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 New4John 
Member
Joined: Feb 2004  GA, USA
 Posts: 2580 Feedback: 100% (15) |
Posted: 3/14/2011 3:06:17 PM
[Last Edit: 3/18/2011 11:55:43 AM by New4John]
THE IMAGE ABOVE IS A PAID ADVERTISEMENT I've got about 12K through one of my M&Ps and this was unusual, so started doing some more detailed investigation. I took all my mags apart and found 3 followers that were cracked, broken or missing pieces. They were all the first earlier generation mags. I have had no problems with the newest style followers. Below are some pics that may help you in determining which generation you have and what to look for. Front view. Older on the left, newer on the right. There is a distinct difference and you can see how much more robust the new one is. There is a very clear molding line on the old ones. 1 was cracked all the way across and bent up under. 1 was just starting to crack along that same line, and the other was missing a piece. The new ones also have the caliber stamped on top. 
Rear view. The new ones have much more material. 
Side view. You can see how much more steep the angle is on the old follower, which I'm sure contributed to the weakening of that molding seam. 
Piece missing. Here you can really see the molding seam, which is not present on the new style. 
Check those mags and hope this helps. |
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dirksterG30
Barack Obama makes Neville Chamberlin look tough
Team Member
Joined: May 2005 PA, USA
Posts: 2005 Feedback: 100% (6) Link To This Post |
Posted: 3/14/2011 3:51:06 PM
Thanks for posting that; I'm fairly certain that have the 1st gen followers in all my M&P mags, but nowhere near the round count that you have through yours. I'll make sure to check them out, though.
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Wash-Ar15
Member
Team Member
Joined: Nov 2001 WA, USA
Posts: 5856 Feedback: 100% (26) Link To This Post |
Posted: 3/14/2011 4:23:14 PM
Where did you get the new ones? SW? free?
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Posted: 3/14/2011 4:29:24 PM
Originally Posted By Wash-Ar15:
Where did you get the new ones? SW? free? Speedshooters specialties |
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Dog1
U.S. Rifle, Caliber .30, M1
Moderator
Joined: May 2001 IN, USA
Posts: 25686 Feedback: 100% (387) Link To This Post |
Posted: 3/14/2011 9:37:14 PM
I'm going to tack this thread for informational purposes.
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Posted: 3/18/2011 9:27:42 AM
Those pictures are of 2nd and 3rd generation 9mm followers. First generation was black.
There are three generations of 40cal followers also. All 45 cal followers I've seen have been the same. |
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Posted: 3/18/2011 11:56:37 AM
Originally Posted By Gary-G23:
Those pictures are of 2nd and 3rd generation 9mm followers. First generation was black. There are three generations of 40cal followers also. All 45 cal followers I've seen have been the same. Posted updated accordingly. Thanks for keeping me straight  |
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Posted: 5/14/2011 5:50:02 PM
[Last Edit: 5/20/2011 3:56:22 PM by 33shooter]
I've had 4 mags fail on me. 2 at about 2k, 2 replacements at about 1500 later. I think all were early generation.
ETA: All were early Gen .40 followers. Just received 2 new replacements, and both have the early generation followers  |
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Posted: 12/2/2011 3:44:03 PM
Hmmm, can't see the pics any longer. Did they get moved?
My last trip to the range I had a few first round only feed problems with my M&P40. Was shooting PMC FMJ .40 and the flat face of the bullet was actually getting caught on the end of the feed ramp. The copper jacket is obviously soft enough so as to leave a bite mark from the feed ramp. My solution as the time was to remediate: safely lock the slide to the rear, eject the mag, reseat and rotate the round to move the bite mark out of the way, re-insert mag, release the slide to chamber the round. It eventually worked, but one or two rounds ended up having multiple bite marks. This happened probably 4 times in a 100 round range session. Again, first round only. Next time to the range, I'll just load 14 rounds and see if I get the same result. I have had this happen on my personal defense ammo, but haven't shot nearly as much of that, and never after the first round (which could eliminate the concern, since I carry one in the pipe). |
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Posted: 12/11/2011 4:02:03 PM
Um, pic links are broken. Worthless thread to be tacked if the pics are gone.
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Stephen7942
LIVE FREE OR DIE
Team Member
Joined: Mar 2008 MS, USA
Posts: 4042 Feedback: 100% (26) Link To This Post |
Posted: 1/4/2012 8:14:11 PM
I can still see the pics. I need to update 3 of my mags to the new follower
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Posted: 2/7/2012 5:28:17 PM
And another 400 rnds and it's failing again. Guess I need to order new followers myself this time since smith can't do it right.
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FiremanFrank
Member
Team Member
Joined: Mar 2007 FL, USA
Posts: 786 Feedback: 100% (33) Link To This Post |
Posted: 2/23/2012 6:32:29 PM
Thanks for the posting. All of mine are the older style followers. As soon as I hear back from the supplier mentioned I am going to order all new followers.
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Posted: 7/19/2012 11:43:25 AM
Thanks for posting. My M&P 9 FS is a late 2010 model and I just checked and it came with new followers as well did the mags I bought recently.
Thanks for sharing the knowledge! |
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Posted: 8/6/2012 9:57:35 AM
Originally Posted By SaloSV:
Hmmm, can't see the pics any longer. Did they get moved? My last trip to the range I had a few first round only feed problems with my M&P40. Was shooting PMC FMJ .40 and the flat face of the bullet was actually getting caught on the end of the feed ramp. The copper jacket is obviously soft enough so as to leave a bite mark from the feed ramp. My solution as the time was to remediate: safely lock the slide to the rear, eject the mag, reseat and rotate the round to move the bite mark out of the way, re-insert mag, release the slide to chamber the round. It eventually worked, but one or two rounds ended up having multiple bite marks. This happened probably 4 times in a 100 round range session. Again, first round only. Next time to the range, I'll just load 14 rounds and see if I get the same result. I have had this happen on my personal defense ammo, but haven't shot nearly as much of that, and never after the first round (which could eliminate the concern, since I carry one in the pipe). I figured this out yesterday. On my bad mag, the distance between the nose of the first round and the front edge of the mag housing is slightly shorter than the good mag. I'm able to consistently replicate the issue on the bad mag now. |
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Posted: 8/18/2012 1:13:21 PM
Originally Posted By Wash-Ar15:
Where did you get the new ones? SW? free? Call S&W's customer service number and they will ship you the new ones for free, no questions asked other than how many do you need. They really are a first class manufacturer. |
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Posted: 1/30/2013 7:57:46 PM
Do the black gen 1 followers have the same failure problems?
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Posted: 2/2/2013 11:08:23 PM
Originally Posted By jcwillia87:
Do the black gen 1 followers have the same failure problems? I have two first generation M&P9 mags with black followers that I got with the pistol when I bought it new in 2006. I've used them a lot. I also have another first generation mag and follower that I bought later. No problems with them so far. The first gen springs were weaker than those in the newest generation mags even when the older gen mags were brand new. Short answer is no, not in my experience. TS |
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