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Performance Shield Problems

7K views 40 replies 16 participants last post by  PaPow 
#1 ·
I am new to firearms and the Shield Performance is my first. I had the shield for about 4 months and took it out for a spin about 2 weeks ago. Without cleaning (out of the box it) and with an oiling I went to the range with white box Winchester.

Out of 150 rounds, I had 3 failures to lock back, 2 failures to fire and 2 jams. Additionally, my accuracy went from dead on and deteriorated to a bunch of flyaways. Needless to say, I was surprised considering the 100 reviews of reliability found on youtube. Is this normal ? Junk ammunition ? Both ? Or, should I be sending it back for adjustment. Let me you know your thoughts on how to move forward.
 
#2 ·
Welcome to our little corner of the net!

Main point, a new pistol should always be cleaned and lubricated before firing. Winchester White Box is usually pretty good ammo, but any of them can have a dud, and if you have a misfire, always double check your barrel before proceeding to make sure a bullet isn't stuck in it from a squib, its easy enough to do, a cleaning rod or a pencil can be used to check it without looking down the barrel. In addition, new pistols often need 200 to 300 rounds to break them in, not all of them require it, but some do. If your accuracy was going down hill, you could have been getting tired or you were developing some bad habits, more practice and make sure you are doing it correctly and not getting too tired.
 
#5 ·
I agree with G56 both my PC Shield were very stiff. My wife could barely lock the slide back. Give it a good cleaning and lube and shoot again. I use Winchester white box all the time it's good ammo and yes all ammo can have duds. Took about 500 rounds before the slide would release when loading a mag. These are tight little weapons when new. Does it lock back on the last round out of the mag? Keep shooting...
 
#6 ·
"I had 3 failures to lock back,"

If it failed to lock back on an empty mag then make sure your thumb isn't preventing the Slide Stop from moving up.

I had it happen to me the last time I was at the range...first time it's happened to me with the Shield...small gun & fat hands sometimes don't like to play well.
 
#7 ·
No, the failure to lock back is on the last round. I have no problem locking back (mag in) to clean the weapon. The failure to lock back on the last round happened a couple of times. Also concerning the accuracy , the assumption that I was tired is false. My first round went smooth however , as time went on I have no idea where were the bullets went, perhaps as highlighted above I was hitting the same holes I previously hit. For a gun known for reliability , accuracy and torcher testing I was very surprised from my experience. Then I read that from reviews of white box that other people have reported problems and a high level of fouling. So to summarize out of 200 rounds I had some misfiring meaning I pull the trigger and nothing happens , failures to lock back on the last round and some jams. Perhaps my failure the clean the shield out of the box lead to the problems. Finally, I like to know if all performance shields go through a firing inspection before they are sold ? I was looking for some evidence of an inspection but I found nothing in the box. I would like to believe the problem is me and not the shield, perhaps you guys can give me additional feedback. Thanks for the help thus far.
 
#8 · (Edited)
NEVER shoot a brand new gun right out of the box...Clean & Lube it FIRST...!
I agree with all these guys that posted answers to your questions, take their advice jamerolle, its good advice.

EDIT: added comment
Also take into consideration, if its the performance center, "PORTED" model, some pressure is bled off from the porting.
This WILL definitely effect the slide slightly due to pressure bleeding off before the bullet leaves the barrel, thus softening slide reactions.
 
#10 ·
Personally, I don't worry too much about failure to lock back after the last round is fired, they all do that from time to time, some magazines do that a lot, I have some magazines, particularly in my 1911, that almost never lock the slide, it just happens, I don't worry about it. A lot of the experts say that it is always magazine related, and generally speaking (about a 1911) the better quality mags are much better at locking the slide back, but even the good expensive mags don't always lock back, I'm speaking about 1911's since there is a huge variety of aftermarket magazines available of various different qualities and a huge variety of prices, whereas on the M&P you are usually talking about factory mags.
 
#11 ·
I am new to firearms and the Shield Performance is my first. I had the shield for about 4 months and took it out for a spin about 2 weeks ago. Without cleaning (out of the box it) and with an oiling I went to the range with white box Winchester.



