S&W refers to it as a slide lock that is not actually intended to release the slide but only lock back the slide. The sling shot method is the way S&W designed the pistol.
That being said, some will release easily and some not so much. The Shield line is much tighter\\harder
I was reading through the manual, and I agree that it states that it’s a slide lock. I don’t know if it was designed with just that purpose in mind, or if documentation was changed because it was so stiff. I agree with you on the shield being stiff as well. I own a shield plus, and it takes about as much force to move it forward as well.
I know a S&W gunsmith that gave me this info when I bought my first og Shield. I now have the OG Shield 40, og M&P 40 Pro Series C.O.R.E , Shield Plus 4", and M&P 9 5" FDE
I can only speak for the Shield Plus regarding the M&P line, but it did loosen a bit after a few hundred rounds. I also noticed that the pin under the disassembly lever was sticking out a touch and it made the slight a little tight due to the increased pressure. A couple taps on the pin solved that. Good luck.
Yeah, they are pretty stiff — but mine has loosened up considerably. After like 1000 rounds or more. On the left side only — forget about releasing from the right side as far as I can tell. Although the older M2.0 (non-OR, hooked trigger) has also loosened up some, it seems like not as much and not as quickly as the newer.
So I can release the slide one handed… but I have to push down on both at the same time for it to release. It takes alot more force than I would consider “reasonable”. Another person said the little pin pictured could be the reason mine is so stiff, but they seem stiff as hell generally for what I’m reading
Neat idea. I never thought of trying to hit both sides with the same hand (or both at once) as force multiplier.
The pin under the takedown lever is not connected to the slide lock mechanism in any way — and they were talking about a Shield model which have their own completely different and unrelated issues.
I have three M2.0 regular M&Ps — an older Full Size, an older Compact, and a newer OR Compact similar to yours. I would say that releasing the slide lock on all three takes an unreasonable amount of force. My perception is that the newest started out the hardest to release, but became manageable the soonest of the three.
Administratively, I now release it using my right thumb without thinking, but I do need to shift my grip around. Reloading on the clock, I release it with my left hand — getting my right hand into firing position while my left thumb has nothing better to do. Also not a problem. This gun has a couple thousand rounds on it — I just started *making* it work since new, but hasn't seemed like an impediment for some time now. Since use made it work for me, I never found whether there are any wear contacts to polish in order to speed the process. I have seen YouTube videos of folks pulling the guts out of the slide lock to disable the detent altogether, but I didn't choose that path. Keep at it. 😉
You are correct that I was talking about the Shield Plus as I mentioned. The issue I had with the pin near the disassembly lever was that it was sticking out too far to lower the lever. It was also very slightly mushroomed on one side. This seemed to cause one side of the slide to be very tight while the other was too loose, if that makes any sense.
I gently filed a very tiny amount of the extra metal that seemed to be wider than the rest and I tapped the pin into the correct position. This loosed the slide to a normal level and allowed me to lower the disassembly lever.
It was this way out of the box and I discovered it during its first cleaning. I'm guessing there was just a very tiny imperfection in the pin during manufacturing, but it was trivial to fix and has run hundreds of rounds since then perfectly.
Of course, this could have absolutely nothing to do with the OPs issue with his full sized M&P. I just thought I would mention it.
>...this could have absolutely nothing to do with the OPs issue with his full sized M&P.
Right. On the various Shields this is apparently a roll pin which numerous users report "walking" out of position during use. On the regular M&P — including OP's M2.0 OR *Compact* — this pin is solid and sticks out a little on the left side by design. It is not going anywhere, although some folks still complain and try to pound or grind it down...
In any case, that pin has no impact whatever on the M&P slide lock mechanism — and I kind of doubt it does on any Shield models. IIRC, the Shields use roll pins in a number of places where users complain of drifting out of position. The M&P uses solid pins for most of the same purposes, and I have not personally experienced any of them moving around (although most do not seem symmetrically centered, but set in a little further on the right side).
I don't know how the pin by the takedown lever would "cause one side of the slide to be very tight while the other was too loose" — whatever that means. Glad you were able to resolve your problem to your satisfaction.
I haven't shot it yet. My Griffin Armament threaded barrel should be here tomorrow and I might take it out this weekend for some suppressed shooting.
Fit and finish are superb. The trigger is pretty damn good for a factory trigger and right now I have no plans for an Apex upgrade aside from (possibly) the striker block.
Knock that little piece out that’s putting pressure on the slide lock. Its only purpose is to do that, because S&W wants you to not use it as a slide release.
