Shield 9mm slide difficulty

[araomd]

I have a Shield I bought new a couple of years ago and I noticed after cleaning it yesterday how hard the slide is to pull back to slide lock. It pulls back fine until about the last inch which is very tough. Otherwise looks to function fine.
I have 2 other Shields and they will pull back to slide lock with no difficulty.

Should I just send it back to S&W or is there something I can easily fix?

 

[Glockspeed31]

Are you sure your recoil rod assembly is installed properly? That can sometimes bind up if not in the notch all the way.

 

[Joab]

In for fix

 

[A3370]

I have a Shield I bought new a couple of years ago and I noticed after cleaning it yesterday how hard the slide is to pull back to slide lock. It pulls back fine until about the last inch which is very tough. Otherwise looks to function fine.
I have 2 other Shields and they will pull back to slide lock with no difficulty.

Should I just send it back to S&W or is there something I can easily fix?

This seems to be a common issue with the Shield. Work the slide several times, or shoot it more and the lock lever should loosen up. Mine was so stiff that I thought it was broken, but some research indicated that working the slide was the fix.

 

[Joab]

Can the Shield use +P ammo? wonder if a hundred rounds of that would break it in?

 

[araomd]

Can the Shield use +P ammo? wonder if a hundred rounds of that would break it in?

I've already put probably two or three hundred rounds through it. I'm not sure it's a break-in problem.

 

[araomd]

Looks like something is definitely hitting. Back to Smith it goes. I can't even pull it back far enough to use the takedown lever.
I guess that's why I have 3.

 

[nwbn90]

I'd shoot it some more mines stiff too but works fine... Just a new gun

 

[shootsacanon]

If you swap recoil springs, does it behave the same?

 

[araomd]

If you swap recoil springs, does it behave the same?

At this point I can't retract the slide far enough to use a takedown lever at all. Unless there is another way to actuate the takedown mechanism?