Not so positive review of the Smith & Wesson Bodyguard 2.0 380 acp

[drobs]

After reading lots of glowing written reviews and watching a couple positive youtube shooting reviews of the S&W Bodyguard 2.0 380 acp I picked one up yesterday.


Today I shot 153rds rounds through it at my backyard steel gongs. I used:
50rds of Gecco 95gr FMJ
50rds of Armscor 95gr FMJ
50rds of Fiocchi 95gr FMJ
3rds of Hornady Critical Defense



The Bad
I had 5 failures to fire with the Armscor FMJ. The firing pin dented the primer but no bang. All 5 fired when rechambered & refired.
This is my 1st and last time using Armscor ammo.

I had 3 failures to feed from Sling Shoting the slide when it was locked back open using fully loaded mags. I also had 3 failures to feed hitting the slide release with the slide locked open on a fresh fully loaded magazine.
Why is that important? I wouldn't recommend this gun to someone with poor hand strength. Maybe in the future once the mags are broken in, more.


I had a mid magazine failure to feed using the Fiocchi 95gr FMJ:


The Good
The 50rds Gecco ammo worked perfectly. The 3rds of Hornady worked perfectly. I was easily able to ring steel gongs with the pistol at 7yds. I even rang my gongs at 25yds a few times.
The trigger has a quick reset and I feel I could really run it fast. I did a couple quick mag dumps with it and it is fast.

The Odd
There is a gap between the slide release and the slide. You can see the shinny brass cartridge in that gap in this pic.


It doesn't effect anything other than making your hands really dirty from shooting the gun:



One of the youtube reviewers commented that the front sight is not centered from the factory. I have to agree with him and mine is also not centered.


I haven't read the manual but looking at the rear of the slide, I'm pretty sure you need to remove the rear sight to disassemble the slide.


Neither here nor there
A size comparison to my Glock 43X.


A disassembled pic:


Conclusions
Would I trust my life to this gun? Not yet. I need more trouble free rounds through it. I will say it was significantly easier to shoot than my Ruger LCP Max 380.
My LCP Max shoots low. I need to see the front of the ejection port in my sight picture to get it on paper. Also the S&W BG2.0 comes with 2 magazines (10rd & 12rd). My Ruger LCP Max only came with 1 magazine.

I finished my range session by shooting 15rds of Federal 124gr HST through my Glock 43X at 7yds using my Shield Arms mag. All 15 worked perfectly ringing the gongs.

 

[Mark_Mark]

So many of us just assume our EDC is just going to work. Nice reciew

I would find target ammo that runs good, for training. And SD ammo that that runs for carry.

 

[Walkalong]

So many of us just assume our EDC is just going to work. Nice reciew

Not me, I shot multiple types of ammo and LOT of rounds through my P-365 on it's first range trip before I bet my life on it.

Nice review, I bet it feeds better next time out, but hey some guns don't like some ammo sometimes.

 

[Mark_Mark]

Not me, I shot multiple types of ammo and LOT of rounds through my P-365 on it's first range trip before I bet my life on it.

Nice review, I bet it feeds better next time out, but hey some guns don't like some ammo sometimes.

are advice from the legal side of the forum. I switched all carry ammo to factory.

but I hand load similar ammo for training

 

[DeepSouth]

That’s not terrible for a NIB compact gun nowadays. It’s not great mind you, but that’s not enough to be real surprising.

I’d imagine it’ll get better once it shot a little more, I’ve gotten to where I rack and release the slide a good bit before the first shot, seems to cut the “break in” down a bit, it could also be conformation bias but either way it’s free.

I’ve been considering replacing my LCP with one. Keep the updates coming.

 

[.308 Norma]

Thanks for the review, drobs.

 

[drobs]

That’s not terrible for a NIB compact gun nowadays. It’s not great mind you, but that’s not enough to be real surprising.

I’d imagine it’ll get better once it shot a little more, I’ve gotten to where I rack and release the slide a good bit before the first shot, seems to cut the “break in” down a bit, it could also be conformation bias but either way it’s free.

