The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - Springfield XDs 45 ACP 3.3

hounddawg · October 8, 2012, 04:51 PM

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.

October 8, 2012, 04:51 PM	#1
hounddawg Senior Member Join Date: March 1, 2009 Posts: 4,232	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. __________________ “How do I get to the next level?” Well, you get to the next level by being the first one on the range and the last one to leave.” – Jerry Miculek Last edited by hounddawg; October 8, 2012 at 05:01 PM.