Talk to me about the Springfield XD family

[PatientWolf]

I've never been really very interested in the Springfield XD family of pistols. It probably started based on a discussion with a salesman about 6-8 years ago who thought he was doing the Springfield a service by describing it as a Glock that had been improved with a safety. Based on that discussion, I never even had an interest in putting one in my hand.

Fast forward to last week when I was at the LGS and had some time on my hand and decided to handle several pistols in the used case. Eventually we came to an XD Tactical in .45 ACP. I held it and it felt really good in my hand. Doing the research at the other LGSs I found that it was priced at about the going rate (~$400+/-).

Now I am wondering if an XD is something I should be adding. I would only be interested in a .45 at this time.

 

[Fishbed77]

It probably started based on a discussion with a salesman about 6-8 years ago who thought he was doing the Springfield a service by describing it as a Glock that had been improved with a safety.

It's actually the other way around. You could say it is like a Glock that has been made functionally a bit worse by its changes to the trigger mechanism and the addition of the grip safety.

My brother owns an XDm and it's a nice pistol to shoot, but today, there are just so many better options available from Walther, S&W, CZ, and Glock.

 

[HighValleyRanch]

i've always hated the aesthetics of the XD line. I though they looked too much like knobby rubber tires. But have to admit I really like the new XDe with the exposed hammer model.
If I could find one here in CA, I would be interested.

 

[Fla_dogman]

I bought the XDS 4.0 in 45 a while back and use it for my EDC. I liked it so much that I went back and bought a mod 2 in 9mm. I've carried several different guns over the past 30 years but am very satisfied with the accuracy, comfortability and dependability I've experienced with the XD line. Just my opinion.
P.S. the XDS needs a grip cover due to the agressive grip design.

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[Guyand]

Like most of the guns made today by major companies, the XDMs are nice pistols. If it fits your hand and you like the trigger and you shoot it well, you will likely be satisfied. I found it took me some time to get used to it after shooting 1911s, but once I got the hang of it there were no problems.

They are not expensive but perform well. Plenty of people on XDTalk have added trigger kits and posted nice groupings at 25 yards. Some of them are priced pretty low right now if you look around. Worth considering. You might want to checkout XDtalk.com for more specific information on any one model or any specific questions.

 

[RetiredMajor]

For me, the XD line is excellent. They are high quality, the line includes double stack and single stack varieties in many calibers. I'm a fan of the passive grip safety and the safe action trigger. Major

 

[kymasabe]

I can't stand the XD grip safety. However, the new XDe with the hammer does interest me.

 

[Minorcan]

You can always choose not to use the safety on a XD but the Glock will always be dependably ugly. The downside to the XD is it looks so good it could get stolen. The Glock is so ugly no one will steal it. So if you like ugly guns and want one that you can keep a long time I would go for the Glock.

That’s the best I can do to keep you from buying an XD platform.

 

[libiglou]

I have the first gen, 5 in model 45. It fits my small hands perfectly and is a very accurate pistol that feeds everything ,including lead reloads. Its my house gun that resides in my bedroom. I don't think you can go wrong with one of these.

 

[Cheapshooter]

You can always choose not to use the safety on a XD

How? It's a grip safety like a 1911. You "use" it by just gripping the gun when you shoot.
Don't mind it at all on my XD40 Sub Compact. Very happy with my CD for it's purpose of concealed carry.

 

[lee n. field]

I've never been really very interested in the Springfield XD family of pistols. It probably started based on a discussion with a salesman about 6-8 years ago who thought he was doing the Springfield a service by describing it as a Glock that had been improved with a safety. Based on that discussion, I never even had an interest in putting one in my hand.

Fast forward to last week when I was at the LGS and had some time on my hand and decided to handle several pistols in the used case. Eventually we came to an XD Tactical in .45 ACP. I held it and it felt really good in my hand. Doing the research at the other LGSs I found that it was priced at about the going rate (~$400+/-).

Now I am wondering if an XD is something I should be adding. I would only be interested in a .45 at this time.

If you want it, go for it.

I have had no problem with my various XD guns.

There's a lot of social media amplified badmouthing of them going on, normally without specifics or numbers.

 

[jr24]

I personally don't like the higher bore axis (only gun where I really noticed the difference in recoil, things like Sigs don't bug me much) and the trigger pull.

Yeah it's like and pretty decent, but it breaks so far back in the pull it annoys me.

At least those two are why I don't have an XD anymore. Mine was accurate and reliable, however so there's that.

 

[kmw1954]

Wife owns 2. Both are Mod2 4" models. One being a 45acp and the other a 9mm. I had no hand in her buying these. It was her money and her choices. She prefers them over my 92 and my 2 Witness metal frames. She also shoots them both quite well.

 

[jmr40]

I had an XD for a while. While most of us will never notice the difference the XD is true single action. The striker is fully cocked and pulling the trigger fires the gun. With Glock, and virtually all other striker fired guns the striker is partially cocked. Pulling the trigger does 2 things, it finishes cocking the gun, then releases the striker. Most of the others are technically classified as DAO. In practice there just isn't that much difference though. But that one distinction rules the XD out of competition with most LE agencies.

