View Full Version : M&P 4" .45 midsize...joined the M&P club.
QuietShootr
06-30-09, 18:13
So, my very favorite 1911 shat its sear and plunger tube last weekend, and as I was diligently staking, polishing, checking angles, and all that shyte involved in replacing those things, it suddenly occurred to me.
I could be shooting.
I just picked up a 4" .45 M&P, and it feels good in the hand, points well, and is light and easy to carry, and has 11 rounds of Winchester Ranger T 230gr on board.
What's not to like?
jdavis6576
06-30-09, 19:29
This thread is worthless without pics...;)
Derek_Connor
06-30-09, 19:36
Quiet,
Im in the same boat my friend. Ive had some recent events with some high end 1911s that are just irritating the shit out of me. Easy fixes, but when they go down, they are down.
I picked up an M&P 9mm w/thumb safety couple weeks ago for the standard price. Unfortunately, I've already sent it out for some action work, and then on to some texturing. So a cheap gun, becomes relatively not cheap pretty quick to mimic the 1911 feel.
I will agree w/you on the point you made above, after several nights of dry fire and presentations, even during the sloppiest of grips, the gun still seems to point where I need it to. It is extremely forgiving in that aspect...
Where'd you find a midsize? I haven't seen one in ages. If I were to pick up a 45, that'd be the one I'd choose.
For that matter, I haven't been able to find any Ranger T for a 45 in months. I want to replace my stash of Golden Sabers badly.
QuietShootr
06-30-09, 20:02
Where'd you find a midsize? I haven't seen one in ages. If I were to pick up a 45, that'd be the one I'd choose.
For that matter, I haven't been able to find any Ranger T for a 45 in months. I want to replace my stash of Golden Sabers badly.
Hm. I hatched this idea last night, and there was a brand new midsize in the fun shop today.
I got 500 rounds of the new Ranger T last week from someplace whose name escapes me at the moment for $23.00/box shipped. I'll see if I can find that email.
QuietShootr
06-30-09, 20:18
This thread is worthless without pics...;)
http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/ii228/QS762/June30013.jpg
With my crusty HAK which I never take off, except that it was interfering with my camera.
RogerinTPA
06-30-09, 20:41
Nice score brother! I got the full sized M&P 45 before the middies came out. You can neglect her and she won't fail you. Like LAV says, the 1911 is an enthusiasts gun. You can always keep your 1911 as a hobby gun, while abusing the M&P.
QS, we're sorta of the same mind, too. I turned my 1911 in to a local gunsmith to turn it into a MEU/SOC clone, picking up the same M&P you got IOT have something to shoot during the months "Kindness" will be away from me. That, and I wanted one anyway.
Shot it for the first time this past Saturday, then conducted a mad scramble to try and find another 2 10rnd magazines for the rest of the day (NONE to be had in the DC Metro area I was willing to drive to!). Sunday was a practice session w/ToddG holds at intervals @ the NRA range.
I had a .45 XD that I traded off to get this baby; didn't quite like it, but the M&P feels like coming home again, somehow.
jdavis6576
07-01-09, 06:04
I have the 45c and love it. I carry in an MTAC at 4:00 and the compact carries well. I showed it to my uncle who has huge hands and now he's searching for the 45 mid. The mids are hard to find but hopefully more will show up on the market soon.
Thanks for the pic; proof they actually exist! Now, take her out and get her hot and dirty! She's begging for it...
I have been tempted to go down this road but I'm so vested in the Glock thing now that starting over yet again with the M&P would just be too much for me. I find myself having to resist the urges Derek mentions about starting to customize those $500 guns into $1k guns as well. I'm picking up a new G19 next week and I'm thinking this one is going to stay completely stock and become my workhorse/carry gun until I can come up with a damn good reason to justify adding any cost to it.
Fortunately I have another one that's the lil' woman's gun that I can do grip reductions, and add sights, widgets, and gizmos to! :D
QuietShootr
07-01-09, 06:53
I have been tempted to go down this road but I'm so vested in the Glock thing now that starting over yet again with the M&P would just be too much for me. I find myself having to resist the urges Derek mentions about starting to customize those $500 guns into $1k guns as well. I'm picking up a new G19 next week and I'm thinking this one is going to stay completely stock and become my workhorse/carry gun until I can come up with a damn good reason to justify adding any cost to it.
