had to go to the 2nd step.

 

[RobzGuns]

But I can be experienced shooting a variety of gun, but a smaller semi is kind of a world unto itself.

Exactly!! Large, Heavy FS Service Autos don't shoot the same as small, lightweight Subcompacts. Large Heavy FS pistols can mask 'shooter deficiencies'. When switching from one 'Platform' (brand, size, trigger style, etc) to another, One should start from scratch, as if they were a brand new shooter and review the Basics (and start @ 9').

1st: I assume that the problem is me and try to fix that.
2nd: If it proves otherwise, work on the sights.

With me, the 1st case has always fixed the problem and I've never had to go to the 2nd step.

Same with me. I start from scratch and review the basics at short distance, I first look at what I might be doing wrong.

 

[Pbchucker]

Lots of good info here. Maybe I just overlooked it, but before I adjust the sights, I shoot a pattern with my left hand, (I am right handed).

It is a quick sanity check before I blame the gun.

Oh, and by the way, about a year ago, I bought a brand new Sig M11. I never owned a DA/SA pistol, let alone a Sig. Well, I was hugely disappointed to find that "it patterned left". I was so disappointed that I forgot my own advice to shoot with my other hand. Sadly, I took it home, cleaned it and searched the internet for the best way to move the rear sight without scratching the new gun. I forgot about the whole thing and went to bed.

Time passed, and I took the M11 to the range again. Well, whadda ya know, magically, it shoots perfectly. Was it demon dust in the lock work? Doubtful. It was just me.

Not saying that you don't have a gun issue, but don't rush into sight adjustment before you eliminate all other possibilities.

Good luck. I really like my shield 9mm.

 

[warriorsoul]

I switched from an airweight j frame to the 9mm Shield as my edc. Just like so many people I was shooting low and left, but I had tight groups. The J never grouped tight for me, so I was more than willing to work on fixing the Shield. I picked up Ameriglo sights to replace the hard to see factory sights. Then I worked on my grip trying various techniques after realizing my full size metal Sig P226 was able to make up for my bad habits in ways a little polymer gun couldnt. In the end the thumbs forward grip cured my shooting left. Previously, I naturally shot a weaver grip with the bad habit of putting my weak hand index finger in the front of the trigger guard.

 

[CaptRon956]

Keep in mind guys that not all pistols shoot the same. I've been shooting handguns since the late 80's yet I know that each pistol I've shot and/or now own have their own personalities.
And as an experienced shooter, you should already know that not all pistols are created equal and to learn where to hold when aimming that particular pistol.

 

[SW CQB 45]

When I bought my shield, it shot left also. I felt it was the trigger. I installed an Apex duty carry package, leaving the factory trigger unchanged. After the install, the grittiness was gone, reset was improved, and shooting to the left was gone. Sweet trigger made all the difference for me. Worth the investment. Jmho

This happened to me when I bought my Shield 9. It would not group with 1" circles at 3 yds. I put it on the trigger pull gauge and my trigger broke at over 9 lbs. I purchased the Apex kit to bring the trigger down to a clean breaking 6 lbs and now if I do my part…..1" circle drills are in the HOLE!!!

made a huge difference.

 

[potpot821]

Need to pick the experts brain here.
After dry firing every night since I got my Shield, and seeing the earlier graphic on trigger finger positioning, I can pull the trigger using the 1st crease of my trigger finger without disturbing the front sight. And this is dry firing with one hand. So it's much more steady with the support hand. I can also get it steady using the mid pad, but not as consistently steady as with the 1st crease, and I feel more relax doing the former.
Today I went to the range, I even dry fired a couple of times, to confirm I was holding the pistol properly and the front sight was not disturbed after pulling the trigger.
But when I rack the slide and started shooting live rounds, all 7 rounds to my dismay, were at 7 o'clock, 3" from POA.
Except for a couple of mags, where maybe I tried to keep focus and relax or maybe its just luck(?), that I got maybe 2' off POI with a couple of rounds hitting the 1.5" x 1" stick on at 7 yards. But the rest of the over 100 rounds I fired were like 4" and scattered at 7 to 8 o'clock.
What I dont get is, a couple of times I stopped and dry fired. And the front sight was steady. But when I resumed shooting live rounds, off it goes low/left again?