Out of 150 rounds, I had 3 failures to lock back, 2 failures to fire and 2 jams. Additionally, my accuracy went from dead on and deteriorated to a bunch of flyaways. Needless to say, I was surprised considering the 100 reviews of reliability found on youtube. Is this normal ? Junk ammunition ? Both ? Or, should I be sending it back for adjustment. Let me you know your thoughts on how to move forward.


My 9mm Shield is 3 months old and I have put 400 Winchester "white box" through it with not one failure. I always clean and lube a new pistol out of the box.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
#19 ·
I would always first, question the operator, considering a brand new gun, limp wristing, riding the slide, riding the slide stop...all possible growing pains with any owner of a new gun.

Also as many have said new springs, tighter tolerances, new from box no cleaning...al possible problems with a new gun.

I took my PC shield right out of the box and on to the range immediately, doing nothing, and some range ammo they had that I hadn't used before...no issues, but I wouldn't ever really question the gun (within reason) until after at least a couple hundred rounds.

My first ported gun, takes a lot of getting used to the filth the porting adds.
 
#21 ·
I picked up my new .45 Shield, field stripped it right there in the shop (which has a range), inspected the barrel. It was pretty clean but pushed one patch through with a pencil, came out fairly clean. I put one drop of EWL on the barrel where the slide rides and one drop on each slide rail. Ran 500rds of Independence ammo through it, 200rds of Federal 230gr HST, and another 150rds of WWB. Zero malfunctions of any kind and my wife, who's 5'4" shot half of those rounds. We love the Shield and I consider it go to go as my daily carry. When I'm at work my wife has it on her every day. It's possible you may have a premature (hahaha he said premature) spring fatigue? After my full size (see my other post here) came all screwed up from S&W it's possible you have a bad one? I don't screw around with any kind of problem, back to the factory it goes under warranty. I'm really pissed about my full size!:angry:
 
#24 ·
S&W has been turning out crap barrels lately in the PC Shields. I had to send mine back for obvious machining errors and incredibly bad accuracy. They took 2 months to get it back to me and it came with a replacement barrel that also had visual imperfections. It shot better, but still nowhere near acceptable or normal compared to other Shields.

Had such a bad experience with this pistol that I have sworn off S&W. Plenty of other great firearms out there.
 
#26 ·
Unless you have someone with experience to actually show you, theres a lot to learn. But one easy thing to look for, is digs, scratches, dents, heavy wear marks etc etc etc. If its a question of you thinking something is wrong with your particular gun, have others that are experienced, inspect it, and shoot it to see if the results are the same as yours. Other than that, i dont know what to tell you other than ask questions and listen to what other experienced people have to say.

Always remember, your not listening if your talking. Eyes an ears open, learn from the experts. Soak up as much knowledge as you can.
Thats exactly how i learned everything that i know today.
 
#29 ·
I will give a further update when I go to the range with new ammo. I am in really in good shape with weight training and cardio everyday so not sure if fatigue got the best of me perhaps mental fatigue. I am going back to the range with American Federal then I will update.
 
#28 ·
Most of you are in agreement that Winchester whitebox ammo is good. I disagree but that's just my opinion. I have had failure to eject and some failures to feed with it. I like Blazer Brass for the range.
 
#31 ·
All M&P pistols are test fired before leaving the factory. The shell casings that used to be included were due to a state law that required it in a few states, the last state still requiring a fired case finally quit about a year ago, since it was no longer required, S&W quit sending the fired cases.

The last state requiring the fired case finally admitted that in all the years they required that, not one single case had ever been solved by it, so one more stupid misguided gun law collapsed under its own weight.
 
#35 ·
Its pretty standard for manufacturers to shoot a few rounds then box them up dirty, the ammo is non corrosive so it certainly won't cause a problem. I don't have a clue why they don't clean them afterwards.
 
#38 ·
Ok , guys I finally got a chance to go shooting after all this time from the original post. Well this time I cleaned , lubed it and went with different amo (American). Not a single problem I am glad to report. Thank for all advise , I just thought something out of the box would be clean as can be, I guess I was wrong.
 
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