I’ve been considering replacing my LCP with one. Keep the updates coming.

I really only had the 1 failure to feed while shooting. I think with some more rounds through it and leaving the mags loaded for a couple weeks, it should smooth out and become a reliable gun.

This gent seems to love his so much that he owns 4 of them.

Bodyguard 2.0 | The Best Pistol I've Shot in Years, Seriously.

You can see more of us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/real.deskpop/Milspec Retail code "PLEASE"YOUTUBE DOESN'T LIKE THE LINKWelcome back to the chan...

www.youtube.com

 

[Balrog]

I have got about 250 rounds through mine, with no hiccups at all. Its amazing accurate for its size.

 

[halfmoonclip]

There is a gap between the slide release and the slide. You can see the shinny brass cartridge in that gap in this pic.

Since you are left handed, you would have that problem. For righties, it gives advance notice when you're down to your last round; you can see the red follower through that gap. My reloads are with Bullseye, and the gun does get dirty.

One of the youtube reviewers commented that the front sight is not centered from the factory. I have to agree with him and mine is also not centered.

Front and rear sights were a little off on mine. I replaced that Grand Canyon of a rear with one from a BG1.0, which gives a great sight picture. Drifting the sights can establish a good zero, and I'm dead on, with nice tight groups at 21'. Yes, the rear has to come off to remove the striker.

I had 3 failures to feed from Sling Shoting the slide when it was locked back open using fully loaded mags. I also had 3 failures to feed hitting the slide release with the slide locked open on a fresh fully loaded magazine.
Why is that important? I wouldn't recommend this gun to someone with poor hand strength. Maybe in the future once the mags are broken in, more.

This gun does want an energetic slide rack, though I have no trouble with an overhand grasp; my hand strength isn't great.

I had a mid magazine failure to feed using the Fiocchi 95gr FMJ:

When mine got good and dirty (maybe 300 rds; figured to keep shooting 'till it choked), had a mid-mag failure to feed. A cleaning resolved the problem.

I would find target ammo that runs good, for training. And SD ammo that that runs for carry.

Well, yeah. I run my standard 95PRN/915'sec reloads, and Hornady XTP for carry. The XTPs acted up occasionally at first, but have run 100% since. The slide runs smoother, as is the trigger stroke, with more use. Really like the flippy-do thing in the trigger. For such a small, light gun, it really is pleasant to shoot.

One recurring issue, some magazines barely hold 10 rounds, and locking them against a closed slide is really difficult. I have some spare 10s that would be tough for a reload with rounds in the gun. Those are reserved for range duty, and have seen a bunch of shooting...without the problem becoming less. The mag springs must have a stacking problem, and I'm going to contact Smith about it.
I trust mine for carry, and my ability to hit with it.
Moon
ETA- Our current course of fire in our snubby league includes 5 shots strong/5 shots weak hand. I've experienced no malfs in those stages, and always considered that one handed shots were a good judge of pistol reliability.
M

 

[Mark_Mark]

Since you are left handed, you would have that problem. For righties, it gives advance notice when you're down to your last round; you can see the red follower through that gap. My reloads are with Bullseye, and the gun does get dirty.

Front and rear sights were a little off on mine. I replaced that Grand Canyon of a rear with one from a BG1.0, which gives a great sight picture. Drifting the sights can establish a good zero, and I'm dead on, with nice tight groups at 21'. Yes, the rear has to come off to remove the striker.


This gun does want an energetic slide rack, though I have no trouble with an overhand grasp; my hand strength isn't great.

When mine got good and dirty (maybe 300 rds; figured to keep shooting 'till it choked), had a mid-mag failure to feed. A cleaning resolved the problem.

Well, yeah. I run my standard 95PRN/915'sec reloads, and Hornady XTP for carry. The XTPs acted up occasionally at first, but have run 100% since. The slide runs smoother, as is the trigger stroke, with more use. Really like the flippy-do thing in the trigger. For such a small, light gun, it really is pleasant to shoot.

