First time owner - M&P .40 with loads of questions

Ryme, you may want to clean it GOOD before lubing it up. My M&P had a decent amount of grease and lube from the factory. Just field strip it (for now) then spray it with break free then either CLP or frog lube.
 
If your thinking concealed carry. I recommend a galco king tuck. I can shake this thing upside down and it stays put. An easy straight pull unlocks it from the kydex grip. I carry this almost everyday with a full size m&p .40 and it is very comfortable. Just my two cents.
 
Ryme said:
One issue I found is that I couldn't get the tool out of the magazine well. I managed to turn it 1/4 turn but that sucker is stuck in there. Also when looking into the chamber I couldn't really tell exactly what it is that I am supposed to be pushing down to field strip the gun. If anyone could point me in the right direction or to a YouTube video that goes a little more in depth it would be greatly appreciated. I didn't want to break the thing on day 1 so I left it alone.
Click to expand...

Ryme,

Check out the Youtube site that shows field stripping a Smith & Wesson M&P 9 Shield (same procedure for a .40 Shield):

M&P Shield 9mm Field Strip/Disassembly - YouTube

This should help you get your Shield taken down. Hope this helps!!
 
Thanks for the info guys. This thread has been wicked helpful to me and many others as it seems.

Today I orderd this from Otis. A little expensive, but I wanted something of quality that will last a while. - Otis Technology

I also ordered this which has come highly recommended from friends and the internets - Amazon.com: Froglube 2-Pk with 4oz Paste, 4oz Liquid, Storage Tube and Cloth: Sports & Outdoors@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51t57oAbMoL.@@AMEPARAM@@51t57oAbMoL

And some patches also from Otis (but from Amazon).

Lilidaddy, I will take a look at the king tuck right now, but I really don't see myself trying to conceal this monster. I will be looking for a holster, but mainly for open carry at the range or in the woods. In the future I do plan on buying something much smaller for CC, but at the moment funds just aren't there.

Lineman73, thanks for the video, however I got the full sized M&P 40. A minor detail though. I've been watching loads of them. Will I hurt anything by using the "trigger pull" methoid instead of using the tool to flip the lever inside? I haven't heard anyone say it will, but I want to be sure before I do it. Easier and faster is always good eh?

Bob_Sandman, welcome to the forums! Always good to meet another noobie like myself. Have you been out to shoot yet? Thoughts?

I am finally getting a chance to head out to the range tonight. I've talked to a few people and it seems it's ok to go for one range trip with the factory lube job. I've been chomping at the bit to get to the range!
 
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You won't hurt anything by using the "trigger pull" method, as long as you follow step one. Make sure the firearm is unloaded. Seeing as the pin in the grip is tight, mine were as well on all my M&P 40s, I tend to use a pen or small punch to move the yellow lever located in the mag well.
 
I am going to have to take a very close look when I get home tonight. I looked pretty hard and didn't see the yellow lever at all.

Didn't get a chance to hit the range last night. They close at 6 on Mondays and I'm not about to fight 5 O'clock traffic. Tonight they are open until 9 so I should be golden. Seems like anything and everything is keeping me from getting to the range!
 
Congrats on the new pistol, I also just picked up a new M&P 40c. Great questions and excellent information from the members here! I've had a lot of the same questions myself.

I just ordered a DeSantis open top, open bottom OWB holster through Amazon and it fits both the compact and the full sized flavors of the M&P, so far I live it.

I also have not been out to the range yet and have been wondering if I should strip and clean/lube dirt as well. I ha. A hard time finding the lever the fort time I tried to take it down also, so don't feel bad about that one.

I hope to hear a follow up after you make it to the range.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Good Morning guys!

