Severian

Depends. If your slide does not go back into battery, then you may need to take a few coils off the striker spring. Interestingly, I had to do that with my first M&P 9mm. Apex Comp AEK trigger, RAM, and an 11 lb recoils spring. But I just got a new one--the exact same gun for a back up--and after installing all the same Apex stuff and an 11 lb spring the striker spring didn't need any modification. Runs great. Go figure. Every gun is different.

So what's the difference between Federal Small Pistol Primers and the Federal Gold Medal Small Pistol Primers Match grade? Besides the price. I can't find any of the standard Federal small pistol primers around here so I'm just gonna spend a few extra bucks to get the match grade, but I want to make sure there's no real big difference. Thanks!

Does anyone have any experience with these bullets that they would care to share? http://www.berrysmfg.com/product-i14725-c17-g8-b0-p0-.45_Cal_200gr_HP.aspx Thanks!

I plan on getting a new M&P full size 45 in a week or so. I am planning on installing the Apex Tactical COMPETITION ACTION ENHANCEMENT KIT. I've got that kit in my M&P Pro 9mm and it's great. But I also have the RAM installed in my 9mm. Does anyone know if Apex makse a RAM for the 45? Or if the one for the 9mm works in the 45? Thanks!

I have a Pro 9mm. No FTE's except for rounds that I've failed to case guage and were too fat. Otherwise no problems at all. I run mine with a 11lb recoil spring. I have 10K rounds through the guns and never any problems that aren't my fault because I haven't gauged the reloads properly.

CompTac!

I've seen this thread and followed the advice. I never rest my M&P directly on the dust cover. I only support my wrists when I shoot groups. Even so, I still can't get anything better than 3-4 inch groups, even with my Storm Lake barrel. I'm not a new shooter. I can get 1.5 inch groups with both of my STI 1911s. The dust cover part wasn't the important part. Raising the grip pressure to vice level is what often proves to make all the difference. You simply can't shoot them with the same technique as a 1911, and get the same results. I've found the same to be true with my Glocks as well....clamp down on the grip, and the groups shrink 50%. With that said, I found a half dozen bullets/loads (Zero 147gr FMJ, MG 130GR FMJ, Precision Delta 147gr FMJ-TC, Zero 125gr JHP, WWB 115gr, Win Ranger 124gr FMJ, and a couple others) that wouldn't do better than 3-4" out of either the stock or SL barrels. Only MG 147gr CMJ and Zero 147gr JHPs would go sub-2" in mine. The Zero 147gr JHPs were 1.25" @25yds, and the Zero 147gr FMJs were 8"+, so it's not simply a bullet weight issue. Same guy, same weight bullet, same powder, etc, etc...weird, but true. Okay. But not resting the gun on the dust cover does make a huge difference in the groups with an M&P. As for the vice grip, well, that's just one more discouraging thing. I don't shoot like that normally. I want a gun that will give me good groups with the grip I used to shoot matches. My 1911 will do that. My M&P will not. That's the rub, right?

I've seen this thread and followed the advice. I never rest my M&P directly on the dust cover. I only support my wrists when I shoot groups. Even so, I still can't get anything better than 3-4 inch groups, even with my Storm Lake barrel. I'm not a new shooter. I can get 1.5 inch groups with both of my STI 1911s.

Well, you know how some used brass is not always true to size. Sometimes they are expanded because of being fired from other guns (Glock barrels, etc.). Sometimes the rim of the brass gets marred from some other gun's extractor. Stuff like that. The brass has to be pretty dang perfect to work in my SL barrel. Thanks for the information! I can use my Dillon guage as long as I remember to accept no bullet that is the least bit tight.

So I was disappointed with the size of the groups I was getting with my 9mm M&P pro this Summer and Fall. I replaced the stock barrel with one from Storm Lake. The groups tightened up a bit, but not a great deal--from 4" at 25yrds to 3" of so. One disappointment with the SL barrel is that it's finicky about OAL. The stock barrel will eat just about anything, even rounds that are loaded out to 1.170 and don't drop cleanly into the case guage. The longer rounds may bind up in the magazine, but they will cycle through the stock barrel with no problems. The SL barrel, however, does not like anything over 1.110 and will jam up badly if you use a round that is slightly difficult to drop into the (Dillon) 9mm case gauge. It's a bit frustrating. I'm not sure if it's worth the little bit of extra accurady I get from it. Anyone else have a similar experience?

