M&P Pistol Contract Canceled Due To Rusting

[CSIBPD]

A large police dept in AL used to have a contract with S&W to supply the M&P 9mm to all the rookies coming through academy. However, that contract has been dropped because the M&P, even though it is described as "stainless," is prone to rusting.

There were several M&P pistols, new in the box, that were sitting in dry storage, waiting on the next batch of rookies. When those boxes were opened, the rear sight and top part of the slide had rust spots on multiple M&Ps. I myself had this problem on my own M&P .40, and as such no longer carry it.

Glock will pick up the new contract with the new Gen4 9mm being issued. I have switched off to a Springfield XD .45 for my primary duty weapon. I have never had a rusting problem on a Glock, Springfield, or other similar handgun that is coated with melonite.

Back to the drawing board for S&W...

[FiremanMike]

I've owned 3 M&Ps, 2 of which were carried on duty (read - wet, nasty, dirty). I've never seen a spec of rust on any of them.

[Drum Roast]

I'm surprised. Did a google search on rust+M&P and it returned more than a few hits. I know they aren't super expensive but they're a little more than glocks.

[dontknowwhy]

I've had a .40 since the first year they came out and haven't had any rust issues at all. I wonder if they used a differrent metal or something. I had a Sig that got bad rust on the barrel, though.

[yellowreef]

There was a problem with the early models which S&W admitted to, and corrected. It had to do with the prep process for the finish. They replaced the slide with new ones for anyone affected. Any new model shouldn't have this problem. So, basically old news posted as breaking news

[GLOCKMASTER]

A large police dept in AL used to have a contract with S&W to supply the M&P 9mm to all the rookies coming through academy. However, that contract has been dropped because the M&P, even though it is described as "stainless," is prone to rusting.

There were several M&P pistols, new in the box, that were sitting in dry storage, waiting on the next batch of rookies. When those boxes were opened, the rear sight and top part of the slide had rust spots on multiple M&Ps. I myself had this problem on my own M&P .40, and as such no longer carry it.

Glock will pick up the new contract with the new Gen4 9mm being issued. I have switched off to a Springfield XD .45 for my primary duty weapon. I have never had a rusting problem on a Glock, Springfield, or other similar handgun that is coated with melonite.

Back to the drawing board for S&W...

I would say there is more to the story here than is being told. Also you say you stopped carrying yours because of rust. Did you try to contact their customer service to get the slide replaced? FWIW stainless will rust if not properly maintained.

We are in the process of transitioning to the M&P and we have had a couple of hiccups. S&W has bent over backwards to provide us with excellent customer service to fix our issues. What some people fail to realize or want to understand is that production guns have issues from time to time. What seperates the good manufacturers from the ones not so good is their customer service. We had SIGS and had trouble with them. We have carried Berettas that had issues. I have seen departments have trouble with Glocks and watched as Glock's customer service failed to respond. I have seen H&K fail to respond to a departments needs.

I would say that someone was looking for a reason to stop purchasing the S&W's. As far as S&W needing to go back to the drawing board, I doubt it.

Sounds like you are trying to spew hate for the M&P.

Which department in AL is dropping S&W?

Oh BTW I own several Glocks and carry a G19 as an off duty weapon.

[markdh720]

[QUOTE=GLOCKMASTER;2182654]

I would say that someone was looking for a reason to stop purchasing the S&W's. As far as S&W needing to go back to the drawing board, I doubt it.

Sounds like you are trying to spew hate for the M&P.

QUOTE]

If you think about it, it's actually a testament to S&W's firearms. They are catching up to Glock in "propaganda" threads which means they are close in quality.

And, for what it's worth, I'm a Sig guy. Glocks and M&Ps are all junk. HAHA! Just kidding, guys.

[ford_shooter]

I had trouble with my M&P9 rusting on the slide even with proper cleaning. I called S&W and they had me send it in to them at no cost. They sent it back with a new slide and barrel.

[Name Taken]

My SW MP40C shows no signs of issues. I've had it for over 2 years and it's my OD weapon. It gets carried in the rain, snow, summer heat, ocean air, and is usually kept in a IWB holster.

No signs of issues at all. It gets lubed usually once a month and wiped down. Cleaned after range trips.

[Till]

People still don't seem to get that not giving your weapon routine wipedowns = corrosion.

You can have the biggest POS handgun on the market, but keep it well maintained, and you will never see rust.

I've yet to see rust/corrosion as an inherent, unpreventable problem in any weapon.

[cpd169]

I purchased a used S&W M&P 9MM last year that had been carried as a duty weapon by an officer with another agency for over 2 years. It had some holster wear, but no rust inside or out. It pretty much stays in the box most of the time and I've yet to see any rust. Other than cleaning it and wiping it down after shooting it shortly after I got it I haven't done anything to it.

I've been carrying Glocks both on and off duty since I got my first G-17 in 1987 although I will wipe the outside down 3-4 times a year I've never had any of them rust. I've seen some rust on standard steel parts, i.e. slide stops, springs, etc on some of my officers' Glocks when doing the recommended annual strip down inspection on them, but have never seen any rust on the slides. I suppose it's possible, but I've never seen it happen.

I find it very hard to believe that new-in-the-box production pistols from any major manufacturer that had been kept in "dry storage" would have any rust on them. As others have said, I believe there has to be more to this story than is being told.

+1 for Till's post above. That's been my experience too.

[yellowreef]

I agree with the routine maintenance aspect. My duty H&K will show surface rust (light) in certain areas fairly quickly (Overnight - 2 days) if it is exposed to rain, and it has the HE (harsh environment) finish. I don't care what brand gun you have, dunk it in a water bucket and wait a day or two and see what happens. These guns have corrosion resistant finishes, not corrosion proof...

[eman2k5]

I had trouble with my M&P9 rusting on the slide even with proper cleaning. I called S&W and they had me send it in to them at no cost. They sent it back with a new slide and barrel.

When you were sent a new slide and barrel did it have a new SN ?

[ford_shooter]

When you were sent a new slide and barrel did it have a new SN ?

nope

[Rblake]

We had this issue in the academy last October, as well. We found it was prominent after enclosing the weapons in their tightly sealed cases after use if there was any degree of moisture left on it. We were told to either remove it from the case & store it in a safe, or just leave the gun's case open.