Light primer strikes with new m&p9 2.0

[Russell420]

I bought a brand new m&p9 2.0 subcompact to carry on duty as a backup to my full size. I cleaned it and took it to the range with our departmental practice ammo, Federal American Eagle 124gr fmj, and our Fed 124gr hst duty ammo. Fired probably 100-150 rounds total. Toward the end, I got a light primer strike (round didn't fire) with the fmj rounds. Ejected the round and reloaded it back in the gun to see if a second strike would fire it. Nope. Primer hit was centered but very light. Tossed the unfired round, pulled the trigger on an empty chamber, reloaded the gun, and continued to fire the rest of the session without another malfunction. Pulled the striker assembly and cleaned the channel. Found a couple of brass chips in there. I looked at the fired brass and noticed that the firing pin was dragging on the primers as the gun was unlocking, but nothing worse than I’ve seen in other shorty pistols that work fine. The metal chips from the primer drag were obviously getting in the firing pin channel through the firing pin hole. The chips then must’ve got on the end of the firing pin and prevent it from traveling fully forward when firing, resulting in the light primer hit. I checked my other 2 m&ps with higher round counts that have never had their firing pin channels cleaned, and they were slightly dirty in the channel, but no chips. Anyone have this issue in a new 2.0? Most of the light primer discussions I’ve seen involve aftermarket triggers or 1.0 versions. My gun is entirely stock. Are metal chips supposed to be able to get in the channel? Since I don’t have confidence in the gun at present, I’ll probably contact S&W tomorrow and send it in. I can’t swear the channel was completely dry of any solvent or oil, but it was not lubed in that location before shooting. Could some Hoppe’s managed to get in there? Maybe. But I’ve never had any other gun (Glocks, Sig, HKs, Walthers, etc.) do this. Assuming the channel was dry, what else could be causing this in a new pistol other than a faulty round? I would be surprised it’s ammo as I’ve never seen a dud Federal round in 20 years of training and qualifications and Federals are known for their soft primers. Thanks.

 

[Eric300]

So after 100-150 rds fired you experienced ONE round that failed to fire by what you determined was a light primer strike. Then all the other rounds were fired with no problem. I don't think I'd worry about he pistol too much.....primer could have been seated a tad low.

 

[LVSteve]

Maybe the tip of the striker has a sharp edge that is digging out some brass during the primer drag.

 

[jurek]

Very weird.
Go and lock slide back and take a close look at striker pin. It still should be visible. And there shouldn't be open space that allows piece of brass get into the channel.
My guess is that the striker is moving back a little to far making the channel accessible for brass.
Please also check if you have RED CYLINDER inside the channel (visible after striker removal). This has to be there for a proper precise striker movements.
Definitely it is not a common thing and phone call or email to S&W is a good idea.
I clean striker and channel after every +/- 1,500 rounds and have never found anything else than powder residues.

 

[Russell420]

Spoke with S&W customer service today. After describing the problem, they advised that it sounded like an ammunition issue because it was just the one round, and to shoot it some more to see if the problem persists. I asked if it could be a problem with the striker, and was advised that the striker dragging on the primer and finding brass bits in the striker channel was normal. I made sure the striker channel is totally dry and will shoot it some more and see. It does have the red striker guide inside the firing pin channel.

 

[SMSgt]

Brass slivers in the firing pin channel is indicative of a sharp breech face opening shaving the cartridge case face. A drill bit can be used to "slightly" bevel the opening, particularly on the top side, to stop the shaving.

A light strike is a light strike, a gun problem, not a bad primer.

 

[jurek]

[..] was advised that the striker dragging on the primer and finding brass bits in the striker channel was normal.

I can strongly agree about striker dragging the primers in short barrel...
but...
brass bits in channel being normal? Perhaps I'm not as knowledgeable as S&W gunsmith... if you spoke with gunsmith ... but I believe in what I see... and I have never seen any single brass bits inside the striker / firing pin channel in any of my handguns...

 

[Doug M.]

The Washington State Patrol has had some problems with this and had to do some pretty aggressive gunsmithing to address. It was crud in the firing pin channel IIRC, which was not coming from the ammo but scraping in the channel. While "shoot it more" is not a bad idea, one malfunction in 80 rounds is not even close to acceptable in a serious use firearm. Any firearm that will not go 500 rounds with duty ammo and no more attention than a bit of lube if needed is not ready for prime time.

 

[WR Moore]

Brass slivers in the firing pin channel is indicative of a sharp breech face opening shaving the cartridge case face. A drill bit can be used to "slightly" bevel the opening, particularly on the top side, to stop the shaving.

I haven't looked at that particular model, but a tear drop shaped angled bottom edge of the striker hole in the breech is a feature of the M&P series to prevent/minimize that.

Several hundred rounds are generally suggested as a normal breakin for a new firearm intended for serious use.

BTW, not pinning the trigger firmly back as it breaks can allow your trigger digit to relax and let the trigger move slightly forward and raise the sear just enough to drag on the striker and cause misfires. That's probably not the issue here, but it can crop up. We figured this out during transition training.

 

[catcus-jack]

Lol Try shooting the round in another pistol.
I am with S&W on this being an ammo issue.

 

[Russell420]

I made sure the striker channel was totally dry and fired 120 more rounds of both Federal American Eagle 124gr and WWB 115 gr. No light strikes occurred. Still had some brass flecks when I cleaned out the striker channel afterward though.

 

[LVSteve]

I made sure the striker channel was totally dry and fired 120 more rounds of both Federal American Eagle 124gr and WWB 115 gr. No light strikes occurred. Still had some brass flecks when I cleaned out the striker channel afterward though.

Suggests to me that something in there has a sharp edge, either the striker tip or the edge of the hole it comes through.

 

[catcus-jack]

Was this ever resolved?