Product Review: Springfield Armory XD-45 Mod.2

Last month, SurvivalBlog readers got an in-depth look at the Springfield Armory XD-9 Mod.2 sub-compact 9mm handgun, and to be sure, it’s a winner in all respects. However, not everyone thinks that the 9mm round is the best all around caliber for self-defense or other uses. Some of us believe nothing less than the .45ACP will make do, and I’m in that group myself. Yes, quite often I can be caught carrying some kind of 9mm pistol, but if I know in advance that I’m headed into harm’s way I’ll elect to carry a .45ACP of some sort.

Many gun writers jumped on the XD-9 Mod.2 when it came out. Almost all of them received a sample the very same day, and I honestly don’t believe some of those writers even shot the gun because they just were in a hurry to be the first to report on it. Well, I wasn’t one of them; it wasn’t until two months later that I completed my testing on the XD-9 Mod.2 and reported on it here at SurvivalBlog.

I waited for the XD-45 Mod.2 to come out, and it was worth the wait. So, here is a short, “Quick Look” at this gun, and to my knowledge, no other gun writer has reported on this gun in .45ACP. I guess they felt that it was covered in the 9mm version. The XD-45 Mod.2 is very close in size to the XD-9 Mod.2, except that it’s slightly bigger in width and length, which is necessitated by the bigger .45ACP round that it shoots. The XD-45 Mod.2 has a 3.3-inch barrel, and it seems to work well, whereas the 9mm version only had a 3-inch barrel. We have the fiber optic front sight and white two-dot rear sight. The gun weighs in at 26-oz when unloaded with the 9-round mag, and it weighs 27-oz with the 13-rd mag with sleeve on it. The gun comes with both mags. However, I much prefer the shorter 9-rd mag on the gun and a spare on the belt; so I ordered a couple spare 9-rd mags. If I were using this gun for a house gun, I’d install the 13-rd mag in it.

I asked my contact at Springfield Armory about the use of +P .45ACP in this little sub compact .45ACP pistol, and I was told it can take an unlimited amount of shooting with +P rounds. WOW!! Most gun makers will tell you to go easy on +P loads but not Springfield Armory. Also, in case you didn’t know, the XD line of handguns are made in Croatia!

I fired several hundred rounds of various .45ACP through my XD-45 Mod.2 sample, and this included 230-gr FMJ, 230-gr JHP, and 185-gr JHP from Black Hills Ammunition The Power of Performance. From Buffalo Bore Ammunition | Strictly Big Bore – Strictly Business I had their 230-gr FMJ FN +P load, their 230-gr JHP +P load, as well as their 160 and 185 grain loads, topped with the Barnes TAC-XP all-copper hollow point loads, both of which were +P loadings. I had zero malfunctions, not even a hint of a malfunction, and the +P loads weren’t that hard to handle in this little gun, even in rapid fire.

As I reported before and I’ve mentioned to Springfield Armory, I believe they need to include the Pearce Grip grip extender with these guns because it only adds a little bit of length to the height of the gun but gives the pinky finger something to hold onto and it makes the gun feel all that much better in the hand, plus it gives your more control, especially in rapid-fire. The only draw back is that this particular grip extender doesn’t match the grip texture on the front of the grip of the XD-45 Mod.2, but that’s a minor thing.

The XD-45 Mod.2 is now my daily carry handgun. It’s just hard to fault a totally reliable sub compact .45 ACP that holds 9+1 rounds, or if you prefer the longer mag, 13+1 rounds. Plus, the gun easily handles +P loads. What’s not to like here?

– Survivalblog Product Review Editor Emeritus, Pat Cascio,