StealthyBlagga Posted August 17, 2013 Share Posted August 17, 2013 I just picked up a 9mm CORE 5" upper for my M&P, and plan on turning it into a 3-Gun Open pistol (gonna MagnaPort it like Jerry Miculek did). Mostly I plan to run 9mm minor loads. My question is whether I could also load it with major PF ammo and use the same pistol for USPSA pistol matches? Will an OEM S&W barrel hold up OK to a steady diet of major loads, or do I need to go to an aftermarket barrel like Storm Lake? I'd like to know which barrel to invest in getting ported. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
compshootfl Posted August 18, 2013 Share Posted August 18, 2013 At hints on how you got one ? I have been looking for awhile...even asked the m&p rep at one of their shows and was told they would NOT be selling just the Core upper by itself, I had to buy the whole gun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StealthyBlagga Posted August 18, 2013 Author Share Posted August 18, 2013 (edited) At hints on how you got one ? I have been looking for awhile...even asked the m&p rep at one of their shows and was told they would NOT be selling just the Core upper by itself, I had to buy the whole gun. I stumbled across a bunch at 44mag.com (while I was marveling at their $99 mags earlier this week). They had both 5" and 4.25" CORE upper halves for only $350. I jumped on one and maybe should have bought a couple at that price. All gone now I'm afraid. They also had CORE grip panels (which I passed on). I'm assuming S&W got overstocked on CORE components and sold them off cheap. Edited August 18, 2013 by StealthyBlagga Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
9X23Guy Posted August 18, 2013 Share Posted August 18, 2013 (edited) While my initial reaction tells me maybe give Storm Lake a call. Their customer service was pretty good when I talked to them and they have been doing M&P barrels longer than anyone else. Edited August 18, 2013 by 9X23Guy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jhp147 Posted August 18, 2013 Share Posted August 18, 2013 Funny-all I could click on when I saw this was "how the heck did he get one...?" Without even thinking about the rest of the post. I had just given looking for a 5" Pro or L upper a long time ago. Guess I ought to start looking again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MickB Posted August 20, 2013 Share Posted August 20, 2013 I would never shoot 9mm major. I have seen too many destroyed guns from this practice, and these were guns that were supposedly built to shoot 9mm major... Mick Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagleinstructor Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 I just picked up a 9mm CORE 5" upper for my M&P, and plan on turning it into a 3-Gun Open pistol (gonna MagnaPort it like Jerry Miculek did). Mostly I plan to run 9mm minor loads. My question is whether I could also load it with major PF ammo and use the same pistol for USPSA pistol matches? Will an OEM S&W barrel hold up OK to a steady diet of major loads, or do I need to go to an aftermarket barrel like Storm Lake? I'd like to know which barrel to invest in getting ported. I went with a threaded KKM barrel and compensator by Bobby Carver. You will need to shoot Major loads to make the gun run, the comp requires a lot of gas. Remove the comp and you can run with normal powder charges. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eagleinstructor Posted August 30, 2013 Share Posted August 30, 2013 I would never shoot 9mm major. I have seen too many destroyed guns from this practice, and these were guns that were supposedly built to shoot 9mm major... Mick Mick, I appreciate your opinion and you are correct about the destroyed guns. However, the M&P barrels do have the fully supported chamber, thereby helping to eliminate the bulging which can and does occur many times while shooting Major loads in other firearms. That's not to say a wildly overcharged cartridge wouldn't play havoc on your gun. The frames are designed to also support pressures and velocities, plus a buffer margin, for the .40 and .45 calibers. (.45s do have some larger parts and may be beefed up a bit because of the cartridge size). The frame parts are the same on the 9 and .40. I'm just regurgitating what was said in the armorer class I attended, I do have both a Open 9mm Pro L shooting major and a .40 CORE model. By the way accuracy, forced me to a KKM barrel and I'm glad I did,they also have the full chamber support. I have an e-mail in to my instructor to get the exact term S&W used for that supporting feature. BTW it is not on all barrels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMike Posted November 7, 2013 Share Posted November 7, 2013 Has anyone had their M&P CORE Magna-ported in the same fashion as Jerry Miculek's pistol? I am wondering how effective the porting is compared to a regular threaded/comp barrel configuration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
truborshooter Posted November 10, 2013 Share Posted November 10, 2013 By definition 9 Major is a 'wildly overcharged cartridge'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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