Back From S&W/ No More Extaction Issues/ But

[Jboutfishn]

I really believe there is merit to Fastbolt's post. My Shield ejects mild (4.5 gr HP-38, 115 gr plated RN) reloads to the 4 O'clock position about 4 feet away.

A few months back a guy was at the range with his son. He asked if I could help him out as his 9mm Glock was working fine for him but his Son was having all of the problems discussed by Horn. I suggested he may want to use the stance and grip his Father was using. Issue was solved.

 

[Horn]

It Wasn't Fired

Glad they resolved the sticky extraction issue.

Doesn't automatically mean any remaining ejection pattern issues are necessarily gun-induced, though. Or, at least, only gun-related.

Shooter grip/wrist lock and ammo power (over or under-powered) probably ought to be considered, as well.

How experienced are you in shooting diminutive plastic pistols, anyway?

How many total rounds have you fired through the gun? What brand of "hollowpoints? were you using?

If it were me, and the slide could be manually retracted and locked back (EMPTY gun), meaning good slide movement and length of travel, I'd not discount it might take some more range time for the stout little recoil spring assembly to reach a "worn in" state of tension. Might be exacerbated by using ammo which might be at the lower end of the normal power levels, too. No way to know without being there to see the gun and ammo, watch you shoot it, shoot it myself, try different ammo, etc.

I've tried some different Shield pistols from both early and recent production, chambered in 9 & .40, using normal duty ammo (124gr +P and 180gr) ... and watched other guys shooting them, and the guns have all run normally in different hands. Doesn't mean someone might not come along who needs some more familiarization time, like a minor revision of the their shooting grip.

If you return the gun and it doesn't exhibit ejection pattern issues for the guy test-firing the gun, using whatever American-made major maker ammo is currently sitting on their shelves at that time (they vary, I'm told), how do you expect them to "fix it"?

Maybe try some different ammo?

Dunno. Just some thoughts.

It came back and no one fired it relative the ejection issue. Ejection issues can happen with any pistol. (semi-auto) However, 115 grn target ammo should be fine in any pistol. That's what a lot of people use for punching paper. It's be nice to feel comfortable paying for "duty ammo"__or if some department is furnishing it, eh? LOL
My primary concern was addressed and it seems okay__but I'll still run a couple more rounds through it.
You raised some good points but__I'm not a new shooter. Just new to the Shield__waited for any issues to be corrected if any.
Once spoiled by a H&K P7M8? Bought mine in 1983. A chimpanzee could shoot it one handed and hit the target!
I think S&W was aiming right at Glock in the Shield design.
I intentionally bought Winchester WB...better than Russian stuff.barely. It fired it fine! That's a good test. eh?
I have some Golden Saber ....I'll pop a box of that in it. Will likely be a few weeks though.
Thanks for the good points

 

[walkin' trails]

For years, we were spoiled with these new fangled polymer frame pistols, ie Glocks working consistently and reliably out if the box. I still always recommended a 300 round break-in, but that was more of a formality than necessary. In the last several years, however, the 300 round break-in has been necessarily extended to 500 for some guns, and should include duty ammo. Both my M&P 45 and my 9FS, 2009 and 2013 vintage had no issues when they were first being broke in. My recently acquired 9c, mfg 2013 has had some extraction issues every 50-100 rounds with Winchester Ranger FMJ. It seemed to work with my duty load of Winchester 147 grain HP, but still not sold that it's an ammo issue so its going back to warranty. I really like the compact M&P over the offerings from Glock, so I find it a little frustrating that there as little problems like this plaguing the line.

 

[Nebraska12]

I've never heard of any pistol in this price range that would eat every kind of ammo. There are plenty of low-grade rounds out there. To expect that this weapon should fire them as well as high-end ammo sets the bar unrealistically high. I think if that is your standard, you need to be prepared to spend significantly more that this class of gun goes for.


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To believe that cost alone will dictate whether a firearm will have issues is, also, unrealistic. All manufacturers have problems. I can think of many accounts in which high end firearms have had feeding or extraction issues with various types of ammo.

Others would argue that 'your gun likes what it likes; find the ammo that works best'. To me, that's a far more realistic approach. Cost of your firearm has little to no bearing on the matter.

This is not to say that high end guns are without merit...let's not go down that road.

 

[Fastbolt]

It came back and no one fired it relative the ejection issue. Ejection issues can happen with any pistol. (semi-auto) However, 115 grn target ammo should be fine in any pistol. That's what a lot of people use for punching paper. It's be nice to feel comfortable paying for "duty ammo"__or if some department is furnishing it, eh? LOL
My primary concern was addressed and it seems okay__but I'll still run a couple more rounds through it.
You raised some good points but__I'm not a new shooter. Just new to the Shield__waited for any issues to be corrected if any.
Once spoiled by a H&K P7M8? Bought mine in 1983. A chimpanzee could shoot it one handed and hit the target!
I think S&W was aiming right at Glock in the Shield design.
I intentionally bought Winchester WB...better than Russian stuff.barely. It fired it fine! That's a good test. eh?
I have some Golden Saber ....I'll pop a box of that in it. Will likely be a few weeks though.
Thanks for the good points

Yeah, ejection issues can occur with any combination of gun, ammo, shooter, maintenance and environmental conditions. Sometimes hard to pin down.

The lighter 115gr ball ammo, especially some of the bargain stuff that may be loaded to the lighter end of the normal power range ... combined with a reduced mass slide, shorter slide travel and/or some tightly packed dual recoil spring assemblies ... may sometimes exacerbate any issues that could lend themselves to consistent ejection patterns (and some other issues, perhaps).

I remember when an older Glock armorer manual would list the recommended ammo to be used, with a minimum velocity, for optimal functioning. The budget 115gr ball & JHP ammo of that time came rather close to barely meeting & exceeding minimum recommended velocity. I no longer have that older manual, though.

The P7 was a neat pistol with a nice gas system, but it was known to sometimes be a bit finicky in the earlier version when it came to bullet length, bullet weight and pressure curve. My brother developed a fixation on them for a while, owning a few of them of different production revisions.

 

[webfarmer]

You're describing the extractor, the ejector has no spring. It is that little bit of metal that the brass hits while being extracted to flip it out the port.

However, if the extractor doesn't get a good grip on the brass rim it may flip upward. I had a 1911 do that frequently. It didn't bother me but my friend's wife was shooting it and a hot brass went right down her cleavage. I still shoot that gun 35+ years later and it still doesn't bother me. (It may be one or two out of fifty that flips upwards.)

Yep, sure didn't see that when I was typing it. Good catch!