Well the wife and I made it out to the range last night and we had a great time, aside from forgetting the ammo and having to run home to get it. Good thing we only live about 5 min away from the range. Neither my wife or I have shot in many years, but my confidence was a little higher then her's. It was like riding a bike and a very enjoyable and exhilarating experience, once I figured out how the damn automatic target thing worked. I got up and fired through my first two mags without issue. Once this was done I turned to my wife and motioned for her to step up but she didn't move. She told me to go ahead, so I went though one more mag then put the gun down and asked her again a little more firmly (hearing protection and all) and she finally stepped up. I could tell that she wasn't very familiar with pistols so I stayed with her and gave her an overview of how the thing works and once she was ready I stepped down and let her have at it. I do have to admit it was a little funny watching her hold and fire the full sized M&P as she is a bit of a midget with very small hands. She made it through her first mag fine but on the second I think she started limp wristing because one round would fire then the slide wouldn't go completely forward. It was about 3cm back and this was the only explanation I could come up with. She stopped and put the gun down and called me to come take a look. I pushed the slide forward with my thumb and fired 3 shots which worked for me just fine so I knew it was something she was doing. I told her to take a slightly firmer grip and changed her stance a bit and poof everything was fine. We ended up going through 190 rounds in about 40 minutes. HA! Quick way to spend a little money eh? I am so glad I found those extra mags though. Having six to load and then fire made the experience much more fun then if we had to stop and reload after every two. I will say that my thumb was killing me after reloading all six at once "on the spot" not sitting in front of the TV taking my time with it. I will be investing in a speed loader which I will call my thumb saver ASAP. All in all the pistol functioned perfectly. I shot exactly where I pointed it and am very confident that if I ever needed it in a self defense situation that it would function exactly as designed. The factory lube job was just fine for a first trip to the range, but the gun did get a little oily/dirty as it heated up. Man does that thing get hot! Since I haven't got my cleaning kit in just yet I gave it a nice wipe down when we got home with a lint free dish cloth and put her away until I can properly clean her.

While at the range and in good lighting I took a good look and did find the yellow lever. Turns out if you are holding the gun in your hand pointing forward and look down into the chamber the yellow lever is down against the back towards your body. I know this might be simple for most of you, but I couldn't find the damn thing and hope this helps someone else out.

I also did notice a tremendous change in the action of the pistol once we got home. Everything felt much smoother and had less tension. Now I fully understand what you guys mean when you talk about break in. I have a feeling once this frog lube shows up and I give her a good coat it will get even better.

I also now can see why you guys like night sights so much. Not that that stock sights are bad or anything, but I have a feeling that they make it much easier to target. I didn't take any pictures of the targets before the wife and I switched off (seems I might be a little bit better of a shot then her, but I'll make that decision once she has a gun that fits her hands) but I'll take some next time I go alone.

I just wanted to say thank you all again for your input. This thread isn't done by far, but you all have helped out so much and I really appreciate it.
 
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Nice. I just ordered a FS M&P .40, so I have been following this thread.
 
With 6 mags to load, spend the 29.99 and buy 1 of those

Butler Creek 9mm-.45 Caliber LULA Universal Pistol Loader and Unloaders

Found it readily available at amazon. Saves those thumbs!:D

Ryme said:
Good Morning guys!

