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Springfield XD-S

8K views 44 replies 25 participants last post by  TN_Mike 
#1 ·
 
#8 ·
I have a couple questions I hope you can answer:

1.) Is this "better" for CCW vs. the XDm .45 or is it just different? To me, the XDm is a little bigger, but it holds a few more rounds which may or may not make a difference.
2.) Is this hard to find? I was at the local range and they just got one in and form one of the comments above I bet it's gone before I could even get back if I decided this was what I wanted.

Thanks.

Bruce
 
#9 ·
I have an XDM 9C and I can't carry it like I can the XD-S, huge difference and I much prefer it (XD-S) for carry.

I've found availability hit and miss, sometimes they sit for a week others they are sold before they hit the display.

Tapatalk - Helping people post from bathrooms since 2009.
 
#11 ·
Nice review. Have to agree about the grip safety. In a struggle, where you might not have a perfect grip, I would not want something keeping the gun from firing. IMHO, that "feature" is a war-stopper.

My other concern with this gun is the weight. For what it is, it is on the heavy side. If you're going to carry a gun with only 5-6 shots, I'd lean toward the lighter weight and simplicity of a revolver in .38. JMHO, YMMV.
 
#14 ·
I didn't notice when I held it, but yah, not sure that's the best to have on a CCW when you never knwo how you may have to use it...

As for the Shield 9 comment, thanks for the heads up, but I already have an SR9c, so I was looking for something a little bigger.
 
#15 ·
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. :wink:
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#17 ·
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.
 
#22 ·
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? :scratchchin:
 
#23 ·
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.
 
#25 ·
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!
 
#26 ·
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 :smile:
 
#31 ·
I'm going to chime in on that one and see if my reasons are the same as his...

Mostly because of the trigger for me, although the Kahr double action trigger is probably one of (if not the best) long and moderately heavy DA trigger pulls out there, it's harder to get that first shot on target (at least for me), with the XD-S I get much better accuracy, better factory sights, ambi mag release and less sensitivity to certain ammo - not to mention not one single nose dive like I experienced with my PM series.
 
#32 ·
Video was very well done. Well organized, sharp focus, not too much repatition, camera didn't dodge all over, and the audio was clear.

I also liked the discussion of the pistol. I've never fired one, have handled one, and have it on my must buy list. I literallty have the money in the bank ready to spend. That said, while yours was reliable as gravity. Not all of them have been that good. On the XDs talk forum, there are a number of them that are having teething problems that aren't always fixed after being returned to Springfield.

I took note of the serial number on the one you have and will compare it with the serial number on the one at the LGS. If the local one is higher, it may be time to go for it.

Again, well done on the video.

Fitch
 
#34 ·
Interesting. I use a thumb-over-thumb grip, instead of thumbs forward, so I've never had that issue.

As they say, different strokes for different folks. :lol: If I'm going to carry a low-cap handgun of that size/weight, it would be a revolver for the greater simplicity and lack of grip safety.

It'll be interesting to see if someone comes out with a grip sleeve or something that can defeat the grip safety. Hmmm....
 
#38 ·
I like the grip safety, and I like the weight. I would like to see the XDS in a 9mm though.

What velocity can realistically expect from a .45 out of an XDs?

Here is someone that performed some chrono tests:

WaGuns.org - View topic - Springfield XDs range report


It looks like depending on the load, etc.; velocity is anywhere from the low 700's to mid 800 ft/sec. Again depending on the load gives it an energy reading of around 280+ and above. I know energy is not everything but from the XDS it seems kind of low. Still I would not want to be hit by any of that, but it still makes you wonder if it is enough for proper penetration and expansion. God Bless :smile:
 
#39 ·
Adding my thanks for the video. It was supremely well done. I bought one today because I'd passed up the chance several times before. The 5 this dealer received have all sold in two days, my friend literally laid across the counter preventing this one from vanishing while I sped down there. Paid about 545 but thought that was good. They didn't have any extra mags left but I'm pretty happy with the performance after 250 rounds today, reloads of about 175K power factor I use for competition. Some issues slamming the first round off the top of the mag but the gun is tight and new. Nothing gives me any hint of a problem so far but I really think they missed the mark with these sights, great for competition and the range but would have highly preferred the white tritium dots like on my Sigs. Or the TruGlo tritium-fibre set. Holster doesn't snap onto the gun worth a flip so it will need a new holster and mag pouches.

It shoots a little to the left and low but the low part doesn't concern me. I tapped the rear sight a little to the right when I got home and will test again after IDPA match ends tomorrow. It's good enough without the extended mags I may not buy them. It sure runs out of bullets FAST though, I feel like I'm back to shooting a 6 shot 45 revolver in some ways.

It seems to Chrono about 50-75 fps slower than my standard size 1911 with the same rounds. The grip surface no matter how aggressive on these plastic guns will NEVER be as good as even the average metal 1911 with checkering but since the grip is single stack I can still get a great grip. The gun point shoots better than it does using the sights to be honest. I got better hits with faster followup point shooting than sight shooting under 20 feet.

The trigger likes to be pulled with no regard to technique whatsoever. If you shoot with the trigger closer to your power crease instead of the finger tip it shoots a lot better, hole in hole. I think that's good. This is a combat setup in every way. I think the travel in the trigger is pretty long but I agree the reset is nice and sweet. I imagine once broken in this XDS45 will shoot great. In some ways this stock trigger is better than the larger full size 9mm, 45 and 5.25 XDms which almost beg for a trigger upgrade out of the box.

This XDS also seems to be made with more intricate design and slightly more sophisticated internals. It's not as small as I had remembered though and although remarkable for a 45acp it feels like a giant compared to my Sig P938 which I still think is an amazing CQB fighter with 8 rounds carried and my two 7 round backup mags and the critical duty ammo.

I was thrilled to hear the OP's review only disliked the grip safety which does not bother me at all. Once I practice with this thing I will be a robber or muggers worst effing night mare. I do believe the 9mm Sig I carry to be a little more surgical. It's a trade off, I still like the idea of sending a 230 grain daylight hole maker down range. This thing was swinging the steel plate like a rag doll today from 25 yards.
 
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