M&P SHIELD 0.40 CALIBER MAGAZINE DROP PROBLEM POLL

[The_Unknown_Surfer]

Well I have a Shield .40 S/N DXP2nnn. Purchased new. Over 300 rounds through it without a single malfunction. No mag drops with either mag, both filled to the max before inserting.

I would still like to hear what happens if a couple of people swap magazines between a dropper and a non-dropper.
It might answer the question of, is it the release, or the mags?

Mine is coming back tomorrow, and I had marked the magazines prior to shipping.
So it will be interesting to see if S&W replaces them,
modifies them as posted here, or nothing at all.

 

[The_Unknown_Surfer]

Will have to wait until I calm down some before I respond to her!

DEEP BREATH . . . . . .
Count to 10 slowly . . . . . .
Then take out your Shield 40 and blast some holes in a target.
Oh wait, no mags. Well, 1 round at a time then.
Would 1 round at a time still be considered "blasting"?

And as it has been pointed out multiple times in this forum,
S&W really needs to get their act together at the customer service phone center.
Some reps there have no clue as to the problem,
others have heard of a few people having the issue,
and others still tell you to send in only half of what they really want to work on as in Garnet's case.

 

[The_Unknown_Surfer]

Has anyone else had to modify their feed ramp on the barrel? Next time you go to the range shoot some HST through it. The barrel ramp end is extremely sharp and digs into the head of the bullet. I switched to Talons and rounded off the ramp. I will be trying some HSTs again when I go back to the range. Anyone else had problems with certain ammo?

I have had a couple of FTF as also noted in this forum with the
Winchester white value pack, 100 round, 165 gr FMJ
(I agree, bad primers as they had clean strike marks)
but I had also run 20 Hornady Critical Duty 175 gr FlexLock rounds through it
(a very fast $20) without any problem.
All before the mag started dropping out of course.
But I had not experienced any feed issues.
I wonder if this is the next problem on the horizon?

 

[WxManOZ]

Shipped mine off to S&W yesterday. Hopeful it's fixed upon return. **Crosses fingers**

 

[COD49]

SHIELD 40 RECALL?

My Shield 40 is on the way back to S&W for the infamous mag drop scourge. I am reading these posts,scratching my head and biting my lip. You can't make this up, somewhere between a Chinese fire drill and a soup sandwich. "Temporary fix, we will send you a magazine release so you can install it, no better send us the pistol, send us your magazines no send us your pistol". Customer Service is not aware,somewhat aware, now apparently aware. What a great way to instill or reinforce customer confidence and keep your loyal customer base. Even the gun dealers are in the dark, as entire runs of defective pistols that people depend on went out the door and are still being sold! No recall, no statement from S&W, and more than likely, not a word in any gun publication.

 

[Gr8ful42nd]

Same issue with extended mag

Just purchased M&P 40 Shield 9/3/12. Took it to the range on 9/5 and immediately had the extended magazine drop on recoil. Had no issue with the short mag. Adjusted grip numerous times to insure no contact with mag release during firing. If I let my pinky just "dangle" instead of gripping extended mag, magazine stayed put. Have contacted S&W... waiting on their reply. S/N is DXY5***

 

[eddieb1]

Just got back from the range. My Shield .40 ran through 500 rounds, with the only hiccups being 2 failure to load caused by my daughter limp wristing. We know it was limp wristing because after the first failure, we were able to reproduce the malfunction. The 500 rounds consisted of 5 different brands, everything from cheap to high end. Needless to say, I'm a happy camper with my new concealed carry weapon. By the way, serial number is DXV7XXXX.

 

[Pakwaan]

Chock up another with the mag drop issue. My 2-week old DXX .40 Shield drops the mag about once out of 3 times. Sent it off to S&W today.

This issue aside - I love this gun, and am sure it will become my trusted primary carry weapon when the issue is fixed.

