Smith & Wesson M&P

Smith & Wesson M&P (Military and Police) is a series of handguns named after the famous 20th century Smith & Wesson service revolvers.Jim Supica; Richard Nahas, Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson (Iola, WI: Gun Digest Books, an imprint of F+W Media, Inc., 2016), p. 391 They are designed mainly for military, police and personal defense use. They are offered in calibers including: .22 LR, .380 ACP, 9×19mm Parabellum, .357 Magnum and .45 ACP.

 History 
In 1852, gunsmiths Horace Smith and Daniel B. Wesson formed the partnership Smith & Wesson. After having financial troubles, in 1854 they sold the company to a shirt manufacturer named Oliver Winchester. In 1866, Winchester renamed the company Winchester Repeating Arms Company. That same year Smith and Wesson formed the second company called Smith & Wesson, which is still in operation.
In 1899, the company produced their now-famous Military & Police pistol. It was a double-action which set a standard for modern revolvers. It also introduced what has become a very popular caliber, the .38 S&W Special.
In 2005, the company introduced Smith & Wesson M&P model pistol. It was the first polymer handgun for S&W. It is available in 9mm and .40 S&W, and as of February 2016, in .45 ACP. It is recoil-operated and uses the Browning-type locking system.

In 2008 the name M&P expanded to became a series of handguns.Ken Ramage, Guns Illustrated 2009, 41st Edition (Iola, WI: Gun Digest Books, 2008), p. 31  It includes polymer pistols, (alloy) revolvers and AR-type rifles. The color, with a few exceptions, is usually black.

The M&P line has expanded to include the "Pro-series", "Shield-series" and "Bodyguard-series" guns.

 Related pages 
 Personal defense weapon
 Service pistol
 Smith & Wesson
 Smith & Wesson Model 10
 SWAT

 References 

 Other websites 
 Smith & Wesson M&P M2.0: Making A Great Pistol Even Better—Hands-On Review; YouTube
 Smith & Wesson M&P series

Category:Pistols