Thinking about an M&P for EDC

[chaser723]

I have been using a Glock for EDC for several years now and have had no issues with it. That being said my new issued weapon (if the expected changes occur) will be an M&P40. So I have been thinking should I transition to an M&P9 for off duty as well? It would seem that carrying the same platform on and off duty would make sense but I have never done it before due to my current duty weapon being a POS. I was just curious what your opinions would be on my issue and if any of you have any high round count M&Ps that you can talk about or any issues that may have occured. Thanks

 

[PersonalSecurity]

I have been using a Glock for EDC for several years now and have had no issues with it. That being said my new issued weapon (if the expected changes occur) will be an M&P40. So I have been thinking should I transition to an M&P9 for off duty as well? It would seem that carrying the same platform on and off duty would make sense but I have never done it before due to my current duty weapon being a POS. I was just curious what your opinions would be on my issue and if any of you have any high round count M&Ps that you can talk about or any issues that may have occured. Thanks

I unfortunately don't have a high enough round count on my M&P9 to give you an accurate idea of how reliable the gun is, but this guy does....

pistol-training.com Blog Archive M&P Endurance Test Ends

A very impressive torture test of sorts that showed Glock-like reliability. The most interesting part is that even after 60k+ rounds and a small hairline crack in the slide, the pistol still fired. It was deemed safe by S&W until their lawyers found out and made them call the test off. You can see the EXTREMELY limited amount of stoppages and malfunctions.

I am going to take a shot in the dark and guess you carried a Glock 19 (or G23). If so, the M&P9 fullsize is just the tiniest bit bigger than the G19, considered by many gunfighters and industry professionals to be the perfect size gun for concealed carry. The M&P9 is real close, its a tad longer because of the beavertail and a tad taller (although once you consider how Glock's mags stick out a bit, they are really the same height essentially). Even though the length is only a few hundreths of an inch longer (if i remember correctly; don't quote me) the barrel of the M&P is .25" longer, which has some major benefits.

You already understand the huge benefits of carrying the same gun that you train / work with, so I'm not going to go into details on that. I wouldn't second guess yourself though. The M&P series is gaining tons of respect by the big players in firearm training and has worked out almost all of its kinks. I would say its as good a time as any to get one and it is definately on par with Glock.

I will make 2 suggestions should you buy one. Look for a model with the "stepped" rear sites. These are used for racking the slide with one hand off a boot/belt buckle in the event the support hand is injured. They serve another purpose though.

There have been some improvements made to the M&Ps over the years. The most important of these are an improved ejector and an improved striker. The new strikers are MUCH more durable than the previous ones. The old ones are black and the new ones are stainless, if you want to verify. The "stepped" rear sight is the last upgrade to the M&P series, so it has all previous upgrades and is a quick visual way to identify models with all bugs fixed (not to mention one handed malfunction drill capability is a huge plus). The old sights were smooth and slanted.

If you want some information on how to tell the date the pistol was made to verify it has the improved extractor/striker, then send me an email. I could also send pics of the old vs new sights. The old strikers would break from very little dryfire and sometimes live fire. the new strikers are rated at 100k+ dryfires.

If you are looking for an off duty holster, may I suggest giving my company a consideration. I am currently working with a major magazine and law enforcement officers about getting my holsters into the hands of LEOs for off duty use, along with some mag pouches (AR and sidearm) for duty use. There are a lot of advantages to the kydex pancake design, and I think LEOs would greatly benifit. Just something to consider.

I don't think you can go wrong in anyway with the M&P. I would keep your eyes open for a new model to get the most bang for your buck. Also make sure to take advantage of the LEO discount. The LEO M&P9 also comes with 3 mags instead of the standard 2.

Just a heads up. Keep us posted!

Steve
Personal Security Systems
Supporting our Troops, LEO's, & Responsible Gun Owners

 

[MikeTodd]

Chaser,
I carry a MP .40 for my edc and also on duty. I'm a reserve for my local sheriff's department so I get to carry whatever I want. I decided to go with the MP instead of the G22 because for me it fits better, I like the adjustable backstraps, and I got a good deal on it. So far I have not had any type of failures with it, scored 224 out of 240 for my qualifications and would and do trust my life with it. I think it is a great weapon and would recommend it to anyone.

 

[bronco45]

I would seriously look at the 40c in an M&P. Same ergonomics, very good accuracy and much easier to conceal than a FS unless you go IWB all the time.

I have a 45c and a 40c and I prefer the 40c over the larger weapon, for concealed carry.

