Is it me or does it seem the S&W Shield family doesn’t get the love it deserves?

[Gawernator]

The Shield Plus is among my absolute favorite guns to shoot and will be my primary carry pistol. The shield plus trigger is second only to Canik as far as micro9 stock striker fired goes. Followed by p365. I have all three as well as a P01 and Springfield EMP. Hellcat has a squishy trigger that is only slightly better than a Glock and is super snappy.

My Shield plus likes to shoot fast and flat with the mildest snap of micro9’s. Xmacro doesn’t qualify as a micro9 since it’s basically a thin compact.

Granted I just tricked out my wife’s p365 with a radian ramjet and Wilson combat XL grips. That has pushed the p365 to a whole new level of savage to outperform pretty much any carry size comp on the market.

You are not alone on the Shield plus love. I can’t say the same about shield x. The grip is too thin and soft for me. But that’s a simple fix with some talon.

I haven’t tried the shield plus or any new S&W. I just have the original shield from like ten years ago with some upgrades!

 

[safetyfirstont]

I have been seeing some deals on gen 1 shields. Might get one as a back up ccw .

 

[Makoman]

I've owned a couple of 1.0's including off-rosters. The triggers always felt too heavy to me, and I never really got on with the hinged trigger. Now that Glock's patents have finally expired and everyone is able to use the Glock "style" trigger, I was considering getting the Shield X. I handled one the other day and the trigger pull is much improved from what I remember. Then I saw that the bodyguard .380 was just added to the roster, including the PC model, so I think I may go that route instead.

 

[chiroken007]

I've owned a couple of 1.0's including off-rosters. The triggers always felt too heavy to me, and I never really got on with the hinged trigger. Now that Glock's patents have finally expired and everyone is able to use the Glock "style" trigger, I was considering getting the Shield X. I handled one the other day and the trigger pull is much improved from what I remember. Then I saw that the bodyguard .380 was just added to the roster, including the PC model, so I think I may go that route instead.

The hinge trigger definitely looked cringe to me. I like the shield plus trigger except that it has a sticky breaking period for the “safety”

 

[GunZKK]

I think smith and Wesson in general doesn't get the credit it deserves. They are doing a good job if providing us with a large variety of models. Better then some other brands.

 

[Makoman]

I think smith and Wesson in general doesn't get the credit it deserves. They are doing a good job if providing us with a large variety of models. Better then some other brands.

I agree. I've aways prefered their ergos to the Glock, and the trigger, to me, is an improvement over the Glock's. I DROS'd the 10mm 4.6" M&P 2.0 last week. I was really impressed with the trigger. I had always sworn I'd never buy a gun with the CA mandated BS of LCI and mag disco, but finally caved when handling that gun, and also the Shield X. It seems S&W was able to design the mag disco on their guns so that it doesn't interfere with trigger pull, like on older designs such as the FN/Browning HP. And now that they have an optic cut, the LCI has been redesigned and is pretty unobtrusive as well.

I think S&W has hit it out of the park with the M&P 2.0 ,and going forward, I think it will start getting the credit it deserves.

 

[Makoman]

The hinge trigger definitely looked cringe to me. I like the shield plus trigger except that it has a sticky breaking period for the “safety”

Are you talking about "the wall" before the trigger breaks, or the safety tab on the trigger?

 

[weaverftw]

I hated it as soon as I picked it up to dry fire, the grip is so thin it’s difficult to even hold, I can’t imagine what attempting follow up shots is like. The p365 was much better stock, and now with the WC grip it still conceals just as well but is even more comfortable to shoot, for me it’s in an entirely different league, not to mention much higher capacity

 

[bcj68]

I hated it as soon as I picked it up to dry fire, the grip is so thin it’s difficult to even hold, I can’t imagine what attempting follow up shots is like. The p365 was much better stock, and now with the WC grip it still conceals just as well but is even more comfortable to shoot, for me it’s in an entirely different league, not to mention much higher capacity

I guess my issue with the P365 is its grip almost borders on too small for me. The system has a lot going for it - absolutely. Just have issues with it for me.