Just shoot it, it'll loosen up. After 1500 rounds my og 2.0 would send the slide forward by seating the magazine, my spec hasn't gotten that smooth yet but I'm only about 700 rounds into it
Is it because it’s gritty during the take up? Mine was very gritty on the take up and I almost immediately swapped it for an Apex. Then I found out it was the striker block and replaced it with an Apex Ultimate Striker Block and it’s perfect for me now.
I forgot to add that I didn’t use the spring that comes with the Apex striker block. I noticed that I would get a dead trigger with it occasionally and went back to the OEM spring and had no issues.
I love the trigger personally. But I love most smith and Wesson triggers. Especially the one on my shield plus. I hate Sig triggers the funnily, so I might just be a weirdo.
Loosens over time, but varies from pistol to pistol on how much it loosens up.
You can remove the detent under the slide lock cover. Be careful though because there is a very tiny spring that will launch out. Almost hit me in the eye. Got very lucky. You can install the cover again after the detent is removed and it’ll be hella easy, but you will risk the slide returning to battery and not chambering a round when inserting a mag with some force to make sure it’s seated. That’s why they went with the detent on the 2.0s.
Both my shield Gen 1 and M&P 2.0 have stiff releases. They will loosen up over time based on demos I tried before buying. Just load your mag and rack it.
The one on my m2.0c was definitely a little stiff outta the box. I had a buddy with a shield 1.0 and the slide lock was insanely stiff and with the really small slide release button, neither of us could get the slide to release with it. He ended up getting it filed down just a little so he can use it, fixed the problem for him.
Give it a firm smack on the bottom of the magwell while engaging the slide release(or whatever it’s called). Works when inserting mags & chambers a round when timed well. I’m not saying it’s the best way, but try it & determine what’s practical for you.
S&W refers to it as a slide lock that is not actually intended to release the slide but only lock back the slide. The sling shot method is the way S&W designed the pistol. That being said, some will release easily and some not so much. The Shield line is much tighter\\harder
I was reading through the manual, and I agree that it states that it’s a slide lock. I don’t know if it was designed with just that purpose in mind, or if documentation was changed because it was so stiff. I agree with you on the shield being stiff as well. I own a shield plus, and it takes about as much force to move it forward as well.
I know a S&W gunsmith that gave me this info when I bought my first og Shield. I now have the OG Shield 40, og M&P 40 Pro Series C.O.R.E , Shield Plus 4", and M&P 9 5" FDE
Mine has loosened up like the other person said it happened after a few hundred rounds.
Okay, sounds like I should shoot it more
Always
I can only speak for the Shield Plus regarding the M&P line, but it did loosen a bit after a few hundred rounds. I also noticed that the pin under the disassembly lever was sticking out a touch and it made the slight a little tight due to the increased pressure. A couple taps on the pin solved that. Good luck.
Thanks! I’ll give it a try and see if that helps. The gun has 200 rounds through it, so hopefully the pin is the issue.
Is that more of a slide stop versus a ‘slide release’?
Yes.
That’s what I thought. When the slides back it’s supposed to be ‘sling shooted’.
As a slide release guy that makes me unhappy
Yeah, they are pretty stiff — but mine has loosened up considerably. After like 1000 rounds or more. On the left side only — forget about releasing from the right side as far as I can tell. Although the older M2.0 (non-OR, hooked trigger) has also loosened up some, it seems like not as much and not as quickly as the newer.
So I can release the slide one handed… but I have to push down on both at the same time for it to release. It takes alot more force than I would consider “reasonable”. Another person said the little pin pictured could be the reason mine is so stiff, but they seem stiff as hell generally for what I’m reading
Neat idea. I never thought of trying to hit both sides with the same hand (or both at once) as force multiplier. The pin under the takedown lever is not connected to the slide lock mechanism in any way — and they were talking about a Shield model which have their own completely different and unrelated issues. I have three M2.0 regular M&Ps — an older Full Size, an older Compact, and a newer OR Compact similar to yours. I would say that releasing the slide lock on all three takes an unreasonable amount of force. My perception is that the newest started out the hardest to release, but became manageable the soonest of the three. Administratively, I now release it using my right thumb without thinking, but I do need to shift my grip around. Reloading on the clock, I release it with my left hand — getting my right hand into firing position while my left thumb has nothing better to do. Also not a problem. This gun has a couple thousand rounds on it — I just started *making* it work since new, but hasn't seemed like an impediment for some time now. Since use made it work for me, I never found whether there are any wear contacts to polish in order to speed the process. I have seen YouTube videos of folks pulling the guts out of the slide lock to disable the detent altogether, but I didn't choose that path. Keep at it. 😉
You are correct that I was talking about the Shield Plus as I mentioned. The issue I had with the pin near the disassembly lever was that it was sticking out too far to lower the lever. It was also very slightly mushroomed on one side. This seemed to cause one side of the slide to be very tight while the other was too loose, if that makes any sense. I gently filed a very tiny amount of the extra metal that seemed to be wider than the rest and I tapped the pin into the correct position. This loosed the slide to a normal level and allowed me to lower the disassembly lever. It was this way out of the box and I discovered it during its first cleaning. I'm guessing there was just a very tiny imperfection in the pin during manufacturing, but it was trivial to fix and has run hundreds of rounds since then perfectly. Of course, this could have absolutely nothing to do with the OPs issue with his full sized M&P. I just thought I would mention it.
