01-13-20 Update below with a better follower fix th stop last round feed lip jumping.

Having a S&W Shield 1.0 9mm for CCW and a S&W .22LR Compact for the Grandkids to blast away with, I have watched the price of the Shield 380EZ drop to half of the original store prices that were MSRP+$.  Then there came a 380EZ 2.0 and a way lesser LGS price and a $50 rebate that made them plain inexpensive.  So I got one for grins.

Photo:  Top to bottom:  380EZ, Compact 22, Shield 9mm with grip tape.



In size, the 380EZ is a Shield 9mm with the 8 round mag installed and a half inch more barrel.  The 380EZ butt is fixed length for one mag size, 8 rounds.

But in operation it is a .380acp version of the .22 Compact.  Identical in size, weight, barrel length, safety dual sided, hammer instead of the Shield 9mm striker same as the Compact.  Stack them and the one on the bottom disappears.  (The Compact 22 has color coded controls for young beginners.  Not factory.  The Shield 9mm safety has never been used.  Just left off since day one.)

The sights of the Shield 9mm are fixed as is the EZ380, but the Compact is adjustable.

Nice and light.  All three.  Holster on belt, not pocket guns.

I cleaned and lubed the 380EZ.  The slide was evenly left and right hand cycled 200 times and dry fired 50.  Both factory mags were run down and back up 50 cycles.  The trigger pull from the box was 4 7/8 to 5 0/0 pounds.  After clean, lube, and cycling it was smoother at 4 3/4 pounds.  With more uneven feel than you would like, but OK.

Found some .380acp ammo to shoot.  Factory rounds in photo plus a factory dupe 95 grain FMJRN handload.



Bench resting at 20 yards was done to windage adjust the rear sight.  It ended up almost all the way to the right.  A screw under the slide unlocks the dovetail to adjust.  Like an old High Standard .22.

The left - right windage turned out to be the same setting and I zeroed the pistol for these:
-95 grain handload FMJRN
-95 grain FMJRN
-90 grain Hornady Critical Defense.

All three feel the same when shot, milder than a 9mm in a Shield.  Like a 90% 9mm.  Not like a .22 at all.

The others:
-Federal 99 grain HST POI about 2” left.  (Nasty, Zippy, Snappy for a .380 in comparison.  Grandma will NOT like it.)
-Winchester 85 grain Silvertip POI about 1” right.  (Oddly mild for a hotly loaded round.  Easiest to shoot with minimal recoil.)

Relative points of impact, windage wise.



Once the rear sight was set, I shot it some.  Not fast or slow or deliberate, just cycling the gun to see how it felt standing up.





Pretty much shootable.  By 15 yards I was getting tired, if honest.

Observations:

POINT 1:
-in fact, the slide pull is easy.
-in fact, loading the magazine with 8 is easy.
-In fact, the trigger pull, safety, and slide release are all easily operated.

-BUT, loading the chamber with one round AND then inserting a magazine fully loaded with 8 rounds takes more effort than the young, weak, geriatric target market will be able to generate.  It is full and tight and barely insertable with the slide forward.

POINT 2:
-The mag release is easily operated.

-BUT sticks out too far and has a weak ass spring making it too easy to operate.

POINT 3:
-The rear sight adjustment system works easily.  The standard these days three white dot system is half OK.

-BUT the dots are lightly once coated and leave deep hollows into the three holes.  Any change in angle or light changes the look by making moving shadows which moves rounds POI left and right.  And I mean 4-6” away from center at a shot.  Smith needs to level the paint, not make deep hole hollows.  (The gun sits now with white nylon nail polish drying in the holes to fix this.  Make a dome and then it drys level.)

POINT 4:
-The EZ380 is moderately shootable as above.

-BUT the 380EZ is not especially accurate.  The Compact .22 shares with the 380EZ a certain randomness in that bullets do not land where you think all the time.  Loading one and then inserting a fully loaded 8 round magazine ends up with the first shot 3-4” right of center almost every time.  The slightest twitch sitting bench rested puts rounds 3-4” to the left.  The Shield 9mm striker fired gun is more accurate and easier to shoot.

-I have to shoot it with the sights filled in level with white nail polish to evaluate this. (Done and re-shot in a second post.)

POINT 5:
-Using both mags and always starting 8+1=9, it ran 100 rounds with ZERO malfunctions. Works perfectly.

