Springfield XD-S

[Fan45acp]

Got one and Love it. I use my MTAC made for a Glock 27. Here a few pictures. One with the night sights.

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[MilitaryArms]

Gotta call you guys out on the grip safety.

I have an XD and a 1911- It's almost impossible to hold either gun securely WITHOUT depressing the grip safety.

FYI Literally HUNDREDS of THOUSANDS of people have shot 1911s over the last hundred years with no difficulty.
.

People have had problems with the 1911's grip safety for decades. That's why you see most modified 1911's having a much larger grip safety protrusion which minimizes the possibility of not having a good grip. Back in the early days of the 1911 it was common to see people taping the safety down or otherwise disabling it. When companies such as Star went to clone the 1911 (during WWII) they left the grip safety out completely. Browning didn't design the 1911 with a grip safety, the Army decided they wanted it. The Army made no such requests on future designs, they too decided it wasn't necessary.

How many other popular handguns in the 20th century employ grip safeties? The 1911 and the XD, that's it. It doesn't improve safety in any measurable way however it does add an additional failure point that is ultimately unnecessary.

I have seen on multiple occasions (and have video of it) where people have failed to engage the grip safety properly on their full-size XD's when drawing on the timer. The timer added stress. The shooter I have on video never had a problem until he was shooting against the clock, then he suddenly had an issue. Gunfights tend to add stress.

I believe fighting tools should be no more complex than is necessary to accomplish their task. Adding unnecessary safeties increases the possibility of a failure when you are under stress.

I don't want manual safeties, grips safeties, magazine safeties, or anything else that might stand in the way of me using my defensive tool when I need it. That's one of the reason Glocks have skyrocketed in popularity as fighting handguns and why so many other companies have copied the Glock recipe. Glock's are stupid simple. To fire all you need to do is draw, point and pull the trigger.

[Bruiser419]

It's too bad Ruger doesn't make an SR45c. I may still look at these as I can't seem to find many compact .45's on the market, and I've tried the glock and didn't like it so that's off the list.

Thanks to everyone for commenting.

[gator15]

In my opinion the XDs has the best trigger I have ever fired. It really is surprising how much better it conceals compared to other double stacks like my g26...night and day difference. Great summer carry for me at least

[Motodeficient]

It's too bad Ruger doesn't make an SR45c. I may still look at these as I can't seem to find many compact .45's on the market, and I've tried the glock and didn't like it so that's off the list.

Thanks to everyone for commenting.

A ruger SR45c would still be a lot bulkier than the XDs. The single stack design of the XDs really sets it apart. It has no competition in the .45 caliber (except for maybe a small platform 1911 gun).

[Lotus222]

People have had problems with the 1911's grip safety for decades. That's why you see most modified 1911's having a much larger grip safety protrusion which minimizes the possibility of not having a good grip. Back in the early days of the 1911 it was common to see people taping the safety down or otherwise disabling it. When companies such as Star went to clone the 1911 (during WWII) they left the grip safety out completely. Browning didn't design the 1911 with a grip safety, the Army decided they wanted it. The Army made no such requests on future designs, they too decided it wasn't necessary.

How many other popular handguns in the 20th century employ grip safeties? The 1911 and the XD, that's it. It doesn't improve safety in any measurable way however it does add an additional failure point that is ultimately unnecessary.

I have seen on multiple occasions (and have video of it) where people have failed to engage the grip safety properly on their full-size XD's when drawing on the timer. The timer added stress. The shooter I have on video never had a problem until he was shooting against the clock, then he suddenly had an issue. Gunfights tend to add stress.

I believe fighting tools should be no more complex than is necessary to accomplish their task. Adding unnecessary safeties increases the possibility of a failure when you are under stress.

I don't want manual safeties, grips safeties, magazine safeties, or anything else that might stand in the way of me using my defensive tool when I need it. That's one of the reason Glocks have skyrocketed in popularity as fighting handguns and why so many other companies have copied the Glock recipe. Glock's are stupid simple. To fire all you need to do is draw, point and pull the trigger.