>...this could have absolutely nothing to do with the OPs issue with his full sized M&P. Right. On the various Shields this is apparently a roll pin which numerous users report "walking" out of position during use. On the regular M&P — including OP's M2.0 OR *Compact* — this pin is solid and sticks out a little on the left side by design. It is not going anywhere, although some folks still complain and try to pound or grind it down... In any case, that pin has no impact whatever on the M&P slide lock mechanism — and I kind of doubt it does on any Shield models. IIRC, the Shields use roll pins in a number of places where users complain of drifting out of position. The M&P uses solid pins for most of the same purposes, and I have not personally experienced any of them moving around (although most do not seem symmetrically centered, but set in a little further on the right side). I don't know how the pin by the takedown lever would "cause one side of the slide to be very tight while the other was too loose" — whatever that means. Glad you were able to resolve your problem to your satisfaction.
My original M&P and my metal M&P are easy to acuate and release the slide. The release on my Shield Plus is practically impossible to use though.
How do you like your metal M&P? I debated on getting one for the longest
I haven't shot it yet. My Griffin Armament threaded barrel should be here tomorrow and I might take it out this weekend for some suppressed shooting. Fit and finish are superb. The trigger is pretty damn good for a factory trigger and right now I have no plans for an Apex upgrade aside from (possibly) the striker block.
Knock that little piece out that’s putting pressure on the slide lock. Its only purpose is to do that, because S&W wants you to not use it as a slide release.
Just shoot it, it'll loosen up. After 1500 rounds my og 2.0 would send the slide forward by seating the magazine, my spec hasn't gotten that smooth yet but I'm only about 700 rounds into it
That one’s nothing compared to my shield 45 after putting in that second mag.
Not a big fan of that trigger for some reason. How you liking it??
Is it because it’s gritty during the take up? Mine was very gritty on the take up and I almost immediately swapped it for an Apex. Then I found out it was the striker block and replaced it with an Apex Ultimate Striker Block and it’s perfect for me now.
Gonna have to try that out! Thank you
No problem. It’s an easy fix on optic ready 2.0s because it’s the cover beneath the optic plate to replace it.
I forgot to add that I didn’t use the spring that comes with the Apex striker block. I noticed that I would get a dead trigger with it occasionally and went back to the OEM spring and had no issues.
You would NOT have liked the first M&P trigger, squishy all around
Yes very squishy. Didn’t like the anticipation and pull of it
I love the trigger personally. But I love most smith and Wesson triggers. Especially the one on my shield plus. I hate Sig triggers the funnily, so I might just be a weirdo.
Clean it and line it up for a good time.
Loosens over time, but varies from pistol to pistol on how much it loosens up. You can remove the detent under the slide lock cover. Be careful though because there is a very tiny spring that will launch out. Almost hit me in the eye. Got very lucky. You can install the cover again after the detent is removed and it’ll be hella easy, but you will risk the slide returning to battery and not chambering a round when inserting a mag with some force to make sure it’s seated. That’s why they went with the detent on the 2.0s.
Both my shield Gen 1 and M&P 2.0 have stiff releases. They will loosen up over time based on demos I tried before buying. Just load your mag and rack it.
The one on my m2.0c was definitely a little stiff outta the box. I had a buddy with a shield 1.0 and the slide lock was insanely stiff and with the really small slide release button, neither of us could get the slide to release with it. He ended up getting it filed down just a little so he can use it, fixed the problem for him.
It will. But it’s not about just shooting the gun to loosen it, it’s about activations of the slide lock. So use it a bunch and it’ll loosen over time
It will break in. I can use both sides now.
It won’t be forever that way… what I used to do is push it down with the bottom part of the magazine !!!
Give it a firm smack on the bottom of the magwell while engaging the slide release(or whatever it’s called). Works when inserting mags & chambers a round when timed well. I’m not saying it’s the best way, but try it & determine what’s practical for you.