Thoughts on the M&P BG 380

[D-Hop]

I've been wanting a small 380 for awhile. When I find a brand product I like lets just say I like to stick with it. So being a Smith & Wesson M&P fan I'm considering getting the M&P BG 308. So for the people out there that have one or have had dealings with one what is your take on the
M&P BG 380 ????

 

[Nikogto]

I like the big punch in a small package it offers. I've only shot 12 rounds through mine, some Remington hollow points, but it shot all 12 without a problem. I need to get some target fmj rounds and hit the range again. I only had to magazines loaded when traveling out of state and hit a range with my brother in law, my other gun is a shield 9mm, that one has seen more rounds through it.

 

[Rickgus]

D-Hop - I purchased both the LCP and the Bodyguard at the same time. The BG is for my wife because it has the safety feature. We had some issues first time out, FTFeed, but have since then narrowed it down to ammo related. We were firing Remington UMC FMJ. We have since then moved on to PMC Bronze and the BG seems to like that brand of ammo. My LCP ate whatever I feed it and am very pleased with it!

The Bodyguard M&P in my opinion is very well built with nicer features such as larger sights, lock back feature on last round, safety etc. It is a little larger than the LCP, but would still be great for pocket carry.

Seems these smaller pistols are very finicky about the ammo they like. Ours seems to like the PMC Bronze. I have read other posts where their BG's like WWB and American Eagle. Also have read where others have had no issues at all with whatever they run thru their BG's. You just have to take it to the range and give it a good break-in period and evaluate what works best for you! We still have many more FMJ rounds to fire before we start firing defense loads!

Good luck and enjoy!

 

[lmacrichter]

I have put 250+ rds through mine with 4 brands of ammo. I have had nothing but problems with light strikes/FTFire(17 times), failure of the slide lock on the last round(24 times) and 12 times it racked itself when a mag was inserted. IMO if you bought it for SD it is not nearly dependable enough. Only takes 1 FTF to get you killed.
I have done every thing S&W suggested to resolve the issues with no success. I don't know whether to send it to S&W or take the advice of the ROs and trade it for something else. Everyone tells that if you get a lemon no matter how many times you send it back you still have a lemon.

 

[Johnmuratore]

I've had the old one (with the InSight laser) for 3 years and never had a problem with any brand of ammo, FMJ or HP.
Had to call S&W CS once because I lost the Allen wrench. They sent me a new one at N/C in 3 days.

 

[shortbil]

I got my BG this past summer and have put over 800 rounds through it with no problems with the gun other than the slide don't stay open after the last shot. It don't like Tula ammo, and it real easy to "limp wrist" it when shooting close to you body resulting in a "stove pipe". I love mine but it will sit for a while because I just got the 9mm shield. I love them both but if I had to do it over I would have gotten the shield first and forgot about the 380.

 

[damiles]

I've been wanting a small 380 for awhile. When I find a brand product I like lets just say I like to stick with it. So being a Smith & Wesson M&P fan I'm considering getting the M&P BG 308. So for the people out there that have one or have had dealings with one what is your take on the
M&P BG 380 ????

I have a 40C, 9 Shield and bought the BG380 with CT laser recently. I wanted something small on the occasion that I want to carry it in my jacket or pants pocket. I've only fired about 50 rounds through it so far with no FTF. The only complaint so far is that it has a really heavy trigger, but I don't plan to use it for target practice, so I'm not real concerned about accuracy.

 

[fdw]

I'm a big Smith fan but if I was going 380, I'd consider the Glock. I've owned two 380s and both were finicky (not Smiths).

I have held the bodyguard but not fired one.

 

[wdk535]

I've been wanting a small 380 for awhile. When I find a brand product I like lets just say I like to stick with it. So being a Smith & Wesson M&P fan I'm considering getting the M&P BG 308. So for the people out there that have one or have had dealings with one what is your take on the
M&P BG 380 ????

I had one, but it was jammy. Besides, with all this Ferguson stuff going on and Muslims going around cutting off people's heads, I decided I needed more firepower. So I gave the BG 380 to my son for Xmas & went back to carrying my 9c.