-No But to perfect

POINT 6:
-the grip safety is a gimmick.  
-Any normal grip de-activates the grip safety. The firing pin lock already serves as a drop safety.
-With the “thumb safety” model, the thumb safety is actually the only safety if you grip the pistol.  The user has a choice.
-With the “without thumb safety” model there is no user controlled safety in that model.  Its hot the moment you grip it. The user has no choice.
-With a fully cocked 4 3/4# swinging hammer system, I think the safety is essential.  You have a choice, up or down, on or off.
-A user has to think through that issue for themselves.
-I use no thumb safety striker guns, but a light short pull swinging hammer with no safety seemed unwise.

BOTTOM LINE:
-Unless you have a specific need to use its EZ features, I would recommend buying a Shield 9mm first, the .22 Compact second, and the 380EZ only for a specific need or to experiment with, i.e., the curiosity thing that spends money and kills cats.

-the EZ features are so easy that if you are strong enough to pick the gun up, you can operate it, 8+0, drop the slide, and party.  And clear it when needed.

-ammo wise, the Critical Defense and FMJ sharing a zero is a plus.

-The 380 EZ can be shot as well as my Ruger LCP-Custom Model.  The Smith has much less recoil.  The nasty feeling Ruger hits where you aim it.  30-50 rounds is enough in the LCP-C for one day.  The Smith is much less painful and running 100 rounds no big deal as in I shoot my Shield 9mm that much at a time.

-in general, the 380EZ is OK,  but I was under whelmed.

-for advice to noise/recoil shy friends, read women and kids, I am now struggling to know why the Compact .22 is not a better first choice.  In bricks of CCI MiniMags, it has never malfunctioned.  With Federal AutoMatch, it occasionally short strokes when little kids shoot it.  Not limp wristing, just small light weight people trying like hell to do good.  For them, 100% function with CCI MiniMags is also necessary to learning.

For the third annual NRA women’s shoot perspective, see:

https://www.americanrifleman.org/articles/2019/4/8/right-for-you-ladies-pistol-project-3-results/

that is a helluva lot of good first hand information.  one of my older buds is looking at a 380EZ, so I`ll pass this on.  thanks

Nice write up.

Last month I rented a Shield 2.0 and 380EZ.

I agree besides the easy features the Shield 2.0 is the way to go.

I was editing while you were reading.  Very little added.



My Shield with grip tape is unmovable your hand.  The AmeriGlo square orange front and HiViz LiteWave rear jump out at you.  I hope some day the same are available for the 380EZ.  The Ruger LCP-C has grip tape and with the 7 round mag inserted rather than the shorty 6 rounder, stays put in your hand after going whack.

My MIL could run the Shield - trigger pull, racking the slide.

Her arthritic hands had trouble operating the grip safety (ok, so pin it shut) but she also complained about the recoil.

She couldn't rack the slide on a Kel-Tec PMR-30, so she rocks a Ruger SR-22 long bbl now.  She cocks the hammer before racking the slide, world's slowest jam-clearer.  But she can run it.

I filled in the Three white dots fairly well.  Wishing to confirm yesterday’s thought, I decided to shoot the 380EZ.  While at it, I thought I’d then shoot my Shield 9mm on the same target.  When the rain stopped, I started with thin clouds and fairly bright conditions.

Photo:  Plan Part 1 went fairly well in good light with three white dots shooting at 5-10-15-20 yards as noted on the target.  I was fairly impressed with it being easier to shoot with flat white un-shadowed dots.



Photo:  Plan Part 2 started out OK and then went where plans sometimes go.  Planning on shooting the same target at the same 5-10-15-20 yards with the 9mm, 5 & 10 yards went well.  While reloading my mag, the light turned dark, then rain, and then darker.  The black metal sight frames were invisible, but the orange square night sight and green fiber optic dots remained, albeit in-distinct blurs at 15 & 20 yards.  Meaning, I sucked shooting.



The 20 yard target had the rounds going high because I leveled the tops of the big orange front square and the two fiber optic green dots, rather than centering the square between the dots.  You can laugh, but that was the real result.

Photo:  No way to quit on that performance, so I shot the 20 yard rectangle which is “A” zone size again paying more attention to dot square dot alignment.



