Shielld Assembly/disassembly

[Bud33]

This has been kicked around before but I have not found a good answer.
My Shield was purchased 8/8/14 and test fired, according to the test case, on 7/11/14.
I now have approximately 1000 rounds down range and only one failure which was a cartridge and not the gun.
I love the way it shoots. Feels good in the hand, reasonable trigger for personal defense, and vey accurate for a short barreled weapon.
Now for the problem:
When I start disassembly, the takedown lever is EXTREMELT hard to move. It feels like I am depressing a very strong spring. I suspect that it is pressing against the Guide Rod.
Once the lever is down, the barrel/slide assemble is easily removed and the lever is free to rotate. I don't think this is correct but CS says it will get easier. WHEN!!!
Now for reassembly:
First problem is getting the recoil spring and guide rode installed.
I have to play with the assembly (rotating it) until I can find a spot where it will compress enough to snap into place.
There doesn't seem to be a particular notch for the rod to snap into.
Once the rod and spring are in place, I rack the slide back but it hit against something about an 8th of an inch before it will lock back. If I place the tip of the slide against the bench and force it, it will snap on back and latch. This only happens on the assembly. After that it is relatively easy to rack the slide to the lock position until the next time I disassemble for a cleaning.
I love the way this gun feels and shoots and I feel it is reliable, but the assembly, disassembly problem bothers me. I am afraid that sooner of later this will disable the gun.
Any thoughts will be appreciated.
Customer Service does not seem to be particularly interested!

 

[worm5932]

is it a 9 or 40? my 40 was very tight at first, took several hundred to get it loosened up, but with 1000 down the pipe I would think yours should be ok by now. does it seem to be getting any better?

 

[Saudade]

Yours sounds like mine. It will get easier. Once you've stripped and reassembled a few 100 times, you'll know just where to position the GR and get it on the first time.

Rotating the takedown lever DOES compress the recoil spring. You can see the end of the GR move.

 

[RobzGuns]

When I start disassembly, the takedown lever is EXTREMELT hard to move. It feels like I am depressing a very strong spring. I suspect that it is pressing against the Guide Rod.
Once the lever is down, the barrel/slide assemble is easily removed and the lever is free to rotate. I don't think this is correct but CS says it will get easier. WHEN!!!

Don't hold your breath waiting. My Shield is almost 3yrs old, shot & cleaned almost Weekly and it's STILL tough to rotate the take-down lever.

Now for reassembly:
First problem is getting the recoil spring and guide rode installed.
I have to play with the assembly (rotating it) until I can find a spot where it will compress enough to snap into place. There doesn't seem to be a particular notch for the rod to snap into.

Yup... I dunno why S&W didn't grind a little notch into the underside of the barrel lug for the recoil spring assembly to sit in (as other brands/models do). It would make assembly much easier (and the associated complaints disappear).

Once the rod and spring are in place, I rack the slide back but it hit against something about an 8th of an inch before it will lock back. If I place the tip of the slide against the bench and force it, it will snap on back and latch. This only happens on the assembly.

I'm guessing that (along with finding that 'sweet spot' to be able to snap your spring assembly in) you MAY not be getting the end of the spring assembly squarely (evenly seated) on the ledge. If it's not sitting square on that ledge (same amount hanging off each side, as shown on Pg24 in the manual), it will hang up on the slide and you could end up bending that rear 'disk' end of the spring assembly.
Again... If they'd only ground a little notch for it to sit in...

 

[whittsailor]

I'm betting it'll get easier with practice. I've got about 300 rounds thru mine. I don't know if I've gotten used to it or what, but it seemed to be easier to clean after the last time I went to the range.

 

[ChiefStealth]

My Shield 9 is relatively new. 130 rounds down range. Just now finished cleaning after trip to the range. My take-down lever is firm, but not extremely hard to rotate. I can feel the spring tension. Locking the slide takes a firm press, but always does lock. I do one thing on the GR installation that I learned on this forum. When positioning the GR I make sure that the very end of the spring coil is pointing up towards me. It always compresses and then slides down into place.