Last, but not least, the full-length stainless-steel guide rod is surrounded by a captive recoil spring that ensures smooth operation and consistent lockup and also greatly eases the task of disassembly.

Breech locking is by means of a variation of the tried and true Browning method: the barrel and slide are locked together by the barrel hood bearing on the front edge of the ejection port. When the pistol is fired, these two parts recoil together for a short distance whereupon an angled lug on the bottom of the barrel bears on the frame-mounted locking block and is cammed down, releasing the slide which continues to the rear, extracting and ejecting the spent cartridge case. As the recoil spring pulls the slide forward, it strips the next round out of the magazine and chambers it. As the slide and barrel go into battery, the barrel hood once again moves up into the ejection port, locking the two units together.

The new S&W M&P features steel rails in the frame that connect the locking block and sear housing for superior strength.

While the top of the M&P is impressive, it is the design of the frame that really sets it apart from the competition. Picking up an M&P you immediately notice its styling and ergonomics. As for the former, I must admit that it has fine lines and good looks, but such cosmetic features, while a nice touch, are not really needed. What is, however, is how the pistol fits the shooter's hand, and this is where the latter comes into play. Unlike other brands of polymer-frame pistols, the M&P's frame features an extended beavertail that secures the pistol in the shooter's hand, dissipates recoil pulse, and lets you get back on target faster. An optimal grip angle of 18 degrees makes for a naturally pointing pistol with enhanced recoil control. Last, the trigger guard (which I'm happy to say lacks a curved "finger rest") is enlarged to allow use by shooters wearing gloves.

M&P frames are one-piece units made from Zytel polymer and are unique among all others on the market in that ridged steel rails are located on both sides of the frame and run from the front locking block to the rear sear housing block. These rails provide additional strength to the frame--reducing torque, frame flex, and felt recoil--and they create a chassis that provides consistent alignment of the trigger and sear that is not affected by the expansion and contraction of the frame due to environmental conditions or the heat generated by extended firing.

The M&P Pistol features a captive recoil spring and steel guide rod (T), loaded chamber indicator (L), and extra wide claw extractor (R).

The slide reciprocates on four stainless-steel rails. Many of you are probably saying, "What's the big deal? That's how most polymer pistols operate." Which makes you both right and wrong. First, unlike many polymer-frame pistols the rails are not imbedded in the frame, instead the forward pair are integral to the frame-mounted locking block while the rear are part of the steel sear housing. S&W's engineers designed the rails so that when they are viewed from the top they have an oval shape, or as Bergeron put it so well, "Sort of like half a football." This simple redesign provides a very small frame rail/insert bearing surface that, while still providing sufficient support, reduces friction to improve functioning while at the same time creates a self-cleaning action that removes debris from inside the frame rails.

One of the more innovative features of the M&P's frame is in the grip. Instead of the shooter having to adapt their grip to the pistol, the pistol's grip can be adapted to the shooter's hand by installing any one of three different sizes (large, medium, and small) of palmswells at the rear of the grip frame. To do so, one merely rotates a catch at the bottom of the grip frame and pulls it out allowing the palmswell to be lifted off and replaced. (The pistol fits me best with the medium-size palmswell, so I guess I should categorize myself as an "average" shooter.)