Picked up a new Shield for Wife and she doesn't like it

That's the downside of many autos...they're hard for some folks to rack the slide. My wife has the same problem. I worry about that jam to clear or that high stress moment she could encounter, wishing all you had to do is pull the trigger!

I know it's already been said many times...a revolver makes more sense for several reasons. It's point and shoot...no safety or slide to be concerned about...just pull the trigger! I own a ton of autos too and love to shoot them.

I put Crimson Trace on my carry M337. It does the job for me and my wife. Sure it barks, but your putting rounds right were you want them in a stressed situation. I have big hands that go well beyond the grips and I manage it very well. It get's enough practice and not among my favorite to shoot. But it is my favorite for all day carry on an ankle holster... 10.5oz. I have all the confidence to place all my shots with fast followup every time.

I know...little gun in my hand huh?
That's okay, I have bigger guns to have fun with too:D
Model 337.jpgbig mitts.JPG
 
Retiredguns said:
We handled so many pistols in the store and while the Shield felt great in her hands, she is having a bear of time racking the slide in any manner. I'm trying to give her some pointers, but she gets discouraged. 118lbs soaking wet, but I know if she practices, she will get it. The Glock 43, Ruger LC(s Pro and Kahr CM9 were all easier and now she wonders why I bought the Shield.

She can rack my XDs .45 with ease, but the grip is too wide front to back and it kicks to much for her comfort. She can shoot a 9mm just fine, but I need to build her confidence with the S&W.

Is their an aftermarket recoil spring kit available that might help?

Thanks
Steve
Click to expand...
nothing will fix the racking issues.. the only solution is to get the map bodyguard 380.. my wife was having the same problems .. we watched every video on youtube on racking.. i even tried racking the slide for 15-20 min at a time for a week in an attempt to break slide in.. i would easily rack it 1500 times hard
.. still nothing worked.... in my opinion the most important reason for being able to rack slide is to clear malfunctions...if she cant rack it she wont be able to fix it.. especially fast in a fight.. the saw map bodyguard 380 fixes all these problems.. plus she gets the added plus of a much more deep concealable firearm.. my wife loves the breast holster i got her (because i hate when she purse carry. dont want to give someone a gun if they snatch her bag) .. tuks right under the titts ..ultra light,, easy racking ,, very tuckable,. has a safty(which i dont like but she love), nice shooter. only hang up is the take down when cleaning,, but i do that for her anyways.. so win win .. she still has her shield, its just now her house gun (if shtf)..i keep it loaded and racked for her ... just incase
 
Try a pair of gripper gloves. My Shield sits in the case it came in. I will sell it when I get around to it. I can rack the slide - but really considered the amount of effort to be annoying.
 
My Wife never tried the "pinch" method of racking, but rather the overhand, palm using method which "should" give enough strength to cycle a Ma Deuce, but it just didn't work. A lot can be said for 1st impressions and I wasn't going to make her like it. Full size pistols have never been a problem, but now that she is considering a carry weapon, I want her to be comfortable. She had fun at the range with the G42 so that goes a long way. She did very well at 7 yards and by the end was getting cocky with rapid fire in the head zone.

1h2sjm.jpg
 
2hawk said:
Decent "how to rack the slide" tutorial:
https://www.youtube.com/embed/kbayNc6D9HY

There are a few others by and for the fairer sex...HTH
Click to expand...

Excellent video. This is the method that my girlfriend used in order to be able to rack the slide on my SR1911. She could do the M&P 22 and 9mm, with an overhand grip and just using the non dominant hand. However, the 1911 just wouldn't budge for her until she used the two hand method outlined in this video.

Men typically brute strength the slide and then teach their wives the same method, but unless she can beat you in arm wrestling, she doesn't have the same arm strength that you do, and another method may be needed for her to operate the slide.
 
She can do it!

Hi, RetiredGuns - I am 5'2" and don't have a ton of hand strength, plus I have small hands. I fired a number of rental handguns at my local range and settled on the 9mm Shield as being most comfortable for my hand, requiring no adjustment to properly place my trigger finger. I had no trouble racking the rentals at the range.

I picked up my new Shield a few days ago, and finally had a chance to work with it at home today using SnapCaps. While it was definitely more difficult to rack than the rentals, it was doable. However, locking it open manually proved to be more than I was able to handle! My son was over and he finally got it locked open, but with difficulty. He field-stripped it and we reassembled. There are other threads discussing the proper orientation of the recoil spring upon reassembly, and I will take a look at that next time I break it down. For now, I'm just using an empty magazine to lock it open.