One recurring issue, some magazines barely hold 10 rounds, and locking them against a closed slide is really difficult. I have some spare 10s that would be tough for a reload with rounds in the gun. Those are reserved for range duty, and have seen a bunch of shooting...without the problem becoming less. The mag springs must have a stacking problem, and I'm going to contact Smith about it.
I trust mine for carry, and my ability to hit with it.
Moon
ETA- Our current course of fire in our snubby league includes 5 shots strong/5 shots weak hand. I've experienced no malfs in those stages, and always considered that one handed shots were a good judge of pistol reliability.
M

I carry FMJ‘s in my LCP Max… Why, because I need penetration. As a Uber drive, my most likely situation is being chocked from behind or car Jacked! need to shoot thur stuff

 

[PavelSJ]

So many of us just assume our EDC is just going to work. Nice reciew

I would find target ammo that runs good, for training. And SD ammo that that runs for carry.

It's hard to believe but extra 40fps or 50fps makes a difference. I would add American Eagle 95gr to Norma ammo stash.

 

[chickasaw_hunter]

I have the Bodyguard 1 and it's sitting in the box with less than two mags thru it. My wife fell in love with it at the gun shop. She fell out of love with it after that first magazine. Hard to load, hard to rack. Then low and behold the S&W 380 EZ came along. She likes it and can load and rack it. Not as small and compact as the Bodyguard, but the law of physics are what they are and you give up some stuff when you go smaller. So I've got a Bodyguard safe queen. I looked into selling it on consignment at the gun shop but after their commission and the market rate, I'd be lucky to break even. So, I'll just hang on to it.
As far as the OP's situation I'd put more rounds down range before I made any decisions about sending it down the road, I know ammo isn't cheap these days so if nothing else I spend a few session of just racking the slide to get everything worn in just a bit. I also have a Kahr .380 and found that it works best when you don't sling shot it to rack. I've found that when I'm loading it, it is best to load from a locked slide and just tripping the slide release. It's a terrible pistol to sling shot rack anyway. I later found that Kahr recommends this process. That's apples to oranges for the S&W but all of these little .380 can be finicky and it takes some effort to get them running right.

 

[defjon]

Hmmm...

Trade it on a 642!

Thank you, thanks. Ill see myself out...

 

[PavelSJ]

I looked at used one that was test fired only, no safety version. I am not sure I want it even for $310, thinking about it.

 

[TTv2]

Guy I work with has one, I was impressed by how small it was, but held 10 rds. Nice trigger too, which is something more .380s should have.

I would probably be more interested in these 10rd .380s than single stacks because the single stacks are just so thin and light they aren't enjoyable to shoot, but I only know of Ruger and Smith that make these, so I think it's important to compare the LCP Max with this like some have.

S&W quality is sus to me, I read of issues with them a lot, but I'm always first to question ammo, not the gun. With the off center front sight and big gap on the side of the frame, this could be a poor design by Smith. Time will tell.

 

[Pat Riot]

As has been said, get some more rounds down range to break it in. I won’t trust a semiauto carry gun until I have at least 250 trouble free rounds of quality ammo downrange.

 

[Soonerpesek]

It doesn't effect anything other than making your hands really dirty from shooting the gun:

Is your hand riding on the slide release pushing up on it to cause the slide issues…?

I don't have huge hands, but I do have a pretty high purchase on handguns, sometimes to the point it has affected the slides on certain guns…

Nice review tho..!!…

 

[Terry G]

My new S&W M&P Compact .45 wouldn't release the slide by hand when locked back empty. You had to use the slide release. S&W had it back to me in a week. Works perfectly now.

 

[halfmoonclip]

Swapped a BG1.0 sight into a buddy's BG2.0. We'll see how he shoots tonight, but he likes the sight picture much better.
Had two mid-magazine failures to feed the other week, after over 300 rounds. A cleaning solved the problem.
Moon