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Springfield XDS Mod 2 45acp review

5K views 6 replies 6 participants last post by  MMinSC 
#1 ·
Posting for those that might be looking for anything they can find on the Springfield XDS Mod 2 3.3" barrel in 45 acp.

Purchased from Smoky Mountain Guns and Ammo. Price $469.99, free shipping. Model has the stainless steel slide and tritium front sight (XDSSG93345STS). Took to the range this morning, did not clean prior to shooting. Out of the box, load, and shoot.

Ammo used:

(50) Federal Aluminum FMJ 230gr
(50) Wolf Steel FMJ 230gr
(25) Federal HST JHP 230gr
(25) S&B brass FMJ 230 gr

Total of 150 rounds shot through the two included 5 and 6 round factory magazines, equally rotating between the two mags. Every round loaded, fired, and ejected with no hiccups along the way.

Pros:
  • Though a small sampling of ammo, I was impressed that it showed no aversion to the aluminum and steel cased ammo. I have owned other 45mm and 9mm that would shoot anything but the aluminum. I am optimistic that this will prove to be a reliable handgun. I will update this review if reliability becomes an issue.
  • Less felt recoil than expected. Less than my Ruger all stainless Officer 1911. Really surprised on the recoil.
  • Both pistol and mags just feel quality. The mag spring had a good bit of resistance but the load process was buttery smooth. Both mags easily latched without need to press or push hard. Both mags ejected with deliberate force. not a wimpy disconnected.
  • The "grip zone", minus the words "Grip Zone" was a perfect amount of grip. The stippling kept it firm in your hand and I did not notice a need to re-grip after every shot as I do with some of my pistols.
  • I would call the trigger as neutral. Nothing about it made be react as if it was a pro or a con. It was smooth enough, not much take-up. Not a hair trigger, the effort to fire was deliberate but I would not call it heavy. I guess that it did not stand out as a con, makes it at least a non issue.
Cons:
  • The sites are a pro and a con. The pro is that the front tritium site is circled in a vibrant color that really stands out as very easy to see in the iron notch of the rear site. The con is not a big one, and may be limited to this particular gun, but it shot about 3" low at between 5-7 yards. If I placed the middle of the round front site in line with the top of the rear site, I hit pretty well point of aim. I am just going to paint a thin white line right at the top of the rear iron site and know to always line that up with the middle of the circle of the front, and that will work for my range shooting. It is not a significant enough issue for defensive shooting, at least to me.
  • The obvious issue that may be a con for some is the mag capacity of a single stack 45 - 5 or 6 rounds. I will note that the 5 round mag has a pinky extension and I was able to get my pinky finger securely resting on it. So the grip was about as equally good for me on the 5 as on the 6 rounder, though the 6 did have a longer extension. The width of a single stack 45 suits my hand better than a double stack. I understand and accept the lower round count in exchange for the better comfort.
More positives than the relatively minor cons. Shooting the aluminum and steel successfully was a relief. The low felt recoil made it no issue to shoot hundreds of rounds if I had wanted to. The feel, fit, grip, mags all were satisfying and felt well made with quality materials. I was pleased with the value for the price.

Hope this helps anyone that may be looking at this model or for a single stack carry 45acp in general.
 
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#2 ·
I own the 9mm version of this gun and I've put over 1,000 rounds through it with 1 jam which ended up being a dented round from the factory. It's surprisingly accurate for the short barrel length, recon isn't bad, but I didn't like the trigger so I installed a PRP trigger (much better). My only other complaint was the factory grips did a number on my hands after a couple hundred rounds. That was a cheap fix from Talon. It's my favorite gun for conceal carry.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
 
#4 ·
I own the 9mm version of this gun and I've put over 1,000 rounds through it with 1 jam which ended up being a dented round from the factory. It's surprisingly accurate for the short barrel length, recon isn't bad, but I didn't like the trigger so I installed a PRP trigger (much better). My only other complaint was the factory grips did a number on my hands after a couple hundred rounds. That was a cheap fix from Talon. It's my favorite gun for conceal carry.

Sent from my SM-N960U using Tapatalk
Is your version the "Grip Zone" or Mod 2 model or the original with the deep cheese slicer type grips?
 
#3 ·
I EDC the original XDS in 9 mm with an optic. Fantastic little gun. I did upgrade to a PRP trigger, and filled the grip out with both a Talon grip and bike inner tube wrap, in addition to having the slide milled for a RMSc optic.
 
#5 ·
I have this pistol in 9mm, and it's a fantastic little gun. I don't carry it much anymore since I got a p365 - the Sig kind of took the role the XDs played in my carry system. But I still love the Springfield, and wouldn't hesitate to carry it if needed.
 
#6 ·
I've been having my XDS Mod 2 .45 3.3" for a coupla years now. I've shot it a lot and have never had a malfunction, including a lot of factory HP and FMJ's, and a lot of home cast LRN and LTC's.
I carry mine off-duty whenever I'm in a .45 mood .... which seems to me most of the time here lately.

It even handles my nuclear, home cast, 245 grain LTC that I chronograghed out of that lil sucker at 900 fps. Now that load does have a lil bite in that XDS but it shoots well from it. That load in my XDS will probably be my woods bumming load this year.
 
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