Take Aways:

a.  The 380EZ sights work a lot better when the white caves are filled in to make flat dots.

b.  Cramming in a full 380EZ mag with the slide forward remains hard.

c.  Shooting the 380EZ and then the 9mm Shield makes it clear how well the basic EZ features work EASILY.  And how stiff a Shield 9mm with a couple thousand rounds through it still is.  Locking the 9mm slide back is hard.  Getting the slide release to let go is a bitch.  I realized I have always used an empty mag to lock the 9mm slide open.  I need a metal Beretta loader to get rounds into the 9mm mag without shredding fingers.  Putting a 9mm mag of 8 into a closed 9mm slide takes effort, like 380EZ.  The 9mm spring is stiffer.

d.  In comparison, the 380EZ features are easy.  If you need those EZ features, it is a good answer.  Low price .380acp is rarely available.  The little cases are harder to reload.  The .380acp is marginally less effective in terminal performance.  Lotta trade offs.

e.  Crappy conditions can remind you of a few things.  . One of which is that switching between roughish single action triggers like the 380EZ and a fairly smooth striker trigger like the 9mm Shield, takes a lot of attention.  Another one of which is why I like my Glock 19.2 and my S&W MP9 2.0 3.6” better than any of these little guns.

f.  This is as fair as I can make it, wild POIs and all.   The 380EZ shot better than the first try with the dots filled in.  The 9mm Shield displayed all its stiff features and misled my bullet’s POI.  There is no substitute for trigger time with a properly set up sample of a gun.  Comparing features on a screen or an ad or over a counter or even with poorly done sight dots can mislead you quite easily.  But at $219 after the $50 Smith rebate, fun is fun and a new tool.  Rebate expires 12/08/2019.

g.  ADDED 12-8-19:  The 380EZ mag catch button sticks up way too high and the spring is too weak.  No matter how looked at, the magazine release button sticking up a mile is one thing on the Compact 22.  It is altogether wrong on the .380EZ as a defensive arm.  The mag catch being the cheapest part, I took it out to re-shape.  The MIM part is harder than case hardening.  A file of any sort will not even scratch it.  Diamond files would slowly cut.  I reshaped the rough textured part of the button to make a round rough top button.  Looked very nice.  Still way too Tall and way too easy to push.

Second effort was to football shape flat dome the entire button top rolling from the rear forward toward the trigger guard following the grip shape.   Grinding away 95% and hand tooling away the remainder made a nice shape.  And rolling lower toward the top and bottom edges.  Then polish with 600 grit that would sorta polish the metal.  Brownell’s Oxyphor Park followed by Super Blue puts back the color.  Looks about like the other end.  Smooth blackish.  There is no tendency to self activate the mag release now.

Photo:  Bottom up view.  I never knew MIM metal could be so hard that a brand new quality high speed file could not even scratch the bluing on it.



EZ as applied to the mag release is dumb.  Mags drops and speed reloads are not likely part of the arthritis, weak, old, kids, geriatric target markets.  A mag should be secure, not come out by nearly random touch.  This reshaping fix works.  Part of the problem is that Smith is not stressing the spring until pushed.  Glock bends and preloads their rod type springs for a stiffer feel.  If I knew for sure how Smith puts the rod into the plastic frame, I might substitute a Glock spring. As in cast in, drilled hole rod, bulb or lump on end in plastic.  Not worth finding out at the moment.

4 mags, springs all yellow paint, no last round loaded round being ejected problem like other thread floating around here.  (Wrong and updated.)

EDIT THURSDAY:

Shot 380EZ again today.  75 rounds.  95 grain FMJ.

Have four mags.  All shooting done loading 8+1=9.

One mag one time did the fire eighth shot and have ninth round lying against the follower jump the mag and stovepipe.

They have fixed nothing.

Short.

Shot 380EZ again today with 95 grain FMJ.  Interested in shoot-ability and accuracy.

Photo:  5-10-15-20-20 yard targets with magazines loaded 8+1 fired to slide lock.  Standing two hand, not fast or slow, just shooting.



My impression remains it is hard to shoot well and not all that accurate.  Which begs the question compared to what?  I tried to compare it to my 9mm Shield above and darkness got in the way.  Today I had along my Remington R1 box stock .45acp to test some magazine followers I changed out.

Photo:  So I shot the .45acp with 230FMJRN on the same target 8 rounds at each distance.



Make you own opinion on shoot-ability.  I think the 380EZ is harder to shoot and shoot well than the box stock .45acp.

On the other hand when done shooting both guns, I had ammo and fired one magazine right hand one handed and then one magazine left hand one handed for 2 1/2 magazines at 5 yards as fast as I could on a 6” Shoot and See.



Index front sight, smash trigger, repeat.  Not bad.  Maybe I should just shoot faster?  