Fortunately I have another one that's the lil' woman's gun that I can do grip reductions, and add sights, widgets, and gizmos to! :D
I have a mess of G19s, and I am really thinking about keeping one and turning the rest of them into M&Ps. It's so much more comfortable in the hand, picking up a Glock feels like holding a 2x4 next to it.
Glocks are a couple hundred dollars cheaper than M&Ps and I understand that Glock will be coming out with adjustable handgrips (M&P like) next Shot Show.
Glocks are a couple hundred dollars cheaper than M&Ps
whoa, they are? Where are these $200 Glocks?
http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/product_info.php/cPath/21_39_850/products_id/38991
decodeddiesel
07-01-09, 09:28
I will agree w/you on the point you made above, after several nights of dry fire and presentations, even during the sloppiest of grips, the gun still seems to point where I need it to. It is extremely forgiving in that aspect...
That may be my favorite thing about these pistols. They point exceedingly well and for some reason they seem to "coach" you into a proper thumbs forward modern isosceles almost effortlessly.
Current retails prices for G19's at Bud's Gunshop.com (depending on options): $494 to $589. I just sent in for the emailed price quote on their in-stock bare-bones G19 and it was $494. On Gunbroker I saw a few new G19's with very low initial bid levels (such as $459 or even $410 on one). But those are not the final sales prices, and the reserve or "buy now" prices are much higher, for example the "buy now" is $512 on that $410 listing. It looks like the BEST you can do on a new bare-bones G19 on Gunbroker, if you want to buy TODAY, is right around $500.
Prices for M&P full-size models at Buds: $439 to $569 (the $569 is the "spec ops" version with threaded barrel and 3 mags). Gunbroker prices for FS models range from $499 to $569.
Bottom line is, I definitely don't see a huge price difference between G19's and full-size M&P pistols. If anything, right now it appears you can get a bare-bones M&P for a bit lower than a similar Glock, and that's without any rebates.
FromMyColdDeadHand
07-01-09, 09:52
Quiet,
Im in the same boat my friend. Ive had some recent events with some high end 1911s that are just irritating the shit out of me. Easy fixes, but when they go down, they are down.
I picked up an M&P 9mm w/thumb safety couple weeks ago for the standard price. Unfortunately, I've already sent it out for some action work, and then on to some texturing. So a cheap gun, becomes relatively not cheap pretty quick to mimic the 1911 feel.
I will agree w/you on the point you made above, after several nights of dry fire and presentations, even during the sloppiest of grips, the gun still seems to point where I need it to. It is extremely forgiving in that aspect...
I played around with a FNP with a safety, but really didn't like it. Wasn't really very 1911/SAO. How is the M&P with the thumb safety?
decodeddiesel
07-01-09, 09:59
I played around with a FNP with a safety, but really didn't like it. Wasn't really very 1911/SAO. How is the M&P with the thumb safety?
Dude, to me it feels a LOT like a 1911. Not exactly the same but the closest of any polymer pistol.
Derek_Connor
07-01-09, 10:59
I'll agree w/the others, its pretty close to a 1911. I must have gotten lucky, the safety has a real positive click to it. I know others complained about how mushy it was when they first came out. Although I'll be honest, I have NOTHING to compare it to other than a 1911. I've never felt another thumb safety on a polymer framed pistol other than a USP.
Although after using the mangun platform for awhile, it feels like something is wrong with the M&P when you can keep the safety ON, and lock the slide back. So I end up running it just like it was a 1911 to keep it consistent.
I've had the gun locked, inside the murse, and other various bags and the safety has never been accidentally deactivated, which was my main concern when i first got the pistol.
FromMyColdDeadHand
07-01-09, 11:46
It was in this thread or another I was reading someone implied that the safety can be installed in a gun that came from the factory without one, and it could be removed from one that came with it?
decodeddiesel
07-01-09, 12:02
It was in this thread or another I was reading someone implied that the safety can be installed in a gun that came from the factory without one, and it could be removed from one that came with it?
You can definitely remove a thumb safety from a gun that came with one...however I don't think you can add one without some serious modification to a gun that came without.
Im fairly certain that is wrong.
The last time i called S&W to ask about this they told me it could not be retrofitted.
I dig the thumb safeties, im not sure why but if you like a thumb safety i dont think you will be disappointed with your M&P. They click positively into their detents, dont snag and generally feel great when you're shooting the gun.
decodeddiesel
07-01-09, 12:14
Im fairly certain that is wrong.
The last time i called S&W to ask about this they told me it could not be retrofitted.