While its gone, I've got a tiny Rohrbaugh 9mm that fits in a pocket, and my favorite gun ever, my S&W 1911PD which is, despite it's size, still decently concealable in an OWB Galco Concealable holster with an untucked Hawaiian shirt over it. There are a few decent things about being in Central Florida

 

[The_Unknown_Surfer]

It's back, and I'm even more confused

I would still like to hear what happens if a couple of people swap magazines between a dropper and a non-dropper.
It might answer the question of, is it the release, or the mags?

Mine is coming back tomorrow, and I had marked the magazines prior to shipping.
So it will be interesting to see if S&W replaces them,
modifies them as posted here, or nothing at all.

Ok, mine came back this afternoon, and now I'm
really confused by what was repaired.

The packing list shows;
REPLACED MAG CATCH
RANGE TESTED / MEETS SPECS

That's all, nothing else.
I had included both of my magazines and
they came back WITHOUT a dimple on the side of them.
And they are my originals as I had marked them.
So now what do I make of that?
Oh well, I will find out at the range tomorrow!

 

[T.L.R.]

My 40 Shield is a DXT2xxx, and has never dropped a mag, nor malfuctioned. Using either mag, they both hold true.

 

[Slimtatey]

Drop and no-drop mag test

This is my first post and I am not a gunsmith or anything, but the question was asked of trying mags from a dropped mag gun in a non dropped mag gun. I am fortunate enough to have 450 rnds though my gun before yesterday with no malfunction. At the range today was a guy that had a dropper, so we swapped mags. My mags in his gun would drop about every 2 mags where his were dropping every other shot in his gun. His mags in my gun would drop about every 4 rnds with the 7 rnd mag, and the 6 rnd did not drop at all after 36 rnds. Based on the scientific method of pressure felt in my left fore-finger and thumb, my mags in my gun barely move where the dropper magazines had noticeably more movement. My mag release took more effort to push and seemed to move a little farther than the dropper gun (both with no mags in the well). When installing one of my mags in my gun, there was a noticeable audible click of the mag catch, but the same mag in the dropper gun produced a "listen real close and you might have heard it" click. None of the mags had the bump that is being described in this post. I read the majority of this thread yesterday, so I took a hammer and a punch with me just in case, and ended up putting it to use on the other guy's dropper gun. 50 more rnds through his gun and mags (both 6 and 7 rnd) with no drops.

I didn't think to look at his serial prefix, but mine is a DTX4 gun. Knock on wood, but I have over 700 rnds of various ammo (165 and 180 grain Speer, Remington Golden Saber, Winchester PDX, some mixed in the box left-overs) after today and have been carrying it for 2 months with no issues. I do not count the rounds from the dropper gun mags, but I got 50 more with them.

 

[Fabius]

I've gone through the various threads discussing the mag drop issue and compiled serial numbers and reported problems. The result is:

DTX (?) - 1 drop, 1 no drop
DXP - 0 drop, 7 no drop
DXT - 4 drop, 10 no drop
DXV - 10 drop, 4 no drop
DXX - 12 drop, 2 no drop
DXY - 2 drop, 0 no drop

I think that the DTX serial numbers are actually DXT.

In any event, the only serial number prefix with no reported problems is DXP. DXT problems are the minority. DXV, DXX and DXY high percentage (80%) of those posting serial numbers have reported problems.

Some owners reported their serial numbers in more than one post, so I did my best to track and eliminate duplication. The postings on this forum are not a statistically valid sampling, but the high percentage of reported problems in the later serial number ranges is disturbing.

Typically, I assume that owners with problems are more likely to post, so I don't assume that the posted complaints are representative of the population as a whole. You can't conclude that 80% of the newer guns have a problem, but it does appear that the problem occurs more frequently in the newer guns.

Fortunately, the fix is pretty easy and the gun is definitely a keeper. Glad I bought mine.

