Anomaly or on-going problem?

[carbuff]

From the comments I have read about the Shield's reliability and accuracy as well as it is narrower than the Glock 27 I have been carrying, I thought the M&P Shield 40 would be an excellent replacement for the Glock. So, three days ago I purchased one (without thumb safety) from a local dealer.

As is my practice with a new firearm, I began to field strip, clean and lube my new sidearm before going to the range for my first practice session. However, I ran into a problem right off the bat.

I removed the magazine and racked the slide and attempted to move the slide stop lever upward to lock the slide. The slide stop lever would not move. I loaded the magazine and racked the slide. Doing so automatically locked the slide. Each time I removed the magazine and tried racking, the stop lever would not move.

The day following my purchase, I returned to the dealer with the Shield. I asked him to rack and lock the slide using the slide stop lever. He could not do so. Consequently, he sent the pistol back to S&W for analysis and repair.


I am not pleased to have a problem with a new protection weapon right off the bat. However, I am thankful to discover this problem before I carry the pistol and have it attended to rather than to have this problem surface while I was carrying the Shield for protection.


Is this problem an anomaly or is it an on-going problem with the Shield?

 

[Old cop]

I don't own a Shield but just from what I have read on the internet the .40 seems to have more problems than then the 9MM. That said every manufacturer has problems from time to time and I've experienced my share, to include a new Glock 42. Sorry to hear about your problem but S&W stands behind their products.

 

[OKFC05]

It is difficult to push the Shield slide far enough back to engage the slide lock by hand, which is why I use and recommend putting an empty magazine in the pistol to lock it back.
I don't know whether yours is defective, or you just aren't getting the slide that last 1/32nd of an inch back.
You can cause this problem by not getting the recoil spring assembly correctly installed.

 

[RobzGuns]

You can cause this problem by not getting the recoil spring assembly correctly installed.

^^^^ This ^^^^
Read through some of the 'Can't Get My Slide To Lock Back' threads and you'll see that MANY times, it's due to not getting the recoil spring assembly properly centered/aligned during reassembly.

You'll also see that it's a common problem with being brand new, before the springs have had a chance to 'set' so to speak. Shooting it will often get the springs broken in faster than repeated racking, or letting it sit with the slide locked back overnight. If it locks back with a mag inserted, do it that way, until the springs get settled in.

... Or just contact CS to arrange to have it sent back for them to assess.

 

[NCW Ray]

You're probably just a hair shy of having it back far enough to lock back. Try pushing the slide back by placing the fore-end of the slide against something solid, such as a counter top. Also you might try rotating the recoil assembly a 1/4 turn and see if it helps. Mine was very stiff when I first got it.

 

[Jayhawkokie]

My slide release also felt stiff at first, but I always able to lock the slide back. I broke down the gun and move the slide lever and it felt tight, I put the straw on my can of Rem Oil and sprayed lightly around the mechanism and worked it up and down a few times, this helped some. I took a swab and made sure I remove any excess lubricant before reassembling the gun. It now seems to work a bit easier but needs to get broken in.

 

[robkarrob]

It is not a normal situation in any Shield. However there are lots of people that complain of similar issues, and normally it's because the recoil spring is not installed properly, or they don't have the strength to fully pull the slide to the rear, where the slide lock can be engaged. Not your problem of the slide locking back with the mag installed and not locking without the mag.

If the slide locks back with a mag installed, it should also lock back without the mag. Remember the empty mag follower pushes the slide lock lever up. If it works with a mag installed, it should work without a mag installed by manually pushing the lock lever up. Somehow when trying to lock the slide back without the mag, something has changed in either how the slide is being pulled back or how the lever is being raised. Other than the follower contacting the slide lock lever in the frame, nothing else on an empty mag should be contacting the slide, so the mag should have no effect on how far the slide can be pulled back.

