new carry gun today

[Lloyd Smale]

Im a smith shield fan. I had a 40 and have 2 9s. Always thought they were every bit as good as my glock 43. Today i was in the gunshop and he had a like new used 45acp 2.0 shield with three mags and a iwb holster for 425 out the door. Ive wanted a 45 shield for a while. took it outside the door of the loading room and dumped clips of 4 different cast bullets 2 of them swc and it ate it all like butter. Think this might be my main carry piece for a while. Only thing i didnt like was it was a manual safety model. A drop of super glue fixed that fast. Had to laugh the shop owners said he always throws in a box of ammo with a gun but didnt have a bit of 45acp of any kind. Asked if i wanted a 3rd mag instead and i jumped on that one. Ive got 6 boxes of 45acp factory and tons of handloaded ammo and didnt need any more factory stuff. His powder was down to two lbs of re25 and a few boxes of 30 cal bullets and not a single primer. He has a list on the wall of out of stock ammo and it covers about everything. He cant even get 06 ammo right now.

[JoeJames]

Cool. How does it shoot? And how many rounds in the mags? Several ages ago I had an AMT Backup in 45acp, the first round was very reliable (the one in the chamber), but things went downhill after that.

[monadnock#5]

The mags are marked for 6rds and 7rds. You can fit the 7th round but it puts extra stress on the spring. It's my favorite carry piece also, although I have a SIG P238 for those occasions when printing isn't an option.

[Lloyd Smale]

One holds 6 and one 7 as was said. I dont think the 6 rounder is designed for 7. They both have the same mag body. the 7 has an extended base plate that allows the 7th round. But 7 rounds is what a GI 1911 full size mag holds. So its pretty good firepower in a package that small. I didnt shoot it extensively yet. Took in out behind the house when i got home and shot 4 mags. 3 with 3 differnt cast semi wad cutters and one with xtps and it ate them all for lunch. One of those bullets gives my midsize M&P 40 fits. But then 6 rounds of each isnt really proving anything. But the differnce in size between the mid size (compact) and the shield is dramatic and the mags for it only hold 8 rounds so its about a no brainer. Id never part with that compact. Its a great woods bumming gun but its on the large size for ccw. About identical in size to a glock 19/23. bad thing is i gained one and lost one. My son in law stopped by and was checking it out and said hed love to have a shield. He does a ton of work for me without batting an eyelash so i went to the safe and grabbed the 40 and gave it to him. Reason i did the 40 was he has a 23 and can use the same ammo. He had a smile from ear to ear when he left. In December i picked up a springfield emp 40 so i still have a 40 for consealed carry.

[MrWolf]

I was a die hard S&W 45 guy also. Tried a Sig Sauer p229 in 357 sig. That is my new carry. LGS guy said let him know how I liked the Sig. When told him how great it felt and shot, he said was the same with him but didn't want to bias my opinion. I really like her which surprised me. Good luck with your shield. My carry was the M&P45c.

[Lloyd Smale]

I was a die hard S&W 45 guy also. Tried a Sig Sauer p229 in 357 sig. That is my new carry. LGS guy said let him know how I liked the Sig. When told him how great it felt and shot, he said was the same with him but didn't want to bias my opinion. I really like her which surprised me. Good luck with your shield. My carry was the M&P45c.

i have an m&p 45c myself but even the compact is a bit big for counseled carry. Especially in the summer. M&Ps sure arent sigs. But there about the best bang for the buck in a carry gun that is about guaranteed to run a 100percent. I really see no differnce in quality or reliability between them and my glocks and there at least 25 percent cheaper to buy. But if the price was the same on all of them those old steel framed sigs were the Cadillac's of the black gun world.

[John Wayne]

Good. My wife really likes hers in the EZ 9mm version. They did have a recall on her model and turn around was 1 week.

[Wayne Smith]

I want to put 500 rounds through a gun before I will carry it. That means I trust it implicitly.

[Lloyd Smale]

I want to put 500 rounds through a gun before I will carry it. That means I trust it implicitly.

I used to do the same back when i shoot and carried 1911s. Matter of fact my test was take down a new gun oil it and shoot 500 take it apart wipe the majority of fouling you could do with a rag oil it again slap it together and shoot 500 more. All cast and all dirty lubesized bullets. If a gun failed the first time id stop when it stopped. Pull it apart give it a GOOD cleaning and start over. If it failed the second time it meant a trip to the gun shop. Id bet half the 1911s i bought didnt stay in the safe more then two weeks. The good ones were treasures though. Anymore with decent black guns a couple hundred rounds without a bobble about shows me if there going to be any good. I usually run a 100 rounds of something like a swc thats a worse case scenario for feeding and a 100 rounds of what im going to carry. If it will eat those 200 without cleaning its pretty much going to run a 100 percent with good ammo.

Heck anymore with the ammo, primer and powder shortage even 200 can tap some people out. Even out of the question for many. i could easily still do the 500 round test but its kind of a waste of time for these new guns. At least main stream guns like smiths glocks sigs H&Ks and berrettas. Ive yet to get a bad gun from any of those companies. id add springfield to it too but when they first came out i had a couple blisters and am skeptical enough that i dont buy them anymore other then maybe a 1911. i know there good guns now. Much better then the first xd's were but i still have that mental block and if i did buy one it would get AT LEAST a 500 round trial period. i know my buddy who has forgot more then i do about guns just loves his hellcat and knowing him the round count is way into the thousands by now.