Is the emboldened correct, here? I thought the extension (beavertail) was to guard your hand from the hammer - not increase the area of grip safety. If anything, the beavertail adds force opposite of depressing the grip safety. The XD came after the glock with the added safety features - one of the reasons why I skipped the glock and got the XD. I agree a grip safety isn't for everyone, but I like the benefits of having it vs the 1 in a million chance that it would hinder my reliability.

[10thmtn]

Lotus222 - OP is talking about the "bump" on the grip safety that most 1911 designs have today.

OP - Excellent points, and I agree 100%. That said - why are you carrying the XD-S?

[thrashdog]

I have the XDs and the XDM .45. I prefer the XDs for carry. Its lighter and thinner and very easy to conceal in any attire. It is so light I wear it to the gym concealed in my gym shorts, with only the short strings holding it in place. I have shot over 500 rounds without a problem. Accuracy in self defense mode is very good. You want be shooting any distance with this gun, but thats not why I bought it. If the number of rounds 5+1 is a problem, you you can get extended mags for it 7+1. If that still isnt enough the gun comes with a two clip holder. When I travel thats how I roll. I have two fully loaded extended mags in my holder and my short mag in the gun which is 20 rounds of .45. If you need more than this you are probably screwed.

[Lotus222]

Lotus222 - OP is talking about the "bump" on the grip safety that most 1911 designs have today.

OP - Excellent points, and I agree 100%. That said - why are you carrying the XD-S?

Gotcha. That makes sense.

[HandgunWorld]

I agree. I've shot a couple of XDS's recently. It's a low round count for the weight of the pistol. Another problem, at least for me, is that I can't get all fingers on the grip without using the extended magazine. With the extended magazine, the grip is very long, in fact just as long as my G19 grip if not longer. That defeats the purpose of deep concealment. Without the extended magazine, it recoils quite a bit (with full power defensive loads) and can be hard to hold on to.

I bought a 9mm S&W Shield instead. Still as long of a grip as my G19, but holds more rounds.

I will say the XDS is very accurate though. And comes out of the box with good sights!

[VBVAGUY]

Great video review. Thanks for sharing. Trying to decide if I want to go ahead and get the XDS or wait for the 9mm versiowhich will probably only be a 6+1 configuration, if they use the same frame and dimensions. The 40S&W version will probably be only 5+1 like the 45acp. God Bless

[MilitaryArms]

Gotcha. That makes sense.

Yup, this is what I was talking about for others that might not be clear.

[MilitaryArms]

Great video review. Thanks for sharing. Trying to decide if I want to go ahead and get the XDS or wait for the 9mm versiowhich will probably only be a 6+1 configuration, if they use the same frame and dimensions. The 40S&W version will probably be only 5+1 like the 45acp. God Bless

Springfield is saying sometime in the first quarter of 2013 they'll release the 9mm and .40 S&W versions of the XD-S.

[MilitaryArms]

OP - Excellent points, and I agree 100%. That said - why are you carrying the XD-S?

Because despite its grip safety, it's still the best of its breed currently out there IMHO. I like the ergonomics and sights better than those found on my Shield, which the XD-S replaced on my side. Now that winter is here and I can wear heavier clothing, I'll be back to carrying my G19 OWB.

[10thmtn]

Because despite its grip safety, it's still the best of its breed currently out there IMHO. I like the ergonomics and sights better than those found on my Shield, which the XD-S replaced on my side. Now that winter is here and I can wear heavier clothing, I'll be back to carrying my G19 OWB.

Just curious on your thoughts around the Kahr lineup - especially the PM9/CM9 and the PM45. I have had very bad experiences with Kahr - but I'm curious as to why you would go with the XD-S when you could get a PM45, which lacks the grip safety. Thanks.