My new S&W Bodyguard 2.0

[mossy]

I'm using the Desantis Nemesis of type "MK" (aka N38BJ3AZ0)


Settled on Federal Hydra Shock Deep as ammo. Other great options are regular Hydra Shock and Punch both from Federal.

you are not going to get consistent expansion and if the round does partially expand you wont get adequate penetration out of a 2.75in barrel. the test barrel for the listed velocity on that ammo is a full inch longer than the barrel on the bodyguard 2.0. JHP's never preform well out of micro barrels.

[12pewpew]

I have the LCP and BG1.0 and they're definitely not the guns to run some fancy pants JHP's in. I usually just run a decent non JHP brass round even for pocket carry.

[Thrashard340]

Just picked up a BG 2.0! I've owned the OG Shield before and hated it for the clunky ergos, sold some time ago. Since then I've been using a SIG P938 and SIG P365 as my carry guns.

Then the 'new' Bodyguard came out in 380 ACP:
- Less then 10oz empty (!)
- Very thin
- 10rd standard capacity

Weighed it loaded against my others:
- P365 = 1lb 7.3 oz
- P938 = 1lb 4.3 oz
- BG2.0 = 14.7 oz

The weight difference is remarkable. The gun is so light it's almost comical. Empty it weighs almost the same as my cell phone. Even when loaded it still pretty much vanishes in my front jeans pocket. The BG2.0 simply looks like a shrunken version of a full-size gun - the slide is tiny and the frame is small. Everything is thin. Have not shot it yet but all reviews point to recoil being very mild due to the round and also the low bore axis. Overall size in terms of length & height actually very similar to my other guns.

What I like:
- It's comfortable
- Great balance (in contrast the P365 is somewhat top heavy)
- I can get most of my pinky on the grip
- Ambi mag release is incredibly easy to remove
- The trigger safety is 'flat' and feels better than a glock

Room for improvement:
- The recoil spring is stiff AF!
- The manual safety is also stiff. But that's ok since it won't be using it anyway...
- Magazines are very stiff when fully loaded
- Mag release button is a little long IMO
- Stock sights not that great. The rear sight in particular is rather cheesy - no tritium dots and the aperture is huge (enough to fit 2-3 front sight widths)

Nice review. A few comments:

- I would be interested to see how it would size up vs a Glock42 since both are .380. A fully loaded G42 (although only 6 rounds), weighs in at a listed 15.87 oz. (empty weight 12.17 oz).
- Not surprised about the stiff recoil spring. Although I do not own an M&P 2.0, I have handled them on several occasions. And on that model, the recoil springs did feel stiffer vs some of the other comparable models in its class (Glock, XD).
- Same with the mag spring, I recall M&P 2.0 mags tougher to load once you get closer to capacity.

Good review though. I would like to check one out for myself eventually.

[DJD100]

you are not going to get consistent expansion and if the round does partially expand you wont get adequate penetration out of a 2.75in barrel. the test barrel for the listed velocity on that ammo is a full inch longer than the barrel on the bodyguard 2.0. JHP's never preform well out of micro barrels.

For that reason a lot of 380 users select the solid fluted rounds like Underwood's Extreme Defender, which will give proper FBI spec penetration without over-penetrating if expansion is inhibited like traditional HP's (assuming proper functionality etc).

[mossy]

For that reason a lot of 380 users select the solid fluted rounds like Underwood's Extreme Defender, which will give proper FBI spec penetration without over-penetrating if expansion is inhibited like traditional HP's (assuming proper functionality etc).

Those things won't run in my 2.0 they get caught up on the two part feed ramp.

[sd_shooter]

Shot the gun yesterday, it was a bittersweet experience...

