Shield vs 9c Question

[Well Armed]

What I do not like about my particular Shield that I love about the Sigs and Glocks I've shot (these are my personal assessments, YMMV):

1. The slide can not racked as easily and smoothly. One handed racking is damn near impossible...
   
2. Whether it's designed to be used as a slide release or not, dropping the slide via the slide stop takes considerably more effort.
   
3. Loading rounds in the magazine takes a lot more effort that I think it should IMHO.

Yes, I know these aren't "huge deals", but after recently handling other firearms, it was like night and day. I be willing to by the 9c if these minor annoyances were improved on.

I like to irritate that I like the Shield and probably won't sell it, but these are features and options I'd personally would like to have. I'm wondering if the 9c is any better?

Is the slide release as stiff on the m&p9 & m&p9c as it is on the Shield, and is it somewhat easy to rack the slide one handed with the m&p9 & m&p9c? I know that the latter is damn near impossible to do with the Shield.

One last question, IYHO and other than round count, ambidextrous features, and replaceable backstraps, are there any other benefits to buying a m&p9c when you already own a Shield?

 

[Jboutfishn]

Is the slide release as stiff on the m&p9 & m&p9c as it is on the Shield, and is it somewhat easy to rack the slide one handed with the m&p9 & m&p9c? I know that the latter is damn near impossible to do with the Shield.

One last question, IYHO and other than round count, ambidextrous features, and replaceable backstraps, are there any other benefits to buying a m&p9c when you already own a Shield?

Not sure I understand your first question.......The slide on my Shield is stiffer than my FS or 40C although is getting better.

As for your last question, depends. I carry a Shield 9MM or a 40C, and use a FS 9MM Pro for competitive shooting. You can never have to many options.

Sorry, guess I am not a lot of help.

 

[Prasko]

Slide stop and racking are more difficult on the shield. It's due to a different recoil spring system. Dual captive. While compact and FS run single spring systems.

Is there a benefit to buying a 9c while owning a shield? None, but everyone has an opinion

 

[robkarrob]

Agree with the racking and recoil spring explanations.

Advantage of the 9C if you want it is more rounds and a thicker grip. The Shield and 9C are very similar in size, except the Shield is thinner. Single stack versus double stack magazines.

Bob

 

[poolie]

I just purchased a 9c to go with my Shield. The thinness of the Shield, for easy concealment was my big draw to it, and I really love the pistol, but after some range time I realized that I really wanted a slightly thicker grip. I rented a 9c from the range and ahhhhh, perfect (for me anyway).

I figure that since the two are basically the pistol except for the thickness, being proficient in one will transfer over to the other.

 

[OS-Wiz]

If you're a bigger guy with a good belt the 9c would be OK to compliment the Shield during winter when concealment is easier in winter clothes. I can shoot the 9c a tad more accurately due to its weight. Make sure to pick up the 9c with the newer trigger (like the Shield's). The original trigger was just awful in the 9c.

 

[randyr5]

I own both and am going to sell the Shield. The Shield is too big for pocket carry (at least for me), and if I'm going to go IWB, the slightly wider and heavier 9c doesn't bother me, plus I have 12/17+1 as opposed to 7/8+1.

 

[Donn]

A 9c was my first M&P. I shoot it well and unless something out of the ordinary happens, it's not going anywhere. Much as I like it, the 9c's too bulky for summer carry IMHO. That's why I got a Shield. The capacity issue doesn't bother me all that much. If I miss with the first eight rounds, four more probably won't make any difference.

 

[MichiganScott]

When the Shield first came out, I compared it to my 9C. I decided that the Shield is not enough smaller to be worth giving up the 12+1 round count. The Shield also appeared to be too big for pocket carry in my normal dress slacks or jeans and I already carried the 9C IWB.

 

[Hillbilly77]

One last question, IYHO and other than round count, ambidextrous features, and replaceable backstraps, are there any other benefits to buying a m&p9c when you already own a Shield?

The biggest reason, other than what you already mentioned would be if the compact simply fits your hand better.
Another reason would be if concealing the slightly larger compact wasn't an issue for you.

Here is a size comparison I did of the two:


If you compare the height of a compact (with a pinky extension) & a Shield with the 8-round mag, the height is almost identical.
A flat magazine baseplate on the compact is even shorter.

The difference between the length and thickness is very noticeable.

FWIW, I started with the Compact, bought my Shield a year later, and I just sold the compact two days ago.

