mikeinctown Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 I'm looking at the possibility of buying a police trade in M&P either in a 9mm or .40S&W. As I don't currently have any polymer frame guns, I'm not sure if there is anything to inspect before I try it out at the range for the first time. What else should I look for with a striker fired gun like this? (I currently have mostly Sig pistols and a CZ SP-01) I'm most likely ordering one of these on line, though there is a local place that has a few trades where I may be able to select one. So I may or may not be able to pick one and would just have to accept what is shipped. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
High Lord Gomer Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 Some of the older ones had smaller diameter, weaker sear return springs that could lead to the gun not recocking the striker after it was fired. Unfortunately the only way I know of to tell is to remove the sear housing and then remove the sear from the housing to look under it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric4069 Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 trigger pull smoothes up with time, would be nice to handle and try several to see which feels best (unless you are just going to replace Apex parts anyway) Eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeinctown Posted August 17, 2015 Author Share Posted August 17, 2015 Is this something that a new style spring fixes, or am I stuck with an inferior spring design? The M&Ps for sale locally say approx 6 years old. They are M&P40s. My other choice is a Sig P226 in .40 but it is $100+ more and I already have a P226 in 9mm and a P229 in .40. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
High Lord Gomer Posted August 17, 2015 Share Posted August 17, 2015 While it may be possible to drill out the hole into which the spring sits, I just went with the newer sear housings that already had a larger spring and plunger: http://www.speedshooterspecialties.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=103_90_115&products_id=939 I have also had light primer strikes in several of my M&Ps so I run the extra power striker springs in all of them: http://www.speedshooterspecialties.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=951 That extra power striker spring will result in a harder trigger pull with the stock sear but I don't notice any when I use the Apex Sear: https://store.apextactical.com/WebDirect/Products/Details/191852 I also run their Ultimate Striker Blocks in all of mine. They do have a package deal where they will install the sear, upgrade the housing if it is the older one with the smaller spring, and the USB. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeinctown Posted August 20, 2015 Author Share Posted August 20, 2015 Just wanted to say thanks to the answers I got. Went and picked up a used M&P40 yesterday. There were probably a dozen to choose from (police trades) and I found a clean one pretty easy. Only holster wear appears to be on the top of the sights and at the very front edge of the slide. Everything else looked good and the gun had no slop in it. Cool thing was the guy had his S/N sheet for the guns and he was able to tell me what serial numbers to avoid as they either looked well worn or in one case the guy told him he shot the hell out of it. I believe I was told it doesn't have the magazine safety. (I can pull the trigger with the magazine out) It also has no manual safety so for me this will be range only. Heading over to the maintenance thread to get some info. Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeinctown Posted August 21, 2015 Author Share Posted August 21, 2015 Question for those with good guesses... I've watched about every Apex Tactical video on the site and think I can figure out everything. Way easier than working on the CZ75 it seems. Anyway, based on the video I appear to have a version 1 of the striker assembly. The gun was made in 09. Would it be a fairly accurate guess to assume I have the smaller sear spring and plunger? I'd like to figure out as much as I can off the top so I can get all the parts needed before working on it. I hate starting work on something only to need to set something aside for a week while waiting. Also, When I rotate the slide release down, it does not always stay rotated down and wants to pop back into position. I'm assuming a new spring clip and lever would solve this issue? Thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vlad Posted August 21, 2015 Share Posted August 21, 2015 (edited) Don't worry too much about the small sear spring diameter. I have one in my gun and Apex sear, RAM, springs, etc and it works. Yes you occasionally have to take it down and clean that spring/plunger/hole because gunk slows it down, but by occasionally I mean like once a year. Even so, a new sear block is $25. If you want some of the fancy APEX triggers then they say you must upgrade the sear cage. My slide release has never really wanted to stay down. Just keep it down while you take your gun apart. The good news is that it self assembles when you put it back together. Edited August 21, 2015 by Vlad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DougM Posted August 24, 2015 Share Posted August 24, 2015 Mike: Do you see frame plugs where the thumb safety would go? Should be small polymer plugs about 1/4" square on each side of the pistol. The thumb safety is ambidextrous. If you've got those, you should be able to add a thumb safety without much difficulty. That's what I did with my M&P40FS since I wanted it for home defense as well. Parts are pretty easy to find and a snap to install. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikeinctown Posted August 26, 2015 Author Share Posted August 26, 2015 Mike: Do you see frame plugs where the thumb safety would go? Should be small polymer plugs about 1/4" square on each side of the pistol. The thumb safety is ambidextrous. If you've got those, you should be able to add a thumb safety without much difficulty. That's what I did with my M&P40FS since I wanted it for home defense as well. Parts are pretty easy to find and a snap to install. Unfortunately there is no frame plug. My gun looks just like this one. You have the roll pin and then on one side you have the small round plug or whatever that is. On the other side (right side) you only have the roll pin hole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rustybayonet Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 Why do you need a manual safety. I would rather have a safety on a range gun and no safety on my carry. I carry an m&p9 fde, only trigger safety, but around the house I dont chamber a round. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wgj3 Posted August 26, 2015 Share Posted August 26, 2015 I think you've already goten some pretty good advice from the previous posters. 2nd that the sear spring/plunger diameter will likely not be a problem unles you start swapping in the aftermarket parts. To determine which one you have, remove the slide, remove the rear roll pin, pry the sear housing up and out of the frame, push out the sear pin and look under it to check the diameter of the plunger. I would also 2nd that the trigger safety is plenty good in my book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scrmblr Posted August 27, 2015 Share Posted August 27, 2015 As far as the lack of safety goes... If we are supposed to treat every firearm as if it were loaded, then why shouldn't it be? Every one of my pistols that have a magazine inserted, has a round in the chamber. Your trigger finger is your safety (thanks Jim Smith). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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