M&P .45 review

ChoicesRmade

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So i Just purches my second addition to my handgun collection.. I Own a Kimber custom Stainless ii .45, And Now i have a S&W M&P .45. I Pick up the M&P on friday.. I have been reading a lot about people not in love with the "gritty triggers" and so on.. Most people are puting in The Apex Trigger Package, My question is, Does the after market parts Void The lifetime warrenty??
 
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Welcome to the forum and congrats on the new M&P. I think you are going to like it.

About the apex kit, all you are doing is replacing some factory parts. If you ever need to send it back to the mothership, you could always just put the factory parts back in it. I would also add that it really does make a big difference, worth the money and trouble in my opinion.
 
Welcome to the forum and congrats on the new M&P. I think you are going to like it.

About the apex kit, all you are doing is replacing some factory parts. If you ever need to send it back to the mothership, you could always just put the factory parts back in it. I would also add that it really does make a big difference, worth the money and trouble in my opinion.

There you go. Well said!
 
I appreciate the feedback, and i will definatly take into consideration the apex trigger kit.. i havent actually shot it yet but while i was in the shop i kinda got to feel the trigger pull on a dry fire, and i got to say it is super different from the kimber but i expect that, Being that its Not the kimber and all, LOL.. I have never owned or for that fact really even shot a plastic gun, so its really a shot in the dark.. I Really Totally Bought it on the words of S&W M&P owners.. The people i have spoken to all say that its about the best selling Plastic on the market, and every one Loves it.. Mine Is the Mid size and i plan For it to be My C&C Gun.. My Kimber is a full sized 1911 with a compensator on it and its just not C&C Material.. But I Will Defenatly Repost Friday When i pick her up and Give her a few rounds to eat on what i have learned.. Thanks again
 
Dont know what the bad talk is, its perfect.!! When i field striped it she was clean as a whistle. As for the trigger, it is definitely gritty but i dont think it really bothers me..every thing is for sure tight and needs a good breaking in. Over all 2 thumbs up. Good job s&w. oh the test fire shot was march 13 2013.
 
The grittiness goes away after a few hundred rounds and a lot of dry fires. Also, the apex USB gets rid of some of it, and it won't drain the bank. At least it did on my 40c.


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I bought my 40fs before I heard about the gritty trigger. Shot it a few times and was a little disappointed. Then I checked on this forum and found out about Apex. I installed the DCAEK and RAM kits. The DCAEK put in a new striker block, which took care of the gritty trigger pull, a new sear with spring, and a new trigger spring. This reduced the over travel and reset and gave me about a 5 lb. pull. The reset assist Mechanism (RAM) does just that, and also lets you manually reset the trigger in case the trigger reset spring breaks, so you can keep shooting. If you do decide to try the RAM, make sure it will fit your gun, check it out at Apex. All this made a good gun a great gun for me, well worth the money.
 
Considering the .45

Hey everyone. I'm new to the forum, though not to M&Ps. I have a .22 and two 9mms currently and I'm thinking of getting a .45. Can anyone tell me how many magazines the full size .45s ship with?
 
M&P FS 45 ships with 2 magazines, or the LEO version with night sights ships with 3.
 
snip... Now i have a S&W M&P .45. I Pick up the M&P on friday.. I have been reading a lot about people not in love with the "gritty triggers" and so on.. snip

I just got my .45 not long ago and love it except for the trigger. Thought I'd mention that I found a few good videos on youtube that show how to do a custom trigger job. Of course this might void warranty but you could always get a new trigger assembly.. don't know if it would be cost-prohibitive.

I am considering doing the same thing on my 9mm Shield which is gritty. The .45 is smooth as butter and I don't have a measuring device but created a crude one where I could hang weight using a strip of cotton and tying weight to it. It used to take around 7-8 pounds and is now in the 5-6 area. I used to have to "stage" (not recommended by S&W) the trigger to get accurate shots but do not anymore. I might do the Apex on my 9mm just to get a comparison and I'd like to get the pull down to 4 or 5 pounds.

Let us know what you do, and how you like it.
 