They are decent guns, probably just as reliable as Glock or any other similar gun. But there are design features I don't like. The high bore is one. But it is the addition of the grip safety that is a deal killer for me. It is a useless feature that isn't necessary even on traditional 1911's. In fact it is more likely to prevent the gun from firing when you really want it to fire than prevent it from firing when you don't want it to fire. The problem is common enough that back in the day when 1911's were actually used having the grip safety disabled was a common modification. And the 1911 grip safety is far better designed than the XD. In the world we live in today I'd never modify a gun to disable a safety feature. Better to just buy one without it.

 

[Mosin44az]

I have owned 7 and still have three.

They are reliable, a good value, and Springfield gave excellent free service the one time I called on them.

I like the grip safety. I think it adds a degree of safety in non-holster carry. I have no issue carrying an XD in a fanny pack, for instance. Wouldn’t do that with a Glock or most of the other striker-fired pistols.

Possibly the grip safety adds redundancy considering the striker is fully cocked.

I think the XDs handle recoil much better than Glock. XD .40s and .45 compacts are far more comfortable to shoot than Glocks of equivalent size.

Is the stock trigger as good as some others? Maybe not. But there’s a reason people buy them. The compacts in higher calibers make a good case for themselves.

 

[stonewall50]

I've never been really very interested in the Springfield XD family of pistols. It probably started based on a discussion with a salesman about 6-8 years ago who thought he was doing the Springfield a service by describing it as a Glock that had been improved with a safety. Based on that discussion, I never even had an interest in putting one in my hand.



Fast forward to last week when I was at the LGS and had some time on my hand and decided to handle several pistols in the used case. Eventually we came to an XD Tactical in .45 ACP. I held it and it felt really good in my hand. Doing the research at the other LGSs I found that it was priced at about the going rate (~$400+/-).



Now I am wondering if an XD is something I should be adding. I would only be interested in a .45 at this time.

I have found that people who tend to hate the gun...are Glock fans. Go figure? I’ve had a single jam in several thousand rounds. And it was a FTF due to a bad round. Not the gun at all. Would have happened in a Block as well. Fact is. It is a great gun. If someone doesn’t like the grip safety? It is because they can’t put the gun in their hand correctly lol. I mean? 1911s handle them just fine. You wouldn’t even notice it. Just hold and shoot like any other pistol.

I will say that it has 1 issue really. The sights are tougher to change than other guns. I don’t know what they were thinking when they designed it the way they did. There also isn’t a lot of “replicas” or dummies or airsoft versions or whatever for training purposes. But I’d say that is a minor limitation. :shrug:

If you like it? Buy it. And enjoy the boos, hisses, and grumbling of Glock fans as they jeer your selection of a firearm they deemed inferior to anything but the mightiest of all firearms...the Flock. I mean Block. I mean Glock. [emoji6]


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[stonewall50]

I had an XD for a while. While most of us will never notice the difference the XD is true single action. The striker is fully cocked and pulling the trigger fires the gun. With Glock, and virtually all other striker fired guns the striker is partially cocked. Pulling the trigger does 2 things, it finishes cocking the gun, then releases the striker. Most of the others are technically classified as DAO. In practice there just isn't that much difference though. But that one distinction rules the XD out of competition with most LE agencies.



They are decent guns, probably just as reliable as Glock or any other similar gun. But there are design features I don't like. The high bore is one. But it is the addition of the grip safety that is a deal killer for me. It is a useless feature that isn't necessary even on traditional 1911's. In fact it is more likely to prevent the gun from firing when you really want it to fire than prevent it from firing when you don't want it to fire. The problem is common enough that back in the day when 1911's were actually used having the grip safety disabled was a common modification. And the 1911 grip safety is far better designed than the XD. In the world we live in today I'd never modify a gun to disable a safety feature. Better to just buy one without it.

How did you arrive at this conclusion about preventing you from firing? It just isn’t that hard to hold a pistol. Unless you are talking about in a point blank hands on incident. In which case? I would argue that that may also be a good thing. You wouldn’t want the gun to go off before you are ready. Otherwise? Why wouldn’t you have the gun seated in your hand correctly? I mean the grip safety on the gun is VERY easy to depress. I am quite literally testing it now as I type this response. And it is so easy that even with the gun INCORRECTLY seated in my hand...I can manage to get the pin to drop.

So? It seems to me the point is to prevent an accident primarily while in the holster (the non hard plastic ones). It is simply an extra dose rather than a bare trigger. I just don’t understand your argument there.


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[Northrider]

I have an XDm in .40 that I like very much. Having the ability to change out the backstrap to make it more comfortable in my hands helped me decide on the m instead of the regular XD. I have had Glocks, and while they are fine pistols, I prefer the Xdm that I have.
In the end, it is how a gun fits you and the ease of use that should be the deciding factor.
Just my .02 worth.

 

[ojibweindian]

Owned a 5" XD 45 tactical for a number of years. Ran 1000s of rounds through it. Never a problem with the grip safety. Only issues were that it chokes on SWCs and, as others have mentioned, high bore axis. Stout rounds tend to "torque" the gun out of my hand.

Son has it now. Got myself a M&P 45. Like it better.

 

[JDBerg]

I just shoot my Glocks better than most of the XD’s I have tried, the trigger break & reset on the XD tends to be different than what I’m used to with my Glocks. Not necessarily better or worse but definitely different. I know that I tend to know what I like & like what I know. YMMV, and that’s OK!