Did you read Jeremy’s review of the new M&P 380 SHIELD EZ? He’s a fan. A five-star fan. But Smith & Wesson has just announced that they’ve found a problem that didn’t turn up in Jeremy’s testing. When shooting hotter ammo, the added recoil can, in some limited cases, cause the manual safety to flip from fire to safe.
That may not seem like a big deal…unless you’re using your pistol as a personal defense weapon. All you have to do is flip the safety off again to go live, but you can see the potential problem.
Smith says they’ve designed a fix and they’re offering a free upgrade on any M&P 380 SHIELD EZ built prior to April 4. Which, since that was only two days ago, you’d have to assume includes pretty much every gun sold so far. Here’s their press release:
CONSUMER ADVISORY
To: M&P® 380 SHIELD™ EZ™ Manual Thumb Safety Owners
SPRINGFIELD, Mass., (April 6, 2018) – Like any firearm, the function of the M&P 380 Shield EZ Manual Thumb Safety pistol can be influenced by the type and quality of ammunition used with the pistol. In the case of the M&P 380 Shield EZ Manual Thumb Safety, we have found that in very rare circumstances, ammunition that produces a high level of felt recoil can cause the manual safety to move from the fire to the “safety on” position during firing. Should this occur, you will not be able to fire the next round unless and until the manual safety is reset to the fire position.
At Smith & Wesson, we are committed to designing and producing firearms that meet the highest quality and performance standards. To ensure that every Smith & Wesson handgun meets our standards for reliability and performance, as of April 4, 2018, we have engineered the manual safety so that it will be less susceptible to the influence of ammunition weight, velocity and loads. Any M&P 380 Shield EZ Manual Thumb Safety pistol produced before April 4, is eligible for a no-cost upgrade. To determine if this consumer advisory applies to your pistol, please utilize our serial number verification tool on our consumer advisory page. Click here to navigate to that page.
If your pistol is subject to this advisory, please call Smith & Wesson at 1-800-331-0852 or email us atMP380EZAdvisory@Smith-Wesson.com. A FedEx return label and shipping instructions to facilitate the return of your M&P 380 Shield EZ pistol will be mailed to you promptly. If you have any questions, you may call 1-800-331-0852 for more information.
WARNING: READ AND FOLLOW THE WARNINGS IN YOUR OWNER’S MANUAL. NEVER USE “PLUS-P” (+P), “PLUS-P-PLUS” (+P+); OR RELOADED AMMUNITION WITH THE M&P 380 EZ. ALWAYS USE FACTORY MANUFACTURED AMMUNITION PRODUCED TO SAAMI SPECIFICATIONS.