Hard to Control M&P 9 Shield

[hambam105]

https://youtu.be/7Mk1nykjnYA

The practical application of this technique should quell the brutal muzzle flip on any 9mm pistola.

[sweetfoal]

Couldn't agree more.

I personally shoot my Shield at the range all the time - every single range day I put at least a few mags through it. It is a carry gun after all, and you should be proficient with a carry gun.

The Shield is far more accurate than any human can be behind it. If you're having troubles with a Shield, assume it's you not the gun.

Slapping some grip on will not fix you nor your bad technique - it will only mask some of your bad technique and reinforce bad habits. Your larger, heavier CZ is doing the same... it's size and mass are almost like training wheels - you could be doing a lot of things wrong but it's helping you keep on target because of it's size and mass.

Think of it like Golf. Can you self-teach yourself to hit the ball and drive to 300+ yards? Sure, and there's plenty of YouTube videos helping show you what to do etc... but any long time Golfer will tell you, getting some professionally guided training, and immediate feedback about specifically what you are or are not doing correctly makes this a much easier task to pull off. The longer you golf without formal training, the harder it becomes to unlearn all the things you do implicitly when taking a swing... basically you end up fighting yourself to have proper technique.

Get training... 'nuff said.

Must agree. I practiced with my G19 quite a few times last year which was my first firearm. Recently I bought a gen 1 shield, surprisingly I always shot better than the G19, even at 15 yards I already can make a 8 inch group only after 3 trips to range with not more than 200 rounds in Shield. It's a very pleasant range gun to me, at least more than G19 is.

But practice a lot dry fire at home. The key is to find the unique way grip it that works for your hands when pulling the trigger it causes the minimum muzzle move. After a year I still struggled with G19 grip, exploring different ways to hold the gun. with shield I was able to quickly find the right gripping despite the 8 lb heavy trigger.

[tacticalcity]

Its a fine gun, take the gloves off and try again.

This. Gloves make it harder to grip a gun. Not easier. Shooting gloves help with things like slide bite, and protect you if you are using nasty chemical based smoke and stun grenades. As well as if you are going through nasty/rough terrain. I suspect that's not the case here. So you don't need 'em.

All small guns in a large(ish) caliber have a lot of recoil and are less than easy to shoot. Less weight and shorter barrel are the reason.

We get them because they are easy to conceal - while still being lethal. Not because they are a joy to shoot.

That said. All guns are fun. This one is just going to take some getting used to.

[Stumpfenhammer]

Everything is relative.

I can shoot the same groups with a Shield at 25-yards that I can with a Gen 3 G17 with a Wilson barrel. 10 rounds under six inches, unsupported, and I'm 99% sure I'm no more naturally gifted than anyone else, but...I train, I get trained, and sometimes I even practice. My point, if you can dedicate the time and have the interest, you can become very competent with a Shield/G43/P365, even if you have XL-size hands as I do. And in my case there was very little learning curve with the Shield due to my prior investment in training.

Here's are a couple of groups my buddy and I shot with the Shield not long after I bought it. His group was better than mine and that was his first time shooting a small pistol: https://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/....php?t=1254165

Photos and description of the Shield being used in a class where everyone else was running full-size pistols: https://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/...7#post22106977

Here's a photo of how I had my Shield set up, as well as the custom magazine holders I had made so I could shoot it in USPSA matches: https://www.calguns.net/calgunforum/...8#post19497338

Of course there is a trade-off in small pistols, and for me it's primarily that reloads are easier to fumble, but that's a relatively small concession given the ease of carrying.

After putting about 3,500 rounds through it I traded the Shield for a G43 then sold that for a P365. The P365 is a better gun for me than the first two, but all three of them are good carry guns and preferable to my G26.

I say keep training with it and have fun discovering just how competent you can become with a small pistol. And try sticking your trigger finger farther through the trigger guard than you usually would...I've also heard good things from other Shield owners about the drop-in APEX trigger, might be worth a look.

[sweetfoal]

My friend has 158 grain subsonic 9 mm that he uses in his shield very effectively makes it feel like a Glock 17 much more manageable


Dictated but not read, voice typing plus bad eyes equals typos

Heavier bullet would leave less recoil, but I shoot 115 gr with a shield as good as cz p01 at 15 yards. That's an eye opener to me, never expected shield is this good.

As John Wick once said, "Dry fires, a lots dry fires".

[dno]

My S&W Shield compact in .45 is no problem to shoot and get good groups.