TexasCHLforum.com

First, I bought this pistol from GunBroker.com on Sun, it arrived Thu.

I cleaned it & took it to the range today. I split about 70/30 letting my girlfriend shoot it vs me shooting it. It's for her, but I wanted to try it out. Since she's still new to shooting, it's taking her a while to get used to this pistol (she used to have & hate a Bersa Thunder .380).

My first shot was dead on bullseye at 5yds. I was pretty impressed with the accuracy. I trashed the targets before pictures, but will get some next time. Heck, I did better with the Shield than I did my 45c that I've shot for 2 years now.

I did have a failure to eject while I was shooting it, completely horizontal casing in the ejection port. I was able to pull the slide back, let it drop & it continued on it's merry way.

Her first shot was a limp wristed FTFeed. After I got her grip right, she didn't have another. Although, she did have a failure to eject as well. We shot PMC factory ammo, 115 grain.

Overall, I'm pleased with it, but will keep an eye on the FTE to see if it's consistent. Recoil was next to nothing, easily manageable for me. She said she liked it more than the Thunder.

The ad said "Brand New", but I don't believe it's brand new. The factory test fire casing is dated 7/13/2013, so it can't be THAT old. See what you think in the pictures below:

Feed ramp on the barrel:


Slide rails:


Front rails:


Rear rails:


Slide:


Striker:

Definitely not new IMO. I have never seen one that had that much or type of wear by just cycling the slide.

Mine has about that much wear and it has a couple of hundred rounds through it.

Side note: You need to inspect the trigger, as they have issued a recall for Shields manufactured before Aug 19, 2013. S&W will make it right, but if it were going to be my carry gun I would want to be sure it was dependable.

I am guessing with your concern, the pictures were taken before the trip to the range?

Test fire casing with "born on date":

Divided Attention wrote:Side note: You need to inspect the trigger, as they have issued a recall for Shields manufactured before Aug 19, 2013. S&W will make it right, but if it were going to be my carry gun I would want to be sure it was dependable.

I am guessing with your concern, the pictures were taken before the trip to the range?

I'm already aware of the trigger issue & was checked for issue. I did not check it after the range though.

These pictures were as I broke it down to clean it & try to remove the factory lube & make ready for carry rotation.

http://www.youtube.com/embed/jsQWGS-P9Pk?rel=0" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Looks like it was "test fired" by the dealer that had it. Some unscrupulous dealers think it's just fine to take new guns out to "put a few rounds through it" before selling it. They make the other 99.9% of us look bad when they pull stunts like this. Overall though, I'd say the gun hasn't had many rounds put through it, and will last you for a lifetime.

OldCannon is funny you mention that. I just had this conversation with a FFL who thinks he is supposed to test fire every pistol before it goes out.

I sent an email to the seller last night telling them this was not in "Brand New" condition. I am kind of worried about the FTEs I experienced, but won't really know until I get to the range again.

carlson1 wrote:OldCannon is funny you mention that. I just had this conversation with a FFL who thinks he is supposed to test fire every pistol before it goes out.

My advice: Stay away from dealers like that. If they have "stocking dealer" arrangements with manufacturers, and the manufacturers find out they're "test firing" shipped guns, that will be the end of their "arrangement." What's worse is that those kind of dealers don't realize they're exposing themselves to liability lawsuits if something goes wrong. The customer AND the manufacturer can sue them! Dumb. Dumb. Dumb. If it's been fired, even once, outside the factory, it's no longer "new."

LAYGO wrote:I sent an email to the seller last night telling them this was not in "Brand New" condition. I am kind of worried about the FTEs I experienced, but won't really know until I get to the range again.

If it was sold new by a dealer, contact S&W and they will take a look at it. If it was sold to you by a private seller....probably not much you can do if it was across state lines (but I'm sure S&W will still take a look at it).

OldCannon wrote:

LAYGO wrote:I sent an email to the seller last night telling them this was not in "Brand New" condition. I am kind of worried about the FTEs I experienced, but won't really know until I get to the range again.

If it was sold new by a dealer, contact S&W and they will take a look at it. If it was sold to you by a private seller....probably not much you can do if it was across state lines (but I'm sure S&W will still take a look at it).

It was a dealer. I've seen that they've sold like 10 others with the exact same ad.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewIt ... =360774477" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

LAYGO wrote:I sent an email to the seller last night telling them this was not in "Brand New" condition. I am kind of worried about the FTEs I experienced, but won't really know until I get to the range again.

Here is their response. I have not yet received pix from them:

I can assure you that it is a brand new gun, when it is test fired at the factory using both magazines. Smith and Wesson does a very thorough job of testing functionality before the guns leave the factory. When metal rubs against metal, wear will show. I will be sending you pictures of another brand new Shield that I just pulled off our shelf.

Test fire more than 1 round or full mags from both mags? I don't think my 3yo 45c has that much wear either, although I don't have pictures of it right now.

The serial on the box/pistol/test fire casing all match, it says 7/19/2013. Just seems excessive. If I experience anymore FTE, it's going back for sure.

I will strip my Shield that is still NIB down and inspect it tonight to be sure but that amount of wear is not right for a gun straight from the factory.