On average how many rounds to break in an M&P 9

[Acrimsontide]

I just purchased my first M&P, an M&P 9 full size. I cleaned and lubed the pistol and took it to the range yesterday. I fired 50 rounds and out of those 50, I had 10 rounds that failed to feed ( nose of cartridge jammed against the feed ramp), 4 stove pipes, and 2 rounds which did not eject and left the empty round in the chamber. Is this typical for a new M&P or should I send it back to S&W to be corrected? Accuracy was good but 16 malfunctions in 50 rounds does not seem normal.

 

[oldafsp]

The title of your post was at most, a bit misleading...

Lets start with the basics.
1. You cleaned and lubed your M&P. Just what did you lube, and how much? These only require one light drop of lube on the slide contact points.

2. Failure to feed, failure to eject, stovepipes et al...
Type of ammo- factory or reloads, bullet type.

3. Your grip means everything with a semi auto pistol. A weak
grip does not allow the energy of the slide to cycle fully to the rear and the spent casing to hit the ejector pin, or to fully strip the fresh round from the top of the magazine properly.

By no means I am being critical here, just pointing out some of the causes that you have brought forward.

I have put several thousand rounds downrange in my M&P, with no issue and I shoot it in competition (IDPA).

 

[Llando88]

I'd say my pistol started to feel good at the 500 round point...

But 16 rounds in 50? No way.

I've had 0 gun-induced malfunctions in mine, 1,300+ rounds so far.

+1 on more info.

For context, mine would be:

- Treated with Froglube CLP per instructions at purchase, lubed per S&W manual
- Running Freedom Munitions 124 new and reman RN FMJ
- Firm two handed grip

 

[Acrimsontide]

The title of your post was at most, a bit misleading...

Lets start with the basics.
1. You cleaned and lubed your M&P. Just what did you lube, and how much? These only require one light drop of lube on the slide contact points.

2. Failure to feed, failure to eject, stovepipes et al...
Type of ammo- factory or reloads, bullet type.

3. Your grip means everything with a semi auto pistol. A weak
grip does not allow the energy of the slide to cycle fully to the rear and the spent casing to hit the ejector pin, or to fully strip the fresh round from the top of the magazine properly.

By no means I am being critical here, just pointing out some of the causes that you have brought forward.

I have put several thousand rounds downrange in my M&P, with no issue and I shoot it in competition (IDPA).

I only lubed the contact points and didn't over lube.

Ammo used was 25 rounds Fiocchi 115 grain round nose and 25 rounds Federal 115 grain round nose. The malfunctions were pretty much equal with both brands and occurred with both magazines that came with the pistol. My local gun shop did not have any additional mags in stock so I only had those 2 to work with.

I don't think it was my grip as I have been shooting Wilson Combat 1911s and Glock pistols for years however at this point, I'm willing to consider all possibilities.

 

[Pierre330]

Much like Llando88, I've put about 1500 rounds through my FS 9 and have not one single feeding issue with it.

 

[shawn mccarver]

I don't think what you are describing is a "break in" issue. My recommendation is to get rid of it by return if the store will take it back, or by trade-in. Warranty is a distant third option as you will just never be sure if the next round you try to fire will have the same problem. With me, once I lose confidence in a firearm, it is tossed in the "never for serious use" pile. Fortunately, that has only happened twice in 40 years of shooting.

 

[oldafsp]

Ok, I have used both the brands of ammo you used with no ill results. Including IMI 115 fmj, Winchester, Remington, Privi, and what not. Including reloaded 115 fmj's.

At this point I would disassemble your mags and wipe them down. Do not lube them. Make sure they are clean and dry.

A sticking mag follower can give you fits. It doesn't happen often, but I have seen mags from the factory that hung up just a touch while feeding.

Interested to see what you find out.

 

[Acrimsontide]

I don't think what you are describing is a "break in" issue. My recommendation is to get rid of it by return if the store will take it back, or by trade-in. Warranty is a distant third option as you will just never be sure if the next round you try to fire will have the same problem. With me, once I lose confidence in a firearm, it is tossed in the "never for serious use" pile. Fortunately, that has only happened twice in 40 years of shooting.

Shawn, unfortunately I feel the same way about the warranty work. If I have to go with that option, this gun would never be anything but a range gun as I could never trust it for carry. I really liked the feel of this gun while in the gun shop so I purchased it so I was disappointed when the first round I fired stove piped and everything went down hill from there.

 

[Acrimsontide]

Ok, I have used both the brands of ammo you used with no ill results. Including IMI 115 fmj, Winchester, Remington, Privi, and what not. Including reloaded 115 fmj's.

At this point I would disassemble your mags and wipe them down. Do not lube them. Make sure they are clean and dry.

A sticking mag follower can give you fits. It doesn't happen often, but I have seen mags from the factory that hung up just a touch while feeding.

Interested to see what you find out.

I will try your suggestion on the mags and see if that helps. Hopefully I can get back to the range tomorrow afternoon.

 

[Yorkie Man]

Glock told us it took 500 rounds to break in their pistols. In my experience it has always taken at least 250 to 500 depending how tight the pistol is.

 

[Llando88]

I will try your suggestion on the mags and see if that helps. Hopefully I can get back to the range tomorrow afternoon.

Dang. Hope it works out for you.

 

[Rpg]

The real question is whether you trust this pistol for your intended use.