 

[BrianE]

I dont have a serious amount down the tube on my M&P9 FS, but I do have about 1000 rounds of 5 different brands give or take 50 and I have not one failure of any kind. From what Ive seen though, some have had other experiences........ I love it though and trust my life with it.

 

[kris7047th]

It's what I was told to get by someone who has relied on them since 2005... and runs his guns very hard. He is a well known trainer in my area. If he feels that the M&P is good enough for his EDC, it's good enough for me.

 

[growr]

My M&P .40 Full Size has over 15,000 rounds downrange in USPSA/IDPA matches and has never failed on anything.......you may have the sane experience as well. Never did a trigger job other than one round at a time...it just keeps on getting better and better. Yours will too...
Randy

 

[SMMAssociates]

Chaser:

My vote would be to switch to the small M&P for off duty.... The Glock trigger "feel" is just enough different that it may mess up your point-shooting capabilities.

For ordinary aimed fire, there's probably no difference....

I carry a small 1911 for EDC, but use a couple of M&P's (a 40C is "it", but it's waiting for some test-firing before I'll carry it again, so a Full Size is standing in) around the house. Sounds nuts, but I'm an old wheelgunner, so the M&P's feel right, and the 1911's just trigger different training.

(Semi-retired rent-a-cop, among other things.)

Just IMHO, of course....

BTW, I've trained up to swipe the thumb safety as necessary with the 1911's. It's not much of a problem to try to do that when it doesn't exist on the M&P's. Or you can buy 'em that way if you prefer. HOWEVER make sure you train for the thumb safety's use if any gun you're carrying has one....

Regards,

 

[Backon4]

I'm at about 3500 rounds through my 40c. No modifications at all. Trigger continues to lighten up and is sitting around the 3.5lb mark now. I have had about 5 failure to fires in that time period and equate those to a bad batch of ammo that I bought. I sent the bad ammo back to remington and they confirmed bad primers. I still carry the 40c on occasion but find myself carrying my S&W SD40 more and more. Trigger is a bit heavier and longer but for carry I actually prefer that. My only suggestion is if you are going to be carrying a Full size 40 for work then I would look at a compact 40 for off duty. That way you stay with one caliber. But that is just personal preference.

 

[PersonalSecurity]

I'm at about 3500 rounds through my 40c. No modifications at all. Trigger continues to lighten up and is sitting around the 3.5lb mark now. I have had about 5 failure to fires in that time period and equate those to a bad batch of ammo that I bought. I sent the bad ammo back to remington and they confirmed bad primers. I still carry the 40c on occasion but find myself carrying my S&W SD40 more and more. Trigger is a bit heavier and longer but for carry I actually prefer that. My only suggestion is if you are going to be carrying a Full size 40 for work then I would look at a compact 40 for off duty. That way you stay with one caliber. But that is just personal preference.

Wow, your trigger is at 3.5#? Did you have work done to it? If not, are you guessing or have you had it measued? That's really light if no work was done on the gun. interesting.

Steve
www.psholsters.com

 

[Backon4]

I've but it on a digital pull scale. It was 3.5X. It has had no work done just lots of shooting. I had concerns about it and let a friend take it to his department armorer who looked it over and said everything was good. He said he could replace a few worn parts but said nothing was obvious or out of spec. He told me to hold on to it or sell it to someone wanting one with a light pull. He offered me a brand new one and I was going to take him up on it but I wanted a 357sig and all he could get is the .40 so I decided to keep mine.

 

[PersonalSecurity]

I've but it on a digital pull scale. It was 3.5X. It has had no work done just lots of shooting. I had concerns about it and let a friend take it to his department armorer who looked it over and said everything was good. He said he could replace a few worn parts but said nothing was obvious or out of spec. He told me to hold on to it or sell it to someone wanting one with a light pull. He offered me a brand new one and I was going to take him up on it but I wanted a 357sig and all he could get is the .40 so I decided to keep mine.

Wow. That's actually really interesting that the pull went that light without any problems. If you really wanted to get it fixed, I'm sure Smith and Wesson would repair it.

I personally would hold on to that though. Just be careful if carrying it. Any chance of a thumb safety on the model? I'd have to check, but I don't think APEX's competition kit goes 3.5#. You should figure out what caused it and start selling it!

APEXs overtravel kit and some other goodies would really make that one hell of a competition gun. Congrats.

Steve
Personal Security Systems Kydex Holsters

 

[Backon4]

No thumb safety. Hence the reason it doesn't get carried as much. I called smith and they said they would gladly look at it but told me the same thing. Keeping it just in case I decide to shoot competition. Bot for now it mostly sits under the bed. I carry it on occasion when I need something just a little smaller to conceal.