EDIT:

This archived post is the old one trying spacers in the follower.  It is interesting in the randomness of last round feed failures and other problems.

https://www.ar15.com/forums/handguns/Shield--380-EZ-last-round-in-magazine-gets-ejected-instead-of-chambering/16-183078/

I think the magazine follower fix is not screwing with spacers in the spring column or stuff like the other thread floating around here.

The better last round control in the magazine fix is creating a dimple on the follower just in front of the case mouth as it lies on the follower.  To resist, but allow the case mouth to jump the dimple.  Smith has done it before with various magazines.  The original 1911 45acp USGI magazines had and still have a dimple.  I have to find the right metal part and try one.   Smith makes it hard ramping both the rear and front of the 380EZ follower.

Between the sights, the too tall weak spring mag catch, and now this last round jumping the mag, I have no desire to recommend this 380EZ to anyone.  For my sale/rebate price, its interesting but not sufficiently un-ratted by the factory for a non-gun person to buy and to put up with unmodified

got one yesterday and shot it today (80 rounds), 2 factory mags, slide marked 2.0, last round loaded and fired OK and never had a problem. shot left and after i moved the rear sight was good tight group in the center, did all at 7 yds. should be good for wife.

I'm getting the .380 version for my Daughter for her 18th Birthday...
We rented one and she ran 100 rds thru it



8 rds at 25 yds.
She hates Glock triggers. She shot this one very well, right out of the gate.

I'm not a fan of .380 but this gun shoots well for her and she can do all the manipulations of loading, operating the slide, etc.
It will serve her well. When I'm not around to dispatch bad guys.....

I suspect most of these 380EZs do not get shot much.  Or more people would bitch.

My four magazines for the 380EZ accumulated about 400 rounds through them.  All 8+1=9.   It was becoming obvious there were last round feed failures starting with the last loaded round jumping out of the ejection port or a primer against the orange follower vertical stove pipe.

I began using a single magazine and fired about another 100 rounds, some loaded 8+1=9 and then 25 times loading 2+0 and firing to slide lock. By the end, every last round was a stove pipe or on the ground.

It is clear the minimal EZ magazine spring tension does not hold the last round in place.  The mag feed lips are short and do not keep the last round put after the spring weakens.  As the second to last round is chambering, the slide is dragging the last round forward.  The dirtier the slide gets the more the effect.

In the past and present, Colt original design USGI 1911 FMJRN followers have a dimple to keep the last round in place.  Smith has used versions on plastic followers in the XXXX series of semi autos.

Photo:  One version of dimple in 4506 followers to keep the last round from jumping the mag.  Simple mold groove makes a ridge.



Photo:  Colt 1911 MetalForm 7 round follower.  The large .45acp case responds to a small dimple.  The dimple catches the case mouth and holds it in the magazine.



There is no way after the original injection molding that I know of to reform the 380EZ follower with such a feature.  It would just melt.  A close substitute can be done with a simple brass screw and some skill.

Photo:  Modified magazine that was failing every time which I then altered.  It then ran 25 times 2+0=2 today with zero failures.



The how to is a simple Lowe’s brass screw cut short to about 3/16” long, repointed, and screwed into a 1/64” hole drilled perpendicular into the follower in the right spot.  The follower top and follower front are an acute angle so the screw gets cut short so as to go through the follower and self thread, but not interfere with the spring.  The screw looks big, but hides under the bullet nose until the case mouth held by the slide over top pushes the case mouth into the screw head.  A smaller lower substitute in the same location did not catch the rim.  The same screw a little to the rear changed the cartridge angle sitting on the screw and that did not work.





The where is just behind the break of the follower’s front ramp.  Arrows with a single wing are on this photo at the corner of a full width reinforce and the front ramp break.  The center line double wing arrow in the slot indicates the center of the hole just behind the break and in front of the line connecting the reinforce corners.  Drilled on a drill press with the follower locked in a traveler after prick punching the follower hole location.

Photo: With lines.



Photo:  With loaded round viewed perpendicular to case mouth and perpendicular to follower top.  A gap exists on purpose between the case mouth and the screw head.  Farther to the rear for the screw does not work. At this location, no function of the slide or mag is interfered with.



The modified mag ran 8+1=9 and 2+0=2 over and over and never lost the last round.

I added some super gel type Super Glue to the threads of the screw under the follower.  No indication it will ever back out.  The screw threads in to the follower and will index left to right tight up against the follower top.  The glue acts as a nut.  It won’t turn and if it does turn it will not move upward.

