I’m gonna give this .45 Shield a try. RANGE REPORT ADDED

When they first came out I bought one for my son as a graduation gift. I took it out shooting to make sure everything was in good order and loved it so much that before I knew it, I had put about 500 rounds through it (over the course of two trips out). Ended up having to buy another one for my son. I'm a revolver guy and that's what I carry but, if I had to carry a semi it would be my Shield 45. A really fun gun to shoot. A lot more accurate than I expected and a lot less recoil too.
 
I got the old boy to the range today, and was very impressed.

50 rounds of Ranger SXT 230 grain hollowpoints, 50 Winchester White box 230 grain FMJ, and 25 Golden Saber 230 grain hollowpoints all functioned perfectly.

Recoil was not bad and accuracy was fine. The group shown was at 20 yards (the length of the range).

The Golden Sabers shot exactly to the point of aim, so that's what I'll carry in it.

I wrestled a Hogue grip sleeve on it. That aggressive stippling was too much for my tender belly.

I carried a .45 Auto for 25 years in the FBI. I gave that gun to my son when I retired. It will be nice to tote a .45 again.
 

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OP, those grip sleeves go on easier if you leave them in the sun a few hours before you begin the wrestling match.

It took me less than one beer to wrestle this one onto my son's Walther PPS .40 S&W.
 

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Realistically - what level of recoil does it have?

It's gotta be more than a fullsize 1911, right?

I'd say more than my fullsize 1911, way more than my 645, about the same as my Sig 220, and considerably less than my Colt LW Commander.

Of course felt recoil is a subjective thing. It kicked about how I expected it to.
 
OP, those grip sleeves go on easier if you leave them in the sun a few hours before you begin the wrestling match.

It took me less than one beer to wrestle this one onto my son's Walther PPS .40 S&W.

I went the hot water/butter knife route.
 
I'd say more than my fullsize 1911, way more than my 645, about the same as my Sig 220, and considerably less than my Colt LW Commander.

Of course felt recoil is a subjective thing. It kicked about how I expected it to.

Ok, thanks. I had a Sig 220, and I didn't like it for the recoil pulse. In 45, I only like a fullsize, steel 1911. The only exception was the Cougar in 45. It actually recoiled less because of the rotating barrel....

Guess I'll stick with the Shield in 9mm.

Thanks for the info!
 
I've got the 4" PC model. It's a good gun, but it's not a fantastic gun. I've had some fairly minor feeding issues, but it's a good pistol, accurate, soft-shooting and mostly reliable. With that said, I should note (for the record) that I took it to my gunsmith and he couldn't make it choke. Accordingly, shooter error is still one possible cause of the feeding issues.
 
I bought my shield with the intension of making it my EDC.
I've been spoiled by how light my 642-1 Airweight is so
I just keep carrying it.
 
Realistically - what level of recoil does it have?

It's gotta be more than a fullsize 1911, right?

Recoil is very subjective. To me the Shield 45 recoil "feels" less than a fullsize steel 1911. I think it has to do with how the gun sits in the hand. My 1911 experience though is with standard GI beavertail and not the upswept extended beavertail.
 
The .45 Shield is a great confidence builder. Very controllable and way more accurate than you'd think a 3.1" .45 would be.
I briefly had a full size M&P in .45 and it seemed it had way more recoil.
I find the Shield to be more pleasant to shoot than my 4 inch alloy frame Kimber.

I'm not sure why some would carry FMJ and not even try JHP.
My Shield will thrive on any good JHP. I stocked up on 230 HST and 200 Gold Dot. Heck, my Shield even feeds Speer shotshells like they were hardball. Handy for packing in central Arizona.
Pattern test:
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Penetration on a steel soup can:
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A 2 1/2 foot rattler that was hanging out in the parking lot at a local swimming hole, now minus his head.
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Check the Lucky Gunner tests, some of the best JHP loads expand close to 1 inch and also have more than adequate penetration.
Many of those same JHP loads penetrate almost as deep as FMJ.

Some of the JHP loads Lucky Gunner tested don't expand at all, you'd be better off just carrying hardball than pay for premium defense ammo that doesn't expand.
Choose wisely.

I Cerakoted my Shield and got a Lasermax green laser/light, really goes with the gun well.
Z1DSurIh.jpg
 
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