Understanding that your answer may not be the same as mine, I would not rely on your pistol for anything but shooting at a range.

Reliability is very important to me.

A handgun that fails to work isn't good enough for me.

A handgun that works only 95% of the time isn't good enough for me either.

Only you can decide what level of reliability os OK for you.

 

[Acrimsontide]

The real question is whether you trust this pistol for your intended use.

Understanding that your answer may not be the same as mine, I would not rely on your pistol for anything but shooting at a range.

Reliability is very important to me.

A handgun that fails to work isn't good enough for me.

A handgun that works only 95% of the time isn't good enough for me either.

Only you can decide what level of reliability os OK for you.

I agree. If it works reliably enough to be a range gun, that is all it will ever be as I could never trust it for carry. Reliability is extremely important as I carry every day for my work. Hopefully I can get it functioning well enough for shooting on the range. If not, I will destroy it as I would not feel right selling it to someone who might one day have to depend on it for self defense.

 

[RalphMP9FS]

I started a thread a few days ago about my new M&P 9 FS having a slight fail to feed issue, but it was only 3 rounds out of 400 that jammed nose up while feeding. I can't imagine having 16 out of 50 that included fail to feed and eject. With that kind of percentage, I would send it in for repair. Yesterday, I ran 258 rounds through using of PMC Bronze, Federal Champion and Freedom munitions, all 115gr round nose. All the rounds fed, fired and ejected, so my brake in period guesstimate is 400 rounds.

 

[lhump1961]

I didn't experience any real break in period on my 40c or my 357c but did have a few FTFeed in both guns with all mags. Didn't happen often but sent them both back to Smith anyway. Returned in 3 weeks and have been 100% since. I'm not sure what they did as the return didn't state exactly what work was done...only stated my complaint and work completed. I have not shot them a ton but they have both been great for several hundred rounds each.

Sorry to hear yours is giving you some trouble but I wouldn't count it out until S&W takes a look at it. The failure rate you're experiencing is definitely unacceptable but may be a simple fix. It may earn your respect yet.

 

[red dragon]

Clean the whole gun first. Then get some different ammo and mags. Start with the usual suspects first then go from there. Never hurts to have some extra mags anyways. Some guns need to break in and some don't. I wouldn't give up after 50rds, but that's just me. If it'll eat 2-300rds of my carry ammo without any problems, i really dont care how my range ammo functions. I carry a gun with the understanding that **** happens and I practice and plan for the worse. I have several m&p handguns with thousands of rounds through them, some have malfunctioned some haven't but they've all ran 100% with my carry ammo(gold dots).lots and lots of gold dot$.I wouldn't hesitate to carry anyone of them. Break in for me was around 400-500rds before it was noticeable. Sending it back would be my last resort. Hope it works out for you.

 

[dullh]

The two biggest causes of jams and feed failures in autoloading pistols are 1) magazines and 2) ammo. Before you blame the gun, check your magazine springs and try a different brand of ammo.

Provided the magazine springs are stiff and not deformed you can rule the magazine out. Cheap range ammo varies considerably in reliability. Try some quality defensive ammo made by a reputable maker. If your pistol is reliable, you've determined it's ammo. if it still has problems after trying at least 3 different quality makes of defensive ammo, time to consider sending it back.

We seem to have a mentality in this day and age that if we spend money on a handgun, we expect it to function perfectly regardless what junk range ammo we stuff in the magazine. That wasn't true 40 years ago and it isn't true now. Don't condemn your new pistol until you've tried at least 3 different, reputable brands of defensive ammo and found the one your pistol likes best.

I have 4 M&P pistols and have yet to encounter a serious or consistent malfunction. This is after a total, between all four guns, of about 2,000 rounds fired using 5 different loads. I never used any kind of "break-in" either...

A third leading cause of jams in autoloaders is limp-wristing. I don't know you or how you shoot, but if you are using a loose target-type grip on your pistol (or any autoloader for that matter) then you could be inducing the jam. This is not a target pistol. Get a firm, meaningful grip and keep it the whole time you're shooting. Loose target grips may be great for target revolvers, but are positively abhorrent for an autoloading pistol - especially one you intend to use for self defense.

 

[MichiganScott]

Glock told us it took 500 rounds to break in their pistols.

Another good reason not to buy a Glock.

My immediate family owns four M&P 9's. They have been fed both Winchester and Federal range ammo and six brands and weights of different self defense ammo. The shooters have been four men and four women. There has not been a single malfunction from the first shot with over 3000 rounds total.

Send it back under warranty and then get rid of it of you don't believe you can trust it. If you can't trust this particular pistol after getting it back and shooting it, you will probably be better served by getting a different brand and model. Doubt will always be in the back of your mind.

 

[45tex]

I just bought a m&p 9, it required no break in whatsoever. That said I have sent oth brands in for service. They, once repaired became trusted shooters. Everybody lets a dud slip buy now and then. Let them fix it. Then shoot it. Trust will return with round down range.

 

[KnightsFan]

Sounds like you have a serious problem. I'm somewhere between round 300 and 400 through my 9FS and I've yet to have a single problem.

100 rounds of Winchester White Box followed by the rest being Freedom Munitions 115 gr. Reman Round Nose.

Like everyone else said, check the mags and check your grip.

But I would also send it in for warranty. And depending on what they say go from there on whether it's a range toy or up for sale.