M+P'S Down Under, From A Shameless Fan..

[twyacht]

Fresh from the mailbox, the June 2009 American Rifleman Random Shots (pg. 25), has an article stating, the Aussie SAPOL, (South Australia Police Force), will arm its frontline 4000 member LEO's with M+P .40 calibers.

A field trial last year, led to the deal....

And they give kudos and praise and state of the art complements, from Michael Atkinson, Police Minister.

Sooooooooo, from a fellow M+P owner (who loves it), congrats to the Aussie Police!

 For philw, Sorry your countries civilian gun laws frankly suck, but criminals better watch out, cause they don't give a hoot about the civilian gun laws anyway.... and the LEO's will have a great pistol..

Glad they didn't drink the Kool-Aid down under,....

[dj454]

You said it tw. Great pistol indeed.

[philw]

yea it is very cool



over here they have been using the S&W .357 revolver for years  and a few other stats here have either changed to S/A pistols or looking at them

they had mostly been looking at the Glock's



however here they went to tender and the S&W M&P won,    part of the deal is S&W will buyback the old revolver's  ( the only issue is they are sending them back to the US i think as I wanted to buy one hehe )

the roll out will take a little time as they have to "train" them on the new weapons   I spoke to a couple local's and they are not sure when they will be seeing them 


here is a bit more info  and what has been put in the papers here 

http://www.shootingtimes.com/HG_smithaustraliapoliceforce_012009WO/

Smith & Wesson to Equip South Australia Police Force
SAPOL Completes Trials; Selects Military & Police Pistols for 4,000-Officer Department

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (January 7, 2009) - Smith & Wesson Corp. announced today that it has received confirmation from the South Australia Police Force (SAPOL) that it will arm its 4,000-officer frontline force with the Company’s M&P40 pistols.

SAPOL conducted a field trial during 2008 in which 502 operational country and metropolitan police officers received training in the safe handling and use of the M&P pistol and carried the firearm in an operational environment. Deputy Police Commissioner Gary Burns, said, “Feedback from our officers was very positive and they welcome the introduction of the semi-automatic M&P40. The M&P40 has a number of enhanced features and is a good fit for policing purposes in South Australia. It will replace the Smith & Wesson .357 revolver which was previously standard issue.”

SAPOL joins a growing number of police departments across the globe where the M&P pistol is currently standard issue. Those include Trinidad and Tobago Police Services, Sindh Police Agency in Pakistan, Halton Regional Police Service in Canada, Nuclear Security Agency in France, United Nations Security Force in the Netherlands, the Ministry of Interior (MOI) Agencies in Italy, Mexico, and Thailand, as well as Atlanta Police Department, Charlotte Police Department, Syracuse Police Department and numerous additional law enforcement and security divisions across the United States.

Acting Police Minister for the Government of South Australia, Michael Atkinson, said, “We’re always striving to equip our officers with the most up-to-date crime fighting gear available and I am pleased that the trial of these firearms was such a success. The new M&P40 pistols will be rolled out to officers in the near future. This Government is serious about ensuring our police have state-of-the-art equipment to carry out their day to day duties and this latest announcement is certainly another step forward.”

Officials at the agency indicated that in addition to delivering a higher magazine capacity than the previously issued revolvers, the M&P40 excelled in several key performance areas. The M&P40 was acknowledged to possess superior safety features, including a mechanism that prevents the pistol from firing if dropped and a sear release lever that eliminates the need to press the trigger in order to disassemble the firearm.

Engineered to become the handgun of choice for global law enforcement and military personnel, the M&P pistol design is based on input from numerous law enforcement and military organizations. Manufactured with a Zytel polymer frame reinforced with a rigid stainless steel chassis and a through-hardened black Melonite finished stainless steel barrel and slide for added durability, the M&P pistol benefits from enhanced shootability along with a reduction in felt recoil. Other standard features of the M&P pistol include three interchangeable grips sizes; an ambidextrous slide stop; a reversible magazine release and a loaded chamber indicator located on the top of the slide. The M&P40 pistol features a 15+1 round capacity magazine. Each M&P pistol comes standard with the Smith & Wesson lifetime service policy. The M&P pistol series is available in 9mm, .40S&W, .357SIG, and .45ACP calibers. Compact versions of the M&P pistol are also available for concealed carry and back-up use.

Leland Nichols, Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Smith & Wesson Corp., said, “As a long-time customer of Smith & Wesson, SAPOL has employed Smith & Wesson revolvers in the line of duty for many years. We are proud to continue to partner with SAPOL, and we are pleased to add them to the growing list of international law enforcement agencies and security divisions that have purchased M&P Series pistols for duty use.”

I would like one however for me to get a .40mm  ( like a .45 ACP ) I could ONLY use it for Handgun Metallic Silhouette
I do want a 1911 .45acp more though

[ericire12]

Glock!

[philw]

Glock!

you know where you can put that glockenspiel 

[Sponsor]

[garand4life]

So proud of these guys for looking past the illusion of the Glock. Not that it's a bad gun I just think the M&P is much more gun for the money. Not to mention I think overall it is easier to maintain safely and for novices it's an easy gun to shoot. Best stock trigger I've ever shot. Hell Detriot and Milwaukee have both switched from Glock to M&P.40's so more power to them. GREAT GUN!!!!! Now they need to buy a few thousand M&P15's..... That'll be the day!

[Ping]

I second that on the best stock trigger on a handgun. I love my M&P but I love my Glocks more. If Glock just had the same trigger it would be perfect. That extra weight of the M&P makes recoil nonexistent. That is another great feature.

[long762range]

The primary problem I have with Glock is that it does not fit my hand.  When I point it. the front sight is elevated.   I used a Glock 17 in competition for a while but just did not like it.  I traded it for a Browning HP and fell in love. 

I bought a XD-M 40 for my son.  It is one fine gun, but I think the next pistol I buy for myself will be an M&P.