Back to my original point.  The 380EZ series has some gremlins that show up with actual use.  If you cannot fix them, I am guessing Smith will have no remedy.  This is their EZ spring and this is their EZ follower.  I would not buy this thing again.  If you do, expect failures more likely the more you shoot it.

Still exploring shootability, I fired it some today on a target.  It is not horrid, but the 4 1/4# trigger has two jumps in it before the bang part.  It is not an easy gun to shoot well.  Some day I may shoot it when its not cold and raining.



The NRA’s test report is interesting.  Their 380EZ had problems in the first rounds and then didn’t after cleaning.  Mine worked perfectly until it didn’t clean or dirty.  Quoting:

“Remember, this gun is engineered to a specific set of design parameters. As with any defensive or carry gun, potential owners need to make sure the ammunition they intend to use works reliably in their particular gun. In the gun’s first 200 rounds of function firing, there were four stovepipes with Inceptor 56-gr. ARX and two instances of the SIG Sauer V-Crown failing to feed. There was one failure to feed, a stovepipe, the last live round in a magazine, with 95-gr. American Eagle FMJ. After cleaning and lubrication with Lucas Extreme Duty Gun Oil, there were no further failures through more than 400 rounds of additional testing. In short, after breaking in, the EZ ran like a sewing machine, digesting everything—including the same loads in the same magazine as noted above. ”

The last round failures to feed seem consistent with today’s product.  Why things don’t work is always interesting

If the Shield 45 did not require a grip safety, neither did the 40S&W or the 9mm x 19.

Then what idiot decided that the 380 needed that feature?

Instant deal breaker.

You can pin it shut if you don't like it.

My MIL had a difficult time w/ the grip safety given her arthritic coke bottle grip.  Knowing me, if that was the gun she'd picked I probably would've just superglued it.

Nope.  Just a grip safety.  The trigger bar is disconnected from the sear until the grip safety is depressed.

The sear directly engages the hammer at full cock as the slide goes back and forth.  Grip safety makes no difference in hammer/sear interface location.

Done.  Mods work.  Now to bitch at S&W Monday.

Photo:  4 modified mags.  One with two lines got first repair try removed and hole filled with plastic epoxy, and then re-drilled like other three.



Fired each of the 4 mags 6 times loaded 2+0=2.  24 tries.  Functioned correctly 24/24.

Photo:  Still think hard pistol to shoot well. Still hitches in trigger.  Steady trigger pull at 4 1/4#. Still POI sometimes does not match visual impression at break.  Snowman is a thick plastic coated waterproof target for rainy days.  So naturally the sun was out.



Fired a few extra 8+1=9 mags with the twice repaired one. More fun that way.  Worked correctly.

The screws work.  Dam shame Smith’s stuff doesn’t.

I would NOT recommend this 380EZ to a friend.  A Smith Compact .22, yes.

Very nice S&W CS lady listened to disfunction and is sending replacement springs and followers. If that doesn’t work, send in magazines to be replaced.  Nobody wants the gun.  Its the mag system.

I politely described 1911 USGI 7 round hardball followers with dimple as a last round retention solution.  Fix the follower mold.  CS passes such info along, but the engineers don’t necessarily listen.

The yellow paint springs are the new ones which I will get again and which I assume will lose tension very quickly, yet again.  The result will be a waste of ammo testing.  Unless the new ones are actually different from the four old sets, my mods are a no more waste of ammo solution.

Thank you for doing this testing.  I was seriously considering this for my MIL last year, sounds like I would've been bitterly disappointed.

Today’s mail brought four yellow painted 380EZ mag springs and four new Orange no dimple followers, each identical, and identical to the sets in the original gun box and from Gunmagwarehouse.  There is no reason to install them.  It will be the same result in a few loading cycles.

While shooting the M&P22 Compact, I noticed Smith puts a last round retention feature into the plastic followers for that gun.  It also lays the first round flat on the follower.  They know how, just don’t seem to care.

Shot the modified sets as above.  Just keep working 8+1=9.

Nice ladies helping me shoot up my ammo had no interest in the 380EZ. They strongly preferred banging away with the copy cat featured M&P22 Compact and the one’s Glock 19.   They thought the real hoot was the .45acp 1911 they shot for grins.

Looked at a 9mmEZ today.  $430.  Same stupid follower design.  Flat top.  Weak axx mag spring.  Don’t waste your money yet.

