I bought my 4.25" Prodigy on layaway from Hyatt's Guns in Charlotte, NC in late January and just picked it up yeserday. I haven't shot it yet, but right away notice some of the issues I've read about. I'll go through those and post some photos. Just overall its a beautiful gun. I like the way it feels in my hand. A bit beefier than a single stack 1911. Slide racks easily. Not as easily (for me anyway) as I've seen in some videos with guys racking the slide with just a couple of fingers. I can feel the slide catch on the disconnector, but I'll get into that later. Trigger is crisp, but maybe a little heavy. I dont have a pull weight gauge so this is just my subjective observation. Now onto the issues.

The slide catches on the disconnector. I can feel the slide catch when I rack it. About one out of every ten times I racked the slide the slide would catch open on the disconnector. Just a tap on the back of the slide would send it back into battery.

Here is a pic of the slide held open by the disconnector. You can see the slide stop is not engaged.



Here's a photo of the disconnector. You can see in the photo that the slide is resting against the disconnector.



Another issue is the cerakoting on the slide and frame rails. Its thick and when you rack the slide a few times the lube on the slide and the cerokote mix into a black "sludge."

Back of the gun before racking the slide



After racking the slide less than 50 times




After field stripping and wiping down the frame and slide



The third "issue" is the that the magazine release seems to be defective. It worked perectly at first. Magazines engaged with an audible click and ejected perfectly when the mag release was depressed. After just a few times of doing this somethimg happened. No click when inserting the mag. Sometimes the mag will disengage without pressing the release. Sometimes pressing the release will not release the mag. The mag release button isn't "Springy" now. The opposite side of the release is not flush with the frame.



I can't be too frustrated or dissapointed. I read the reviews and watched the videos so I knew what I was getting into. I hoped I'd be one of the lucky one's and get a gun that functions 100%. However, just based on handling the pistol for less than an hour total, before even firing the first shot, I'm anticipating some issues.

My dilemma, send it to Springfield or work on it myself, cetainly voiding the warranty. My head tells me "send it to Springfield." I am a tinkerer. I love to build and modify things. I have built and modified AR's, a variety of handguns, hell I built a guitar amp, modified electric guitars and watches and have done medium level repairs on vehicles. Point is I consider myself somewhat handy. However, the 1911/2011 platform intimidates me. I would NEVER attempt to do ANYTHING to this Prodigy that requires "destructive" mods i.e. cutting, drilling, reaming, etc. I am tempted to do some mods to this gun rather than sending back to Springfield. I plan to try to shoot it this weekend if the mag release doesn't prevent me from doing so. Some things I've considered doing? Replace the trigger shoe/bow, 10-8 Performance mag release and slide stop, extractor, play around with spring weights, toolless guide rod and EGW ingition kit. I may not do all or even any of the mods listed. Depends on what it needs.

My disco never hung up as bad as yours.  Most of the other issues you noted were present in mine.  I wore the coating down via racking the unsprung slide, and shooting.

I still had a smith install the EGW parts.  Should’ve had him fit a new safety too, my factory one works fine, but is a pure bitch to remove/install.

It runs well, now.

Read up on removing the mag catch, it is easy to break.  Not sure what could be going on there.

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I was in the same boat as you I have the 5" model and had all the issues that was reported online. I tried to put 700 rounds through it and was on the struggle bus the whole time I contacted Springfield, they sent me everything I needed to ship it back to them and within two weeks I got it back and it has performed flawlessly. I would just bite the bullet and report to them what issues you are having and have them take a look at it. They will perform an entire work over of your gun.

Mine is sitting at an addition 1100 rounds of mixed ammo types and grains with no issue.

(Repair Notes)

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Springer makes it easy if you go that route.  Sad they still aren’t getting it right yet, but yours could be as old as mine.

Sounds like the Prodigy isn’t one with exceptional qualities or abilities huh…

I’d send it back…but did you exhibit this at the gunshop prior to buying?

$1500 gun you say?

Beautiful looking pistol though. Thanks for the write up.

This sounds eerily similar to the problems I’ve had with my Ronin EMP. Mine was sent to Springfield twice and it still doesn’t have my trust for carry.

That breech face looks kinda used?  You bought new?

I don’t think that’s cerakote coming out of the slide or at least I’ve never seen that.

They laid it on thick.  When I was shooting mine early on, it was mixing with my lube and making a sludge.  Now after 1300 rounds it is slick.   SA dropped the ball on a few points of these builds, but it seems like a solid gun now.  Very easy to get hits, and finally reliable.

