CouchPotato
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- Feb 25, 2022
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Some of you are aware of the problems that I've been having with my Shield Plus Performance Center which is currently back in for warranty service again. It's been quite the learning experience and during this process, I've joined various S&W fan groups on Facebook, I've spoken with many people about what's going on, and I've dug around online a little more.
Edit: Please note, I'm speaking exclusively about the Shield Plus, not the Shield 2.0, and not any other M&P model.
The more I search, the more I find. As it turns out, many others have been having the same issues as I have, as well as other issues, and some have also had negative experiences with S&W's customer service and also their warranty department, much like I have.
Due to the information about all of this being scattered around the internet and because the various issues appear to be widespread and ongoing, I think it's a good idea to begin compiling a list of them. If you're aware of anything that I've missed, please post below.
Please inspect your Shield Plus. If you've got a good one then it's likely going to be a rock solid performer.
Hopefully Smith & Wesson gets their act together soon. These issues are real, they're caused by a lack of quality control, and in many cases they have the potential to get someone killed, especially if they're relying on a Shield Plus to defend themselves. One of them possibly creates the potential for an uncommanded discharge, specifically the plunger reset issue.
Known issues:
Deformed trigger bar - In this case, the trigger bar fails to fully engage the sear, specifically only the corners of each meet instead of the trigger bar getting underneath the sear, which then prevents the gun from firing, especially after the corner of the trigger bar and/or sear wear down.
Failure to Feed - Some have reported enormous FTF issues with the Shield Plus, even with mutiple magazines to test with. For others the gun eats everything you feed it.
Safety Plunger won't reset - In this case, the safety plunger won't reset by itself after the trigger is pulled. Upon cycling, so far what I've seen is the sear does move the striker out of the way, allowing for the plunger to reset. However, because the plunger won't reset on its own like it's supposed to, the potential exists for it to not reset at all, even with cycling. Possibly that's already happening to people and they don't even know it. This ongoing defect has been reported by people for over two years now.
Inertial trigger saftey dingus prevents a trigger pull - This appears to happen for two reasons. One is because its not designed correctly, flat out, its not. Specifically the pivot point is too low in the trigger shoe and/or because the dingus itself is too flush with the middle of the trigger shoe. Second, in some cases the spring weight for the dingus is too high, which then prevents the nub from clearing the frame in back of the trigger in time. The result is that it requires you to press the bottom most point of the trigger in order to operate. It's a trigger and a deliberate pull should result in the gun firing without searching for a magical sweet spot in the trigger.
Optic wont adjust for elevation - Obviously this applies to optics ready versions. In some cases S&W has milled the slide at too much of a pitch or angle, which then falls outside the range for elevation adjustment on the dot.
Retention pins walking out - This appears to mostly apply to the pin in the trigger shoe.
Can't load last round in magazine - This is due to the spring binding on the follower which prevents full compression. Also a design issue. Shaving plastic out of a certain place under the follower fixes the issue.
Empty magazine won't lock the slide - Stretching the magazine spring fixes the issue until you compress the spring again by reloading the magazine. This might be a heat treat issue on the spring.
Guide rod stuck after reassembly - Let's be honest here, this one is 95% user error however, on the Shield Plus it appears easier to knock the guide rod out of alignment during reassembly than it does on the Shield 2.0
Very gritty trigger - This goes beyond the typical trigger bar and plunger interface. Some have reported that they've found metallic burs and/or machine marks in the hole for the safety plunger and/or striker channel.
Slide stop / slide release issues - This is famously known for being difficult to operate, especially at first when attempting to use it as a slide release. After examining multiple copies of the gun myself, I can definitely say that it's inconsistent from one Shield Plus to the next and my Shield 2.0 works effortlessly as a slide release.
Light primer strikes - While many or most light primer strike issues can be blamed on hard primers in cheap ammo, some copies of the Shield apparently have a weak striker spring. This issue has been validated by taking the rounds from three brands of ammo, including Federal, that failed to fire, putting them a different gun, and they fired. After the striker spring was replaced in the Shield, the issue went away.
Magazine Spacer Split In Half - On extended OEM magazines (more than 10rds) the plastic spacer above the base plate can split in half, even without being dropped.
If I've missed anything, please post below.
I do understand that everything that's man-made has a defect rate and every company has their share of QC issues here and there. With the wide range of issues happening on the Shield Plus, the obvious nature of some, the volume of people having them, as well as the length of time they've been happening, there's just no excuses. The inherent design of the Shield Plus should be allowing S&W to dominate the micro 9mm category, but they're not, and the QC issues are undermining S&W's reputation and are destroying the brand. The poor customer service and outright incompetence in the repair department exacerbate the issue.
