Smith M&P Shield vs. Sig P365

[Doc Safari]

I'm a new convert to the M & P Shield, but watching several videos on YouTube about the Sig P365 I'm becoming drawn to it too.

After having sold off a bunch of guns to pay for a big tax bill this year I actually have a surplus so I'd appreciate a "Pros and Cons" assessment of the Shield and P365 head to head.

I'm kind of starting with the premise that both pistols are great EDC weapons, but is one slightly better than the other in your mind?

What I know so far:

1. Shield beats the Sig on price unless I missed an offering somewhere.
2. Sig holds slightly more rounds
3. Sig had some teething problems (?) that may be in the past
4. Shield's mags are a pain to load (my personal experience)

So, those of you who own both handguns, which one do you prefer and WHY?

How many rounds have you put through each?

Any reliability or durability issues?

Do you find one more accurate or points better?

Any concealment issues?

I've not looked into the availability of mags for the Sig, but I'm assuming on this point both are equal.

(I searched for a pre-existing thread on this but didn't find one).

[lsllc]

I own both. Actually multiple Shields.

I have over 1,000 rounds down both platforms.

I’d rather shoot the Shield and I’d rather carry the Sig.

The Shield is more accurate, recoil is more controllable, and contrary to the mass opinion, has a much more manageable trigger.

At least with my examples, the Shield has about 50 FPS more velocity. Perhaps this is an advantage in terminal performance, but I cannot provide any evidence to support that conclusion.

The Sig does hold more rounds. It also comes with more pleasant to use sights as well as better grip texturing.

Sig magazines are even harder to load than the Shield magazines.

The price of the Sig is about $100 too high in my opinion.

The trigger on the Sig is terrible. While it’s a relatively flat, light trigger, it has some kind of plastic bushing to act as a hard stop in the striker that fixes the trigger a very artificial break and stop. It just doesn’t feel like a real gun; that’s the only way I can describe it.

So far, my Sig is still kicking without issue. I plan to take it to 2,000 rounds before I clean and lube it and call it carry worthy.

I believe a set up Ameriglo sights and some stippling turns the Shield into a phenomenal carry gun. The capacity doesn’t concern me as I’m more confident with shot placement and the platform overall.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Doc Safari]

I believe a set up Ameriglo sights and some stippling turns the Shield into a phenomenal carry gun. The capacity doesn’t concern me as I’m more confident with shot placement and the platform overall.

Yes, I've noticed the slickness of the grip. With wet or sweaty hands the Shield might be kind of drop-prone. That was one thing I hated about early Glocks, too.

[signal4l]

Yes, I've noticed the slickness of the grip. With wet or sweaty hands the Shield might be kind of drop-prone. That was one thing I hated about early Glocks, too.

I have a 1.0 version Shield. The grip was way too slick. I put a Talon grip sticker on it. Works great even after a couple years. Highly recommended

https://talongungrips.com

The other complaint I have with my Shield is the annoying texture Smith & Wesson put in front of the trigger guard. This is a knuckle buster. Easily fixed with some sand paper wrapped around a sharpie marker.

I put a set of ameriglo cap sights, an Apex trigger kit and a talon sticker on my shield. I have over 3,000 rounds through the gun. It's one of the most useful firearms I've purchased. I'm a big fan.

[WickedWillis]

I have owned two Shields. For the price, they are the best, most reliable single stack 9's on the market imo. The reasons I never kept them were imo hinged triggers are retarded, the stock trigger is decent for Smith, I never really wanted to invest in an apex upgrade that was almost half the price I paid for the gun. At the time I owned them, quality holsters were hard to come by. The grip is too slick, I took it through a light concealed carry class and needed more texture.

I have way more trigger time on the Shield. I have rented the P365 twice, and it is personally my favorite "single stack" 9mm that I have shot so far. Good factory trigger, excellent sights, handles recoil surprisingly well (124gr, nothing +P or heavier from me), and has great factory texturing. I haven't bought one yet only because I have not had any free money so far this year, but I will own one some day. I might even skip over the P365 and get the P365XL for the slightly added velocity. YMMV.

The Shield is more vetted, priced better, has more aftermarket support (Now) has had less overall glaring issues as well. I've just never really been in love with it.

[Beat Trash]

I own 3 of the gen1 Shields. Triggers vary from gun to gun. I put Apex sears in all three guns and talon grip tape on them.

