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

[Horn]

This is the followup to my having sent my Shield 9 back to S&W with serious extraction problems and ejections all over the place.
Got it back yesterday (2 weeks/ Pretty Good) and took it out into the desert this morning. Fired fifty rounds of WWB and fifty rounds hollow points. No extraction problems what so ever!
But__they failed to address the ejection problem that was clearly stated on the information sheet I included.
Ejections all over the place and two hit me in the forehead. I'll be calling them Tuesday and see what they say. Yeah! Send it back!
That said, I was really expecting extraction problems since I was told the chamber was polished and the chamber face. That seemed to work. Opps! Those weren't hollow points, second fifty. They were Speer Lawman.
With Labor Day Monday will have to call Tuesday.
That's the latest.

 

[Fastbolt]

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.

 

[Muss Muggins]

I missed the original post, but here's my question . . . If it fires, the fired case is removed, and the next live round is loaded in battery, why does it matter where the empty brass lands? (if I have mischaracterized this issue, I apologize)

 

[Rustyt1953]

Sorry you are having issues with an otherwise reputable pistol.

Had the same problem with a toaster until I realized I had left a butter knife in it.

 

[Pef]

I missed the original post, but here's my question . . . If it fires, the fired case is removed, and the next live round is loaded in battery, why does it matter where the empty brass lands? (if I have mischaracterized this issue, I apologize)

A friend has an XDS that occasionally spits the casing in the shooter's face. Not a huge deal if you are wearing shooting glasses; but if you are not - say when you have to use the gun in self defense - and the spent brass launches into your eye - you are suddenly at a very big disadvantage.

A gun should not spit brass in the shooter's face.

 

[Muss Muggins]

A friend has an XDS that occasionally spits the casing in the shooter's face. Not a huge deal if you are wearing shooting glasses; but if you are not - say when you have to use the gun in self defense - and the spent brass launches into your eye - you are suddenly at a very big disadvantage.

A gun should not spit brass in the shooter's face.

I agree, but with differences in ammo, grip, stance, position, etc., I'm not sure that's something that can be consistently controlled. Better to learn to ignore unplanned distractions.

 

[skip4309]

I missed the original post, but here's my question . . . If it fires, the fired case is removed, and the next live round is loaded in battery, why does it matter where the empty brass lands? (if I have mischaracterized this issue, I apologize)

It's called BTF (brass to the face). Erratic and weak ejection causes brass to bounce off your head, face or arms. Some GLOCKS are notorious for having BTF issues. My G19 Gen4 occasionally spits BTF but not enough to be concerned with. Most likely an ejector problem.

 

[Florida J Frame]

I think I would try a box of top shelf 124 GR defensive ammo just to eliminate the ammo as a problem. +P would probably be a good test.

 

[bulldogman]

Maybe so, but I want it to eat anything I feed it, if it can only handle limited ammo I have no use for it and I'd send it back to S&W until they fix the problem.

 

[Horn]

We're Thinking Alike

Maybe so, but I want it to eat anything I feed it, if it can only handle limited ammo I have no use for it and I'd send it back to S&W until they fix the problem.

Certainly, having a H&K P7M8 I bought in 1983 and still use it can spoil a person. Also have a Sig P232 (wife still iffy on that one) with no issues.
I see a number of posters and bloggers have had extraction issue with the Shield so I don't really feel like the Lone Ranger. I think you're right. It should fire the target ammo without fail. Today it was Speer Lawman that ejected from three O'clock to six. I'm going to call S&W Tuesday and discuss this with them. There seems they didn't address the ejection issues. It was clearly stated on the notes I sent with the pistol.
Actually, I really like this Shield. Have fired some what over 300 rounds so far___to break it in. Nothing from S&W about that but I feel all semi's should be broke in__ somewhere over five hundred rounds for starters. I'm working on that number.
Thanks for the reply. There were other thoughtful ones as well.

"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."
-- George Orwell

 

[fbcmrjrtykr]

Maybe so, but I want it to eat anything I feed it, if it can only handle limited ammo I have no use for it and I'd send it back to S&W until they fix the problem.

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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[Rpg]

Any pistol that ejects into the shooter's head is worthless.

Creates instant flinch that's cheaper to cure by getting a different handgun than fixing the original (assuming S&W pays to fix the pistol) since curing the flinch with the original pistol takes many hundreds of rounds.

 

[webfarmer]

I agree, hot brass to the face just isn't conducive to good shooting. My 9MM Shield ejects my handloads very nicely to the 3-4 o'clock position.....mostly. Out of ~ 150 rounds - 6 or 7 (not sure, never counted) will land in front and behind me. Don't know why but maybe ejector spring pressure. I wonder if replacing your plunger and spring wouldn't change the geometry. Good luck!

 

[howiema]

Personally I would stop shooting WWB as I believe that the shield is a little bit finicky, when it comes to the low budget ammo, try some blazer brass or seller and bellot as they are the hotter of the ammo's and have never heard of any issues period with it. I would also say that break in is a couple thousand rounds. I work at a local GS and have heard of these issues from the customers but the ammo fix seems to take care of them.

Good Luck Pete

 

[OldCat]

I agree, hot brass to the face just isn't conducive to good shooting. My 9MM Shield ejects my handloads very nicely to the 3-4 o'clock position.....mostly. Out of ~ 150 rounds - 6 or 7 (not sure, never counted) will land in front and behind me. Don't know why but maybe ejector spring pressure. I wonder if replacing your plunger and spring wouldn't change the geometry. Good luck!

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.)

 

[OldCat]

Personally I would stop shooting WWB as I believe that the shield is a little bit finicky, when it comes to the low budget ammo, try some blazer brass or seller and bellot as they are the hotter of the ammo's and have never heard of any issues period with it. I would also say that break in is a couple thousand rounds. I work at a local GS and have heard of these issues from the customers but the ammo fix seems to take care of them.

Good Luck Pete

So far my Shield has devoured everything I've fed it. The only extraction/ejection problems I had was when reloading a new powder, I started with a low amount that didn't have enough recoil to fully actuate the slide causing FTE. User error.

 

[kannonvaggon]

Maybe S&W will send you a replacement recoil spring assembly? That MIGHT just solve your problem and it's a simple change out through the mail .....

YMMV

 

[shawn mccarver]

Any pistol that ejects into the shooter's head is worthless.

^^^^

What he said.

 

[Rustyt1953]

I wonder........If I wore a dog cone with eye holes in it,
Could I collect my own brass?

Jeez!..........I need a hobby!

 

[78Staff]

Personally I would stop shooting WWB as I believe that the shield is a little bit finicky, when it comes to the low budget ammo, try some blazer brass or seller and bellot as they are the hotter of the ammo's and have never heard of any issues period with it. I would also say that break in is a couple thousand rounds. I work at a local GS and have heard of these issues from the customers but the ammo fix seems to take care of them.

Good Luck Pete

I generally find WWB hotter than Blazer Brass, but I suppose it could vary by batches. I also find WWB pretty dirty, so avoid it in general .