[NCLEO89]

I've thought about picking up a S&W M&P .40, but one thing gives me pause: Those goofy-looking pinned triggers [a la Glock]. It seems to me that those tiny little pins would eventually break. Is anyone aware of this ever happening?

 

[JaPes]

I've got about 3,500 rounds through my M&P 9fs with no issues whatsoever. I haven't heard of one ever breaking.

One piece of advice, make sure you get a newer production M&P pistol. From what I gather, S&W is porting over the excellent trigger set up from the Shield to the rest of the lineup. The Shield's trigger break & reset is very communicative. The reset is very palpable & gives an audible click.

I have no complaints about my "old" M&P 9fs trigger. It's communicative on the break, but not so much on the reset. It's just something to get used to.

 

[WvDave]

I have the M&P 40 Pro model. No troubles with the trigger holding up and I have not heard of any. Many of these weapons are used in LE where they HAVE to work.
What JaPes said: S&W has made some changes in their trigger in terms of feel and reset.
I did not like my trigger as received it. It was gritty with a less than ideal break and reset. I installed the Apex duty trigger kit in it and now I love the trigger.
So it would be best too get the newer trigger set-up but I don't know for sure how you would know that before buying.
The Apex kit is not expensive if you need to go that route.

 

[Gunpoor]

Never heard of any trigger breakage on the M&P models. The only complaint I recall is on the early production guns which were prone to rust if not cared for meticulously (since rectified). Outside of that they have been very trouble free and sell quite well.

 

[jlh820]

I tried some earlier M&P's and I didn't care for their triggers. Hopefully they've ironed that out now. I like their steel chassis in a polymer frame. If the trigger is fixed, it's probably a great gun. I've never shot the 40. Many 40's are snappy. I'd recommend shooting it first.

 

[NCLEO89]

No worries, jlh820...I've shot the .40 before. On a different note, while I've been tempted to buy a Glock, I've never taken that particular plunge...but I just might get an M&P. Reason being, it comes with an optional manual safety, the Glock doesn't.

 

[JaPes]

What JaPes said: S&W has made some changes in their trigger in terms of feel and reset.

I did not like my trigger as received it. It was gritty with a less than ideal break and reset. I installed the Apex duty trigger kit in it and now I love the trigger.
So it would be best too get the newer trigger set-up but I don't know for sure how you would know that before buying.
The Apex kit is not expensive if you need to go that route.

WvDave speaks the truth about the trigger. I've read too many reports of the M&P trigger being gritty. When I bought my 9fs, I declined to accept the first and second pistols the clerk brought from the back. They had that gritty feel to the trigger. Third one out was good, no gritty feeling.

The easiest way to tell if the M&P Pistol you have in front of you is of new production with the Shield trigger is to feel the trigger reset. Dry fire the pistol the dealer brings out for you to inspect.

If it has the newer trigger, You will definitely feel the trigger reset, there is no ambiguity in the feeling of it. You will also hear a *click* at the reset. It's hard to explain, but you'll know it when you feel it. Also, take a look at the test fire date on the little envelope with the spent case. I'm assuming that the closer that date is to the present day, the higher the chance that it will have the newer trigger.

The older trigger, you won't feel that reset. You'll let the trigger travel all the way forward and not feel it. It took me a hundred rounds to attune myself to the very light & vague feeling reset point.

...I don't know how to describe it... the Shield trigger reset is like someone talking in a loud voice... the old M&P trigger reset is like trying to listen to someone someone barely whispering while in a loud room.

 

[Vultite]

Apex puts out a great product. As far as the actual trigger pins breaking I've yet to hear anything about that. Apex does make a metal trigger replacement if you want that. He's the difference with/without Apex

M&P trigger pull test (standard vs Apex Tactical) - YouTube