Smith & Wesson Bodyguard

[mitommy]

I had the opportunity to shoot a friend’s Smith & Wesson Bodyguard. Both of us had issues with the recoil causing us to some how causing us to hit the mag release. We tried altering our grips but the problem kept occurring. She bought that gun because it easily fits in her purse for self defense. However, she has come to the conclusion that whatever is causing the problem has made this a 1 shot pistol, and not a good carry gun.

Has anybody had similar experiences?
What did you do to resolve the problem?
If she decides to get a new pistol, What comparable sized alternatives should she look at?

[zcolt45]

Contact S&W issues

Problems Link

[Fuel Fire Desire]

S&W might be able to solve the issue for you by tweaking the magazine release, assuming it’s out of spec.


Other options to look at are the new LCP Max, which is about the same size but has 10 or 12 round mags. Similar price point as well. The classic LCP is a dime a dozen, should be had for cheap.

My personal mouse gun, which may or may not be the option for you, is a NAA Guardian. They offer it in .380, but mine is in .32 NAA (not ACP), it’s a .380 necked to a .32. Though, it’s a block of stainless, and heavy. More expensive as well. I prefer it over the bodyguard and LCP because of the weight and feel, and I like the caliber better (I had one in .380 as well) but it might not be what you’re after. Other similar options are the beretta Pico, Taurus TCP, KelTec P3AT (the gun the LCP and other mouse guns borrowed from), and on the more expensive side the Colt Mustang, Sig 238, the Springfield equivalent, and the Kimber.

Keep in mind that all of these mouse guns are going to have snappy recoil. Just the nature of them.

[Leader]

Or.... just a little larger but my wife prefers, the Glock 42.
Without a doubt the softest shooting .380 I have ever shot.

[mudoven]

Tell your friend to get a holster and stop carrying her pistol in her purse.

[Leader]

Tell your friend to get a holster and stop carrying her pistol in her purse.

I'm just thankful that my wife is finally carrying.
Her purse is MUCH better then the gun cabinet here at the house.

[3rd FocalPlane]

yep heard of this 3 times now and from those people it was, " upon inserting the loaded magazine,
I now push hard or hit the mag bottom to ensure it goes in all the way to seat and click."

( another easy shooting pistola . . . . Wife handled 14 different pist & rev to weed it down to 5, then shot each
of the 5, and put "her" money on the Sig P238 / .380acp, determining factors, weight, size, easy to rack, low recoil ! )
6 stores, and actually handled 22 . . . over 2 weeks )

The purse . . . . a mostly sore subject. Anything that goes into her purse, is lost property. Its so stuffed it would take alot of ft lbs to get a
filler gauge into it. And car keys also go in there. And if its too tight a fit, the fob has buttons. . . . that may get pushed. And if they get pushed
the tail gate might just open . . . . even while in the garage. And the garage door might just be down, but the tailgate will try like hell to open it ! !
Tailgate motor is stronger than i thought. . . $900 damage to tailgate, and $400 on garage door ! I cringe at the word purse

[Blue XJ]

Bodyguard 380? I couldn't stand shooting mine and ended up selling it. I never had the mag drop, but it was hard to hold onto. I bought a Springfield 911, in 9mm, much nicer to shoot and easier to hold onto. It's more or less the same as the Sig 938 I believe. That's a couple options you could try out.

[Fuel Fire Desire]

Bodyguard 380? I couldn't stand shooting mine and ended up selling it. I never had the mag drop, but it was hard to hold onto. I bought a Springfield 911, in 9mm, much nicer to shoot and easier to hold onto. It's more or less the same as the Sig 938 I believe. That's a couple options you could try out.

Yeah, the micro blowback guns are savage in .380. My .380 guardian was the most savagely recoiling gun I had, even more so than my .454 Toklat. It’s small size wasn’t enough to distribute recoil. It jumped around and beat my hand up quite bad. The .32 NAA version is a bit more tame though, even with the same energy and powder charge.

[kryl]

I'm just thankful that my wife is finally carrying.
Her purse is MUCH better then the gun cabinet here at the house.

What convinced her to do it?