[washington]

I found and MPc at Gander Mountain and held it in my hand. When I pulled the trigger it felt like sandpaper. It was gritty, heavy and long. Why are people saying the trigger is so great when clearly the trigger has a lot of work that could be done on it? Is it really that hard for SW to put a great trigger on an already great gun? Anyone else experience a trigger let down?

 

[snscott]

Me.

Trigger on my MP40 is easily the grittiest, worst trigger I have ever pulled.



Now, I know what peoples' response on here will be: Send it to Dan for a trigger job. Well, it is nice that you can pay another $150 (with shipping) to get a decent trigger, but the point is: there is just no excuse for S&W to be turning out triggers this bad from the factory. When I recently sent mine back because it started self-ejecting magazines, I stated clearly that the trigger was really gritty. S&W replaced the frame to solve the magazine problem, but did nothing with the trigger. That makes me think the trigger is "within norms" for them.



I like everything else about the MP, but that trigger is atrocious.

 

[Jester]

the grit goes away. That one might have been really dry, hard to tell. Maybe that one was an infamus 10 lb trigger?



Nother question, what are you comparing it to? a custom 1911? Remember this is a combat handgun.

 

[Bloodnut]

Having handled an M&P briefly, I agree the stock trigger is nothing to write home about. That said, it is clear that they can be greatly improved with a little effort on your part or by sending it to Dan Burwell for a very modest fee. Considering all of the other advantages the M&P offers over every other pistol in it's class, it seems worth the effort. The days of purchasing pistols with a decent trigger have past I'm afraid. We have only ourselves to blame for that.

 

[NCPatrolAR]

For me, the M&P trigger was a bit rough at first but smoothed out as I fired it more. Of course I still sent it off to Dan to have some work done to it, but I would carry it without having to send it to Dan also.

 

[TxPhantom]

Mine Is Fine......

If you pick up the MP and just start pulling the trigger it is gritty, but if you cock it and pull the trigger it is not gritty at all. At least mine isn't. But it won't compare to a customized 1911. The trigger is as light as I want it to be for a carry gun.

 

[matt7184]

While I cannot speak for your experience, mine would have to differ. No, the M&P does not have the shortest reset, the cleanest break, or the lightest trigger. From my experiences even in stock new form they are the best triggers in the sub $500 class. I would place the M&P comparable to USPs and Sigs out of the box. With some dry fire and breaking in, the trigger is nicer than either imo. If you want a nice trigger, Dan does them for only $50. I plan on sending all my M&Ps to him for trigger jobs in the future. I am not sending it to him because I NEED the trigger jobs done to shoot the gun accurately, but because I want to. Even in stock form, first time with the gun, I had no problem making head shots at 25 yards with the trigger. I cannot say the same for Glocks and me however.

 

[mad212]

i love my m&p trigger, it will have some work done to it but considering i came from a sigma...sigh..

 

[snscott]

I just today took my brother out to shoot for the first time in something like 15 years. The last handgun he ever fired was a Colt 1911. I let him fire my XD-9, then my MP40, then my HK USP 45.



His first comment about the MP40 was "what is wrong with this trigger?".

 

[washington]

I can see that I am not the only one who thinks the trigger is poorly made. I am sure SW knows this and yet why do they still make such a fine gun with a poor trigger? I honestly do not understand. I think it is wishful thinking to compare the MP trigger to a Sig trigger. The Sig trigger is outstanding out of the box, the MP trigger is far less refined. I am not trying to bring down the MP, I was just really hoping it would have a great trigger. I was very disappointed.

 

[raz-0]

Ok, I've said this before, and I'll say it again. The trigger is not the best, but it is pretty good. It does suffer from some QA issues, manufacturing issues, and a design issue.



The design issue: The firing pin block should be radiused, and not chamfered. It's get rid of some of the grit.



The manufacturing issues:

1) the trigger bar is stamped steel. It is stamped and bent in a way to keep the smooth finished side of the metal in contact with the sear, but you get the stamped edge in contact with the firing pin stop. The quality of finish on this edge varies GREATLY from gun to gun. About 5 seconds of TLC at the factory would get rid of this issue, but S&W doesn't do it.



2) The gun NEEDS lube on the firing pin block, especially due to 1) above. THe gun also needs some lube in other places. S&W for some reason ships the gun BONE DRY. Put some grease on the firing pin stop that will stay in place, dry fire a bit, and things will improve a fair ammount.





The QA issue:

1) The face of the striker leg that engages the sear can vary. S&W simply needs more QA on this part. I've gotten one that was nice and smooth that looked like it got some TLC, one that was average, and one that had tool chatter marks in it. It got polished at the bottom where the sear engages, but polished chatter marks still feel rough.





I think these are the main reasons that opinions vary so much regarding the trigger on the M&P. Some stores prep a display model by carrying out proper maintenance (i.e. lube it up) and others don't. some stampings have a cleaner edge on the nubbin that engages the FPS than others. Some guns are coming out the door with a half-assed striker.