With all due respect but if not cerekote I am at a complete loss. Its a brand new and unfired gun. I field stripped and cleaned  and lubed it up and its still doing it. The slide rails are starting to show areas where the coating is being worn off now. If cerakote is being rubbed off it has to go somewhere. I believe it mixing with the lube on the slide and forming this sludge. I'm sure it will resolve over time with use.

Its new. blame my poor photography skills. I also had my iphone set to 2x zoom.

I showed the guy at Hyatt's how the slide was hanging up on the disconnector. He looked at it sideways but didn't really comment. In his/Hyatt's defense I showed it more as point of conversation. I did not expect nor demand that they do anything.

Mine did the same.  Till I got after it with the bbl/spring removed.
I was pulling that thing like a 16 YO with his first porn mag.
The black crud finally quit coming out after 45 minutes.

UPDATE: I backed out the screw on the right side of the mag catch and tightened back up and it came "unhung" and seems to be functioning fine for now.

I did register my warranty online and sent an email to Springfield listing the issues I'm having. I want to shoot it before I send it in to see how it does with fte and ftf. Someone responded that the turnaround time to Springfield and back was only 2 weeks. I think I can resist the urge to do an amateur gunsmithing job on it for that long.

You were how old when you got your first porn mag? Ha Ha ... I thought that was a typo at first. Now I get it had to read it a few times ...lol

Just noticing your screen name and avatar. Were you in Alaska? I work remotely for a company there. I'm NC but for the last year have been traveling to Anchorage and staying about a week out of each month. Interesting place.

Did the EGW Igitition Kit cure the issue of the slide hanging up on the disconnector?

The black goo is the Cerakote wearing off mixed with whatever lubricant is on the gun.

The disconnector is a multi-part issue. Part of it is the shape of the head of the disconnector, part of it is the sear spring needing adjustment, part of it is the thick Cerakote binding up the slide to frame fit, and part of it is the weak stock recoil spring.

The mag catches in the Prodigy are known to stick. It could be as much an issue with the actual dimensions of the mag catch as it is a dimension issue with the cut in the polymer frame. Most seem to work themselves out with use. Mine was a little sticky at first but it was fine after a few range trips.

I went full blown custom on mine and replaced just about every part, had it ported, and had it DLC coated. It runs any make/model ammo I’ve tried now with a 7 lb recoil spring.

You've got me thinking. The more I examine this gun the more areas I'm finding that appear like "wear." Take a look at these photos. Did I get a used gun?

Possibly. The wear on the hammer and slide stop can happen pretty quickly from hand cycling and dry firing the gun. However, it looks like rounds have been sliding up the breach face. Unless someone cleaned it with a steel brush.

cerakote is not a durable finish on a handgun slide

That looks way beyond a factory test fire.  Hard to believe that was NIB.

And yeah, the EGW ignition kit took away most of the disconnector bump and it runs like it should.

I'm not certain I've just never seen the cerakote do that as far as turning into sludge. I've seen it peel/flake off and get worn through just never the sludge like you show. Certainly not any kind of a definitive opinion.

Born and raised in SE AK

Different guns get different levels of test firing so I'd say that could certainly be that. I've seen guns with significant grease grime and wear direct from the factory. If they did shoot it more than normal that might be part of the sludge you are seeing. I sold guns for years and almost always recommend people have the factory fix problematic guns. There are definitely problems that can be fixed at the user level by some people but as someone on the other side I've seen a lot of guns messed up by customers. Back when I sold guns Springfield was one of the better companies for customer service. I had two of my personal gun I had to send back and numerous customer guns. Most were fixed properly but on the other end of the spectrum my personal gun went back 3 times and I told them I didn't want it back and to send me something else.

Just a few more photos. I have racked the slide at least a few hundred times at this point, but have dry fired it less than ten times. I took the slide off maybe half a dozen times and removed the barrel once.

Personally I wouldn’t worry about it. Keep the receipt, register it on SA for the warranty, and shoot it. If there are any issues send it in to SA for a chance to get it right before doing anything else.

I wish I'd thought to remove my spring and barrel. I worked mine enough that's it's probably due a recoil spring and I haven't even shot it yet.

It sure looks used to me. And that is the way my Ronin EMP looked. I documented everything and the seller and Springfield said it was new. I don't believe any of them at this point.

