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My wife has a S&W M&P .40 Compact (3"). She absolutely loves this thing. I am wanting to get a new recoil spring for it but I cannot find the standard weight for the .40 Compact (3") model. Does anyone here know the lbs. on the factory recoil spring for this gun? Thank!

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This is only for full size M&P so it may not do you any good.

Standard is 16# on a full size. Pretty much like a 1911. And if it is anything similar it will be 24# on the 3" just like a 3" 1911.

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It is 18 pounds and if you want alternate springs go to Speed Shooters Specialties.

I would go with what she says.

Thank you very much. I want to get a stronger spring for her. Do you have any suggestions on the weight? I know if its too heavy it wont work properly and I dont want that.

Why do you want a heavier spring? Is she having problems with the gun? If so what? It is hard to make a recommendation without more info.

XtremeDuty.45 wrote:Thank you very much. I want to get a stronger spring for her. Do you have any suggestions on the weight? I know if its too heavy it wont work properly and I dont want that.

This is a link for a factory replacement recoil assembly from Brownells, however this is not what you are looking for. The same thing could probably be obtained directly from S&W.

On the Speed Shooter Specialties website, I found this page listing various springs for the M&P 9mm/.40S&W. A 20lb ISMI recoil spring is listed, and this is the only one that exceeds the 18lb spec that CompVest offered earlier. On the same site, they offer aftermarket guide rods which are not intended for fitment to the Compact models, but rather the full-size/larger models. I expect the ISMI springs are intended for the full-size/larger models, too. If you were really motivated and willing to experiment, you could trim the springs and a) cut down a full-size guide rod, or b) harvest the guide rod from the factory assembly by removing the retention plug, which may or may not be feasible. So far, I have not found a drop-in solution for heavier recoil springs for a compact M&P40.

For what purpose are you seeking a heavier spring?

If you are seeking to reduce the perceived recoil associated with the gun (my guess only), it may be less invasive to try different types of ammunition. However, you may sacrifice terminal effect going this route. No free lunch here.

its for the recoil.

I am trying different ammo loads and knew springs didnt cost a lot so I wanted to try that out too. She shoots good with the gun but with the 3" barrel its got a bit more pop and we both want her to shoot great with it.

Changing the spring isn't going to help the recoil that much and may cause reliability issues. If the gun is strictly for range shooting go ahead and experiment but if it is a self defense gun be very careful what you do to it. If she's shooting 180 grain ammo try some lighter bullets. I have found the Federal Classic 155 gr JHP ammo to be a bit milder recoil wise. Finding practice ammo in lighter bullet weights is difficult but, not impossible. A 165 or 155 grain load may be the answer. The other choice is to go to a 9mm.

MoJo +1

CompVest wrote:MoJo +1

I agree.

I do not mess with spring weights on my carry guns.

If you do want to change the recoil spring on a gun to reduce felt recoil, the spring should be lighter instead of heavier. The lighter spring will speed up the slide and minimize muzzle flip.

Jason

I did a little research online - - - the Gold Dot short barrel loading and the Federal Reduced Recoil Personal Defense loading should be the mildest recoiling loads available. The nod going to the Federal because they use a 135 gr bullet. Lighter bullets recoil softer than heavy ones. The whole Federal Personal Protection line should be softer shooting than the offerings from Speer, Winchester, or Remington. Don't get your shorts in a knot over things like velocity and energy those are just what there is to measure performance by. Look at what you or your wife can do with what the gun is loaded with. If you can't hit 'em you can't stop 'em.

jbirds1210 wrote:

CompVest wrote:MoJo +1

I agree.

I do not mess with spring weights on my carry guns.

If you do want to change the recoil spring on a gun to reduce felt recoil, the spring should be lighter instead of heavier. The lighter spring will speed up the slide and minimize muzzle flip.

Jason

+1 That is why I changed the spring on my standard M&P9 to a 13#. My M&P9c is stock!

Just a suggestion but maybe you should consider stepping her down to a 9mm. The 40 is a snappy round to begin with and couple that with a compact gun and it is magnified.

Other than that, I agree with the others, do not modify spring weights on a carry gun.

I carry this same model, or a Kahr P40 (another short barrel) depending on clothing/activity. I carry Speer short barrel HP and recommend them highly if you can find them. Both guns eat them up with NO issues. However I can not say that I noticed any reduced recoil compared to other ammo. From what I researched that is not the intended result. It is supposedly faster burning powder for a more complete burn in a shorter barrel to achieve the potential velocity. I also like the slick "brass" which makes reloading magazines easy. My $0.02