[Quick Shots] M&P Bodyguard .380: The Single Stack J-frame

Gun shows are dangerous places, more specifically, they’re dangerous places for my wallet. It was at particularly harrowing gun show in July of last year where I picked up my Bodyguard. I actually went to the show looking for a cheap second hand J-frame, I had ideas about converting one to 9mm (still do, hope to get around to that next year). I was perusing the table of a local pawn shop when I spotted the Bodyguard. It was the updated “M&P” variant, with more defined sights, and no laser. For only $150 tax and background check included, I basically had to buy it. I justified it to myself by saying that I already a .380 (my Beretta 85, discussed at length here) and it would be even better than J frame as a pocket “mailbox gun.”

So, I took it home, went to the range a few day later and discovered I basically hated it. The trigger and snappy recoil weren’t deal breakers, I was expecting those. What I wasn’t expecting was the issues caused by the ergos. This gun is thin, really thin, so thin that I have tendency to pull trigger with the middle knuckle of my trigger finger instead of the pad. The finger groove of the front strap made it impossible to position my pinky comfortably, and the texturing on the backstrap had very pronounced edges that were quite uncomfortable. Luckily, I own a dremel and sandpaper, so I’m basically a gun smith.

First, I dremeled off the finger groove, this made it significantly easier to cram three fingers onto the gun (my little english school boys hand are convenient on occasion). After that I took the grinding wheel to edges of the backstrap and rounded them off a little bit.

The last step was adding JB Weld to the left hand side of the grip. I spread one layer on, let it dry, then added another on top of that. After it dried, I added sandpaper texture grip tape to cover the JB Weld. This slight modification added just enough width to make my trigger finger feel more natural.

I’m really happy with how this whole project turned out, and with the Bodyguard in general. I’m not going to lie and say its my favorite, or even one of my favorite pistols, but it is significantly more shootable now, and fills a specific role in my lineup.