why did you get an M&P L?

[Field]

im looking at getting a different 9mm handgun.

i would like to know when you were looking to get the handgun and you decided on an M&PL, what other handguns did you look at and what was the dealbreaker that ultimately influenced your decision to get this one?

also if you can be descriptive, please rate some of these qualities (for you) vs. other handguns you looked at and/or have handled:

1. grip and the use of the backstraps

1B. Location and ease of hitting the magazine release button.

2. trigger (not pull or weight but the shape of the trigger)

3. magazine well (for smooth, fast reloads)

4. Ease of buying aftermarket parts and/or having smith work done to the gun

5. Ease of modifying or doing things to the gun yourself. How easy is it to fully disassemble/ reassemble the gun.

6. Slide serrations/texture for gripability for slidelock reloads and/or unloaded gun starts

7. reliability for feeding reloaded ammunition, is it finnicky?

8. warranty and customer service of S&W?

9. something else i didnt mention

is there anything you DO NOT like about this handgun?

overall of the other handguns you have tried, (please mention them if possible) how does this M&PL stack up as a competition/gaming handgun?

thanks

Edited May 24, 2010 by Field

[Jay870]

I went with the M&P 9L largely because of the grip ergonomics, and I liked the potential of the trigger. Had always shot Glocks, but they never "fit" quite right, struggled with slide bite, struggled with grip consistency. Really the only other gun I seriously considered was a CZ SP-01 Shadow, but after some thought the higher cost and totally different "platform" steered me away from the CZ.

My only real complaint about the gun is the reset of the trigger. I had gotten very accustomed to the distinct audible and tactile "snap" reset on the Glock, where as the M&P's is much more subtle. The Apex drop in parts improved it notably, and my friend's M&P Pro that had an awesome Burwell trigger job was even better yet, but neither were close to the Glock reset.

[jkatz44]

Stick with the Glock.

[Boats]

Our Club lot more competition SSP than with Handguns I "prefer" If you are going pass on nice hardware and shoot plastic pistols there are only 2 real choices. Glocks and M&P's.

The M&P's ergonomics are good, very good. I don't like all the Glock's are perfect hype and prefer American companies for about anything. In fact have never even handled a Glock, no doubt they are just as good. Probably not a bit of difference in performance Glock vs. S&W M&P.

M&P is new and aftermarket parts are not as readily available. Although mine is now box stock so that makes little difference. I did have fail to fire problems, common to any striker fired pistol; the Glock forums have pages on the same issue. Mine was related to reloads and after market springs I installed trying to tune to my reloads. Handloads are something Glock discourages, the major reason for there reliability reputation. S&W handled the problem well and has redesigned the striker. No cost to me. Now it runs my loads just fine. Might want to think about factory ammo vs reloads when chosing. Personaly I am not owning anything I can't reload for.

If it's up to standard the hardware is not important, how you shoot is.

Boats

Edited May 24, 2010 by Boats

[twodownzero]

M&P is the new Glock.

[bunsen27]

1. grip and the use of the backstraps

1B. Location and ease of hitting the magazine release button.

2. trigger (not pull or weight but the shape of the trigger)

3. magazine well (for smooth, fast reloads)

4. Ease of buying aftermarket parts and/or having smith work done to the gun

5. Ease of modifying or doing things to the gun yourself. How easy is it to fully disassemble/ reassemble the gun.

6. Slide serrations/texture for gripability for slidelock reloads and/or unloaded gun starts

7. reliability for feeding reloaded ammunition, is it finnicky?

8. warranty and customer service of S&W?

9. something else i didnt mention

is there anything you DO NOT like about this handgun?

I'll see if I can answer all your talking points:

1. I like the different back starps quite a bit. Dependent on your hand size you can adjust the gun to fit you. They are easily removable (no roll pins to punch) and are quite inexpensive to replace ($2.35/grip at Midway USA). They can also be easily customized for texture with either a soldering gun or wood burner.

1B. The magazine release button it positioned quite well IMO and can be easily swapped between either the left or right side of the frame. I have smaller hands and run all my mag releases on the right side of the frame. It took me about 3 minutes and a ball point pen to swap it around.

2. Not sure what your looking for here, but it has adequate curvature and texturing to be easliy located and to remain in contact with.

3. I've experienced no binding or sticking issues. Also, the slightly larger base pad helps with firmly seating the mag IMO.

4. There are several places that do trigger and texturing work. Apex has their drop in parts and a few more on the drawing board. Several manufactuers produce aftermarket sights including Dawson.

5. Filed stripping is quite simple. I haven't done a full take down on the gun because I know my own limitations.

6. Quite adequate serrations and very smooth slide operation. As of yet nobody has produced an extended slide release lever.The factory one is a bit anemic, much like a factory Glocks.

7. It's eaten and shot quite accurately every type of factory ammo I've fed it regardless of bullet weight.

8. I haven't had any issue so no need to contact S&W though I do believe they have an excellent reputation for customer service and I believe their firearms come with a quite extensive warranty.

9. You didn't state exactly what your intended purpose for the pistol was though it was assumed based on your questions that it was principally going to be used for competition.