Well the wife and I made it out to the range last night and we had a great time, aside from forgetting the ammo and having to run home to get it. Good thing we only live about 5 min away from the range. Neither my wife or I have shot in many years, but my confidence was a little higher then her's. It was like riding a bike and a very enjoyable and exhilarating experience, once I figured out how the damn automatic target thing worked. I got up and fired through my first two mags without issue. Once this was done I turned to my wife and motioned for her to step up but she didn't move. She told me to go ahead, so I went though one more mag then put the gun down and asked her again a little more firmly (hearing protection and all) and she finally stepped up. I could tell that she wasn't very familiar with pistols so I stayed with her and gave her an overview of how the thing works and once she was ready I stepped down and let her have at it. I do have to admit it was a little funny watching her hold and fire the full sized M&P as she is a bit of a midget with very small hands. She made it through her first mag fine but on the second I think she started limp wristing because one round would fire then the slide wouldn't go completely forward. It was about 3cm back and this was the only explanation I could come up with. She stopped and put the gun down and called me to come take a look. I pushed the slide forward with my thumb and fired 3 shots which worked for me just fine so I knew it was something she was doing. I told her to take a slightly firmer grip and changed her stance a bit and poof everything was fine. We ended up going through 190 rounds in about 40 minutes. HA! Quick way to spend a little money eh? I am so glad I found those extra mags though. Having six to load and then fire made the experience much more fun then if we had to stop and reload after every two. I will say that my thumb was killing me after reloading all six at once "on the spot" not sitting in front of the TV taking my time with it. I will be investing in a speed loader which I will call my thumb saver ASAP. All in all the pistol functioned perfectly. I shot exactly where I pointed it and am very confident that if I ever needed it in a self defense situation that it would function exactly as designed. The factory lube job was just fine for a first trip to the range, but the gun did get a little oily/dirty as it heated up. Man does that thing get hot! Since I haven't got my cleaning kit in just yet I gave it a nice wipe down when we got home with a lint free dish cloth and put her away until I can properly clean her.

While at the range and in good lighting I took a good look and did find the yellow lever. Turns out if you are holding the gun in your hand pointing forward and look down into the chamber the yellow lever is down against the back towards your body. I know this might be simple for most of you, but I couldn't find the damn thing and hope this helps someone else out.

I also did notice a tremendous change in the action of the pistol once we got home. Everything felt much smoother and had less tension. Now I fully understand what you guys mean when you talk about break in. I have a feeling once this frog lube shows up and I give her a good coat it will get even better.

I also now can see why you guys like night sights so much. Not that that stock sights are bad or anything, but I have a feeling that they make it much easier to target. I didn't take any pictures of the targets before the wife and I switched off (seems I might be a little bit better of a shot then her, but I'll make that decision once she has a gun that fits her hands) but I'll take some next time I go alone.

I just wanted to say thank you all again for your input. This thread isn't done by far, but you all have helped out so much and I really appreciate it.
Click to expand...
 
It has been great to hear about your experience with your new pistol. Finding those magazines was HUGE in the current climate. I would just like to add that I have a Streamlight TLR-1 weapon light I use on my M&P9 FS. It has worked flawlessly. It has been used on an AR and a Remington 870 shooting 00 Buck and Slugs so I am completely confident in it's ability to stand up under use. I have Surefire lights as well and they are great also. They do cost quite a bit more though. You can get a Streamlight TLR-1 for around $100.00 the Surefire X300 is at least twice that. I use flashlights daily in my work. They are either Surefire or Streamlight. I have never had a failure with a Streamlight but have with a Surefire. I had a tailcap switch go out on one. Now they replaced it no questions asked but I would still not say they are perfect. Please take a look at Streamlight as well they are good lights and a better value IMO than Surefire.
 
Thanks for the suggestions guys. I just ordered a Amazon.com : Butler Creek Lula Loader T1008 : Sports & Outdoors@@AMEPARAM@@http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31gyd1PYsfL.@@AMEPARAM@@31gyd1PYsfL. My guess is that will be the best $30 spent so far on this project. I read some of the reviews before I placed my order and did find some useful information. You should manually load the first round into each magazine due to the fact that the metal on the loader can damage the plastic follower on the M&P mags. Glad I saw that before I wrecked one of these hard to find mags.
 
Rastoff said:
Did you check to see if they had any .45 mags?
Click to expand...

Rastoff, sorry man i got about 10 PM's from different people asking about mags from there. I must have missed getting back to yours. The answer is yes I did check but no they don't have any. Last I heard another forum member called and they were out of 9mm .40 and .45 15rd mags. Sucks!
 
Frog Lube showed up last night. Just waiting on the cleaning kit and extra patches before I try this stuff out. I can already hear my wife's condescending questions... "Why are you using my hair dryer on your gun?" She'll know once she finally decides what she wants and buys one. Haha! Love her to death. I'm excited to field strip the M&P for the first time. Being a techie I love figuring out how stuff works.
 
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