M&P40c

[triggerb]

Already purchased the gun, but I really wasn't too happy with the store I got it from and here's why:

They asked if I wanted one with or without thumb safety, I asked to see both and they only came back with one and when I asked why they said they can only show one at a time...yea.
Then someone who wasn't even helping me comes up and starts dry firing the pistol and I said why are you doing that if no one asked you to? He replied with oh Im just trying to see if it has a mushy trigger...ok.
Then when we checked the firing date it was August of 2012 and I asked if there was anything newer in stock and he said they have to go in order...uh huh.

So maybe I made a huge mistake but if need be I will talk with a manager and let them know how I feel and why I would never return to spend my money there again...It's a big box store so I was expecting to have something brand spanking new not over a year old...

Questions:
Should I be worried about the fact that its been sitting there for a year (I will definitely clean it before first firing),
or the fact that one of the employees just walked over and started dry firing it?
And is there a surefire way to tell if this has had more than one round shot through it? When I clean it if I see a lot of black powder residue come out of the barrel does that mean they are selling me a gun that isn't brand new?

 

[sophie]

Welcome to the forum.

I think you are jumping to conclusions. Shoot the gun and see how you like it. As far as the employee goes that came up and started dry firing the gun, he should not have done that. He more than likely did not do any harm to the gun but should not have put in his "expertise" or "stupidity" as some would say.

 

[timn8er]

I think you'll be OK. I do see the negative side of your transaction & yes, it would have bothered me too. When I bought my 40c, they didn't even tell me there was an option for a thumb safety. Had I known, that's what I would've bought. Oh well, I like the gun a lot;its very versatile!

 

[N4KVE]

Imagine if every customer only wanted the newest gun in the store. The older ser # gun would sit forever, & no one would want it. So that's why they do that, so the inventory rotates in the order the gun was received. It's called FIFO, first in, first out. Also, where I used to work, we could only show one gun at a time. You check out the first gun, then we put it away, & then you can check out the second gun. This prevents guns from getting "lost". Don't take it personal, it's just policy. GARY

 

[ginzo]

I was lucky, I ordered both my 40FS and 40c from the same small pawn shop about 8 months apart and got both factory fresh. 12/2012 and 8/2013. I gave them the sku # I wanted and just was patient, really didn't take long as it could have.

 

[Jyezahn]

There's no way you can tell if only one round was fired. In fact, it doesn't matter because S&W fires more than one round from them before they leave the factory in order to check functionality. They only send it with one empty casing.

 

[triggerb]

Thanks for the replies and I agree it's nothing to take personal. Just was expecting something manufactured more recently and obviously something that hasn't ever been the test subject for the clerks at the store.

 

[triggerb]

Original pistol ended up having a problem with the thumb safety. It was partially engaging by maybe only 1mm but causing the first few trigger pulls to fail to engage the striker. Loved it when it worked but ultimately got a replacement that was manufactured a lot more recently.

 

[Rintimtin]

Don't let foolish clerks and dumb store policy ruin your new purchase. I am sure you will like your new M&Pc. I have a full size and a Compact both in 40, I have a hard time deciding which one I like the most. If this is your first M&P you might want to start saving up some money for your next ones. I know I am

 

[triggerb]

Yeah I loved them both but I need the feeling of complete reliability through 1000 rounds with maybe having an issue with 5 at the most, which is a 99.995% chance that the firearm will work on the first pull.
The defective 40c had at least 10 out of every 40 trigger pulls not engage, and I was not confident I can rely on this to protect my family and me.
I'm very happy the store manager had some empathy and swapped it out. If I was in his shoes and one day saw on the news that a home invasion turned deadly for the homeowner and somehow it was determined that the firearm he was using had a defect; knowing that I had a chance to prevent that it would be impossible to forgive myself...Sure its mainly the owners fault if they knew the gun had an issue and never warrantied or fixed it but something that is sold as new should not have any issues, but this is real world, and when they do, brand new replacement all the way.

Lol about saving up for another one, I found a 9mm compact online for $350, and have $200 in credit card points I need to spend. The only real decision is to spend it on 1000 rounds of 40 ammo or get the 9c for $150 essentially.

 

[N4KVE]

Glad they were able to swap the gun for you. Our store is a small one, & we don't usually have enough inventory in stock to allow for that. The fact that the gun had problems had nothing to do with the fact that the gun was a year old. Many times while looking at fresh inventory, I can see where the factory has gone cheap with the new parts. While the gun from last year has milled, or forged parts, the gun made last week has cast, or mim parts. That's how they save money without raising prices. I have a 40c from 09, & I'm very happy with it. I bought it from my brother, & he never had a problem with it. I got it when he bought a Shield. GARY

 

[DanTana]

N4KVE, I was not aware S&W began using cast parts? Since when did you notice the new stock with these parts in them? Which parts in particular did you see this, trigger assembly?

 

[N4KVE]

N4KVE, I was not aware S&W began using cast parts? Since when did you notice the new stock with these parts in them? Which parts in particular did you see this, trigger assembly?

I am not saying S&W did. However, working in a gun store, I look at many brands, & see where newer is cheaper. Off the top of my head, this is what happened to the Sig 220/226 line. Fire control parts that used to be milled are now cast or mim. Newer Glock extractors, & recoil assy's suck in comparison to the ones from a few years ago. Newer S&W revolvers have key locks, while older ones don't. Customers always asking for an older non dash model. Newer isn't always better. It's a fine line to try to figure out if a newer product has been improved upon, or made cheaper to save the company money. Look how the M&P slides don't say "STAINLESS" to save the company money. My 05 Impala with the stock CD radio tells me the name of the song the radio station is playing, but my GF's 06 with the same radio does not, to save Chevy a few bucks. Look at the cult following for the 3913 because many people think the older design is superior to what's offered today. Ask 10 people what they'd prefer, a 30 year old clean model 60, or a new similar gun with a key lock. Get my drift? GARY

 

[DanTana]

I understand exactly what your saying. It's the bean counters that can ruin a perfectly good design by saving .50 cents each on 10,000 units.

 

[Rastoff]

Yeah I loved them both but I need the feeling of complete reliability through 1000 rounds with maybe having an issue with 5 at the most, which is a 99.995% chance that the firearm will work on the first pull.

Your math is a little off here. 5 failures out of 1,000 opportunities would be a 99.5% failure rate. Math not withstanding, 5 out of 1K is too high for me. I won't trust a gun unless I have 0 out of at least 500.

The defective 40c had at least 10 out of every 40 trigger pulls not engage,...

I agree this is completely unacceptable. But, what do you mean by "not engage"?


As for the employee dry firing the gun it's a non issue. No modern handgun will be damaged by dry firing it. In fact, it's good practice to dry fire your gun a lot. This is the best way to work on trigger control.

I have at least 20,000 dry presses on my M&P .45 full size.

 

[AGoyette]

Get the 9c. I love mine.

 

[triggerb]

Yeah I don't know why, but I did 100%-(5/1000), when all I had to do was divide everything by 10...it's end of the semester time and my brain can't process such complex calculations anymore.

The thumb safety would partially engage upon pulling the trigger. You could see the safety lever budge just a smidgen, but enough to cause a malfunction. It would make a clicking sound, then after the second, third, fourth, or sometimes fifth pull you would finally hear the striker. It was great for suspense in the booth because you never knew which pull it was going to be.

 

[Rastoff]

When gripping the gun did you have your thumb on top of the safety?

 

[triggerb]

Nope made sure hands were not causing it

 

[Rastoff]

Nope made sure hands were not causing it

That didn't really answer my question. But, I can infer that you had you thumb below by the way you answered.