In case you missed it, S&W has been advertising a new addition to the M&P line, the M&P 380 Shield EZ, a gun specifically "designed to be easy to use, featuring an easy-to-rack slide, easy-to-load magazine, and easy-to-clean design." I like the idea, as I run into more and more people these days with limited dexterity/arm strength who have trouble running the slide on a smaller auto. I've seen a number of people fight to lock the slide back on a M&P Shield, for example. My wife, a beginner-to-intermediate shooter, likes the Shield size and feel, but struggles mightily manipulating the slide. (I should note I believe slide manipulation is all about leverage and proper body mechanics, rather than arm strength, but that takes some time to lean and practice to instill). Coupled with the fact I provide M&P 22 Compacts when teaching new shooters (and in my NRA BP course), the concept of an easy-to-rack, soft shooting (.380) gun in the same family has a lot of appeal. And, since it had been a whole day since I had bought a gun (hahaha. Literally), I decided to jump on one. (Big shout-out to Nick and Doug at NH Guns and Ammo in Londonderry.)
The gun:
Lots to notice here. It's a single-stack, 8+1 .380. M&P 2.0 design features. One-piece trigger. Grip safety. M&P 2.0 texture pattern (but not as aggressive). Thumb safety. We'll talk about them each later.
The gun comes in both with or without thumb safety. Although my Shield and full-sized M&Ps are sans-safety, I decided to go with the thumb safety on this. My primary teaching .22 is the M&P 22 Compact, which has the same thumb safety setup, and I like the commonality for transitioning students from one gun to the next. For carry, for an experienced shooter, different story.
Size-wize, it's damn close to the M&P 22 Compact, and to the Shield (with 8-rd mag). Here's a group photo:
Clockwise from upper left: M&P 9, M&P 22 Compact, M&P 380 Shield EZ, M&P 9 Shield.
You can see it's pretty close to the size of the M&P 22 Compact (upper/right):
And roughly the same size as the Shield, especially with the 8 rd mag:
OK, so one-piece trigger.
The typical M&P line is a two-piece, with the lower "half" acting as the "trigger safety."
I'm not sure of the design rationale, but it might be that this is, in fact, not a striker-fired gun. It is an internal hammer gun.
Hammer up:
But, then, the M&P 22 Compact is an internal hammer gun, with a two-piece trigger, so what do I know. Note, too, in the picture, the prominent over-travel stop molded into the frame.
And, it's got a grip safety:
I wasn't insane about it at first, but I figure it's part of the reason could use a one-piece trigger, and it depresses with surprisingly little force. And, unlike my XDs (and some 1911s), you just can't grip the gun without depressing the safety. You don't have to have your hand just right, or hold your tongue a certain way. Grabbing the gun depresses the safety without you noticing. Also, the grip safety doesn't lock the slide, like the XD, which is a PITA I've seen more than one shooter struggle with.
The gun is advertised as "easy to rack," which is certainly is. I gave it to an experienced female shooter who normally carries a Shield, and she damn near tore the slide off the gun. This "easy" is accomplished by 1) a lighter recoil spring (it "racks" with about the same force as the M&P 22 Compact) and 2) an innovative slide design. Not only are the scallops on the slide pronounced, but check out the rear of the slide:
See the "wings" at the rear of the slide? It makes grabbing and holding the slide much easier. Clever design.
Speaking of clever design, I like the loaded chamber indicator:
and the "easy load" magazine has thumb tabs on the side, like you see on many .22 mags:
Loading the mag is...well, easy.
Couple of other interesting features: you don't have to pull the trigger/release the sear to remove the slide, the rear sight is windage adjustable via a set screw in the bottom of the slide you reach by locking the slide back, and the mag release is reversible.
About 100 rounds down range yesterday without a hiccup. The gun is soft shooting, as you'd expect. Softer than a G42, in my opinion, but that's subjective. Certainly softer than my LCP. It's a fun gun to shoot, which no one ever said about the LCP.
