# Question Regarding Breaking-In New Handgun



## Kemosabe (Oct 28, 2012)

If this question has already been answered, I do apologize.


I have a Smith and Wesson M&P 40c and I'm looking to fire it this weekend. How many rounds would you consider to be the best for breaking in this handgun?

Thanks in advance for your help!


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## Sgt45 (Jun 8, 2012)

It all depends on the individual gun. If it can go 300-400 rounds without any malfunction then I'd feel OK about carrying it. Usually the manufacturer will have a specific number of rounds to put through the gun to "break in" the weapon and you will find that in the owners manual. Just because you shoot the required number of rounds through the gun may not mean that it's good to go, reliability is the key.


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## rex (Jan 27, 2012)

If a few stoppages happen in the first 100 rounds I don't worry,but if there's a pattern to it or doesn't go away I find out why.If the gun is set up a touch tight,she may puke a little until things burnish in,but it'll stop.All depends on the tolerance swing in that line and how the tolerance stacks-Put alot of max tolerance parts together they'll bind,alot of min spec parts and it's sloppier.General answer because I don't know this line of guns,but it's a trait of manufacturing something.


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## Kemosabe (Oct 28, 2012)

So, within 300-400 rounds if I have no issues, it's good to go. If I have several issues, then I need to get it checked out? Just want to make sure I have this right.


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## chessail77 (Mar 15, 2011)

Go forth and shoot the hell out of it, clean and lube as per owners manual before first range visit and learn to disassemble and keep lubed both the pistol and mags, be safe and enjoy


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## RugerNut (Oct 9, 2011)

Buy some snap caps and watch your favorite tv shows while dry firing it. That and/or feed it as much ammo as you can afford. Invest in a Uplula loader,if you don't already have one. :smt1099


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## TOF (Sep 7, 2006)

M&P's are typicaly very good pistols. As with any brand of mechanical item there is an occasional defect that slips through. If it hickups excessively S&W will take care of it at no cost to you.

I feel a few hundred trouble free rounds are necessary to provide the feeling of comfort when carrying it down the street. 
For what it is worth the 4 M&P's I have owned and fired somewhere around 40,000 rounds through have all worked as advertised right out of the box.

Enjoy your new toy/tool.


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## 135797531 (Dec 27, 2012)

Hello - I am new to this forum and a new owner of a smith & wesson M and P 9 mm.
Right out of the case - what do I need to do in order to prepthe gun before firing for the first time in my beginner class?
thanks


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## jakeleinen1 (Jul 20, 2011)

135797531 said:


> Hello - I am new to this forum and a new owner of a smith & wesson M and P 9 mm.
> Right out of the case - what do I need to do in order to prepthe gun before firing for the first time in my beginner class?
> thanks


Nothing, those type of firearms are ready to go out of the box, and as another member said, you only need about 100 rounds of breakin if that even.

No way for brands like Glock, Smiths, Sigs, and HKs is there a 300-400 round break in thats an overkill...


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

135797531 said:


> Hello - I am new to this forum and a new owner of a smith & wesson M and P 9 mm.
> Right out of the case - what do I need to do in order to prepthe gun before firing for the first time in my beginner class?
> thanks





jakeleinen1 said:


> Nothing, those type of firearms are ready to go out of the box...


Sorry-I disagree.
A brand new gun needs to be cleaned and lubricated before it is ever fired.
Since steel parts corrode, manufacturers coat them with rust inhibitors, all of which are sticky, pick up dirt, and slow the gun's action. Before firing your new gun, these must be removed.
Use gun solvent and cloth to rub the stuff off. Then _lightly_ lubricate the gun, according to the instructions in your owner's manual.


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## jasmine2501 (Oct 10, 2012)

Steve M1911A1 said:


> Sorry-I disagree.
> A brand new gun needs to be cleaned and lubricated before it is ever fired.
> Since steel parts corrode, manufacturers coat them with rust inhibitors, all of which are sticky, pick up dirt, and slow the gun's action. Before firing your new gun, these must be removed.
> Use gun solvent and cloth to rub the stuff off. Then _lightly_ lubricate the gun, according to the instructions in your owner's manual.


This. It even will say so in your manual if you get a new gun. I clean and lube mine generously then take it to the range and fire 100-200 rounds, then clean and lightly lube again. Why do you emphasize light lubrication, I was told the opposite for new guns or after (and before) long term storage?