First I would check that the lever was raising properly without the slide installed. Push the lever up, and it should easily move upwards. Release the lever and the spring pressure should move the lever down. Second as mentioned in an earlier post, make sure the spring is centered and pushed fully down. Lastly would be with the slide installed, pull the slide back to see if it goes back far enough that the lever would engage the slide lock notch in the slide. With the slide pulled fully back, the notch should be pulled around 1/8 inch clear of the slide lock lever tab. It all checks out correctly, then the slide lock should work properly with manual locking.

I have a Shield 40 and have occasionally had issues with the slide not going fully back, when I try to re-install the slide. If the slide doesn't go back far enough to lock, I know the recoil spring is in wrong. I just remove the slide and re-center and push the recoil spring fully down, and reinstall the slide. Then it works correctly. The recoil spring base plate has minimal clearance when entering the locking block bore, so if not installed perfectly, you might have a problem. I do not see the recoil spring alignment being your problem, as a misaligned spring would prevent the slide lock from working with a mag installed, and your Shield locks back with the mag.

Bob

 

[Audiman-40-Cal]

My Pro series .40 had the slide release to catch on the slide which kept the slide in place or the slide release would not allow the slide to be returned to the weapon. Also, the recoil spring rod had a 1/3 inch piece of the large end rod break off. Its less than a year old. It's back with S&W to find out what the issues are with this weapon. Model 178036.

 

[carbuff]

I thank each of you for your responses.

 

[carbuff]

I received a message asking why I did not check the spring after taking the slide off.

To reiterate,

I was not able to get past the first step of disassembly! I never took the slide off.

In the process of racking the slide back for the first time, I attempted to get the slide stop to arrest the slide in place so that I could then take down the slide release lever and then remove the slide off of the frame.

The slide stop would not move at all (up or down).

I took the gun back and it is now at Smith & Wesson.

The problem was not a lack of strength on my part or the dealers. Neither of us could budge the slide stop. I have handled many new tight pistols. Namely, each of the four Les Baer 1911's I have owned. Talk about tight, the slides were like welded to the frames. But, those pistols were not fouled by failing parts. The Shield I purchased was defective.

Since I returned the gun for repair, I have seen the video demonstrating how to lock the slide back without using the slide stop or using the yellow lever to remove the locked slide. I will try both procedures once I get the gun back and I do anticipate receiving it back in good working order.

 

[Llando88]

^^^ Thanks for the update.

Hope it works out for you.

Rich

 

[lhump1961]

I received a message asking why I did not check the spring after taking the slide off.

To reiterate,

I was not able to get past the first step of disassembly! I never took the slide off.

In the process of racking the slide back for the first time, I attempted to get the slide stop to arrest the slide in place so that I could then take down the slide release lever and then remove the slide off of the frame.

The slide stop would not move at all (up or down).

I took the gun back and it is now at Smith & Wesson.

The problem was not a lack of strength on my part or the dealers. Neither of us could budge the slide stop. I have handled many new tight pistols. Namely, each of the four Les Baer 1911's I have owned. Talk about tight, the slides were like welded to the frames. But, those pistols were not fouled by failing parts. The Shield I purchased was defective.

Since I returned the gun for repair, I have seen the video demonstrating how to lock the slide back without using the slide stop or using the yellow lever to remove the locked slide. I will try both procedures once I get the gun back and I do anticipate receiving it back in good working order.

Please post an update when you get the gun back. Always interesting and informative to hear resolutions to problems.

 

[JWH321]

This has been an ongoing issue with my Shield. Its been back to the factory, and is on its fourth recoil spring. Its otherwise perfect.

if I had to rack the slide in a real emergency, I think I'd be in trouble. I just can't pull it back far enough to lock it back unless I have something to push it against.

Its a frustrating issue that S&W seems to not recognize.

 

[carbuff]

S&W returned my Shield today. The service report shows that they replaced the trigger bar.

I tested the pistol and have posted a report about my opinion of the Shield.