I'm new to USPSA and 3-gun this year. I started with a stock Sig P226. After having the internals polished, short trigger installed, hammer springs reduced it was an EXCELLENT competitoin gun...except for the DA first pull and the ergonomics of it didn't suit me 100%. I did my research between Glock, S&W M&P, and SA XD(M). I am fortunate enough to have a local gun store that sells all 3 brands and have rental guns to try. After doing a side by side of each I settled on the M&P. The glock didn't fit my hand and I wasn't crazy about the trigger. XD(M) felt great and shot well, but it had a lot of muzzle flip IMO. M&P had a crisp break (although the take up was longer than a country mile) and the muzzle flip was minimal. There wasn't anything horrible wrong with the XD(M) or Glock I just preferred the M&P more. All 3 pistols are within $50 of each other cost wise and magazines are roughly $22-$28 dependent on where you shop. One thing that did swing me was the ease and relative low cost of trigger work. For the M&P you have Dan Burwell, Apex Tactical, Cold Bore Customs, ect. For the SA there is SA, Canyon Creek, and one other I can't recall but the XD(M) trigger work is typically $150+ while the M&P work is typically less than $100.

[Field]

huh so i picked this sucker up at the shop today and it ended up being the Pro series instead of the regular one because they didnt have any of the other ones. fine with me i guess. just kind of a waste because i was going to put different sights and trigger on it anyways.

i dont know though im kind of thinking these sights are almost fine as is. i WOULD actually kind of prefer the rear sights to be serrated rather than simply flat black like i shot this one match a while ago where all of the steel targets were painted black and its nice to have a little bit of contrast on the rear sights. im not completely sure what im gonna do with the sights quite yet.

but i did previously order some of those Apex trigger parts that will probably be around before the weekend and im thinking they will still make some improvement over the outadaBox trigger which i think has alot of takeup on it. nice reset though.

compared to my xdm this gun i feel points and grips just a little easier and more naturally its especially noticable when i hold strong hand or - weakhand . the beavertail area of this handgun is slightly more pronounced so it seems the bore will be a tad lower to your hand. the profile is a little bit narrower than the xdm. the magazine release button is placed pretty perfectly.

then the slide release lever i cant imagine accidentally resting any of my digits on it and keeping the slide from locking back, which was one beef i had with the xdm (mainly for when shooting IDPA you kind of need it to work all the time, not so much for uspsa). i dont want to have to practice putting my thumbs in a certain location i just want to be able to intuitively grab the pistol and shoot it and have everything working great every time.

ill loosen it up on the weekend with some shootin. i think ill like this gun alot and get alot of use out of it.

[Field]

dude, mag changes definitely feel easier with this gun, i think its the combo of slightly shorter magazines plus the glock-like semi-funneled magwell

[dr2e]

to go with my pro

[Field]

a few things i noticed when actually shooting this gun

1. there just isnt enough meat on the frame of the pistol for you to purchase with your support hand. this was a big plus with the XDM, it had that big fat takedown lever that you could grip onto with your support thumb. this gun i feel like im having to grip with my stronghand too hard relative to my support hand.

2. i shot this gun low initially because of the aim point i used with my xdm, having the intended POI slightly above the sights. this gun with the height of the front sight you need to pretty much cover your intended POI with the fiber dot of the front sight.

3. I will test a few more times to verify this but i think for some reason or another, velocities out of the barrel of this gun vs. the XDm this gun actually shoots SLOWer.

what i had cooked up for the xdm:

124g Rainier leadsafe RN

4.3g Titegroup

1.125 col

1080fps avg.

with this gun i am fairly sure the avg. velocity i am getting is 20fps slower or more. which doesnt make sense because the barrel is half an inch longer and it is a brand new gun.

these magazines attract dirt and dust

[jkatz44]

Your thumbs aren't really supposed be touching the frame.

[Field]

say wut.

this is the wrong way to hold this gun?

this is the right way?

how am i supposed to hold this gun?

should i get a G17?

[jkatz44]

say wut.

this is the wrong way to hold this gun?

this is the right way?

how am i supposed to hold this gun?

should i get a G17?

Check this thread out.

http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=105224&st=0&p=1208749&hl=thumbs%20off%20grip&fromsearch=1entry1208749

[Field]

oh i see

[Mike Wood]

Your thumbs aren't really supposed be touching the frame.

Who says? Some of the best shooters not only touch the frame with their offhand thumb but put pressure on it as well. It works for them. As long as the gun is flipping vertically and you're getting your hits....

MW

[ksshooter223]

"Your thumbs aren't really supposed be touching the frame. "

I haven't posted on this forum yet. But I just had to after reading the above comment. You seem to be awfully opinionated about everything. People get on this forum and many others to give advice and opinions of WHAT WORKS FOR THEM. Just because you read or see one particular method everything else is wrong? I have been shooting like this for years and if you look at a few of the best training DVD's out there (not naming names but it should be obvious) they are using the same thumb over thumb grip with pressure on the frame. I am not saying this is right or wrong...it's what works best for you.

[jkatz44]

I didn't mean to say that everybody else's technique is wrong. Sorry if you took it that way. I just said what works with me and other well-know shooters. Whatever floats your boat.

BTW...

"You seem to be awfully opinionated about everything."

I don't know what this means. Where did you get this conclusion? I'm just curious.

[oldtrooper]

Have not handled one and I would like to know the difference between a M&P Pro Series 5" and a M&P 9L

Thanks

[kreativecid]

Pro comes with better trigger, a f/o front sight and I believe a slightly heavier slide.

I purchased the 9L and put in a Apex sear and block, and the trigger is immensely better. Better than a stock Pro. I would also recommend Dan Burwell for trigger work. I put a f/o front sight in my width preference, blacked out the rear sight dots and polished up the internals. Absolutely perfect feeding and ejection.

Have not handled one and I would like to know the difference between a M&P Pro Series 5" and a M&P 9L

Thanks