Anyway, last handgun I bought (SW SD9) that's what I did... had a jam on the first shot actually but all of the next 1000 or so have been no problems. Got an M&P 15 a couple weeks ago and did the same thing... generous lube for the first shots, then immediately clean again. Should I not be doing that? Why?


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

jasmine2501 said:


> ...Why do you emphasize light lubrication...?


I've always over-lubricated mechanisms and over-tightened screws, both to my eventual dismay.
Finally, someone taught me to lubricate "only enough," whatever that means.
Since then, I have been sparing with the oil and grease, I clean guns immediately after shooting them, and then I re-lubricate-sparingly. I haven't had any problems.
(If your owner's manual says different, follow the advice in the manual.)

I still over-tighten screws, and later I'm sorry that I've done it, every time.


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## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

Steve M1911A1 said:


> I've always over-lubricated mechanisms and over-tightened screws, both to my eventual dismay.
> Finally, someone taught me to lubricate "only enough," whatever that means.
> QUOTE]
> Absolutely agree "only enough" which I would interpret as a Generous amount.. do we lubricate to where the oil is dripping all over the place and the grease is collecting or gathering after the guns action. I sometimes over lube and over grease, just to only wipe down the over generous amount I used,lol. What are some areas of the handgun that we don't want gun lube to get at or drip into??


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

Assuming a semi-auto:
1. A scant drop of oil on each side of the hammer.
2. A drop of oil within each slide rail, usually during reassembly.
3. A scant drop of oil on the trigger pivot or in the trigger-bar channel.
(Now work the slide and "fire" the action a few times.)
4. Finally, give a thorough, overall external wipe with an oily cloth.

(You could use grease, if you prefer. Grease picks up more dirt, though.)

This assumes that you occasionally detail-strip your gun, clean everything, and then wipe every part with an oily rag as you reassemble the mechanism.


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## Sgt45 (Jun 8, 2012)

I've tried scant in my Ed Brown, but it still likes "wet" at least for now. Scant would probably be fine if I were only going to fire <50 rounds. I run the Wilson's wet as well and they seem to like it.


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## rex (Jan 27, 2012)

You want a light coat of oil throughout the gun for protection,and enough for lubrication on sliding and pivoting surfaces.If you're going to shoot a few hundred rounds,it's nice to have some wipes and oil with you to clean out any gunk and re-oil if needed.

No oil inside the mag or on the follower.I let a light coat sit in there a while and then wipe all traces to sight away,there's a fine,thin layer but not wet to attract dirt.The follower must be dry or you can get an inertia feed on the last round.When the slide stops rearward motion the round partially slides foward in the mag.Technically the round doesn't move,the gun jumped back.

Wipe all traces of lube from the ramp,bore and especially the chamber.The brass needs to swell and grab the chamber,it can't if it's oiled.While you want no wetness in the bore,a faint trace of oil will burn off at the first shot,no biggie.


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## bigsky109 (Dec 30, 2012)

I just bought a SW40VE and the instruction book stated to clean the gun be fore use. When I got arouind to cleaning it today Ifound out it was really DIRTY from the factory. Glad I read the book! Then I took out my older Automag-II and cleaned it up. I also found out Hoppes doesn't work as well as Barnes #10. It was fairly dirty as well and was a PITA to disasseble compared to the S&W. Before I reassembled I lubed everything up wth CLP. Did a fine job and now I am ready to get them dirty at the range.


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## xring3 (Jan 1, 2013)

MHO..I have always run a MOLY patchdown the barrel in addition to regular cleaning...seems to help with future cleaning. Just a thought.


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## rayf (Jun 25, 2012)

If the gun is new, never been fired I would first clean and oil it. The m&p's I have are 9mm full size and 45 compact. Both had some heavy weight oil for storage purposes, and should be removed before shooting. I think it would be smart to put 3 or 4 hundred rounds thru it to burnish the action a little. Any new gun in my opinion should be given this treatment. If you have any issues with FTE, or going into battery, Smith & Wesson will work it out for you at no cost to you. I had one issue with my 45c not going into battery and had that taken care of by Smith & Wesson. I also put the Apex DCAEK in it and now it is my EDC gun.


