M&P Shield .45ACP size comparison

[berettabone]

I sure do like what they've done to the grip with the stippling. It's kind of funny how they've named the largest of the firearms as the compact

[kenemoore]

I carry a Dan Wesson CCO everyday, and in my opinion, this is the best carry size 1911 on the planet (PM9j) as a backup.. However, on the weekends when i have chores to take care of, I typically carry my PM45, it's a low threat area, and the PM45 is light and small. I took it to the range today, and I still shoot it well, but it is quite snappy. Definitely not a pistol for those that are recoil sensitive.

I would like to see how the Shield matches up to the PM45. I would suspect the shield is more pleasant to shoot, but also a tad larger in size. Anybody know how they compare price wise, I would guess the Shield is sub $500.

[ESAFO]

Anybody know how they compare price wise, I would guess the Shield is sub $500.

$429 most places some obviously higher because they can, let the newness wear off & should be sub $400 hopefully soon before election.

[CJB]

.....the PM45 is light and small. I took it to the range today, and I still shoot it well, but it is quite snappy. Definitely not a pistol for those that are recoil sensitive.

I would like to see how the Shield matches up to the PM45. I would suspect the shield is more pleasant to shoot....

Two thoughts.

First is how folks vary quite a bit in what they call snappy recoil, or where they draw the line in what constitutes strong recoil. What one person finds snappy, another finds quite tolerable, and yet another find it intolerable.

The other is just makes the auto loaders "kick". You've got the math way of looking at it, but then again... its been proven that the slide is the part that is doing the "kicking". Testing with the Colt .45 Auto has shown that if the slide is locked in place, the "kick" is much less, even though the total recoil is the same. Recoil being a purely a matter of physics and math, while "kick" is a matter of perception, or how what Julian Hatcher speculated was how the recoil was spread out over time, or though dissipation through a series of separate impulses to the shooter, or even how the gun (long gun or hand gun) "fits" the shooter.

Lots depend on the weight of the slide, which translates into how fast its going to move, and with a bit more calculation how much energy its going to have when it finally stops against the frame of the pistol. And how much that frame weighs, and to a very minor extent, how the recoil spring system works.

I don't find the PM45 to be a hard kicker. But others complain, and some say its just too much to handle. It would be an interesting comparison.

[Harrylee]

Greg you said that it if the slide is pushed slightly out of battery with a round chambered it stays that way requiring a push to go back into battery. When I got my 3.8 XDM compact 45 which looks to be the same size group guns, it would do the same thing and read others saying the same thing with this gun. I really like the gun 9 + 1 for carry 45 ACP and think it’s a mild shooter, but didn’t like it staying out of battery if slide was push back slightly same as yours. So I started looking at why this was happening and found where the square cut of the barrel hood almost went into full battery but the square cut of the slide was hitting so I knocked of the corner on the slide and that made all the difference. You can’t get this to stay out of battery no mater how hard you try now and that was four years ago and has been on my belt every day since. So here are some pics of it maybe yours is doing the same thing. And on target pic of 27 rounds with one second trigger pulls one hand at 7 yards. Hope this helps

[Bills1873]

Very cool, Harrylee! Got a couple friends that have the XDMs, I'm gonna see if their's have this issue and look like a genius when I tell them how to eliminate the problem. Thanks!

[Harrylee]

I did just look up the M&P Shield and is smaller than I thought but still look at the same areas I said before. My buddy had a XDS doing the same thing I took the corners off and no problem after that. Funny thing is it only did it when a cartridge was in the chamber, with no cartridge seemed to work fine. Some how the cartridge made everything move just enough to make it hang up

[gb6491]

Harrylee,
Thank you for taking the time to post this info. I will be investigating it further in regards to my XDS and 9mm Shield. I'm happy to say that when I went to give it a look on my 45 Shield, I found that it now returns to battery on it's own after being pressed slightly out of battery. I guess that Friday's range session is the reason for that....a little "break in" doing it's magic. That's definitely a plus for the 45 Shield.
Regards,
Greg

[zaitcev]

I think that out of the box, the 45 has better ergonomics than the 9. I undercut the 9mm's trigger guard until it suited my tastes.

See, everyone is different. The 9mm Shield was not a problem, but I hate the heavy undercut of the XD-S. Although the recoil is manageable overall, at every shot it whacks a knuckle on my middle finger fiercely. I was thinking about buying XD-S and filling up the undercut with JB Weld, until I came across a (Kahr) P45.

I fondled the .45 Shield in a store, and although its undercut is not as severe as on XD-S, the grip's elongated cross-section felt too much like XD-S. I wanted to buy one before, but now I'm considering a PM45 instead.

[items]

I recently acquired a S&W .22 Compact and have been wondering about getting a Shield since the Compact would be good to use for practice as the controls and mechanics seem to be very similar. I found a comparison finally online of the Shield 45 and the C45 and the side by side pics show them to be almost identical in size (it led me to this thread by the way). I was thinking the Shield would be smaller. I found that the CW45 is a little harder for me to carry comfortably - at least in the leather IWB holster that I have for it. I have a similar holster for the CT380 and it disappears in my waistband. I love the CW45 at the range and was very surprised at the recoil - much less than I had anticipated. I haven't seen a Shield 45 in person yet - can anyone say how it compares in size with the Shield 9mm in hand or a holster? It looks like the 9mm Shield is only slightly smaller than the .45