Meanwhile, tonight I watched a great video that really helped my racking technique. While I CAN rack it with the gun further away from my body and at elbow height (as I learned in my gun glass), I found the technique in the video much easier to manage, and practiced doing so for several minutes using the SnapCaps. Your wife may want to give it a try.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Q8ZRlkdWVc"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Q8ZRlkdWVc[/ame]
 
Try a box of underwoods hot 90gr gold dot1200fps 380 ammo in it .
 
Glad you found a solution Retiredguns.
Honestly, you wouldn't have found a satisfactory solution for your wife by changing things on the Shield. She would have been the one to have had to change. A weaker recoil spring would batter the slide/frame and additional appendages to the gun would make it more likely to snag on something or make it less concealable. Folks who initially have troubles with the Shield either find a better technique or simply get used to it and overcome any problems.

As for .380/9mm, the likelihood of her needing the additional "hitting power" of the 9 is very low anyway and while I personally would not choose a .380 over a 9, I would certainly choose it over nothing or over a gun I had trouble operating.

Looking at that target, your wife certainly looks like she can handle that Glock and with her confidence in using that gun, she'll likely carry it and not be hesitant in using it if the need arises.
 
JaneD said:
I picked up my new Shield a few days ago, and finally had a chance to work with it at home today using SnapCaps. While it was definitely more difficult to rack than the rentals, it was doable. However, locking it open manually proved to be more than I was able to handle! My son was over and he finally got it locked open, but with difficulty. He field-stripped it and we reassembled. There are other threads discussing the proper orientation of the recoil spring upon reassembly, and I will take a look at that next time I break it down. For now, I'm just using an empty magazine to lock it open.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Q8ZRlkdWVc
Click to expand...

As you mentioned, orientation is really important on the RSA in the Shield. For what it's worth, I had a similar problem with my 40 Shield. At times I just couldn't seem to find the right orientation / rotation. I called S&W customer service and told them about it. They initially said to shoot it a bunch but I insisted that this wasn't an RSA that was stiff but that the slide actually stopped before I could lock it open (with or without magazines). They ended up sending me a new RSA and that one is far less fussy.

I did recently trade my 40 for the 9 and haven't shot it yet but I already can tell that the RSA in the new 9 seems fine and I don't have to be so careful with orientation. I just make sure it's straight and centered but rotation isn't an issue. I can manually cycle the slide every time.
 
I too live in the Peoples Republic of Illinois and my wife wants to carry. I have a shield which shes does well with but she really liked the 9c. Turns out the 9c is too big for her to really carry unless she wants to dress kinda "sloppy" for a woman so shes thinking the shield for herself or even a bodyguard.

Now she has no problem racking the slide on the shield, but shes a crossfit woman so stronger than the average there. Thinking about your problem, perhaps for carry a revolver might be better for your wife? Maybe a .38 bodyguard?

Now from a shooting standpoint my wife doesn't LIKE shooting the M&P Bodyguard 380 but she can manage, after all its for CCW not plinking fun, so maybe the revolver would work for your wife for carry, or is that too much of a mouse gun? As a side note the slide on the bodyguard is actually far harder to rack than the shield, its got a pretty tight spring due to its micro size.

Just throwing out ideas, we are still debating what to get my wife for her carry gun as well. The ranges in our area have lots of M&P and Glocks and XD's to rent but few revolvers to try.
 
Herculite said:
I too live in the Peoples Republic of Illinois and my wife wants to carry. I have a shield which shes does well with but she really liked the 9c. Turns out the 9c is too big for her to really carry unless she wants to dress kinda "sloppy" for a woman so shes thinking the shield for herself or even a bodyguard.

Now she has no problem racking the slide on the shield, but shes a crossfit woman so stronger than the average there. Thinking about your problem, perhaps for carry a revolver might be better for your wife? Maybe a .38 bodyguard?

Now from a shooting standpoint my wife doesn't LIKE shooting the M&P Bodyguard 380 but she can manage, after all its for CCW not plinking fun, so maybe the revolver would work for your wife for carry, or is that too much of a mouse gun? As a side note the slide on the bodyguard is actually far harder to rack than the shield, its got a pretty tight spring due to its micro size.

Just throwing out ideas, we are still debating what to get my wife for her carry gun as well. The ranges in our area have lots of M&P and Glocks and XD's to rent but few revolvers to try.
Click to expand...

