Re: m&p shield thoughts?
Hey Sean,
We still carry Berettas and HKs and Sigs, etc, but our primary issue handgun is now the full size S&W M&P 9mm. IIRC, the S&W Shield has been approved for back up and off-duty carry.
Personally, I’m not a fan of striker fired guns, especially those without an external safety (which our model of MP9 does not have) and although I’ve been through our department certification training to allow me to carry the MP9, I’m sticking with my Berettas (plural).
I was issued an MP9 for about a minute (just long enough to go through the training) and then I turned it back in. It shot pretty good – I actually think follow up shots were faster/better on the MP9 than my Berettas and I think I could eventually get used to the MP9 but I didn’t want to make the time and money investment (buying all the same accessories that I have for my Berettas for the MP9).
I played with one MP9 that was fitted with APEX Tactical internals and WOW, super silky smooth shooting! Night and day difference between that and stock. Unfortunately (fortunately for my wallet), our department technically doesn’t allow modifications like that.
IF I were to buy a smaller S&W M&P platform, I think I would probably go with the compact. It’s a little bigger than the Shield but can take the full size MP9 magazines. And that’s only if I decided to switch over to the full size MP9 for duty…
Now all that being said, a handful of my partners in my unit recently purchased the Shield and all of them love it – I think they prefer the 8 round magazine with the pinky rest.
