New M&P shield barell looks worn

[Xynty]

Purchased a 9mm shield at academy, didn't really look at the barrel at the time of purchase ... the next day I was cleaning the gun (did not shoot it) and noticed it was dirty.. I know they test fire it so I didn't think much of it, but when I inspected the barrel it looked pretty worn and sorta scratched ... like it it went though a few hundred rounds... my sig when purchased brand new had 0 marks On the barrel ,is this common for this gun / normal?

I called academy they said they don't sell used guns, I know the guy sold me a new on in the box so it wasn't from the display.

Not my image below but this wear I also noticed on my gun

 

[hoc9sw]

All of them have at least a few rounds through them, but at intervals they run a higher number of rounds through one. That may be it.

I don't see anything to be concerned about.

(I have a 9mm Shield bought new as well).

 

[ThrowinRocks]

Curious if someone at Academy needed a new barrel? Seriously that looks like ****. I have 2 and neither look that bad and I've shot 500+ through both.

 

[SATX]

I have seen new Sigs on the shelf with some barrel hood wear, but that looks excessive to me. Always inspect your purchase at the gun counter, especially since they have a no return policy. Just keep it lubed and you'll be fine.

 

[Xynty]

Curious if someone at Academy needed a new barrel? Seriously that looks like ****. I have 2 and neither look that bad and I've shot 500+ through both.

That's what I was thinking, since the gun stayed 4 days after I purchased it... maybe someone swapped out their old barrel and took my new one.

 

[BE Mike]

No offense, but I've been reading claims that some firearms manufacturers don't test fire their pistols anymore and now we're complaining that they test fire them too much? I understand your concern, but probably the best thing to do is see how the barrel shoots. If it is inaccurate or there are malfunctions, then send it back. I buy most of my guns used and they have, what I consider, many tens of thousands of rounds still left in them.

 

[ontargetagain]

I don't buy used guns that show that much wear! Something here does not make sense on that much barrel/hood wear at all for a 'new' gun. The slide seems to be OK. Perhaps it was a long time display model that had a whole lot of handling and racking of the slide??
Karl

 

[CB3]

That's a used gun. You should not pay a new price for it.

If you have not shot it and it looks like that, exchange it. Your state may have consumer protection laws that force the dealer to take it back within a certain time window.

 

[triemferent]

They were just helping you by breaking it in for you

That barrel does look discolored but I usually look at the feed ramp to judge how used it is.

 

[GeoJelly]

Hopefully you can return it? I'm an old woman when it comes to barrel wear - and that barrel looks very used. I took two Flock's to the range yesterday - and both barrels still look like new (G42 and 43). SIG uses a much better (I think) PVD finish on their barrels now so you wouldn't see anything like yours. I'm guessing the same as others have said here - somebody swapped out the barrel...

Edited to add: ThrowinRock's barrel looks like it has a PVD finish on it. Your's looks like cheap Parkerizing at best - somebody stuck it to ya.

 

[moonpup]

I don't know about the frame, but that barrel definitely looks used. I've bought and sold a lot of guns and none of the barrels were even close to showing wear like that, even after lots of shooting. I agree with someone swapping it out. I'd avoid that dealer in the future!


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[wrangler5]

After enough rounds (maybe hundreds, probably thousands) you might get a barrel hood to look like that if it and the slide are at the opposite ends of their tolerance ranges. But NO manufacturer is going to "test" a gun to that extent and then try to sell it as new.

I wonder how dirty the insides of the action are - two or three test rounds should leave a little bit of powder residue down in the mag well and around the trigger parts of an otherwise brand new gun, but not much. The brass stripe in the middle of the slide (I forget what that ridge is called) looks like the remains of a LOT of shooting, too.

In any event, based just on the pictures, it looks like somebody pulled a swap on the barrel, and maybe the slide as well. I'd certainly take it back and get a new one (if there is one available.) If you can't find a new one, then at least get a BIG adjustment on this one as a (well) used gun.