Really to me the little 9s are guns i buy, run a couple hundred rounds through and stick in a glove box for car truck or atv guns. This 45 though might make a good woods bumbing gun and a daily carry gun. At least till i get my glock 43 back which is a 9 i actually got attached to. I kind of loaned that one to dad with the understanding that when he passes i get it back. Hes 89 and still kicking though. Sure wish Glock would at least make a 43 sized 40 sw for me. 9s are ok but i just feel better with a 40 or 45 on me. If they made that it would probably be my carry gun for the rest of my life. Ive got a little springfield emp 40 but its a heavy little bugger (all steel) But i have to admit its a beauty and runs like a watch.

[Texas by God]

I quit looking for a carry gun after I bought my first 9mm Shield.
I take that back- I got a .40 Shield after my wife took my 9mm for herself.
Then I traded the .40 to my nephew, who HAD to have it.
So, I bought another 9mm Shield for me.
Dependable, very portable, and hits where we aim- search over. I do like the thumb safety model. 50 years of 1911- I have muscle memory for thumb safeties. The .45 version looks very interesting as well- you did good on that deal.

Sent from my SM-A716U using Tapatalk

[Der Gebirgsjager]

My mental computer must not be working today. You fellows keep talking about S&W and .45 ACP, and I keep coming up with this. Can't find any plastic.........



DG

[Fireball 57]

Lloyd Smale: Fellow Michigander, Congrates on the new M&P Shield! Now IF we all had 500 rounds to run before this blizzard-cold snap hits Lake Michigan and Superior. Just got my Wilson Combat 9mm back with RMR sites, yesterday. Gotta see how it shoots. Have a great weekend. Fireball57

[Lloyd Smale]

Lloyd Smale: Fellow Michigander, Congrates on the new M&P Shield! Now IF we all had 500 rounds to run before this blizzard-cold snap hits Lake Michigan and Superior. Just got my Wilson Combat 9mm back with RMR sites, yesterday. Gotta see how it shoots. Have a great weekend. Fireball57

now im jealous. Wilson's and guns like it were within my budget when i was working but not so much retired. We didnt really get hit as hard here in munising as they were calling for. I dont think we got more then 6 inchs of snow. Just another winter day. Another advantage to munising is its on lake superior so we dont get alot of the below zero stuff they get inland. Mabye once or twice a year. Keeps it a bit cooler on the hot days in the summer too.

[Lloyd Smale]

My mental computer must not be working today. You fellows keep talking about S&W and .45 ACP, and I keep coming up with this. Can't find any plastic.........



DG

had a smith commander version of that gun for a while It was a great 1911. Wish i had it back .

[AndyC]

I've been a 1911 guy since I was a teen (mixed in with the early CZ 75s because we could get them overseas in the late 70s) - and I'd never owned a plastic pistol until a few years ago when the Shield .45 was on sale EVERYwhere... I think it was around $200 or so, so I figured I'd try it.

I'd gotten to the range literally ONE time with it before a friend, who was gun-broke, needed a pistol so he could do close-protection work locally - ok fine, here you go - and he carried that pistol for about a year and a half.

Then another friend (who coincidentally has the same first name) started to do Uber Eats food-deliveries in a bad part of town - by this time the first friend had earned enough to have 3 pistols of his own, so I went and got the Shield back from him and promptly lent it to #2 friend. He then needed a holster so I made him an OWB kydex rig using one of those paddle-mount things and he's used it with great success (other than losing the tension screw on the holster).

He's moving out of town so he came over for a BBQ a few weeks ago and he brought the pistol back (and the holster) - so finally, about 3 years or so after I bought it, I can actually go and shoot MY Shield again.

[JoeJames]

My Glock 43 is my carry gun around my place in the summer. I use a Blawkhawk Tecgrip pocket holster and can carry it in my cut-offs. In the winter I use a modified M3 shoulder holster with my Ruger BH 4 1/2" in 44 Special.

[Lloyd Smale]

Yup Joe those 43s are great guns. Actually like the feel of it in my hand more then the shields. But i dont know that there any more reliable or worth the extra money for most of us. I do miss mine though. Oh well it will come back someday. Told Dad he could use it till God called him up and he just turned 89. But to be honest id probably never replace it if it were gone. Not when shields are so much cheaper and available in 40 and 45 to boot and out of the box have a much better trigger (at least the 2.0s anyway) Like ive said before im glock flush. Ive got a 20 a 29 two 22's a 23,19,17 and the 43 at dads. Right now i dont really need another glock. What it would take is for them to make the 43 in 40 smith. Now to me that would make probably the best ccw concealable gun on the market.

[MrWolf]

Main reason I stopped carrying my M&P45c was the Apex trigger job I did on her. Knew going in she would need one but concerns grew over defending myself if ever involved in a shooting. Got lucky trying the Sig as it fits me perfectly. I dont care for the feel of a glock. I understand you either love em or hate em.

[JoeJames]

I got my 43 on a special deal; the Glock Blue label program. Mostly for law enforcement, and judges, and prosecutors. Cut the price down to $380 plus sales tax. Thought I'd mention that for folks in law enforcement, etc. Course now, the dealer first has to even have them on hand! No way I was going to pay the retail then of @ $495 + 10% sales tax.

[Idaho45guy]

Only thing i didnt like was it was a manual safety model. A drop of super glue fixed that fast.

You actually super-glued the safety on your carry pistol? Wow.