 

[chiroken007]

I guess my issue with the P365 is its grip almost borders on too small for me. The system has a lot going for it - absolutely. Just have issues with it for me.

There are quite a few solutions for the grip purchase with 365. Some are more easy and affordable than others. Upgrading to WC XL or XMacro are the best but require more modifications and cost. Pearcegrip.com is cheapest solution. And works perfectly except no additional palm grip.

 

[Pythonfan]

I guess my issue with the P365 is its grip almost borders on too small for me. The system has a lot going for it - absolutely. Just have issues with it for me.

The sig is modular. If you want a longer grip, buy it. That bodes well in California for ccw, given that we only get so many serial numbers listed.

Also S&W was very late to the party with "optics ready" options on the roster. That was a big deal.

 

[weaverftw]

I guess my issue with the P365 is its grip almost borders on too small for me. The system has a lot going for it - absolutely. Just have issues with it for me.

Yeah it was a taaaad bit too small for me too. Better than the shield but not ideal. I got the WC XL grip and it still disappears in a AIWB holster even with a t-shirt on, but is MUCH better to shoot. The WC grip is perfect, just a liiiitle more thickness, just enough length to get my pinky on comfortably, better grippy texture but still ok touching belly skin, and VERY ergonomic shape with subtle indents for the fingers… it’s great

 

[Angrysnarf]

For a long time the shield was the go to for CCW only now there’s strong competition competition

 

[land locked]

I have owned alot of makes and models of carry handguns. Settled on the S&W's for carry. Ditched the 365, 43, 43X and hellcat. I like the ergo's and improvments in the latest Smith offers. Started off with a shield 1.0 and now I have a few shield plus, shield X and bodyguard 2.0. The Shield X is a cali model but the very easy to remove the mag disconnect. Several places sell the factory spacer spring and its an easy conversion, remove 2 parts add 1 and its still factory configuration. The new LCI is a non issue for me and is better than the older ones.
Lots of options for us out there. enjoy

 

[safetyfirstont]

For a long time the shield was the go to for CCW only now there’s strong competition competition

Good problem to have .

 

[bcj68]

PSA - One caution for you guys on the Shield X. I dropped the fully loaded magazine and it completely grenaded...mag guts and rounds everywhere...and sadly I cannot find the baseplate or insert. . After all the raving I was doing I felt obligated to give a ful disclosure...

Any suggestions for parts, etc?

 

[weaverftw]

PSA - One caution for you guys on the Shield X. I dropped the fully loaded magazine and it completely grenaded...mag guts and rounds everywhere...and sadly I cannot find the baseplate or insert. . After all the raving I was doing I felt obligated to give a ful disclosure...

Any suggestions for parts, etc?

Yikes. Not unheard of for a run of bags to have been not assembled fully. I think some p365s did that when they were new but it was caught and fixed. I’d check all mine and do function tests but if an issue is confirmed and correctable it wouldn’t put me off buying the gun.

 

[bcj68]

Yikes. Not unheard of for a run of bags to have been not assembled fully. I think some p365s did that when they were new but it was caught and fixed. I’d check all mine and do function tests but if an issue is confirmed and correctable it wouldn’t put me off buying the gun.

100% true. After I dig into it more I'll advise.

 

[BCar777]

I guess my issue with the P365 is its grip almost borders on too small for me. The system has a lot going for it - absolutely. Just have issues with it for me.

Take the original P365 grip module and buy an X/XL grip, it’s muchhhh better

 

[NationMostWanted]

Ive had my shield 1.0 when they were first popular. I like it, dont plan on upgrading to the plus since resale value isnt great on the 1.0.

I dont own alot of pistols but I was tempted to get a hellcat but instead got the 4.0 echelon now.