BOTW: M&P SHIELD: Everything But the Kitchen Sink Build

Tom R
by Tom R

The eighth Installment of Build of the Week was contributed by Johnny. I am a personal fan of the M&P Shield. I carry one on duty (original; not the 2.0) as my backup gun and honestly find myself carrying it as my CCW during the summer months. These mods all sound pretty reasonable for a lower cost upgrade–no need to make this a race gun…

In any case, keep the submissions coming in! We are publishing them in the order in which they were received (with the exception of a single person submitting back to back–those will get spread out).

You can submit your own build at https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/build-of-the-week-submission/


“Everything but the kitchen sink build”. With the 2.0 m&p being the new buzz i thought why can’t an original M&P Shield still be top dog. This was a shop build here at JohnnyRobinsonArmory to see if we could make the best M&P shield with mostly over counter upgrade parts and light smithing so the average joe can build a great shooting concealable firearm on a moderate budget.

Specs in order of most effective results:

  • Apex trigger kit- Hands down the best results for shields-clear audible reset
  • True barrel- no more burning out the stock barrels -great lockup
  • truglo sights- preference
  • 8 rd mag with “Bastion ” base plate- perfect fit for average hand size
  • custom stippling- anyway to get better grip is a plus on shields

We did light gunsmithing, filed out trigger opening, re-angled mag well, made the thumb safety a tiny bit bulky and smoother.

We did not want to get gunsmith crazy on this because it was focus for average people to afford and make a great concealed firearm.


Comment below to ask Johnny questions about his build.

Tom R
Tom R

Tom is a former Navy Corpsman that spent some time bumbling around the deserts of Iraq with a Marine Recon unit, kicking in tent flaps and harassing sheep. Prior to that he was a paramedic somewhere in DFW, also doing some Executive Protection work between shifts. Now that those exciting days are behind him, he teaches wilderness medicine and runs an on-demand medical staffing business. He hopes that his posts will help you find solid gear that will survive whatever you can throw at it--he is known (in certain circles) for his curse...ahem, ability...to find the breaking point of anything.You can reach him at tom.r AT thefirearmblog.com or at https://thomasrader.com

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6 of 38 comments
  • Imtoomuch Imtoomuch on Aug 09, 2018

    Apex triggers are overrated and over hyped. Installed one in my M&P Pro 9 and the trigger got worse.

    • See 3 previous
    • Imtoomuch Imtoomuch on Aug 27, 2018

      @Rick I installed the trigger per Apex's instructions and the gun works fine. The trigger is stiffer using a trigger gauge not by feel. It's not the installer.

  • Jim Jim on Aug 10, 2018

    I recently bought a MP Shield Performance Center model that as been ported, a trigger job, and supposedly more accurate

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