I bought my 40fs before I heard about the gritty trigger. Shot it a few times and was a little disappointed. Then I checked on this forum and found out about Apex. I installed the DCAEK and RAM kits. The DCAEK put in a new striker block, which took care of the gritty trigger pull, a new sear with spring, and a new trigger spring. This reduced the over travel and reset and gave me about a 5 lb. pull. The reset assist Mechanism (RAM) does just that, and also lets you manually reset the trigger in case the trigger reset spring breaks, so you can keep shooting. If you do decide to try the RAM, make sure it will fit your gun, check it out at Apex. All this made a good gun a great gun for me, well worth the money.
See im Kind of ify abouit doing any modifications to that extent.. i have spoken with a few other officers that would never do that to a field duty weapon for reliability issues.. basically what i understand is that, "If" I was to get into a situation where i had to use my firearm to protect myself, when everything is said and done the courts or shall i say Layers, Will try to make it sound Like you are practicing Killing People.. and doing these sort of modifications is Making it easier to do so.. Just makes a hairy situation if it was to ever become an issue.. So i really dont knw what to do about that.. I Have recently Discoverd a Company that i do plan on sending my .45 to, to do some astetic modification, its called Customized creations.. They Do everything from nickel plating To tephlon coating for a self lubricating slide, To Barrel and Slide Porting, as well as installing trigger kits and so on.. but with this, some of their options run higher than i paid for my weapon brand new.. i think im going to do a tephlon coating and a barrel and slide port job... still not to sure on doing trigger jobs... i want to make sure that i do everything by the book so there is no question if ever put in a situation.. If you or anyone else has any insight to this it would be much appreciated... sorry for the lenghty reply..
 
Oh and i Forgot to mention before.. My 2013 S&W M&P .45F HATES,, AND I MEAN HATES STEEL AMMO CASINGS... I dont know if i got a bad batch or What.. But It Wouldnt Take in the First round of Hornady STEEL Case To Save My Life.. And that is No exageration... I Went back and Bought a case of Federal, and She was Spitting them out Like Bunny Rabbits Spit out Little Bunny Rabbits, BAm BAM BAM over and over and over and over.. LOL Not one Hick up...
 
I just got my .45 not long ago and love it except for the trigger. Thought I'd mention that I found a few good videos on youtube that show how to do a custom trigger job. Of course this might void warranty but you could always get a new trigger assembly.. don't know if it would be cost-prohibitive.

I am considering doing the same thing on my 9mm Shield which is gritty. The .45 is smooth as butter and I don't have a measuring device but created a crude one where I could hang weight using a strip of cotton and tying weight to it. It used to take around 7-8 pounds and is now in the 5-6 area. I used to have to "stage" (not recommended by S&W) the trigger to get accurate shots but do not anymore. I might do the Apex on my 9mm just to get a comparison and I'd like to get the pull down to 4 or 5 pounds.

Let us know what you do, and how you like it.
what exactly is "staging"?
 
Just picked up my new 45c yesterday. It's test fire date was sept 2008. Trigger is smooth! I have other M&P's and have had to do some work on them to get the trigger smooth. The 45c has eaten 150 rounds so far of 3 different types of ammo without a hiccup. I couldn't be more pleased! Here's a pic of the current mp collection that will for sure grow. ImageUploadedByTapatalk1366552503.401256.jpg


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Staging

what exactly is "staging"?

In staging, the trigger is pulled most of the way, but you pause just before the firing point to realign your sights. Kind of a start-stop-sight-fire process. When you have a long trigger pull like in many double actions many people find it hard to maintain the sight picture during the whole trigger pull, but most pros are against staging.
 
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.45 M&P

I too found the M&P lawyer-designed trigger a bit disconcerting at first but either I got used to it or the trigger did smooth up after a few boxes of mostly handloads. It simply doesn't bother me, even when sharing the range with my Glocks or Browning HP. My M&P is my primary home defense gun and I have full confidence in it.
 
Love the 45 M&P (my favorite of the M&P family) however it did come with the worst trigger, I shot the hell out of it and it got good enough for me. I do not shoot competition and I can hit where I am aiming so what more can I ask for
 
I have lots of .45's and the M&P is my go to gun. I didn't like the trigger at all, mainly due to the long reset. I couldn't shoot it as fast as my Glock. So I sent it back to S&W and had them redo it. Full trigger job and express turn around (1 week) cost me $175. Darn well worth it. It's a hell of a gun and I really believe had it beat Glock to the market it would be where Glock is now...used by 60-70% of law enforcement.
 
"So America,,?!! You know what really Grindes my Gears?" Peter Griffen..

The fact that I open My Brand new American Made Smith and Wesson M&P .45 Pistol, and one of the First things That I see Is a RED Gun Lock In a Package With the words MADE IN CHINA in very big letters Staring at me in the face....!!!