 

[ThrowinRocks]

I don't think Academy will oblige him.

 

[rch27834]

I see your concern. It's probably fine but it's the principle of the matter. You just don't know.


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[Xynty]

Okay so I went to academy today, they looked at the gun and agreed it looks worn. I asked to see another MP shield, they bought one out from the back and that one almost looked identical to mine, maybe slightly less worn on the top of the barrel where it says 9MM but almost the same wear on the barrel... they don't take back guns or return them, but they offered to ship it to S&W, im gonna test the gun at the range today and see how it performs ... but now not sure what to think....

 

[BSA1]

Sadly this is a case of buyer beware.

The Lady M&P that she brought in April of this year had no wear marks on the barrel hood. It did have the brass marks on the bottom of the slide showing that it had been test fired.

600 rounds later it is beginning to show wear marks on the hood but nothing even close to yours.

I agree with shooting it before making a decision to send it back to S&W. However I wonder if S&W will replace the barrel under warranty strictly for cosmetic reasons.

 

[swsig]

Your barrel looks like it has been fired without sufficient lubrication. The question is, how much? I'm not sure that the factory test firing a few rounds could cause that much wear even if it was fired bone-dry. For comparison purposes, I've attached a couple of photos of the barrel from my Shield 9. It has 4900 rounds through it. And I do lubricate it!

 

[BE Mike]

Okay so I went to academy today, they looked at the gun and agreed it looks worn. I asked to see another MP shield, they bought one out from the back and that one almost looked identical to mine, maybe slightly less worn on the top of the barrel where it says 9MM but almost the same wear on the barrel... they don't take back guns or return them, but they offered to ship it to S&W, im gonna test the gun at the range today and see how it performs ... but now not sure what to think....

A buddy of mine bought a new M&P Shield in .45 ACP. He was put aback by the swirled tool marks under the slide. After research, he found out that's how S&W turns them out. Maybe since you saw others with similar finish loss, that's how they turn them out today. Sadly, it seems (and not just S&W) if it works and saves us money... ship 'em off! Actually, with the price point of plastic guns, and since they are pretty much butt ugly anyway, few customers probably really care.

 

[Xynty]

I Shot it about an hr ago at the range, 150 rounds... accuracy was good , couldn't complain.. had one jam out of 150 but I think it was the ammo I used at that time.. it was Serbian ammo pretty cheap, the Winchester ammo was great, not a single jam...

I'm gonna call S&W anyways just to ask if they would swap the barrel ... I showed it to the guys at the gun range they looked at it and said they all pretty much look like that now... I even checked their shield they got for sale... same story ... same looking barrel as mine...

Not that I really care since the gun and barrel take wear over time anyways but when you buy new you expect perfect condition... my next firearm def won't be S&W.

 

[swsig]

...I'm gonna call S&W anyways just to ask if they would swap the barrel ... I showed it to the guys at the gun range they looked at it and said they all pretty much look like that now... I even checked their shield they got for sale... same story ... same looking barrel as mine...

Not that I really care since the gun and barrel take wear over time anyways but when you buy new you expect perfect condition... my next firearm def won't be S&W.

I don't understand what's happening at S&W. I have a 2 1/2 year-old 40c, a 2 year-old Shield 9, and 6 month-old Shield .45, and all of them came with perfectly finished unmarked barrels. If the current crop of Shield 9 barrels all look like yours, S&W needs to go back to what they were doing in the past to prevent wear marks during test firing. Would it seriously erode their profits to properly lubricate the barrels beforehand? No. What will seriously erode their profits will be permanently turning off customers by selling them beaten-up looking new guns.

 

[Xynty]

I don't understand what's happening at S&W. I have a 2 1/2 year-old 40c, a 2 year-old Shield 9, and 6 month-old Shield .45, and all of them came with perfectly finished unmarked barrels. If the current crop of Shield 9 barrels all look like yours, S&W needs to go back to what they were doing in the past to prevent wear marks during test firing. Would it seriously erode their profits to properly lubricate the barrels beforehand? No. What will seriously erode their profits will be permanently turning off customers by selling them beaten-up looking new guns.