I dig the thumb safeties, im not sure why but if you like a thumb safety i dont think you will be disappointed with your M&P. They click positively into their detents, dont snag and generally feel great when you're shooting the gun.
Do you mean adding or removing?
Removing the thumb safety is pretty easy. Just detail strip, use a punch to drive out the roll pin that holds the sear assembly, and reassemble without the safety.
whoa, they are? Where are these $200 Glocks?
http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/product_info.php/cPath/21_39_850/products_id/38991
Well, I've seen/bought Glocks for $540, LE Glocks for $398.00 and M&Ps for $680-719.00. Bought my M&P for $419.00.
Also seen Glocks for 594.00. Didn't mean there are new $200.00 Glocks out there, just the price difference. Join the GSSF and you too can get LE priced Glock from participating dealers once each year with annual membership. I don't think S&W has such a deal that I know of.
decodeddiesel
07-01-09, 12:47
Well, I've seen/bought Glocks for $540, LE Glocks for $398.00 and M&Ps for $680-719.00. Bought my M&P for $419.00.
Also seen Glocks for 594.00. Didn't mean there are new $200.00 Glocks out there, just the price difference. Join the GSSF and you too can get LE priced Glock from participating dealers once each year with annual membership. I don't think S&W has such a deal that I know of.
Come on dude. :rolleyes:
They are both right about $500 from any reputable dealer, period.
OK sure I've seen dealers wickedly over price items, and other dealers run "sales" that could account for a $200 deviation, but I've seen it both ways. That is I've seen NIB Glock 19s going for $700+ from some stores without any grasp of reality, yet I've seen $480 M&Ps from dealers that are in tune with the market. Does that mean there's a $200 price difference? Of course not.
Just admit you made an exaggeration and accept you were wrong and drive on.
Deco,
My apologies, i should have quoted the original poster.
I mean in order to affix if your firearm did not originally have one.
Well, I've seen/bought Glocks for $540, LE Glocks for $398.00 and M&Ps for $680-719.00. Bought my M&P for $419.00.
Also seen Glocks for 594.00. Didn't mean there are new $200.00 Glocks out there, just the price difference. Join the GSSF and you too can get LE priced Glock from participating dealers once each year with annual membership. I don't think S&W has such a deal that I know of.
None of which is what you said before.
You said "Glocks are a couple hundred dollars cheaper than M&Ps " which they are not. 1:1 they are priced almost identically. An LE Glock costs almost exactly what an LE M&P costs, Bud's sells them for almost the same price as one another... and since M&P's are $439, according to your first statement Glocks should be $239.
decodeddiesel
07-01-09, 13:21
Deco,
My apologies, i should have quoted the original poster.
I mean in order to affix if your firearm did not originally have one.
No need to apologize, just trying to clarify! :)
Well, I've seen/bought Glocks for $540, LE Glocks for $398.00 and M&Ps for $680-719.00. Bought my M&P for $419.00.
So what you meant is that if you look around, you can find a place that has really low prices on Glocks, and a place that has really high prices on M&Ps. OK. :rolleyes:
You bought a Glock for $398. You bought an M&P for $419. Admittedly I wasn't a math major in college, but I'm pretty sure that's a difference of $21, not $200.
Littlelebowski
07-01-09, 13:27
Did you shoot the M&P at Todd's session, Riverine?
FromMyColdDeadHand
07-01-09, 14:50
You can definitely remove a thumb safety from a gun that came with one...however I don't think you can add one without some serious modification to a gun that came without.
Maybe I can trade some hand-me down baby clothes for some trigger time...
decodeddiesel
07-01-09, 14:56
Maybe I can trade some hand-me down baby clothes for some trigger time...
LOL...time is the key word in that sentence.
Did you shoot the M&P at Todd's session, Riverine?
That I did, and had a great time doing it. I'm not a pistol guy, having been dual-armed only on my last tour, so I was taking it slow. Starting from Square One is something I see the Corps NOT doing in regard to sustainment marksmanship all the time, so I'm damned if I'm going to make the same mistake of thinking I can start at a brisk walk whe I should be crawling.
Pretty pleased with the whole event. I'm honestly not as bad a pistol shot as I'd anticipated, though the M&P points like it's sentient. It should come as no surprise to anyone here to know that Todd is an excellent instructor. Being one myself, if in a different vein, I could tell that he had at least 3 ways to describe any given point, and is patient as hell.