I emailed all the photos to Hyatt and they called me promptly. The gentleman I spoke to said that while it does appear the gun had been though more than typical factory test firing it is most definitely a new gun. He said that the gun was received by the store in December 2022 and when I laid it away in January they pulled it from stock and set it aside. He also explained some of the legal hoops they have to jump through as new gun retailers. He offered to let me bring it into the store for a thorough check and cleaning, but I declined since I'm about 3 hours from the store. Nonetheless, he sent me a $50 gift certificate to use on their online store. I have not, however, heard from Springfield yet. I'm sure they will respond soon. Sounds like their customer service is pretty on point. I want to shoot it this weekend before send it back anyway.

Use a light oil.  Mine was slow using Mobil 1 30w.  CLP works.

Using Slip 2000 EWL

UPDATE: Trip to the range didn't happen. I was checking mag function by loading to mag to full capacity, inserting into gun with slide locked back and loading round by releasing the slide stop (there's probably name for it. I just don't know what it is). Functioned perfectly 3x. Then the mag release stopped working again except this time it fell out of the gun completely. That was on me though . I played with it a bit and "fixed" it, but it's still very rough i.e. seems really gritty and hangs up periodically. I'm going to try the range tomorrow and will report how she does.

Looks to me it was...or extensive firing at the mothership...

Seems like everyone is using the EGW ignition kit to upgrade the Prodigy. In fact the kits with blued / two-tone hammers are out of stock. There appear to be some interesting alternatives from Harrison Development (True-radius sear) and Nighthawk (Drop-in Trigger system or DTS). The DTS caught my eye. Everything is preassembled and there’s no sear spring adjustment necessary. The big con is the price. At $300 it’s double the cost of the EGW or Harrison kits assuming I don’t pay a smith to install. Nighthawk seems to have a good reputation, but I have not read much about the DTS or whether anyone is using it on the Prodigy.

UPDATE: Range Report

Got the Prodigy to the range to today. Results were problematic as expected. I shot 174 rounds total. Combination of Winchester and Federal ranging from 115gr. to 147gr.; FMJ and JHP; ball and flat nose. I Used 3 mags, the factory Duramag 17rd and 20rd as well as a Staccato 20rd. mag. Before I went I cleaned the pistol and lubed it with Slip 2000 EWL. To my suprise I had no issues with the mag release. Up to now it has only worked intermittently. I started with 50 rds of Winchester 115gr. Target & Practice. Zero malfunctions! I was feeling pretty hopeful. Things went down hill from there. Out of 174rds I had 11 confirmed malfunctions. 10 failures to feed and at least 1 failure to return to battery. There were a couple of incidences where the trigger didn't seem to engage, but pulled the trigger again and it fired (light strike maybe? Or failure to return to battery?) So probably actually 13 malfunctions, but I didn't make note of it and frankly forgot which mag/ammo I was using when it happened. It wasn't until later that I thought to check the guiderod. I found that it had backed out a good 1/8" or more. Unsure whether that could have cause some the FTF's I experience since they increased dramatically after I had shot about 100 rounds.
As far as accuracy, for whatever reason, I was significantly more accurate with the Prodigy than with my Sig P320.

Are they on the second-gen production of these yet?  I want one, but not with all the problems I'm reading about...

That Winchester 115 was the cause of most of my issues, glad it worked for you .

Great spreadsheet btw, and informative range report.  Sucks these things are so needy, but whatever route you go it can be 100% with good ammo.   My reloads were kickin my butt for a while.

You gonna send it back?

That looks promising.  Never heard of it, till now.  I did the *gunsmith did* the EGW LW set.

These things have a high potential. My first attempt at reloading 125 gr SWC worked out well.  And these damn things fed fine, when my 124 gr fmj did not.

20 yards rested.

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Were the FTF fails to go fully into battery? Like a tap on the slide finished chambering.

That was my biggest issue.  I think wearing down the ceracoat, and bumping up to a 14# recoil and the EGW kit is what fixed mine.  Also running a 19# main.  

My gun guy had a 9mm reamer and I told him to ream, but he said it never moved any metal.

Dropped it off at the FedEx hub yesterday

I only had one failure to go into battery. My FTF's were true FTF's where the the round did not chamber at all.

Nice shooting by the way

Sad they let so many out without any QC.  There are some measurements that need to be pretty close on the mag lips, but I hope SA fixes yours up.  Mine are pretty close to staccato measurements, and they always fed. Just never completely chambered.   Sometimes, it seemed like the slide was moving in slow motion.   Ceracoat wear+heavy oil=sludge, as you noted.

I wore that coating down, and will continue to lube with CLP for a while, then see if I can go back to Mobil 1.