As a guy who uses my 380EZ as a companion trainer to my 22Compacts, and having shot almost 2000 rounds through the gun, I have to say my results are very different than yours.  Of course, I don't run brass woodscrews through my followers, but that's just me.

According to the log, M&P380 Shield EZ, serial #NCC06xx, purchased 3/30/2018 has ~1960 rounds through it.  Notes say it was returned to S&W for the safety mod 4/9/18, returned a week later.  I preemptively replaced clip that holds the front sight in place at around 1200 rounds just because.  One (1) mag returned due to a noticeable weak spring that was causing the "double eject" on the last round.  I have eight (8) mags for the gun.  All the rest are fine.  The gun does nothing but run. It's the most popular training gun I have (behind the 22Compact).  I'll probably buy one more to keep the round count down on the first one.  The LGSs around here can't keep them under the counter.

I'd have to say the extreme nature of your problems are unique.  I've heard of a few teething problems early, but nothing like the problems you've experienced.

Just needed to present another experience with the gun. There's a reason they're selling these guns like hotcakes.

Other than mag springs and followers, I cannot find an engineering variable.  The mags with the Dec19 gun were identical to the gunmagwarehouse.com “Rev.A” pair I bought.  The mags are numbered 1-4.  I know which did/does what.

I could guess that ammo matters, weaker, slower, being less like to jump the mag, but testing just to test, I cannot afford self defense ammo to waste.

The 95 grain Precision Delta bullet reload is textbook American standard power.  3.0 grains Bullseye.  Factory COAL.

Smith Customer Service surely knows the problem as the CS person had an if/then script and sent springs and followers without question.  They are just the same as the ones that my four mags came installed with, bronze with yellow paint.

In addition to the above, I shot some boxes of Speer Lawman 95 grain FMJ.  Identical results and point of impact to the 95 grain ammo noted above.

The four mags with weak springs and a last round retention device work perfectly.  After the curious, but effective screw mod, they have never malfunctioned, clean or dirty filthy.  I have no intention to sell it, but have replacement springs and followers if I ever did.

I looked at a 9mmEZ.  Same mag release sticking out a mile self ejecting.  Same flat followers over a weak when new spring.

Family-friends love the Compact 22.  And find the 380EZ a so what.

I know the screws are funny, but they work for their purpose and are permanent.  I know why they work.  if the gun ever did something else wrong, it might lead to analyzing a secondary cause.  But it runs perfect with a last round mag mod.

Proper placement of the screws along with size and length are beyond the skill of the EZ features target market.  I would not recommend the 380EZ to anyone.  But the other day the Compact 22 ate 250 rounds of Blazer 40RN without a single malf using its five mags.

If you follow my point of view starting as a big Yahoo, but with a stupid mag release button turning, the magazines turned into a WTF and how to fix it.  I wish it were otherwise.

Same issue in another thread:

https://www.ar15.com/forums/Handguns/Follow-Up-Question-Shield-380-EZ-Last-Round-Magazine-Issues/16-192198/

The problem may be contributed to by low quality springs nearly crushed by loading 8 rounds and inserting into the mag well.

The original and CS replacement springs both measure wire diameter at 0.033-0.036”.  Well and good.

The new relaxed springs are 5.4” long.

The original relaxed springs taken out of the mag body are 4.9” long after use.

A full 10% loss of length and very weak to the feel when inserting the first round.

I want the EZ thumb safety on the regular Shield.

Wait...are you saying you've been shooting reloads this entire time, and you have problems?  And you say "Other than mag springs and followers, I cannot find an engineering variable?"

Please tell me you've eliminated reloads as a variable, and have documented this problem with real live factory ammo.

Boxes of these.



Bought an entire 1000 round case of Speer Lawman from TSUSA.

Reloads as noted.

Not in photo, but a box of AmEagle95FMJ also.  All the same stuff that my LCP-C gobblesmup and never malfs.

But in the 380EZ, the same loosing the last round result after roughly the same number of rounds through each individual magazine.  And then each functions perfectly with the screw mod.

The point was that I am not putting in the new springs and followers and then shooting up the mix of expensive self defense ammo or wasting any more factory ball just to find out how quickly identical springs fail the same way as the original springs.  I already know.

That sounds...  tedious.

Hand cycling the slide/trigger is a simple break-in without wasting ammo.  The burrs and lumps and fuzzy metal edges disappear resulting in a better shooting experience with the first shots.

