Earlier this week I was able to pickup the elusive M&P Shield 9mm. For months I've been reading reviews about how this little M&P is the new "King" of concealed carry. When I unpacked it from the box I immediately noticed that although it felt great in my rather large hands it had a cheap feel to it. Manipulating the slide made kind of gritty sound and the trigger....oh where to begin....
I figured I had just overhyped it reading all those glowing reviews. Range day would be when this little gun will shine. Well, today after work I headed to my local range ready to be impressed. Now to be fair the range only allows 12"x12" targets and shooting at the full length (50'). I know this is not the ideal distance to be putting a sub compact CCW through the paces, but it would have to do.
First shot, paper target still pristine. Second shot, nothing. Third shot, ok this is getting embarrassing. Fourth shot, FINALLY! Now I've been shooting regularly for 10+ years and consider myself to be fairly skilled, but what the hell just happened? I stopped, reevaluated my stance, concentrated on trigger pull, and put another 75 rounds down range. Although most of them landed on paper, there was no discernible grouping.
I left feeling a little defeated. How could this much coveted firearm make me feel like this was my first trip to the range? I was hoping to get by without having to get a trigger job, but it's not looking promising. How big is the difference when going from a Shield with a MA trigger to an Apex kit? Is the difference truly night and day? Will I leave the range without feeling like I just wasted $25 in ammo? Has anyone else had a similar experience with the stock trigger? I want to like the Shield, I really do, but right now I'm fairly unimpressed. Seems like stock it's a great gun for concealing, but you better hope the loud bang it makes scares the aggressor away, because putting lead on target seems difficult even during the most relaxed and controlled conditions.
I figured I had just overhyped it reading all those glowing reviews. Range day would be when this little gun will shine. Well, today after work I headed to my local range ready to be impressed. Now to be fair the range only allows 12"x12" targets and shooting at the full length (50'). I know this is not the ideal distance to be putting a sub compact CCW through the paces, but it would have to do.
First shot, paper target still pristine. Second shot, nothing. Third shot, ok this is getting embarrassing. Fourth shot, FINALLY! Now I've been shooting regularly for 10+ years and consider myself to be fairly skilled, but what the hell just happened? I stopped, reevaluated my stance, concentrated on trigger pull, and put another 75 rounds down range. Although most of them landed on paper, there was no discernible grouping.
I left feeling a little defeated. How could this much coveted firearm make me feel like this was my first trip to the range? I was hoping to get by without having to get a trigger job, but it's not looking promising. How big is the difference when going from a Shield with a MA trigger to an Apex kit? Is the difference truly night and day? Will I leave the range without feeling like I just wasted $25 in ammo? Has anyone else had a similar experience with the stock trigger? I want to like the Shield, I really do, but right now I'm fairly unimpressed. Seems like stock it's a great gun for concealing, but you better hope the loud bang it makes scares the aggressor away, because putting lead on target seems difficult even during the most relaxed and controlled conditions.
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