You may have missed my post above but we ended up with a Glock 42 which after a range trip, 7 types of ammo & a lot of handling seems to be a good fit for my Wife. She doesn't care to shoot snubbie wheel guns and has tried a few. The trigger on the BG is a big turn-off. Not sure if they make kits, but it feels like you have to pull the trigger dang near into the plastic guard to fire it. I watched a guy at the range really struggle with his as the mags kept falling out as well. I wanted my Wife to like the XDs 9 as I carry the .45 version, but it is too wide front to back on the grip. We could have shared holsters & accessories. :)
 
Retiredguns said:
You may have missed my post above but we ended up with a Glock 42 which after a range trip, 7 types of ammo & a lot of handling seems to be a good fit for my Wife. She doesn't care to shoot snubbie wheel guns and has tried a few. The trigger on the BG is a big turn-off. Not sure if they make kits, but it feels like you have to pull the trigger dang near into the plastic guard to fire it. I watched a guy at the range really struggle with his as the mags kept falling out as well. I wanted my Wife to like the XDs 9 as I carry the .45 version, but it is too wide front to back on the grip. We could have shared holsters & accessories. :)
Click to expand...

Yea I missed that post, glad she likes the 42. They do make a kit for the BG but personally I LIKE the trigger pull for what amounts to a pocket pistol. I think of it as a safety being it would take multiple errors to ND a BG.

From what I gather the mag issues etc were with the original BG, the M&P version gen 2 I find MUCH nicer than the original. The trigger isn't quite as bad either but it still doesn't break until it almost touches the rear guard.

I've heard a lot of bad things about the 42 as well, I think these micro 380's are just prone to having faults.
 
Herculite said:
Yea I missed that post, glad she likes the 42. They do make a kit for the BG but personally I LIKE the trigger pull for what amounts to a pocket pistol. I think of it as a safety being it would take multiple errors to ND a BG.

From what I gather the mag issues etc were with the original BG, the M&P version gen 2 I find MUCH nicer than the original. The trigger isn't quite as bad either but it still doesn't break until it almost touches the rear guard.

I've heard a lot of bad things about the 42 as well, I think these micro 380's are just prone to having faults.
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Yes, I was concerned about the 42, but I called Glock and they said they would put all the new parts on and make it work if necessary. Fortunately it runs like a champ with all ammo tested and a tiny Wife shooting! My little TCP shoots all but super ammo like buffalo bore as well. The only small pistol I have owned so far that was unreliable was a Nano. It jammed no matter what I shot and the lack of a slide latch made it a pure b!tch to clear. Traded it to a dealer for an XDs.
 
shield

the best solution is to sell it and get a 3" model 60.
no slide to rack
shoot 38's not 357's
pull the trigger and it fires
if it doesn't pull the trigger again.
5 shots is plenty
nice adjustable sights and single action trigger means she can shoot it well
If she doesn't like the grip -change it easily
she may even enjoy shooting
that means she(you) can buy more guns!

I sold a lot of these on that basis when I was a S&W rep a few years ago.
most women really like the gun when they shot it at a range day.
Larry in Reno
 
Shields Rack issue

I am new to the forum and to M&P Shield 9mm. This is or was the most difficult gun to rack. And yes my wife also does not like the Shield due to the hard to rack issue.

However I have purchased a "Shield Stainless Guide Rod Assembly" which uses one spring instead of the standard two springs. I have shot it with the replacement spring and it works as a factory standard. No issues. It a drop in ready product. Guide rod and spring complete.

The replacement recoil spring now allows my wife to rack the gun with little or no problem. The cost is $39.95 plus $3 shipping.

The company is Stainless Steel Guide Rods Inc.
Stainless Steel Guide Rods - Sig Glock Beretta SS Guide Rods
They are located in the Tampa Florida area.

I hope this helps with others that have the same "racking" problem. It helps to have the spousal unit shoot also!
 
My wife liked shooting the Shield but hated racking the slide. I replaced the recoil spring assembly with one from stainless steel guide rods here. now she has no problem with the Shield.
 
Sigsavvy said:
As many have said before on this forum, one technique is to hold the slide steady with your weak hand and push the frame forward with the strong hand. Sounds like it wouldn't matter but I watched my LGS owner struggle with the slide on my Shield 40 (he has really bad arthritis) until I told him to try the method above and it worked for him.

The other thing is shoot it a bunch. After about 400 rounds the slide was noticeably easier to rack. No doubt that it is a robust little gun to operate. Make sure you get an Uplula mag loader if you are going to keep it! That will be the next struggle until the mags are broken in.
Click to expand...

Was just going to recommend this very way .. saw a young lady about the size of your wife using that method at a range a couple of years ago .. she didn't have any trouble racking her side .. I don't remember what it was but was in 40S&W because it surprised me she was shooting that round as small as she was .. she couldn't have been 5 foot in heels .. had no trouble at all ..

I tried it a few times when I had a broken thumb that caused me a little pain and it is easier to do that way or at least seems to feel like its easier ..

Wishing her good luck with it !
 
Funny how I have trouble opening a tight jar lid and hand it off to my wife who pops that sucker right off. Tell her to treat the Shield like a jar of pickles and put some muscle into it.:)
 
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