I'm gonna give them a call about this, especially after seeing two handguns and seeing the same thing on both... if the other two were in perfect condition I diffidently would of concluded that someone swapped barrels at academy... but seeing that they all have the same wear, seems like S&W just doesn't give a chit.

 

[ThrowinRocks]

Like a lot of electronics companies I think it's time that gunmakers place some type of tamper seal on the case or box. Then once you open it it becomes yours and your responsibility for any issue after that.

 

[BE Mike]

Like a lot of electronics companies I think it's time that gunmakers place some type of tamper seal on the case or box. Then once you open it it becomes yours and your responsibility for any issue after that.

Most new gun pistol boxes, it seems, have large gummed labels that overlap both halves of the box.

 

[BE Mike]

I'm gonna give them a call about this, especially after seeing two handguns and seeing the same thing on both... if the other two were in perfect condition I diffidently would of concluded that someone swapped barrels at academy... but seeing that they all have the same wear, seems like S&W just doesn't give a chit.

You may be correct, however, now that the big gun and ammo boom has died down after the last elections, to me it looks like S&W is trying to do everything they can to reduce the costs of production and lower the retail price of the Shields. I think I saw where they are selling for around $250.00 new, after rebates and offers. That's getting close to the price point of Hi Points. Kahr did that a long time ago, when they brought out their CM version pistols as an alternate (and less expensive) choice for the PM versions. The difference was that Kahr did it openly; the only difference being one less magazine, polymer sights, less polished slide, standard cut rifled barrel as opposed to polygonal rifled barrel, etc.

 

[ThrowinRocks]

Most new gun pistol boxes, it seems, have large gummed labels that overlap both halves of the box.

Maybe for other brands but NOT S&W. Trust me I've purchased 2 in the past 30 days.

 

[BE Mike]

Maybe for other brands but NOT S&W. Trust me I've purchased 2 in the past 30 days.

I trust you. I don't own any newer S&W handguns. It would probably be a good idea for them to put a gummed label on their boxes, although based on the OP's observations, it doesn't look as though any parts were switched out. Without a gummed label, there still would remain the possibility of tampering and doubt, however.

 

[1sailor]

If the others you looked at also showed that kind of wear then maybe it's just with their 9mm's. I bought 2 new Shield 45's this year. Both looked just as you would expect, like new. I now have just over 900 rounds through mine and you can't tell it's ever been fired. Not a mark on the hood and barely anything at all on the barrel itself. With 900 rounds it still looks better than the one on your new 9mm. Seems weird to me.

 

[rperillo05]

Sig uses a blue zip tie on their cases when they ship out to dealers. Only one of three of my Sig's still had it on there. I feel most LGS's must open and check boxes.

 

[BE Mike]

Sig uses a blue zip tie on there cases when they ship out to dealers. Only one of three of my Sig's still had it on there. I feel most LGS's must open and check boxes.

Yeah, they probably actually verify that the serial number on the gun is what they are putting in their books, when they receive it. Looks like box security is probably not going to do anything from when the gun shop gets it until it is sold. I suppose that individual gun shops could put a sticker on the box, sealing it after serial number verification, but that's probably not going to happen and if it did, there would probably have to be an extra charge added to the sale price.

 

[wrangler5]

Don't FFLs have to log all new guns into their bound books within a certain amount of time after they arrive at the FFL location? I know when I buy a gun online and it's delivered through my LGS they open the box and take the SSN off the gun itself, NOT the label on the box. I would assume they do the same thing when their own inventory arrives - in part because any ATF audit is going to check the number in the bound book against the one on the gun and not the one on the box, and discrepancies can bring very bad consequences.

If this is the practice, any "sealed box" that comes from the factory is going to be opened by the dealer long before you come in to buy the gun, and a seal won't provide any additional "protection" to the consumer.

[Third comment to the same effect. Man, you gotta be quick with this crowd. ]