About two years ago I had the chance to review a curious new concealed carry handgun from Smith and Wesson called the .380 EZ. It had surprised me at first and left me tilting my head. I had no idea that such a firearm was on its way to the market. What did it do differently, what made it “EZ?” After reviewing it everything became a lot more clear but I was still curious about something. Would they ever try this design in nine millimeter? Could the platform handle the extra power of the much more popular caliber? This month my questions have been answered.
My first impressions are that it’s the same gun, and that’s not a bad feeling. The slide retains the same raised ridges on the back for a little better traction and the entire assembly is still a breeze to rack like the .380 model. I had thought that going to the 9mm they would need to toughen up this spring a fair amount but that doesn’t seem to be the case. This slide is still very easy to rack, on par with many .22 pistols. It does feel a bit top heavy while unloaded, I suspect they added a fair bit of mass there.
Unloaded the 9 EZ weighs 23.2 ounces with a polymer frame and stainless steel used in both the “Armornite” finished barrel and slide. Magazine capacity is eight rounds in a single stack and the follower has small but accessible “cheaters” for easier loading. Being an internal hammer fired pistol the EZ line lacks the trigger safety in favor of a very easy to depress grip safety. The model I had tested also has an ambidextrous manual thumb safety but they can be had without as well.
When the .380 EZ first hit the market there had been some issues with a spring in the thumb safety being too weak which would cause it to engage under recoil. This had been fixed by S&W some time ago and the 9 EZ doesn’t seem in danger of suffering from the same affliction.
Sights are a white three dot arrangement without any of the glowy stuff so they won’t stand out in the dark. The rear sight is not hooked for one handed manipulation but with how easy the slide is to rack I almost wonder if that would be necessary. As with the .380 EZ there is a long ramp style loaded chamber indicator as well.
Barrel length is just shy of 3.7″ with an overall length of 6.8″. The official web page for this firearm does not specify height or width, I can say that the 9 EZ is a slim pistol but the ambi thumb safety does add some extra thickness.
One curiosity for me is that the slide is clearly marked “M2.0” however the grip texture is nowhere near as aggressive as the sandpaper-like pattern of the rest of the 2.0 lineup. The 9 EZ falls somewhere in between the 1.0 and 2.0 for texturing. While this will make it less likely to snag clothing for concealed use it did give me some additional difficulty in hanging onto this slender gun during recoil.
The ergonomics are serviceable but nothing memorable. The 18 degree grip angle felt good but there isn’t any contouring for palms or fingers. A time or two I had noticed that I tended to grip the frame a bit low rather than having the web of my thumb right up beneath the slide where it should have been.
The model I had to review is still very much a new gun complete with new springs, it never had a break-in period. While I was getting familiar with the controls I was surprised to discover that the slide was incredibly difficult to release with the catch. There isn’t a lot of surface area for the thumb to grab, though even empty and with the mag out of the gun it was a struggle to release! It’s almost comical considering how entirely easy it is to lightly push back on the slide and let it go. One way is a breeze while the other is like fighting with the lid on a jar. I’m not sure what’s up here.
The magazine spring was also quite stiff but I feel confident that with some more range time this will loosen up some.
The trigger has a fair bit of travel but is smooth throughout, it has a clean break but the reset is a bit difficult to pick up. The audible click is quite faint and it’s easy to miss the tactile feedback. This is a trigger which you will want to make sure you’re familiar with before depending upon this pistol for defense.
There are two sides to shooting the 9 EZ. While shooting for accuracy I have a more relaxed grip and in short order I definitely felt the recoil of the more powerful 9mm. My trigger finger didn’t enjoy the experience quite so much and my off hand kept slipping. At the end of the range session I switched from accuracy tests to do some double-taps and a lot of these issues went away. Understandably for a small and lightweight sidearm the 9 EZ clearly favors more aggressive handling.
Speaking of shooting, did I mention that the 9 EZ is an accurate little pistol? Because the 9 EZ is an accurate little pistol!
I started with five shot groups at 25 feet and quickly noticed a few details. One is that despite the sharp felt recoil with my “grouping grip” the accuracy is both repeatable and really quite good! Two, the shots were hitting an inch or two high. At the 25′ mark the point of impact is directly above the point of aim, the “pumpkin on a post” sight picture.
That’s fair. This is a defensive pistol, it’s meant for closer encounters than 25 feet. I rolled the taget back to 15′ and tried again. That’s all that it took to put the point of impact right where I had expected it to be. This also helped to make my 1″ groups even tighter. Watch me not complain!
Down to a nice little five round nest at three quarters of an inch. Nice!
Double-taps with a more decisive hold proved that despite its smaller size and lighter weight the 9 EZ is easy to bring back onto target. At 15 feet both shots were kept within four inches of the smaller targets. Not too shabby for having put fewer than fifty rounds through it.
The 9 EZ is a great little gun but I do have a concern about it. The EZ line is intended to be easier to manipulate and to be more approachable for shooters who may lack hand strength. Despite this the 9 EZ really benefits from a firm grip to keep it under control even with 115 grain range ammo. The .380 EZ worked surprisingly well but I feel like the 9mm might be pushing the limits of this platform a little outside of its intended purpose.
In an ever widening field of tiny lightweight concealed carry firearms the 9 EZ is a strong contender and one which is worth looking into, however with this model in particular I would recommend putting some rounds through it before committing to one. If you’re curious then come out to the Range of Richfield and take our rental for a spin!