 

[PROnSHIELD]

...After dry firing every night since...

Yeah, this happened with my wife too...
You've proabaly read enough to know it's probably
not the pistol.

The cure for my wife was to verbally walk her through
"Shooting Mechanics-101"
BTW those mechanics were not a problem with
a .22LR pistol; they were caliber related.

I started talking her through and after some time
It was no longer needed when her brain took over...

From low ready:
Raise the pistol to the targets POA
Steady the front bead
Focus on the front bead
Move the trigger finger from Master position to
on the trigger
Take a breath and exhale

It was understood I would not command the trigger
pull...that was going to occur on the exhale. Once in a while
early on a second breath was needed
as she would catch herself moving the pistol

This technique of me talking/walking her through
followed by her taking over and "talking" herself through
was eventually replaced by mental/muscle memory
to the point that quick shots occur now...usually
necessary in S.D. Situations

EDIT: BTW things like trigger finger placement,
pulling trigger straight back, POA vs POI and proper
pistol grip were already understood and practiced.

 

[PROnSHIELD]

Just two more thoughts:

Find someone at the range you've watched and "admire"
Let them shoot your pistol to eliminate the pistol as the reason.

Have your wife or very close friend talk/walk you through the
steps until you and your brain are on the same page.

Finally if a wife or friend isn't available...take video to see if indeed
you might be moving the pistol at an all to critical moment
and/or
Take a few shooting lessons if you find it is you

FWIW I am not an expert but do stay at Holiday Inn Express' at times...LOL

 

[Magload]

Need to pick the experts brain here.
After dry firing every night since I got my Shield, and seeing the earlier graphic on trigger finger positioning, I can pull the trigger using the 1st crease of my trigger finger without disturbing the front sight. And this is dry firing with one hand. So it's much more steady with the support hand. I can also get it steady using the mid pad, but not as consistently steady as with the 1st crease, and I feel more relax doing the former.
Today I went to the range, I even dry fired a couple of times, to confirm I was holding the pistol properly and the front sight was not disturbed after pulling the trigger.
But when I rack the slide and started shooting live rounds, all 7 rounds to my dismay, were at 7 o'clock, 3" from POA.
Except for a couple of mags, where maybe I tried to keep focus and relax or maybe its just luck(?), that I got maybe 2' off POI with a couple of rounds hitting the 1.5" x 1" stick on at 7 yards. But the rest of the over 100 rounds I fired were like 4" and scattered at 7 to 8 o'clock.
What I dont get is, a couple of times I stopped and dry fired. And the front sight was steady. But when I resumed shooting live rounds, off it goes low/left again?

We should form a club. I get the same results dry fire verses live fire just mind are 2 to 3 inches left. I all ways preach bench rest to check it out but guess what? Same place so I hand it to the range master and he puts 7 dead center. I don't have this problem with my other M&Ps and one is a 40 CORE. My 1911 R1 will shoot the center out of the target at 10 yards. I am about to move the rear sight and save ammo trying to learn to shoot it right. Don

 

[Bud33]

4 things to remember. Proper Grip, Finger Placement, squeeze the trigger, and STANCE. All of this has been covered pretty well except stance.
Try this.
Take your position
Get your grip and trigger placement
NOW
Close your eyes. Point the gun at the target, open your eyes and look to see where you are pointing.
Shift your stance so as to be on target.

 

[Rastoff]

Close your eyes. Point the gun at the target, open your eyes and look to see where you are pointing.
Shift your stance so as to be on target.

This is good advice. It's called finding your natural point of aim. If you want the ultimate in precision, you have to do this.