Yep. Don't expect much better than that with your M&P. Moving from an STI 1911 it was frustrating to me. But I've tweaked my reloads and done everything else possible but still have about 3-4" groups at 25 yards. I even changed the stock barrel to a Storm Lake barrel this Fall. Improved a bit, but not enormously. The Storm Lake barrel is, however, MUCH more picky about OAL. It won't feed properly anything over 1.110. And you have to be very careful to only fire loads that have been carefully case guaged or you will get a death jam FTE. JJM

Exatly what I have. Excellent combination.

I use an 11lb spring with PD 124 JHP bullets loaded to 1010 fps. I like the recoil and have had no problems with FTEs or FTFs. I had to recude the striker spring weight a bit, however. You'll have to experiment.

Get used to 3-4" groups at 25 yrds for the M&P. You ain't gonna get much better than that. I replaced the stock barrel with a Storm Lake barrel this Fall, and brought the size of the groups down maybe an inch. Hey, it's not a high end 1911. I can get 1.5" groups with my STI 1911, but I've just come to expect less from my M&P. I'm not sure that it has hurt me that much in matches. There really aren't that many targets out past 20 yards in most matches. And even so, I've not had too many problems getting zeros and ones (A's and B's). Jeff

So what's the deal with that 3rd entr?. The group size doesn't make sense. I shoot PD 124 HPH with 3.7 TG, OAL 1.110 and get 1.5-8 inch groups with my STI Trojan. Jeff

Exactly right. I use TiteGroup and just watch the brass after the second stage. You won't overflow if you have a double charge, but it will be visibly full. Just be deliberate about it and don't worry. I dont' think I've ever had an accidental double charge in my 9mm or .45 loads with TG.

The jury is still out for me on the SL barrel. I've only put about 600 rounds through it. It's only a little more accurate than the stock barrel. As long as I'm careful about case gauging my 124gr Precision Delta JHPs and keep the OAL at about 1.110, it's fine. Any deviation from that brings FTE jams. I shot one IDPA match with it a few weeks ago with no problems. But I don't know that it improved my score over the stock barrel.

I've got a Storm Lake barrel in my M&P. It is very finicky about bullets and OAL. The factory barrel was very forgiving. You could put almost anything in it. The SL barrel, just the opposite. I'm afraid that these may not work very well in it.

Does anyone have any experience with or opinion about these 9mm lead SWC bullets? http://www.missouribullet.com/details.php?prodId=173&category=9&secondary=8&keywords= Thanks!

In my M&P Pro 9mm I use an 11# ISMI spring inside a stainless captured guide rod. Have many thousands of rounds through it in IDPA and some USPSA matches. I'm shooting Precision Delta 124gr over 3.9-4.0grs of TiteGroup with an OAL = 1.138. Never a problem. I like the snappy performance.

Go shoot them both and then decide. I love my M&P for USPSA production. I have two friends that have CZs, but they tend to shoot them in Limited. I've been pretty impressed, however, shooting the CZ. It handles a lot like a 1911. Very accurate and just feels right.

Please do post your experience with the Storm Lake barrel in your Pro. I have one in my 9FS but am going to start shooting the 5" Pro. 147GN bullets here so the slightly faster twist in the SL is a good thing. Midway shows then as backordered until the end of the year though. I ordered it, but the estimated delivery from Storm Lake is the last week in December. Hopefully when I get it it'll "drop in" and not require fitting.

Oh no, I meant 5000 rounds through the gun, not with that one recoil spring! Yikes. The 11lb spring has worked well for me. I think the factory recoil spring is 16 lbs.

I've kicked open a few doors without losing any balance. It all depends on the door and the stage. A little kick on the bottom of the door usually does the trick, unless of course you have to turn a blasted door knob!

I've never had problems with el prez scores. Maybe it's because I'm careful to come to a settled stance quickly. My el prez scores are always the highest on my IDPA classifiers. I don't remember who taught me this, but I come around quickly and settle quickly before shooting.