Bodyguard 380 serial # info. Wich one to buy

[yardman4]

BG 380

I have a Serial # EAEXXXX, bought in December. The fired case was from November 17. 300 rounds thru it so far. I bought a box of PRVI Partizan ammo and I had a number of rounds that I had to strike 2-3-4 times before they would fire. The primer strikes looked weak even after the rounds fired. I used 1 box of russian bear steel case ammo, with no problems. So far, 3 boxes of blazer used with one round I had to strike 2x to fire. I am now reloading and so far, no double strikes needed. I think the PRVI ammo must have had hard primers.
I am experementing with loads, and plan on firing 3 different loads tomorrow-25 rounds each loading. Then I will settle on a powder charge. I don't expect and failure to fire as I use Winchester primers. As for the takedown lever problem, mine has been no problem so far.

 

[Sgt Rock162]

BG 380

Hey guys, New member here.

I just bought a BG thise week and it's EAK#. Has anyone seen any with this number. The take down lever is super hard to rotate and theres a grove cut into the underside of the lever that a small spring rod goes through as it's rotated to prevent it from backing out. So I'm sure this is one of the fixed models.

Have not fired it yet due to these damn 12 hr shift, but I will post any problems ASAP.

 

[Snoguy]

Hey guys, New member here.

I just bought a BG thise week and it's EAK#. Has anyone seen any with this number. The take down lever is super hard to rotate and theres a grove cut into the underside of the lever that a small spring rod goes through as it's rotated to prevent it from backing out. So I'm sure this is one of the fixed models.

Have not fired it yet due to these damn 12 hr shift, but I will post any problems ASAP.

I'm sure you're good to go on the takedown lever, but I've heard of problems with broken firing pins even into the EAJ S/N range. My 380 (EAH) had a broken firing pin which was fixed by S&W, along with a very hard to operate safety lever. No problems since I got it back from S&W.

Dave

 

[scottl1346]

i have a EATxxxx with a lazer that is not working

 

[kellylisa]

I picked up a BG380 on black Friday (2011) and I have EAX----. Picked it up at the local Gander Mountain for $329. Take down lever is a witch to operate. I only have about 50 rounds thru it, and so far, so good.

 

[edenney]

I originally posted this in another thread regarding problems with the BG 380s, but I found this old thread afterward and it seems like this would be the right place to ask the same questions. See below

Does anybody know roughly what the newest SN's are that have been produced for this gun to date? Obviously there have been a lot of problems with this gun, most of them resolved fairly early on except obviously for the firing pin related issue which I believe remains unresolved, and I really want to make sure that I buy one of the newest possible SN's if I buy one.

From what I understand and have read, the SNs started with EAAxxxx, and proceeded to EABxxxx, EACxxxx, and so on. This makes sense, but I've seen EAXxxxx SNs posted, and if each letter represents 9,999 produced, that's almost 250,000 manufactured in the last couple years. That seems ridiculously high to me for this model and over that period of time, so I presume this logic isn't entirely correct. Does the 3rd letter change every time there's a revision or something? If that were the case it would mean there have been almost 25 revisions since productions started, which also sounds high. If someone could clarify, and perhaps clue me in on the highest known SNs produced that would be great. I've tried to find this information elsewhere including on S&W's site to no avail as of yet.

TIA!

 

[Thiokol]

I bought one this afternoon. The serial number is EAZ2249 and the fired case envelope is dated December 16, 2011.

 

[Magnum1b]

We have an EAV purchased 1-1-2012 and test fired 10-03-2011. I've fired 110 rounds through it and I am getting used to it but my wife is not able to pull the trigger full travel so it's useless to us as we bought it for her protection. If I can't find a gunsmith to fine tune the trigger ( I've talked to three so far and all including S&W have said they can't do anything with it) S&W actually told me "It is what it is!" That just pissed me off. Fifty rounds I put through were junk Russian steel case ammo bought from Walmart. I had at least ten FTF with that junk and at least three jams. I disposed of the second box I had purchased and ran some loads from Atlanta Firearms through it with no problems as also the Hornady's were perfect. At 5-7 yards the steel sights worked best for me, with the laser working better at 25 yards into a 12" target. The steel sights definitely need high visibility in low light and I'll work on that or buy some night sights if we keep the weapon. It seems to me that it's a no brainer to replace the spring with a lighter spring of the same length unless it won't impart enough force to the firing pin. It seems to me also that if there is a problem with firing pin breakage that maybe, perhaps, it's due to the spring pressure being excessive. If car and motorcycle manufacturers can make California compliant vehicles why can't S&W make a Bodyguard 380 for the rest of us who don't live in the leftist Massachusetts?