 

[8th SPS USAF]

BG 380

Worst pistol I ever owned IMO. Terrible trigger, and most of my friends, who shot mine agreed. My SIG 290 RS 380 is long, but better. It did hit were I wanted it to.

 

[CaptRon956]

I've had my BG380 (newest non lazer version) for almost a month and shot over 200 rounds thru it no problem, no failures of any kind.... I'm using the Monarch brand ammo & American Eagle (Federal) bought at my local Academy store and again, no failures here... I love the trigger, works for me and I plan on having it as my EDC.

 

[bulldogman]

I just received my BG 380 and only had time to clean it so far. The build quality looks very good compared to something like the Taurus TCP and imo the trigger is very nice, yes it's long but it's a small pocket pistol and you don't want a hair trigger on something you might carry in very close proximity to your private parts and yes the trigger pull is very smooth. If it operates properly when i get to the range it'll be a keeper.

 

[RV4driver]

Bought two, one for me, it was a dismal failure from the start, and after coming back from Smith. The other was transferred to a pistol student of mine, hers was the same dismal failure as mine was, except that in addition, the takedown/pivot pin broke after about 35 rounds.
Both of our LCPs have been flawless.

 

[D-Hop]

Thanks...lots of good info here. Sounds like I need to give this one some thought.

 

[Ibmikey]

I have shot the beans out of my M&P BG without any problems and have the greatest confidence in it. I use FMJ of any brand, the pistol does not care.

 

[solman]

traded a .32 top break for my bodyguard. it has shot everything i put in the mag. tiny. its my carry everywhere. i mix hollow points and fmj. not an issue. i like it cause it fits in a shirt pocket, or pants pocket.
I personally like the long double action only pull, cause its a defense pistol. you have to know your going to pull the trigger. I dont get the issue here. with a double action pistol you can train yourself on 'slow pull' for target.
Problems? ok. im a lefty, and sometimes the mag release will get hit.(as on many weapons)
also the lazer? phew. for what? i sighted it in, then have never used it.
in practice, i ended up white sighting the whole front sight, as its not a target pistol. i do break 'high' when i do the quick draw.
LOVE this pistol.

 

[Cody5.0]

I myself have had three of the original Bodyguards but not the M&P marked version. None were the MIM barrel but all had different fonts and marking placement. I put roughly 1000 rounds (WWB) through them. Had one stovepipe and two instances where the slide didn't lock back.

The only real problem I had (all three) was barrel to slide contact just above the extractor. Didn't effect functionality but that shouldn't happen.

 

[Protected One]

I've had my Bodyguard .380 for almost two years now, and with 1100 rounds through it I am very satisfied with this pistol.
I added a Pachmyr grip, which helps it fill my hand AND reduce felt recoil.

A range gun it is not, but for its intended purpose it has few equals. I highly recommend it!

 

[Indynick]

My experience is the same as the Protected One. I highly recommend it also.

 

[GTS Dean]

I've had mine for about a month now. It functioned flawlessly when box-new through about 50 rounds and 4 different shooters. The trigger pull was heavy, and not very smooth. I have been exercising the trigger regularly all month - dry-firing with snap caps about 150 times every couple or three days. The pull is vastly improved in smoothness, and my ability to minimize muzzle movement through trigger pull is much better.

The second time to fire it was today out at the ranch, with about 55 rounds of mid-priced ball, and a few hollow point SD rounds. I traded off between it and my Sig 232 through the same number and types of ammo. I plinked at 3 empty soda cans set at ranges from 7 to 20 yards. The BG was hitting about 40% of the shots out to 15 yards, while the Sig's longer sight radius was walking the cans nicely out to over 25 yards. The 232 performed with 100% reliability. The BG .380 had one light strike near the end of the session, but went bang with the second cycle. I think I was not pulling cleanly through full travel. No feed or eject problems, and the slide locked back every time when empty.

Even though the Sig is a really sweet weapon, it is heavy and not a true pocket gun. That's what the M&P BG was purchased for, and it has few peers. It is not likely to be needed over about 10-15 yards, but I think what it could use is some paint on the sights for quicker aim. The post is a little hard to pick out against the rear horns.