 

[Krs123]

Another mag dropper

I bought a M&P Shield .40 last week from my LGS. Took it to the range immediately after purchasing and had multiple mag drops. Like many, thought it was my hand hitting the mag release. The next day went out, shot another 75 rds, and had magazine drops on every ~2 shots with the extended magazine, and every ~4 with the regular magazine. Called S&W right away, they sent me my prepaid packing label, and I sent the gun in last week. My serial number starts with DXX, which obviously has problems by the looks of this forum. I will post back with what they send back as a reply/fix.

This is my first S&W product that I have had to sent back, they treated me well on the phone, and made it easy to get the gun repaired. I love their warranty, and the products are made in the USA.

I hope the gun comes back quickly, and hope it works without any further hiccups.

 

[Fabius]

The guns sent back recently all appear to have been fixed. Mine has worked flawlessly since it was returned a few weeks ago. You should be fine.

 

[Slimtatey]

oops

Sorry Fabius, my slight dyslexia kicked in. Mine is a DXT.

 

[FiveForm]

I'll report back on how my Shield 40 comes back. I drove up to the factory yesterday and dropped it off with both mags. The guard who was at the intake desk said, "you must be from Connecticut.". When I asked how he knew he said that no .40 S&W versions of the Shield had shipped to Massachusetts yet. I thought that was odd...

Anyway, they'll call me when it's ready and I'll pick it up and let this forum know what was repaired and how it functions. My serial number starts with "DXT" and was dropping both mags on every shot.

 

[Garnet]

Garnet,

Good afternoon. I am in receipt of the 2 40 cal mags which you sent in for replacement. I apologize…the service rep should have sent you a label to return the gun along with the 2 mags. The issue has to do with the mag catch, not the mags themselves.

I will be returning the 2 mags to you and I will send a pre paid self insured Fed Ex label for you to return the gun along with these mags.

Okay, envelope waiting for me at home yesterday. Indeed... two mags in there. However, not "my" mags. I had marked mine and the ones I got back did not have my secret little mark.... nor did they have (as expected from the previous email exchange) a "bump". They are not getting the gun back. I'm thinking of bumping the mags myself. I subsequently purchased the XDM Compact in 40 and love it. No issues.

G

 

[Gaelicdog]

I am so pissed off at Smith and Wesson right now my eyes are boiling!!!!!

First I am pissed that they allowed these guns to be sold with a known problem. My money's gone and no one gives a flying ****.

OK, I calm down enough to deal with the situation like a rational human. Things happen.

I call S&W and get the bad news, send us the gun. Double ****.

I explain to the rep that this is my wifes gun and she bought it to carry on an upcoming motorcycle trip. He says he understands, for us to include a note inside the box asking to expedite and provide an explanation. I did.

Last week I called to check on the pistol. I was told it was marked as a rush and it would go out any day. He asked when my wife was leaving and assured me we would have the gun back in time for my wife to put a few hundred rounds through it.

This week comes and we still have squat. I call Wednesday and I am told the gun is finished and is in the mailroom and will go out that day. 2 Day shipping so I figure it's a good thing I'm off today so I sit and wait. Fedex comes and goes. NOTHING

I call again and am told that the gun went out today. Great, it gets here the day AFTER my wife leaves! And the topper is the tracking number does not show up in Fedex's data base so this may have been yet another lie by these douche bags.

I PROMISE I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER WEAPON FROM SMITH AND WESSON AGAIN!

 

[insomniac]

I am so pissed off at Smith and Wesson right now my eyes are boiling!!!!!
I PROMISE I WILL NEVER BUY ANOTHER WEAPON FROM SMITH AND WESSON AGAIN!

where are you?

i would gladly travel 50 miles to your house with a hammer and a punch and fix this pistol for you in about 10 minutes.

i'm not joking, i'm in central FL.

 

[steelcity]

Just joined the forum. I just got the call from my local shop that my 40 Shield is in stock after being put on the wait list. He told me the serial number begins with DXY. So if I pick this up tomorrow, where does one obtain the contact information just in case I need to call S&W to inform them of another problem?