 

[RacinbobSW]

A bunch of good replies have been posted. For me, the width of the Shield wins out especially since I'm a thin guy. With my long fingers I like the width of the 9c better but my Shield is my carry piece and there's always a compromise in some sense with a small pistol. Capacity doesn't really matter to me. In very close to 100% of the situations an armed private citizen would encounter 7 is more than enough.

 

[Well Armed]

What I do not like about my particular Shield that I love about the Sigs and Glocks I've shot (these are my personal assessments, YMMV):

1. The slide can not racked as easily and smoothly. One handed racking is damn near impossible...
   
2. Whether it's designed to be used as a slide release or not, dropping the slide via the slide stop takes considerably more effort.
   
3. Loading rounds in the magazine takes a lot more effort that I think it should IMHO.

Yes, I know these aren't "huge deals", but after recently handling other firearms, it was like night and day. I be willing to by the 9c if these minor annoyances were improved on.

I like to irritate that I like the Shield and probably won't sell it, but these are features and options I'd personally would like to have. I'm wondering if the 9c is any better?

 

[dereksfl]

I had the 9c with CT Laser and the Shield. Also had the 380 Body Guard, that was just too small IMHO. I carry concealed with an appendix Smart Carry holster so it comfortable for either handgun. The weight difference is not that much, but having the extra capacity means more to me. Now being older and retired and since most jerks come in pairs or more these days. I have since sold the Shield and only carry only the 9c with standard magazine and have the extended magazine as my extra. At home I have the Mossberg 500 pistol grip Cruiser Persuader shot gun next to my rocking chair. Retirement should be safe and comfortable...right?

 

[kcode]

This is kind of like which came first, the chicken or the egg? I have both, for EDC I like the Shield, but at the range I like the 9c. The wife likes the 9c at the range but I can't get her to give up her PPK/S for EDC. It all comes down to your own personal preference, what feels good to you. This is just like the 3rd gen battle of a 3913 or a 6906. A never ending battle.

 

[Saudade]

This is like asking if you should date Ginger when you're already dating Mary Ann.

 

[N4KVE]

Only YOUR hand can answer this question. For me when I shot both the 40c, & 40 Shield, MY hand told me to grab the 40c, & not the Shield. MY hand felt the 40c was a much better fit. We can not tell you which gun fits YOUR hand better. GARY

 

[Well Armed]

Only YOUR hand can answer this question. For me when I shot both the 40c, & 40 Shield, MY hand told me to grab the 40c, & not the Shield. MY hand felt the 40c was a much better fit. We can not tell you which gun fits YOUR hand better. GARY

Can your hand and fingers tell me if it noticed a difference between the 2 pistols when racking the slide, loading the magazines, and w/o getting into a slide stop vs slide release debate, if it's easier for your hands to drop the slide by using the slide stop?

 

[N4KVE]

Can your hand and fingers tell me if it noticed a difference between the 2 pistols when racking the slide, loading the magazines, and w/o getting into a slide stop vs slide release debate, if it's easier for your hands to drop the slide by using the slide stop?

My brother handed me 2 loaded guns, so it never even got that far. Mr. Hand said the 40c was comfortable to shoot, & the Shield was too slim for him, so racking the slide, & loading mags didn't matter. That's like asking us what color should your next car be. Red, or green. Only YOUR eyes can answer that. Good luck in your decision. GARY

 

[Well Armed]

My brother handed me 2 loaded guns, so it never even got that far. Mr. Hand said the 40c was comfortable to shoot, & the Shield was too slim for him, so racking the slide, & loading mags didn't matter. That's like asking us what color should your next car be. Red, or green. Only YOUR eyes can answer that. Good luck in your decision. GARY

I'm not asking about whether the gun will fit my hand or how slim one is compared to the other or how easy each is to conceal though. I was wandering what if others felt a difference when releasing the slide via slide stop, loading the magazine, and racking the slide in one firearm in relation to the other. To bad they handed you two loaded guns though because I would have loved to get your opinion.

 

[papersniper]

.....slide stop vs slide release debate, if it's easier for your hands to drop the slide by using the slide stop?

My Shield's slide stop aka release was impossible for me to use as a slide release until I fired about 50 rounds. Now it works fine. Same for the effort required to load magazines; it's much less now after running 5-6 magazines. I do not know why the Shield is this way....a similar pistol, the XDs 3.3 in 9mm was not nearly as "stiff" when new as the Shield. But it's important for lurkers to understand that the stiffness of the new Shield will lighten after it has fired 50-100 rounds.