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## 45tex (May 20, 2013)

Sounds like a carry gun. I am an admitted S&W Fan. But my carry days involved the second and third generation S&W's. I had an easy routine that served me well.
Clean a new gun. You don't know how long it may have sat around collecting crud.
Lube well for the first shots. It does not need to be dripping
I always carried a near dry gun. Clean and light lube. then wipe off all you can. That leaves oil under and behind stuff. If you can see the sheen, wipe it off. Lube again with Remington Dri-Lube. This will leave a white-ish powder residue. Wipe this away where you can. It leaves silicone behind.
Load and carry. This includes the magazines. I wipe the springs with the oily rag used for cleaning,(springs tend to rust down here in the south) do the Dri-Lube thing elsewhere.
This part may be contested by some. I ALWAYS felt protected, because I believed in my heart my weapon would function. For 21 years I never loaded a carry round older than 6-months since purchase. Below is why.
When you arrive at the range. The first rounds you fire are the mag and snout round you have been actually carrying. The weapon is untouched. In other words, if your weapon does not function now, it would have failed you in the real world too. this applied to the cheap .380 that rode in a pocket collecting lint and everything else too. As for me I then fired the qualification course or practice course with the untouched weapon. Note, if the weapon experiences a rainstorm or other abuse it will need correction as soon as you can.
I have a S&W 4506 that received this treatment from its purchase date in 1988. I would match it for function with any other weapon today. Its out of the box stock. It retired with me. In its life it never once experienced a weapons related failure. The weapon and the Federal Hydra-Shok ammo served me well.


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## high pockets (Apr 25, 2011)

Steve M1911A1 said:


> I've always over-lubricated mechanisms and over-tightened screws, both to my eventual dismay.
> Finally, someone taught me to lubricate "only enough," whatever that means.
> Since then, I have been sparing with the oil and grease, I clean guns immediately after shooting them, and then I re-lubricate-sparingly. I haven't had any problems.
> (If your owner's manual says different, follow the advice in the manual.)
> ...


In the machine shop where I trained, the old timers used to always say "not too much, not too little, _just the right amount._" Of course it only takes a couple years to learn what is "just the right amount."


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## Bisley (Aug 24, 2008)

I usually spray with Breakfree CLP after cleaning, then wipe off the excess. Then a tiny drop of Mobil One on each rail.


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## Steve M1911A1 (Feb 6, 2008)

high pockets said:


> In the machine shop where I trained, the old timers used to always say "not too much, not too little, _just the right amount._" Of course it only takes a couple years to learn what is "just the right amount."


People with extensive machine-shop experience, including gunsmiths, all seem to have some sort of torque wrench built into their fingers.
Not me, I'm sorry to say.


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## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

45tex said:


> Sounds like a carry gun. I am an admitted S&W Fan. But my carry days involved the second and third generation S&W's. I had an easy routine that served me well.
> Clean a new gun. You don't know how long it may have sat around collecting crud.
> Lube well for the first shots. It does not need to be dripping
> I always carried a near dry gun. Clean and light lube. then wipe off all you can. That leaves oil under and behind stuff. If you can see the sheen, wipe it off. Lube again with Remington Dri-Lube. This will leave a white-ish powder residue. Wipe this away where you can. It leaves silicone behind.
> ...


I do not understand the dry lube that stays solid.
I have used it. Had to reclean the gun afterwards . 
The stuff I used was the color of white, but very unlike lithium grease. It was flaky ,and actually flaked off if the area had any lube all ready on the surface.
Or if you over sprayed it just flaked.


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## DaltonGang (Feb 21, 2009)

I put 75 mixed (fmj, jhp, lrn, even steel cased ammo) thru my M&P 9c. I figured if it would eat that I would be ok.


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## Glock Doctor (Mar 14, 2011)

Always give a brand new gun a thorough cleaning BEFORE you fire it for the first time. 

I'm used to breaking-in crappy brand new Glocks. Like several large state police agencies I fire hundreds of rounds through my Glock pistols BEFORE I'll trust one for carry. (The Indiana State Police used to fire 750 rounds through each new Glock pistol before, 'releasing it for field service'.) Three to five hundred rounds is typical for me; although, I've gone as high as one thousand rounds on the more troublesome Glocks I've owned. 

I learned a long time ago to expect a few initial jams with any brand new polymer frame pistol. Me? I always run a brand new plastic pistol, 'wet'. Works for me; and my round counts are in the tens of thousands of fired rounds for every plastic pistol that I own; (but, I ain't new at this; and I know how, and when, to correctly lubricate a gun - any gun!)


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