So the tools of My country Have To Be Kept under Lock and Key From another Country..??.. My Grandfather "KOREAN WAR VET" would be rolling over in his grave, if he knew of this monsrosity!! I know, and you know, and we know, that everybody out-sources to save a buck here and there.. But Seriously there Has to be a Line.. Somewhere that we will not cut corners.. and "Smith and Wesson" Being an American Iconic Company that has been around since the 1800's, Should not be Where The Corners are cut.. And I Just Wanted to say that I Am truely disapointed in the fact that a business of this magnitude would resort to Placing a product to Lock up The Very purpose of their manufacturing intent, made by a country that wont even allow the product they are locking up, In with Some of the Best Firearms in the World..? Dont Make No Flippin Sense to me...
 
I just bought my M&P .45....I had never shot it...took it brand spanking new to the range to qualify for my concealed carry permit. Out of the box it was unreal. I shot about 200 rounds all together that day. The more rounds that went through it the better it shot. During qualifications I shot the entire 10 circle out....can't get much better than that. But everyone has different tastes and everyone likes things a bit different one way or the other ...just give it a go before you think about changing anything. Either way the gun surely won't disappoint.
 
Why spend alot of money on something no one uses?I don't know where most of my locks are.Took them out of the box and threw them in a drawer somewhere.I would bet that 95% of the people who have them don't use them.
 
The Chinese should not be making money as a result of some stupid nanny law. I just throw the dang locks in the trash.
 
I just bought my M&P .45 two days ago, and will be firing it on Sunday. Its used, but detail stripping and cleaning doesn't show a whole lot of use. Came with three mags and tritium sights, so might be an officer package. I'm choosing the medium backstrap for the first go-round. I have a Sig 1911 C3 & a P22o Carry dark elite, so this is my third .45 in the arsenal. I have high expectations for the M&P, based on you guys in here, two gunsmith buds, and a number of LEOs that have recommended it for duty. I'll be firing Golden Saber ammo tomorrow, and some miscellaneous stuff to check out the function, and to clean out my ammo cabinet. Got my fingers crossed.
 
I currently have 3 in the family..2 Full size 40's and a 40C. Just bought a Full size 45 , and expect it will be as dependable as my 40's. We just switched to the 40 Pro at work, and it shoots really well, but as far as the trigger being superior, I really can't tell a lot of difference.
 
I have a 2014 build date mid size 45 and its been flawless . I have and like the 1911 but the mp 45 is lighter with more rounds and no 500 round break in like some 1911 to make them work.
 
I have three M&Ps; the first one was a full size 45. It is a good gun, but keep it factory fresh every 5k rounds and it will run like a champ. The other two are 9s. None came with bad triggers although the two later pistols had gritty trigger pulls. Two hundred rounds was what it took to get rid of the grit. After a few hundred, you can further help smooth things out by removing and cleaning the firing pin safety plunger (or whatever its called), but that task also involves removing the rear sight.

My 45 has run over 8k rounds and a lot of dry fires. The striker broke at 7500, but I've never had a malfunction with 230 grain factory ammo, ball or HP. At around 6k, it started to have some feeding problems with 185 grain stuff, so it went back under warranty and got the recoil spring and some others replaced.

I do not recommend messing with the trigger on a duty or carry gun other than smoothing them out. A smooth trigger action won't open doors to create doubt that could get you into legal trouble like a lightened trigger might.

Also, M&P and 1911 triggers are apples and oranges in comparison, so get used to the M&P and accept it for what it is.
 
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I have three M&Ps; the first one was a full size 45. It is a good gun, but keep it factory fresh every 5k rounds and it will run like a champ. The other two are 9s. None came with bad triggers although the two later pistols had gritty trigger pulls. Two hundred rounds was what it took to get rid of the grit. After a few hundred, you can further help smooth things out by removing and cleaning the firing pin safety plunger (or whatever its called), but that task also involves removing the rear sight.

My 45 has run over 8k rounds and a lot of dry fires. The striker broke at 7500, but I've never had a malfunction with 230 grain factory ammo, ball or HP. At around 6k, it started to have some feeding problems with 185 grain stuff, so it went back under warranty and got the recoil spring and some others replaced.

I do not recommend messing with the trigger on a duty or carry gun other than smoothing them out. A smooth trigger action won't open doors to create doubt that could get you into legal trouble like a lightened trigger might.

Also, M&P and 1911 triggers are apples and oranges in comparison, so get used to the M&P and accept it for what it is.
A trigger job won't cause any legal problems. If you have caselaw to support that claim, I'd appreciate if you'd post the case so we can learn from it. It's even less of a legal issue than the ol "Don't use handloads for defense for legal reasons" myth.
 
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