The mag follower pushed down and then let up with a hardwood block should wear nothing, but if the witness holes are badly punched or the seam weld is rough, you know real quickly.  A metal follower smooths its track and a plastic follower shows you any hangups and problems with scratches.  In a spring cycle life expected to be thousands, 50 doesn’t wear it out.  Unless of course its poor metallurgy and is taking an excessive set the first time you load it.

Wolff gun springs has had a large enough number of requests for proper magazine springs for the 380EZ that they plan to make them in the future.  When, unknown.

Spoke to Smith tech.  Suggested follower feature be added to fix.  Cheap.  Easy. Works.  Polite interest and pass suggestion on.

UpDate:  Put here and in its own reply.

Different 380EZ magazine follower mod that also prevents last round feed failures with original weak mag spring.

The original screw added a barrier to the last round sliding forward pulled by inertia and slide dragging it so that it jumped the feed lips.

This second idea removes plastic from the follower under the loaded case creating a plastic shoulder at the front of the follower.  The bullet ogive rides the higher front part of the follower, the case mouth catches the square shoulder, the rim sits down at the rear, and the slide bumps the case mouth over the shoulder. The weak spring keeps the case pinned down to the shoulder until wacked by the slide.

50 load two, fire two cycles resulted in 100 shots without fail, no lost rounds or any other malfunction, 50 slide locks, and a minimal chewing of the shoulder by the case mouths as the case mouths of half a dozen different loadings made their own shape in the shoulder.  I “think” the shoulder chewing is self limiting and simply moves the stop point a RCH forward.

The mod was simple.  Find the corner of the side of the follower reinforce.  (Arrows in Photos.). Clamp the follower into a traveler or vise so you can see and it cannot move.  Join a straight line left to right.  At the corner of the side, cut straight perpendicular down to the top of the follower forming the square shoulder.  The square shoulder is intended to begin where the side reinforce shoulder exists.  Call it a inside corner if you will. The full width corner part on both the left and right sides.  Deeper than the case mouth thickness sticking out past the bullet ogive, but not too much more.  Level the follower top flat to the rear slope.  Quit after de-feathering and cleaning orange saw dust.  Super sharp file followed by a fine file works just fine.  Silicone the follower to pretty it up.

Photos:











This is easier than the screws, somewhat neater looking, and more closely mimics other last round retention features.  If there are downsides, I haven’t figured them out yet.  I did one of the replacement followers I got from CS.  The four screw moded followers work for sure.  I hate to redo them this way.  There is no observable effect on the gun or magazine function that I can see.  The mag spring sits against the whole follower underneath and does not appear weakened, just thinned on top.

I did a second of my four mags keeping  the original spring, yellow but weakening, using the new CS follower identical to the original ones to make the filed shoulder in the follower rather than the screw to create a retention device.

Fired 2 rounds at a loading till I got bored and cold yesterday.  Worked 100%.  No lost rounds.

Compared to the pictures above with the first filed follower, the second one was cut only about 2/3 that deep and worked fine.  It only needs to be the depth of the case mouth thickness or a RCH more to catch the case mouth.  Every .380 case has a brass mouth thickness above the bullet ogive diameter because the .380 head spaces off the case mouth.

I cut straight down vertical and perpendicular with the edge of a flat file at the front first to get the depth.  Then I used the flat side to level down equally to the rear.  A miniature steel triangle file will clean the corner of the shoulder bottom with out advancing the shoulder.

The second one looks a lot better smoothness wise.  The shallower shoulder after use was not chipping the mini moon like the deeper shoulder of the first one started to do.

Dumb as hell a factory cannot change their follower mold.

Thank you for spending your ammo money to research this issue.  This could help a lot of folks over the years w/ these guns.

You are welcome.

The low price plus rebate that expired made it seem a good idea in case the wifette liked it and for sure I liked it due to approaching decrepitness for which the EZ features might actually be needed.  Store in safe till then.

The mag release was a PITA the first time the mag popped out on me.  But perfectly fixable.

The follower allowing the last round jumping the mag problem showed up only after the mag catch fix and after the damn thing kinda grew on me.

At that point, mother’s are the necessity of invention.

I see no drawbacks to the follower fix filing it into a shoulder.

Amen!  Thank you, LSA!

