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Gun Reports - News

Washington State Patrol Converts to Smith & Wesson M&P Pistols

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. -- Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation has announced that the Washington State Patrol (WSP) has selected firearms from the company's Military & Police (M&P) Pistol Series for duty use.

The Washington State Patrol has ordered 1,400 M&P40 pistols. The company has also recently completed shipments of 1,300 M&P pistols to be used by the Washington State Department of Corrections (DOC).

Reader Comments

This is a big boost to Smith & Wesson's M&P series. Any comments out there regarding this pistol's ballistics, ergonomics, control features, carry solutions?

Comment by: TCole | October 22, 2009

I bought an M&P 40 based on the review I read in the Aug 2006 Gun Tests. It was a conditional buy, mainly because it wasn't as accurate as the XD 45 reviewed against it. But I was intrigued and bought one anyway. It was a new model, and when I handled it at the store, I liked it. I reread the GT story later, and agreed with the writer. He said, "We really liked how easy it was to pick this gun up and aim it. The magazine release was perfect, and the grip surface on the rear of the slide couldn’t have been more effective if it had been done by a custom gunsmith. The sight picture was just what we wanted. But we dropped two shots, one on the center target and another on the furthest target."

Comment by: ttwoodard | October 22, 2009

I bought another one after the Oct 07 issue. This gun got an A-. It was $200 cheaper than the FN and $500 cheaper than the P229 SAS. The review said the M&P40 had "Overall impressive fit and finish," ambi slide release allowed for both left- and right-hand operation, the magazine release is reversible, which also helps lefties; the Novak sights were easy to read and put on target. Also, Gun Tests said "there is an optional ambidextrous manual safety lever now offered (one of the requests we had in our first review)." So I sold my first M&P and bought the new gun with a safety lever. Couldn't be happier.

Comment by: ttwoodard | October 22, 2009

I bought the full-size M&P.40 when it first was released. I was very impressed, so I got one in 9MM also. Now, I have the compact 40 and the compact 9, also. I just received my 357 barrel for the full-size .40 and I'm eager to try it out. The only M&P that didn't really click with me was the .45. I had one and I just didn't get the same experience as with the others. It had the optional safety, but I never had a use for it. I guess I'm spoiled by 1911's. The other M&P's have made me a very happy shooter. Even the compact models shoot very accurately and are easy to handle. I'm glad that Smith continues to have great luck with the law enforcement contracts. That can only help improve the breed.

Comment by: billy396 | October 23, 2009

What did WSP convert from?

Comment by: truckcop | November 1, 2009