 

[HPD4344]

How's it going? First time poster...

I currently have a Walther PPS 9mm, HK USP Compact .40, and a Ruger LCP .380 for off duty carry. My LCP has been flawless since I got it a couple of years ago; however, my largest complaint are the sights (or lack thereof). I cannot stand them and so I set out to find a replacement for my LCP and settled on the BG380. I would be buying a brand new one, ordered directly from Smith & Wesson through my FFL. My question is...has S&W worked out the kinks with the present/current production BG380 models? I understand there were issues with early models...but are all those issues worked out?

 

[Eclipsegs621]

I just got mine today and the some of the numbers on the test fire envelope are a little erased but it appears that mine said 2-10-2012. My serial starts with EBE1XXX. Havent had the chance to fire it yet but the takedown lever is still a pain to operate.

 

[BuckeyeChuck]

It seems to me also that if there is a problem with firing pin breakage that maybe, perhaps, it's due to the spring pressure being excessive.

Based on several threads on this forum about BG 380 firing pin fractures, the following seems to be true:

(1) While the rate of BG 380 pin breakage is higher than other S&W firearms, it does not seem to be an inevitability.

(2) The firing pin breakage issue does not seem to be relegated to a particular range of serial numbers. Rather, it seems to have happened/be happening across all serial numbers.

(3) Some gun have broken multiple pins.

(4) Inspection of multiple BG 380's with broken firing pins show that they all break in the same place: near the firing pin block. http://smith-wessonforum.com/smith-...guard-380-broken-firing-pin-dont-dryfire.html GeorgiaShooter has an excellent description in post #8.

The present working theory is one of a tolerancing problem. If this is true, then either a particular gun is prone to breaking pins, or it isn't, with the possibility that wear could lead to more broken pins. This can also explain why some guns have broken more than one pin. S&W may simply replace the pin without addressing the underlying issue.

In any case, there seems to be no evidence that the firing pin breakages are due to spring strength. I've got several hundred rounds through mine and dry fired it quite a bit, and so far, no broken pin. (Fingers still crossed.)

The BG 380 has a long, heavy trigger. No doubt about it. I don't understand the anger at S&W, however, since they freely advertise the trigger's weight, and most customers can actually handle a gun (or even shoot a copy) before they buy one.

Personally, I like the heavy trigger precisely because it makes the gun harder to fire. This is my primary carry gun (I only pocket carry) and the heavy trigger means it's difficult to have a negligent discharge due to something/somebody inadvertently pulling the trigger. This should never happen, of course, since the gun is never in my pocket outside of its holster, but I'll take every layer of safety I can get. (That said, I don't use the external safety on the BG 380. It's pointless on a DAO gun, and it is *extremely* difficult to actuate.)

 

[BuckeyeChuck]

I just got mine today and the some of the numbers on the test fire envelope are a little erased but it appears that mine said 2-10-2012. My serial starts with EBE1XXX. Havent had the chance to fire it yet but the takedown lever is still a pain to operate.

The takedown lever will loosen up over time. Mine has gotten to the point where I can do just with my fingers, but it took a fair number of cycles for this to happen.

 

[OfficerWard]

(That said, I don't use the external safety on the BG 380. It's pointless on a DAO gun, and it is *extremely* difficult to actuate.)
...I do agree in my normal carry conditions...at times the gun is in my night stand and not that my wife would even want to touch it....if Im simply storing it there I will go ahead and use the external safety as one more shred of peace-of-mind. Other than that...it is indeed pointless.