S&W Shield "EZ" version - pros, cons, personal experience?.

[AJMD429]

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Anyone have or shoot one...?

My daughter finds even the lightest double action revolver trigger to be difficult for practice, and likes to shoot semiautos I have, but almost all of my semiautos are full-size because I live in an area where CCW doesn't mean it has to be super-concealed.

But she is petite and doesn't want a full size. My only small semiautos are a Beretta 22LR tip-up, and a SIG 938. She's not a "1911 fan" so prefers no exposed hammer.

Interestingly, from what I have read, the other pistols in the Shield lineup are striker-fired, but the "EZ" model is actually a hammer fired design internally.

She normally is CUB (Carrying an Unconcealed Baby) so needs a handgun she can manipulate and fire one-handed, that would be easy to integrate into the other baby-related kit on her person.

I have no experience with the S&W Shield EZ or any other S&W except a vintage 32-20 Model 10.

[Mark in MO]

My late wife had a S&W 380 EZ as "her gun." Dealing with moderate to severe RA, it was one of the few handguns she could operate and shoot comfortably and we tried a number of them. She opted for the model with the safety. Overall hers was a good gun in my opinion, reliable, accurate enough, easy to manipulate and shoot. While not a firearm enthusiast she seemed to like it and as she told me, "it's mine."
Granted, it's a sample size of one but I would not be afraid to recommend one. Hope that helps.

[Ray]

With the caveat that the shield ez is not a front pocket pistol it might work for your/her purpose. My d-i-l has a .380 ez that she sometimes carries and also keeps nearby at night when my son is away (d.o.d. civil service). You can get them (.380, 9mm, .30 s.c.) Obviously the 9mm & .30 are a little larger than the .380 but not by much. The limp-wrist/light grip caused malfunctions that occur with many plastic framed self-loaders seldom happen with these models though occasionally a failure to engage the grip safety happens. You can get the with or without thumb safety.

https://www.levergunscommunity.org/view ... hp?t=87189

[Rockrat]

My wife had a Beretta 21a also, then tried a PPK/s, but too hard to "rack" the slide. EZ in 380 came out and she tried it and loved it. So much, I ended up with one in 9mm and have put about a thousand rounds thru it. It is my usual CC. Wife tried my 9mm but still preferred her 380.

[horsesoldier03]

My youngest daughter is a single mom living on her own. The first pistol I bought her was an 1873 Pietta .22 LR/WMR combo with the 5.5" barrel for a house gun as well as a Ruger 10/22 as well. However she insisted she needed a gun available for when she was traveling. We looked for quite a while and ultimately settled for the S&W EZ in 9mm with the thumb safety as well. She and I together have put approximately 200 rounds of FMJ and JHP through it, it has not had one hiccup even through out her learning stage. IMO, it is an excellent pistol for an individual with little experience with semi auto pistols. She was extremely happy with our final pick as well and is very capable with it.

[Bill in Oregon]

Smith's EZ series has been a blessing for folks lacking hand strength. At the shooting range where I worked in La Luz, NM, those Shields put smiles on a lot of faces -- typically moms and grandmas, but sometimes elderly men as well -- and those with arthritis.