On January 8 Breitbart Sports did a short overview of the Springfield XDS .45. Since then, we have shot the gun hundreds of times in numerous conditions and refrained from cleaning it: just daring it to jam or otherwise malfunction.
The result–a dirty gun with zero malfunctions. (To be clear, during this time Spring Armory issued a recall for certain, specified XDS pistols because of a firing problem–our gun was not involved in the recall.)
We have shot the gun in the heat of the Arizona desert, in the cold of Kentucky, and in the varied weather of West Texas and Oklahoma.
It’s been dropped in sand, snow, and mud puddles. We’ve fired punishing +P defensive rounds through it–Federal Hyrda-Shok and Hornady Critical Duty–and standard target ammunition from various manufacturers. Yet it shoots every time.
The only quasi-problem we encountered was from the sand (or maybe the mud). And the problem was not with the pistol itself but with the magazine. Although there was no malfunction, the bullets did not slide smoothly into or out of the magazine for a time. But that was a temporary problem and with more shooting whatever was in the magazine worked itself out.
As we reported in January, the XDS .45 has a considerable amount of recoil, but it is in no way overwhelming. If you purchase one, you need to shoot a box or two of target ammunition through it to get accustomed to how it feels when you pull the trigger. But this is true of any gun you are going to bet your life on.
At 23 ounces and zero malfunctions, the XDS .45 is a great gun for concealed carry permit holders.
For those who simply don’t like the recoil of a .45, the XDS is available in 9mm as well.
Follow AWR Hawkins on Twitter @AWRHawkins
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