Edit: Please note, I'm speaking exclusively about the Shield Plus, not the Shield 2.0, and not any other M&P model.
The more I search, the more I find. As it turns out, many others have been having the same issues as I have, as well as other issues, and some have also had negative experiences with S&W's customer service and also their warranty department, much like I have.
Due to the information about all of this being scattered around the internet and because the various issues appear to be widespread and ongoing, I think it's a good idea to begin compiling a list of them. If you're aware of anything that I've missed, please post below.
Please inspect your Shield Plus. If you've got a good one then it's likely going to be a rock solid performer.
Hopefully Smith & Wesson gets their act together soon. These issues are real, they're caused by a lack of quality control, and in many cases they have the potential to get someone killed, especially if they're relying on a Shield Plus to defend themselves. One of them possibly creates the potential for an uncommanded discharge, specifically the plunger reset issue.
Known issues:
Deformed trigger bar - In this case, the trigger bar fails to fully engage the sear, specifically only the corners of each meet instead of the trigger bar getting underneath the sear, which then prevents the gun from firing, especially after the corner of the trigger bar and/or sear wear down.
Failure to Feed - Some have reported enormous FTF issues with the Shield Plus, even with mutiple magazines to test with. For others the gun eats everything you feed it.
Safety Plunger won't reset - In this case, the safety plunger won't reset by itself after the trigger is pulled. Upon cycling, so far what I've seen is the sear does move the striker out of the way, allowing for the plunger to reset. However, because the plunger won't reset on its own like it's supposed to, the potential exists for it to not reset at all, even with cycling. Possibly that's already happening to people and they don't even know it. This ongoing defect has been reported by people for over two years now.
Inertial trigger saftey dingus prevents a trigger pull - This appears to happen for two reasons. One is because its not designed correctly, flat out, its not. Specifically the pivot point is too low in the trigger shoe and/or because the dingus itself is too flush with the middle of the trigger shoe. Second, in some cases the spring weight for the dingus is too high, which then prevents the nub from clearing the frame in back of the trigger in time. The result is that it requires you to press the bottom most point of the trigger in order to operate. It's a trigger and a deliberate pull should result in the gun firing without searching for a magical sweet spot in the trigger.
Optic wont adjust for elevation - Obviously this applies to optics ready versions. In some cases S&W has milled the slide at too much of a pitch or angle, which then falls outside the range for elevation adjustment on the dot.
Retention pins walking out - This appears to mostly apply to the pin in the trigger shoe.
Can't load last round in magazine - This is due to the spring binding on the follower which prevents full compression. Also a design issue. Shaving plastic out of a certain place under the follower fixes the issue.
Empty magazine won't lock the slide - Stretching the magazine spring fixes the issue until you compress the spring again by reloading the magazine. This might be a heat treat issue on the spring.
Guide rod stuck after reassembly - Let's be honest here, this one is 95% user error however, on the Shield Plus it appears easier to knock the guide rod out of alignment during reassembly than it does on the Shield 2.0
Very gritty trigger - This goes beyond the typical trigger bar and plunger interface. Some have reported that they've found metallic burs and/or machine marks in the hole for the safety plunger and/or striker channel.
Slide stop / slide release issues - This is famously known for being difficult to operate, especially at first when attempting to use it as a slide release. After examining multiple copies of the gun myself, I can definitely say that it's inconsistent from one Shield Plus to the next and my Shield 2.0 works effortlessly as a slide release.
Light primer strikes - While many or most light primer strike issues can be blamed on hard primers in cheap ammo, some copies of the Shield apparently have a weak striker spring. This issue has been validated by taking the rounds from three brands of ammo, including Federal, that failed to fire, putting them a different gun, and they fired. After the striker spring was replaced in the Shield, the issue went away.
Magazine Spacer Split In Half - On extended OEM magazines (more than 10rds) the plastic spacer above the base plate can split in half, even without being dropped.
If I've missed anything, please post below.
I do understand that everything that's man-made has a defect rate and every company has their share of QC issues here and there. With the wide range of issues happening on the Shield Plus, the obvious nature of some, the volume of people having them, as well as the length of time they've been happening, there's just no excuses. The inherent design of the Shield Plus should be allowing S&W to dominate the micro 9mm category, but they're not, and the QC issues are undermining S&W's reputation and are destroying the brand. The poor customer service and outright incompetence in the repair department exacerbate the issue.
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