ETA:  I performed a similar "fix" using #4-40 button head, hex screws.  It's the only thing I did to the mags.  Hand cycling and shaking the crap out of the mags has yielded good results so far.  Let's see what live fire does.  When new, my gun was malfunctioning after the second magazine full of ammo, so I should know right quick if I have fixed it or not.

Filed followers with step.

Bump.

Great fix LSA. S&W would be wise to implement this. I also wonder if installing a small allen head set screw very low in the middle of the follower would do the job, akin to the stamped perforation on a GI 1911 mag follower that catches the rim of the last round. I believe your latest fix would be easier for S&W to incorporate though.

Bumped before it disappears.  Low volume in S&W posts.  Step in follower continues to work flawlessly as above.  Having shot this thing a bunch, I doubt many people will ever shoot them as much over their entire use cycle.

Any other feedback?

150 thru the 2 un-modded mags that came with it, not one problem

Since this is the most active EZ thread:

What is a good holster for the 380 EZ?  IWB or OWB.

I was going to get back out and test this week but a a bit short on one damn caliber....380ACP.....so I am gonna wait till the idiocy cools off on that one.

Thanks for posting all this OP.

No problem.

For the ones that do lose the last round due to weakening springs after a bit of use, a simple mold change could include the same features.  Likewise, a stronger spring would work.  Wolff Springs is working on the idea.

I compared a Walther PP 7 round spring to the 380EZ spring.  Exact same coil front to rear, same coil spacing in the zigzag, but thicker metal in the wire.  The PP left to right is wider because the 380EZ spring goes up into the follower recess while the PP spring sits under a metal follower.  The PP spring is three coil loops plus a bit longer AND about three times stiffer.  That is why Walther PPs feed.

Maybe they should call it the 3802EZ.

In the meantime, the stepped followers have never lost a round.

Other than the PITA of needing to do it, the stepped follower has continued to work just fine.

For me, your original idea also worked well.  I got her to function very well and then sold it. I thank you for the idea.

I will NEVER again own a Smith and Wesson product.  I am so sick of that company.

Hello. I just wanted to thank you very much for your posts.

I just purchased a brand new 380 EZ and mine is exhibiting the random stovepipe.

If I put one round only in the magazine, it often will get stuck and will not feed into the chamber all the way.

If I use one snap cap in the magazine it never gets stuck when chambering.

To determine if I have weak springs, I took the magazine apart and placed a piece of a rubber eraser at the bottom of the magazine.

The added pressure on the spring appeared to assist with the feeding issue. I also found that if I use flat nosed Winchester ammo, it does not get stuck when feeding one single round from the magazine.

The hangups chambering seem to happen more with sig sauer style of ammo (not flat nosed).

So basically I have weak springs in my brand new gun.

I just ordered the following (from wolff springs) to see if they fit the magazine (since you mentioned it in your earlier post):

sku 73563WALTHER PP 7.65 & 9mm, XP MAG SPRING +5% Pak of 3

I emailed Wolff and also asked them when they may make a spring for the EZ 380 and they said that they hope to make them by the end of the year but make no promises.  

I also ordered extra followers in case the spring does not fit and I need to modify the followers and mess them up.

After drawing the line on the follower, what did you use to
cut the straight line down on the follower?

Thank you again in advance!

Gently trap the follower in a vise.

The narrow edge of a super sharp new metal file to establish the location and depth.

Then the flat side to reduce the follower backwards from the slot just created.

Defeather with a fine file and silicone for prettiness.

Thank you so much for the detailed info. I am going to try the new magazine spring out from the walther pp 7 when I get it first and if that does not work I will go with the follower modification.

Did you actually get to try the magazine spring from the walrther pp 7 in the EZ ?

I noticed you said it may be a bit wider.

Thank you again.

Did not fit.

Thank you I will cancel my order before it ships.

Thank you for the idea Lampshadeactual. Here is the ones I made.  

The tools:








I taped off the area that I wanted to cut and drew a line with a permanent marker:




This is where I drew the line:



I put the follower in the vise and started with using the thinnest file and cut down the line. The rest of the process was flattening and cutting till the lip/ledge looked like the ones you made.









I ended up making two. The one with the curve cut into the lip/ledge is the one that I took to the range and tested out. No stovepipe or feeding issues. It started out with the flat ledge but after shooting with it, it made the natural indent from the casing.

The second one I made I gave it a longer ledge/lip. Just curious to see how it will hold up compared to the other one with the shorter ledge.

https://www.ar15.com/forums/General/Picture-posting-tutorial-and-PICTURE-test-thread/168-638569/