However, this is a defensive gun. In a defensive situation you likely won't have time to get the right stance. Thus you must be able to use the sights and hit the center of the target regardless of stance.

We're not talking about tiny groups here. Two shots in the thoracic cavity that are about a fist apart. This is good enough precision for defense. An inch either way isn't an issue. However, if the center of that group is low and to the left, correction is necessary. Enough of a correction should be able to be made with simple trigger control and sight use.

Yes, proper stance will help, but you need to be able to get defensive accuracy without small corrections in stance. For defensive shooting, proper stance is being the one standing at the end of the fight.

 

[rwsmith]

Tight group 2" to the left.....

When the bugs are out there will be a tight group around the center.

Even if the OP was a troll, this has been a great discussion on trouble shooting shooting problems. Probably one of the Glock boys.

 

[doberman30]

Low and to the left

Once, just once, I would like to see a thread titled 'My new gun is shooting to the right'. I'm not saying that S&W doesn't sent out guns with sights that are off from time to time, but I think it has to do with the majority of the population being right handed/right eye dominant.

Well....I shoot left-handed and I have the same issue. I shoot 2 or 3 inches low and to the right. I know it's anticipation because I also shoot that way with my SR9C and my Kahr. They both have really good triggers. I can shoot them all well, but I'm not consistant and fall into the same habit. It's me. I'l be taking a class soon in hopes of correction. In the mean time, I've read that much dry firing can help erase this bad habit. But I am getting an Apex trigger kit too.

 

[imjohn]

I had the "low and left" problem with my newly purchased Shield 9. I ran a couple of boxes through it and was very disappointed with the accuracy.
I own 13 other handguns and haven't had a problem with their accuracy and they include a Kahr PM9 and PM40. Not much difference in size with the Shield.
From a distance of 25ft the Shield was shooting low and to the left. The first groups were from a modified Weaver stance, my normal stance. I thought I was doing something wrong, so I set up a bench rest with sand bags.
My group was much tighter (~2 1/2"), but was centered 5 1/2" low and 2 1/2" left.
I repeated this procedure a second time really concentrating on maintaining control of the gun and using the correct trigger pull. That group was centered approximately in the same location as before.
I called S&W and explained the problem. They sent me a shipping label and I sent it to them. The rep said that their operation would be shut down for a while, but would get on it as soon as they returned.
I'll update this post when I receive the verdict.

 

[rpking]

yep same problem with mine shot to the left
I pulled my sight pusher out of my desk drawer,
pulled the slide off my gun put it into the sight pusher
moved the front sight about a 1/16"
now I hit the middle of the target, it does not shoot to the left anymore
a very very very very easy fix
I really don't understand why everyone hates to move a sight if it will help them shoot better.

 

[RobzGuns]

Welcome to the forum, imjohn!
Every once in a while, there can be a hardware mismatch (due to tolerance stacking), or a sight being off a hair, but >95% of the time, it does simply boil down to the User.

I'd like to hear the results on your issue.
The sad part is... Even if they do swap out parts, the 'Form Letter' repair report won't actually say what they found wrong (if anything)... It'll most likely be just a check list of stuff they swapped out, without saying "Why".

 

[RobzGuns]

I really don't understand why everyone hates to move a sight if it will help them shoot better.

For me... If there's something I'm doing wrong that makes it shoot left (or low, or right), I'd rather spend the time to correct my technique, rather than having to buy a tool and modify something. Correcting what may be improper technique on a lightweight Subcompact will only improve my handling larger pistols too.
(Yes... Larger/Heavier pistols CAN mask improper technique that lightweight Subs won't tolerate )
This goes for more than just firearms.

 

[Magload]

Been there, done that with my new Shield it started off about 2 1/2 inches left elevation was right on when I started shooting the dot and not the top of the front blade. I worked at it and after about 500 rounds I can keep it a inch left or in the center if I really work at doing it right. It sure tighten up the groups on my FS guns. Don