Good
- Recoil is pretty good for such a light/small gun when held firmly
- Easy to produce a palm-size group from 7 yards (that's my anticipated distance when facing a Bad Guy...)
- Ball ammo and round-nosed hollowpoints ran 100%

Room for Improvement
- Those fancy Hydra shok Deep rounds would not feed at all! At least two failures per magazine - 1st round, last round, or in between.
- The jacket on those rounds is "crimped" and is intended to peel back upon impact rather than truly mushroom
- The edge of the crimp gets hung up on the feedramp gap, see mossy's pic in the post above ^^^


So I'll try to sell the rest of my ammo and try something else. Plain cheap Prvi personal defense ammo was ok.

I'm usually on the side of "Carry the very best you can afford" but in this case reliability certainly trumps everything else. Some will say even just plain FMJ is the best choice when it comes to 380 - are hollowpoints really going to mushroom when going through a real torso? All those youtube gelatin tests are still somewhat artificial, we'd be better off seeing how these rounds do against something like a deer.

BTW first time shooting any 380. Sure sounds like a 9mm and based on how my steel targets reacted, hits pretty close to 9mm as well. 10 rounds of this is pretty good for a micro pistol!

[sd_shooter]

I guess I'm not alone - S&W forum has a recent thread on the hollowpoint feeding problems

https://smith-wessonforum.com/smith-wesson-m-p-pistols/737707-bodyguard-2-0-hollow-point-problem.html

[sd_shooter]

FWIW here are the relative OAL, left to right:
- Federal Hydra Shok Deep
- Prvi hollow point
- Ball ammo (Monarch steel case)

The Prvi and Monarch both ran well, 'Deep' could virtually never feed well. The bullet is very conical and the crinkled edge is just looking for something to tangle with!

[sigfan91]

I would use round nose flat point bullets if I were to use this for self defense. They should feed reliably, decent penetration, and possibly good wound channel.

[sd_shooter]

So I went and bought another BG2.0 today (yes one can do that here in free states.) Wanted to get one without the manual safety. I'll sell the old one.

Seems like S&W has addressed the feeding issue, the latest batch of guns has a different feed ramp profile! Old one has a square edge, new one clearly machined a little deeper to reduce the lip.

OLD


NEW

[Huero23]

Interested

[acaligunner]

The 1st priority in a SD pistol is reliably feeding each and every round so that if needed additional shots can occur.
In 380 acp ~ if that means feeding fmj is what works then that’s what you use.

My P238 reliably feeds Hornady ( polymer red tip ) 90 gr ammo, so that’s what I use.

Good luck on the S&W bodyguard 2.0.

[mossy]

So I went and bought another BG2.0 today (yes one can do that here in free states.) Wanted to get one without the manual safety. I'll sell the old one.

Seems like S&W has addressed the feeding issue, the latest batch of guns has a different feed ramp profile! Old one has a square edge, new one clearly machined a little deeper to reduce the lip.

OLD


NEW

Dam......I'm going to have to check my barrel, got it a few months after launch. I wonder if they will replace my barrel if I have the old one.

[sd_shooter]

Dam......I'm going to have to check my barrel, got it a few months after launch. I wonder if they will replace my barrel if I have the old one.

Well if you have no issues don't worry about it. FWIW I would have expected mine to have all the known issues fixed but it clearly didn't. I field stripped two units at the store I bought my new one and both had the modified feed ramp.

But while a light polish might be ok I wouldn't remove any metal if you want S&W to work on it. Their warranty is great if it comes to that, they email you a fedex label and you drop off the package. Free! (Well I shipped a long gun, perhaps hand gun is different...)

[sd_shooter]

Well I bought some Federal HST and ran it through the new gun yesterday - about 200 rounds total, 150 of those were HST. Made sure to pack the 10rd mag full and shot with 10+1 each time since that's how I'll carry. No issues!

What did I learn?
- The round nose of HST works well in this gun
- Manufacturing updates to the barrel feed ramp are clearly beneficial

This gun can have a little "slide bite" if you push your hand very high. There's a little beaver tail but it's still small since it's a small gun.