The slide lock/release was stiff as blazes to start out with, but I can tell that that is working itself out; no problem manipulating it, regardless. Surprised to find out that my small hands fit the medium backstrap better than the small. Only issue I had, other than having only the 2 mags that came with the gun (2 more coming in from Grant tomorrow), was a nasty misfeed during a reload...while conducting the FAST drill, of course.
I'm uncertain as to whether or not it was something I did or the ammo (185gr semi-wadcutters, in this case) I'd picked up on the cheap and was using. I don't know enough, yet, but I'll be trying to replicate it with the same ammo and some 230gr ball.
Come on dude. :rolleyes:
They are both right about $500 from any reputable dealer, period.
OK sure I've seen dealers wickedly over price items, and other dealers run "sales" that could account for a $200 deviation, but I've seen it both ways. That is I've seen NIB Glock 19s going for $700+ from some stores without any grasp of reality, yet I've seen $480 M&Ps from dealers that are in tune with the market. Does that mean there's a $200 price difference? Of course not.
Just admit you made an exaggeration and accept you were wrong and drive on.
S&W MSRPs on the M&Ps is in the $700s and Glocks go MSRPs in the high 500s. A difference of around $200s. The gun shops I frequent reflect those realities.
Didn't mean to get anyone upset or imply anyone was wrong. My apoligies to all.:)
I'm not a pistol guy, having been dual-armed only on my last tour, so I was taking it slow.
http://www.dailyhaha.com/_pics/dual_wielding_aks.jpg
http://pix.motivatedphotos.com/2008/11/9/633618011146914582-dualwielding.jpg
Beat Trash
07-01-09, 16:31
It was in this thread or another I was reading someone implied that the safety can be installed in a gun that came from the factory without one, and it could be removed from one that came with it?
I contacted S&W customer service about a month ago. Asked them if it were possible to obtain the parts to convert a M&P W/O the safety to a gun with the safety.
I was told it couldn't be done. The M&P's with a safety use a different frame.
Guess I led with my face on that one.
Darn you straight to heck, Todd! :p
Littlelebowski
07-01-09, 16:53
Surprised to find out that my small hands fit the medium backstrap better than the small.
Same here.
Surprised to find out that my small hands fit the medium backstrap better than the small.
People often try to get the slimmest grip they can because it feels nice when holding the gun in your kitchen. But a grip that actually fills the hands and provides maximum contact patch for maximum friction is going to allow you to manage recoil & muzzle flip better.
RogerinTPA
07-01-09, 17:08
I am really thinking about keeping one and turning the rest of them into M&Ps.
That's exactly what I did a couple of years ago. I bought my first M&P (.45), then after an afternoon of shooting, I promptly traded all of my handguns, including a G23, for 3 more M&Ps.
It's so much more comfortable in the hand, picking up a Glock feels like holding a 2x4 next to it.
No lie there. I always hated the Glock's grip. I just didn't fit my hand well. The adjustable palm swells/backstraps, low bore axis, recoil management and a set of Heine straight eight sights, is what nailed it for me. I have been tempted to get some custom work done, but I actually prefer the stock gun.
I also just bought the mid-sized .45 M&P for $469 plus tax. This was same LEO price for the Glock 21SF. I shot the M&P much better, but hated the crunchy trigger. Four days at the PC, and now the trigger is smooooth. I love this gun!
I contacted S&W customer service about a month ago. Asked them if it were possible to obtain the parts to convert a M&P W/O the safety to a gun with the safety.
I was told it couldn't be done. The M&P's with a safety use a different frame.
I don't see why it couldn't be done to a 45 model. I thought that's what the scored square under the serrations is for?
http://www.lipseys.com/eImages/MP45Black.jpg
I mean on the 9/40/357 guns, yeah I could see/understand that. But if those models are comin out with thumb safety models, I don't see why they wouldn't score the frame in a similar fashion on the "next" run.
Beat Trash
07-02-09, 17:36
I don't see why it couldn't be done to a 45 model. I thought that's what the scored square under the serrations is for?
http://www.lipseys.com/eImages/MP45Black.jpg
I mean on the 9/40/357 guns, yeah I could see/understand that. But if those models are comin out with thumb safety models, I don't see why they wouldn't score the frame in a similar fashion on the "next" run.
Not sure why the frames are different, or if the 45 full size frame is the same for both the manual safety model and the model without.
Easiest way to get the real answer is to call S&W and ask to speak to a customer service rep. In my experience if you have a question they can't handle, then they transfer you to the guys who actually work on the guns/build them.
Love that M&P .45 mid-size. Just a perfect size for anything. It's a do it all pistol...CCW, range, competition.
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