Comparing the Springfield XD(M) and XD Mod.2 Full-Size Pistols

I've got two Springfield Armory full-size guns here, both from the XD family. The 4.5 inch XD-M model, and the Mod.2, the standard XD upgrade to the Mod.2 in the 5" Tactical Model. Now, other than the fact this has the stainless steel slide, these guns look very, very similar to the appearances. But when you touch them, when you pick 'em up in your hand, you're probably gonna notice a big difference in the grip. And if you're comparing these two guns trying to decide which one to use maybe for law enforcement duty use, or as a home defense gun, or maybe you're carrying a full-size gun for personal defense as your CCW, and these are the two guns you've narrowed the choices down to.

Well, they come standard from the factory with the same kind of sights. They've got the white dot narrow notch in the back, they've got the fiber optic front. They both come set up exactly the same way. You can see, they both have slide serrations front and rear. I find the Mod.2 to be a little bit more aggressive, a little bit easier to grab, but some people like the styling of the XD-M a little bit more.

Now, again, the main place that you're gonna feel a difference here is the grip. Of course, the infamous grip zone on the Mod.2 fits a lot of people really well. It's one of the most comfortable grips out there on the market I think. And it also accommodates a very wide range of hand sizes. So the contouring allows a smaller hand to still shoot this gun very well, but there's plenty of space for a larger hand to fit onto the gun.

When you go to the XD-M, the grip is gonna be a little bit blockier and a little bit larger. So if you have large hands, this is gonna fill your hands better and probably aid in your ability to shoot the gun, manage recoil, and just feel more comfortable on it. Some people really like this squared-off trigger guard on the older designs of the standard XD and the XD-M. Personally, I don't like it when people will wrap their finger around up there, I want that finger tucked in underneath. But if you're doing a lot of competition stuff where you might be trying to manage that recoil very quickly for a quick double tap up close, and that's the technique that you've developed, or if you're gonna ever push this gun up against a barricade, you're gonna like that flat front.

The other nice thing about the XD-M, of course, is that this 4.5 inch gun comes set up so that you can put a red dot sight on there if you're gonna use it in an open type competition setup. Now, that wider grip also means that you're gonna be able to get one of what was originally advertised as the Megazine. This is the XD-M magazine, and it's a 19 round capacity. This magazine for the Mod.2 is a 16 round capacity, and that's probably the biggest, most significant difference in these two guns. Outside of your smaller hand maybe not liking the XD-M grip, the biggest difference between the 4.5 and the five inch gun really is gonna come down to those three rounds of capacity that come with the XD-M magazines.

Now, remember the XD-Ms will accept the XD magazines from the Mod.2, but that doesn't work the other way around. You can't put the larger magazines from the XD-M into the grip of the Mod.2. Of course, five inches versus 4.5, that means that you're going to have a little bit longer sight radius and a little bit more weight out front. So again, that more weight out front, that extra 1/2 an inch of slide and barrel is gonna make this gun a little bit faster to shoot, as long as your hand fits the gun very well. So, take a look at the grips if you're comparing the XD-M to the 5" Mod.2.

Remember the sight radius and weight issues, and of course, magazine capacity. Those are your major differences between these two great guns from Springfield Armory.