As far as a great trigger, from the factory, I think the best you are going to get is pretty decent. However, for a striker fired gun, it is the first (IMO anyway) that feels anything like a trigger on gun with a hammer and mainspring. Some folks get a little carried away because of that.

 

[Dan Burwell]

Raz-0,

You really hit the nail on the head 20 seconds worth of buffing on the plunger and another 10 seconds on the trigger bar where is interacts with the plunger would eliminate all the gritty trigger complaints. as for the striker face, I have seen some worse than others but for the most part the face is usually in pretty good shape.



But that 45 chamfer has the sharpest edges I have ever felt on something with a chamfer combined with the stamped trigger bar can make for a really crappy trigger when everything is just wrong. The only good thing is the edges do wear down pretty fast.



Again you also nailed it with the grease on the plunger. I have a insert I put in with the guns I do trigger jobs on and that is one of my recommendations. A little slide glide on the plunger makes a huge difference.

 

[washington]

I see what you guys are saying...wonderful information, thanks for the heads up. I wonder why SM does not perform the basic maintenance that you two gentleman discussed. It is frustrating that you must send the gun in for trigger work when it really should ship with a better trigger. Thanks again.

 

[az larry]

A few pics of where to lube would be really helpful. Many of is don't know what you guys are talking about.



Thanks!

 

[K]

You guys have to remember this is combat handgun first and meant for the police, who are not always the most skilled shooters. They are mass producing these things and SW is not going for light, very smooth, sweet detailed triggers.



I can say my MP trigger is not bad at all and I could shoot it in matches or wherever with no issues, I have definitely had and dealt with worse triggers. But again, I know what the MP is made for and not prepared perfectly for from the factory. Im not comparing the MP to any firearm that has had trigger work, maybe even from the factory.



I own and have shot Glocks, Sigs, Berettas, CZ's, SW's, Colts, XD's, HK's and dozens more and the MP trigger is definitely at the high end of those triggers, no worse than any of them and better than a lot of them.

 

[Dan Burwell]

I put up a couple pics of where to polish/lube in this thread:

http://mp-pistol.com/boards/viewtopic.php?p=7909#7909

 

[snscott]

But again, I know what the MP is made for and not prepared perfectly for from the factory

And that has been my point all along. How much extra expense would S&W incur in producing this handgun if they added a step to just simply polish the roughness out of the trigger bar and the little firing pin safety plunger? Not much.



I CAN compare it with a "similar function" factory gun, the Springfield XD, which is targeted at the exact same market as the MP, but the XD trigger is as smooth as glass in comparison, straight out of the box.



All I am saying is: Look how easy it would have been for S&W to have slam-dunked a handgun that was dang near perfect out of the box. We're not even talking about them "going the extra mile". Heck, this would have barely been the extra yard.



I will reiterate, though, that the trigger grittiness is my only disappointment with the MP40. Well, ok, that and the self-ejecting magazines on my original one, but other than THAT...

 

[snscott]

Slide Glide Gritty Trigger Assistance

Hey guys, I just got some of Brian Enos' Slide Glide this week and put it (heavily) on my FP safety and trigger bar and it made a considerable improvement to the feel of the trigger pull. The grittiness is nearly (but not quite) completely gone. Makes that middle third of my trigger travel much less noticeable now.



Now, I am not saying this is as good as a full blown Dan Burwell trigger job, but it sure beats the hell out of the out-of-the box trigger.

Pretty good for just $9.95 plus $3.99 shipping.



I used the "lite" viscosity of Slide Glide as that is the one he recommends for "all carry guns". I ordered it on Tuesday and got in the mail Friday, so pretty good turn-around.



You can order it and/or read more about it at : http://www.brianenos.com/pages/slide-glide.html

 

[TxPhantom]

Re: Slide Glide Gritty Trigger Assistance

Hey guys, I just got some of Brian Enos' Slide Glide this week and put it (heavily) on my FP safety and trigger bar and it made a considerable improvement to the feel of the trigger pull. The grittiness is nearly (but not quite) completely gone. Makes that middle third of my trigger travel much less noticeable now.



Now, I am not saying this is as good as a full blown Dan Burwell trigger job, but it sure beats the hell out of the out-of-the box trigger.

Pretty good for just $9.95 plus $3.99 shipping.



I used the "lite" viscosity of Slide Glide as that is the one he recommends for "all carry guns". I ordered it on Tuesday and got in the mail Friday, so pretty good turn-around.



You can order it and/or read more about it at : http://www.brianenos.com/pages/slide-glide.html

Thanks for the info regarding Brian Enos' Slide Glide. I just ordered the "Lite" and went all out & ordered the little brush too. Sounds like it might be usefull on all my pistols & rifles. Especially on my SW9VE Sigma that really does have a heck of a trigger pull. It might even lighten up the safety on my Bersa Thunder 380. Can't wait to try it. 8)

 

[potisii]

It's not made for competition guys. I think its fine.