If going with 2.0 Shields, I wouldn’t have to do the above. I bought my first Shield the week they were first announced in 2012? I have no clue how many rounds I put through my 9mm Shields over the years. But enough through each gun to vet them and to trust them.

I own one Sig 365. Mine was made and bought last October. It has about 500 rounds through it. Zero issues.

I can shoot the 365 better than I can shoot my Shields. My Shields have a tendency to have brass to face/head every so often. Not an issue with my 365.

I have large hands with long fingers. The thinness of the Shield grip combined with the roundness of the front strap causes the gun to pivot or roll in my hand ever so slightly. The front strap of the 365 is just square enough that I can lock my hand down and the gun stays put.

When dry firing the 365, it’s “ok”. But I like the trigger much better as I’m actually shooting the gun. One really has to shoot the gun to appreciate the trigger. When shooting my Shield side by side with my 365, I like everything about the 365 better than the Shield.

Neither gun is a primary carry gun for me.

The only drawback to the 365 to me is Sig did such a poor job releasing this gun. Mine has been GTG so far. But I constantly wait for something to happen. It helps some when I learned that State Patrol in my state and in the neighboring state both are purchasing 365’s to be issued to their Troopers as a BUG.

I won’t sell off my Shields as they are functional and dependable pistols. And also, with the current pricing on the 1.0 Shields NIB, I’d have to basically give them away. Resale on the 1.0’s is so low that I’ll just keep them.

But for a BUG at work as a LEO, a NPE gun, cutting the grass and puttering around the house gun, a I’m on vacation in a low threat environment but my my faith in humanity is still so low that I’m still going to carry a gun, gun, the Sig 365 has replaced my Shields. And my Shields are what retired my J-Frame revolvers.

[SlimMan]

I've owned a Shield 45 and a SIG P365. I like both (have read that the Shield 45 trigger is much better than the 9, but no personal experience). The P365 has better sights, a very good trigger, and greater capacity (you can now even get a 15 round magazine) than the Shield 9. Both have hard to load magazines-stiff springs-when new. Both were very reliable and accurate for me; the P365 has nearly 2200 rounds through it and the Shield 45 had about 1600 through it before I sold it (after buying the SIG). We all have different grips and presentations, but the SIG points more naturally for me. They both carry well, but the SIG feels much smaller when carried. For the down side, the SIG is more expensive (the best price I've seen recently is about $470) and the magazines a pricy at about $35 or more.

[halfmoonclip]

Concur that SIG is uncommon proud of their magazines, but remember it took years before $20 Glock mags were availabe. Now that the P365s are down in the $30 range, it's not too much a burden.
The price on the pistols is coming down as well, tho' I've not seen anything cheaper than the $499 that is now common in these parts.
Moon

[amyacker]

I've owned a Shield 45 and a SIG P365. I like both (have read that the Shield 45 trigger is much better than the 9, but no personal experience). The P365 has better sights, a very good trigger, and greater capacity (you can now even get a 15 round magazine) than the Shield 9. Both have hard to load magazines-stiff springs-when new. Both were very reliable and accurate for me; the P365 has nearly 2200 rounds through it and the Shield 45 had about 1600 through it before I sold it (after buying the SIG). We all have different grips and presentations, but the SIG points more naturally for me. They both carry well, but the SIG feels much smaller when carried. For the down side, the SIG is more expensive (the best price I've seen recently is about $470) and the magazines a pricy at about $35 or more.

Shield 45 has both 1.0 and 2.0 versions. The 2.0 has a much better trigger than the 1.0, and will also have the "M2.0" on the side, while the 1.0 will not have anything but the caliber.

[.223Pound]

Both are great guns you can't go wrong with. Any problems the 365 had upon release have long been resolved, most is just regurgitated internet nonsense. I bought mine last April and it is flawless through 1000s of rounds. I don't think there is a person on the planet who would notice the small sight radius difference on these ccw designed 9mms. The Shield is cheaper, but the Sig is better out of the box with the trigger and quality night sights. Since you have the Apex installed already, the triggers are probably close to equal, that would come down to personal preference. If you were choosing between the two new, I would recommend the Sig. Since that's not the case, I would say making the switch is much more a want then a NEED. The one glaring difference is capacity and that matters more to some then others, besides that they are very similar guns.