OVERALL: I decided a while back to consolidate to one family of pistols, and settled on the M&P line. (Got rid of my last beloved XD this week.) My EDC has been a Shield for some time. I'm really starting to like the concept of a "family," from .22LR to full-size, with common manual of arms, look-and-feel, etc. I think this new Shield 380 falls nicely into that line. I think shooters like my wife will like it, from a standpoint of being easy to shoot (.380) and manipulate (rack/load). As an instructor, I feel it fills a gap between .22LR and full-size guns, and for shooters with limited hand strength or dexterity, I think it's a hit.
I warned you this was pic heavy.
The gun:
Lots to notice here. It's a single-stack, 8+1 .380. M&P 2.0 design features. One-piece trigger. Grip safety. M&P 2.0 texture pattern (but not as aggressive). Thumb safety. We'll talk about them each later.
The gun comes in both with or without thumb safety. Although my Shield and full-sized M&Ps are sans-safety, I decided to go with the thumb safety on this. My primary teaching .22 is the M&P 22 Compact, which has the same thumb safety setup, and I like the commonality for transitioning students from one gun to the next. For carry, for an experienced shooter, different story.
Size-wize, it's damn close to the M&P 22 Compact, and to the Shield (with 8-rd mag). Here's a group photo:
Clockwise from upper left: M&P 9, M&P 22 Compact, M&P 380 Shield EZ, M&P 9 Shield.
You can see it's pretty close to the size of the M&P 22 Compact (upper/right):
And roughly the same size as the Shield, especially with the 8 rd mag:
OK, so one-piece trigger.
The typical M&P line is a two-piece, with the lower "half" acting as the "trigger safety."
I'm not sure of the design rationale, but it might be that this is, in fact, not a striker-fired gun. It is an internal hammer gun.
Hammer up:
But, then, the M&P 22 Compact is an internal hammer gun, with a two-piece trigger, so what do I know. Note, too, in the picture, the prominent over-travel stop molded into the frame.
And, it's got a grip safety:
I wasn't insane about it at first, but I figure it's part of the reason could use a one-piece trigger, and it depresses with surprisingly little force. And, unlike my XDs (and some 1911s), you just can't grip the gun without depressing the safety. You don't have to have your hand just right, or hold your tongue a certain way. Grabbing the gun depresses the safety without you noticing. Also, the grip safety doesn't lock the slide, like the XD, which is a PITA I've seen more than one shooter struggle with.
The gun is advertised as "easy to rack," which is certainly is. I gave it to an experienced female shooter who normally carries a Shield, and she damn near tore the slide off the gun. This "easy" is accomplished by 1) a lighter recoil spring (it "racks" with about the same force as the M&P 22 Compact) and 2) an innovative slide design. Not only are the scallops on the slide pronounced, but check out the rear of the slide:
See the "wings" at the rear of the slide? It makes grabbing and holding the slide much easier. Clever design.
Speaking of clever design, I like the loaded chamber indicator:
and the "easy load" magazine has thumb tabs on the side, like you see on many .22 mags:
Loading the mag is...well, easy.
Couple of other interesting features: you don't have to pull the trigger/release the sear to remove the slide, the rear sight is windage adjustable via a set screw in the bottom of the slide you reach by locking the slide back, and the mag release is reversible.
About 100 rounds down range yesterday without a hiccup. The gun is soft shooting, as you'd expect. Softer than a G42, in my opinion, but that's subjective. Certainly softer than my LCP. It's a fun gun to shoot, which no one ever said about the LCP.
OVERALL: I decided a while back to consolidate to one family of pistols, and settled on the M&P line. (Got rid of my last beloved XD this week.) My EDC has been a Shield for some time. I'm really starting to like the concept of a "family," from .22LR to full-size, with common manual of arms, look-and-feel, etc. I think this new Shield 380 falls nicely into that line. I think shooters like my wife will like it, from a standpoint of being easy to shoot (.380) and manipulate (rack/load). As an instructor, I feel it fills a gap between .22LR and full-size guns, and for shooters with limited hand strength or dexterity, I think it's a hit.
I warned you this was pic heavy.
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![[rofl2]](/xen/styles/default/xenforo/smilies.vb/035.gif "ROFL2 [rofl2]")
