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Old October 8, 2012, 04:51 PM   #1
hounddawg
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Springfield XDs 45 ACP 3.3 - range test

picked one of these up last Saturday to replace my Walther PPS 9 mm. Always liked the .45 platform and the idea of one in a subcompact really appealed to me.

Took it to the range today and it performed about as expected. Fired 90 rounds of 230 gr Federal FMJ through it. No misfeeds, no light strikes, no stovepipes or any other problems. I shot 5 rounds to the magazine and all 5 went bang every time. Recoil is heavy as would be expected shoving that much lead out of a 21oz platform.

Ergonomics however are good and for me at least recoil is manageable and tolerable if not pleasant. No slide bites and after 90 rounds no pain in the hand/wrist etc. Using a 2 handed grip it was very controllable with minimum muzzle flip. I have large hands (extra large glove size) and the gun itself feels very small to me even after changing the backstrap. I may pick up a extended magazine just to give my pinky a home.

Only problem I found is the front sights out of the box are too high. I was shooting at 15 feet and had 2 paper plates stapled to the cardboard. I was shooting at the top plate and put the first 5 all into the bottom plate in a appx 2 inch group. Second magazine was the same thing, great group dead center but about 18 inches low. I decided to let the wife do the third magazine since she is the better handgun shooter and her 5 went right alongside my 10. BTW she weighs 120 dripping wet and she handled the recoil ok. I will admit she was not begging to shoot another set and made a really nasty comment about where I could holster the pistol which would make sitting down really uncomfortable.

I may or may not contact SA over this since it took about me two more magazines for me to give up on the sights and start "point" shooting. After about a little practice I could send all 5 into the 8 inch circle at 15 feet in less than 3 seconds. As long as I am using it as a "point and shoot" and it will put em in center mass so for me the sight issue is not that big of a deal.

Just my 2 cents worth but I am pleased with the gun and it does what it was bought to do. I can fire off 6 .45 ACP rounds reliably from a pistol 4 inches tall 6 inches long, less than 1 inch thick. At reasonable range I can put all of those shots into center body mass in rapid fire. To me the XDm is like my 870 Remington bedside gun. Neither of them were bought for pleasure shooting, competition, or plinking but both do their job really well.
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Last edited by hounddawg; October 8, 2012 at 05:01 PM.
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Old October 8, 2012, 08:45 PM   #2
Snuffy308
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Are you holding POA-POI? The one I have when shooting off hand deliberate fire is making one ragged hole at 5 yards dead center with a POA hold. But 18 inches off at 5 yards is too much even with a 6 o'clock hold. I would try it from a rest and hold POA before messing with the sights.
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Old October 9, 2012, 05:11 AM   #3
hounddawg
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Yeah I tried a POA- POI after doing a 6 o'clock thinking it was like my Walther, which will also shoot low with a 6 'oclock but even the Walther will only be a inch or 2 low with a 6 o'clock as you pointed out. This one seems to have either a front sight that is too high or the rear is too low.

did not use a regular rest Snuffy but I did do 1 magazine sitting at the bench with my forearms and left hand resting on the bench. I had the same result. Also did a magazine trying to keep the front blade about 1/16th of a inch above the rear sight and that brought my shots up but I can't do that consistently and in a stressful situation would not even think about it most likely. I am the first to admit I am not the greatest pistol shooter in the world, like I said in my first post my wife is a natural with a pistol and embarrasses me on a regular basis. If she was shooting low then it is the arrow not the Indian.

Anyway it does not matter really, when I am shooting IDPA or ICORE I tend to point shoot 90% of the time and this gun seems to be a natural for it. Took me about ten rounds to start putting them in 2 or 3 inch groups right where I wanted them to go. Plenty accurate for a defense gun and as good as I can do with the wife's Bodyguard 38 which I think is a good comparison gun.

Just out of curiosity how do you like yours overall? After reading a lot of reviews on light strikes and stovepipes I went up there expecting the worst but the gun performed flawlessly other than the sight issue which for me is not much of a issue
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Last edited by hounddawg; October 9, 2012 at 05:21 AM.
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Old October 9, 2012, 08:32 AM   #4
Snuffy308
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Mind has performed great. I'm a Glock guy and I would call the little XDs performing at very "Glock like" levels. I have only had it out one time but shot mostly 230 gr. hardball with a couple of mags of 230 gr. Corbon HPs. No problems whatsoever and all rounds went where they were pointed. Pretty sure it's regulated for the 230s. By the way setting off the Corbons in this little package will get your attention but in a good way
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Old October 9, 2012, 08:43 AM   #5
hounddawg
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I hear you on the attention part, there is no doubt in your mind that the gun fired when the trigger is pulled. I seriously doubt if my wife will ever pick it up again and she loves her 38 and 9mm pistol's. She does not like my 1911's and revolvers becasue she thinks they are too heavy for her to hold comfortably. Last night I kidded her the the reason I bought this one was I knew she would not declare it to be "her" gun

It is not a gun you go out and shoot for fun for sure. I will put a couple of mags through each month just to keep myself familiar but I won't be doing any more 100 round sessions.
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