XDM or M&P

[Business_Casual]

Larry,

Did you know that the entire British army is equipped with SA 80s?

Here is a link to a thread I started about handgun discussions: https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=30221

I think it has almost all of the "which gun/bullet/cartridge" threads to date.

M_P

[Littlelebowski]

His opening line needs to be qualified with "ON THIS PARTICULAR FORUM".

The XD is a fine pistol, there are several police that carry them in this area and more are changing to it. Our police do not have pistols assigned or given to them, they bring to the job what they wish to carry so long as meets the written requirements. Yea, the cop has to get out of school and go buy his gun, belt, and everything else he wishes to hang on that belt.

The point is, I have a couple friends that are LEO and we have recently B.S.'ed about the pistols that they carry and I was sort of surprised to hear that many are using the XD/XDm.

In the end the XD/XDm seems to be a fine pistol. It is a bit different from the glock and the others, but it shares many features with them and others as well. It is like a 1911/Glock mix to me. I aint scared of it, and it feels really nice in my hand. For now I still carry the Glock, but one day a olive drab XDm will be with me.

There's plenty of data on this forum from known professionals that keeps many of us away from the XD platform. That and shooting it colors my perception of it

[John_Wayne777]

I am planning on getting a new .40 and I have narrowed the field down to a green and black springfield XDM or a smith and wesson M&P. anyone have any thoughts or suggestions on the two?

The short answer is that the M&P is a duty grade handgun, albeit an imperfect one. The XD is not.

The longer answer can be found in the threads cited in an earlier post.

For my money, I would much rather have the M&P.

[markm]

I really am not comfortable spending any money on anything from Springfield Armory. It's a silly marketing company more than anything else in my opinion.

[spamsammich]

I've hated every XD I have shot, whether 9 or 40. It's the only gun I've found to make 9mm feel like I'm shooting 40. The XDM 9 I rented from the range was just as bad, only with a nicer trigger. I didn't have to work nearly as hard to shoot the M&P guns in any caliber.

[.45fmjoe]

I really am not comfortable spending any money on anything from Springfield Armory. It's a silly marketing company more than anything else in my opinion.

Amazing how marketing works, no? How many times did you hear guys tripping over themselves for an HS2000?

[larry0071]

I'm a long time Glock 17 owner, and a buddy at work grabbed a black XD9 and brought it to my house to shoot. I tried it out, and for my hand it was a nice fit. Now, my Glock is a 2nd gen, so maybe if I had compared a gen 4 Glock to the XD, the XD would not have seemed so nice. But the XD is very ergonomicly correct in my hands.

While the XD may not be a Glock, nothing out there is a Glock except for.... yep, the Glock. Everything else seems to be compared to the ugly plastic gun of the late 80's.

Who knows, maybe one day the MP will be the gun everyone compares against or maybe one day it will be the XD.... but I don't think that the XD/XDm is seeing major reliability issues. Most of what I read are "what if" scenarios about the non replaceable extractor. How many of them have ever seen an extractor based issue? Then there is the argument that the barrel center line is higher from the grip than a glock, and that this causes excessive or undesired recoil. In my experiance shooting the Glock 17 and the XD9 back to back, it was not a noticeable difference.

I have talked to a few guys that say that the XD/XDm does not feel good in thier hand at all, and others that, like myself, find it to be as close to perfect in hand as anything they have ever held.

The XD has a great capacity, comes with a decent retention holster and mag holster, fits some folks hands like the Lord himself designed it for the human hand... and has not had a plague of problems. So, if you (or I) like the SA XD platform, at least give it a try and wrap a hand around it. Heck, you just might like it!

[USBP379]

Is there a range near you, where you could rent them all and see how they work for you? I have been running a race tuned Glock 34 for years, and yes, nothing shoots as well as the Glock for me, but I have been running a 9mm M&P L this year and I am definitely intrigued. It has a more ergonomic grip than the Glock, and the slide release is right under your thumb, so you get a faster reload from not having to shift your grip to reach the slide catch. I've had great luck with mine-very reliable and shoots accurately. Only criticism I've heard of it is that my buddy Tokarev is having light primer hits on his Pro, so it is going back to the factory.

Hey, the 40 is nice, but I sure do like light fast bullets-I'd get the 357 Sig for carry. If in 40, I'd look for the way-overloaded 155 grain load that the Border Patrol carries. You can pick it up from ammo dealers who operate near border towns. That shit may destroy your gun over time, but the performance is outstanding with that load.

BTW, I am biased. I liked the M&P so much that I bought the 45, and it is my favorite M&P. I carry the fullsize in winter and the 45 M&P compact in summer. Nothing like having my favorite old school 45 acp caliber in a modern fighting handgun.

I liked the XD when it was $350 and still sold under its original name. It's Eastern European (Croation?), isn't it? Now, it offends me to think of paying Springfield what they are asking for an import they don't even make.

[NC12215]

I carry a G22 everyday at work. It is a "go bang every time" tool. I don't like the way the XDM feels and my wife owns a XD tactical in 9mm.
It is a very fine pistol. I would love to have my own in .45ACP. I have not experienced any of the issues others have with the XD.
Our department is soon to be transitioning to a M&P .45. I have shot them and find them better for me than the Glock SF.
I don't think you would upset with either one.
Dave

[Irish]

S&W M&P for the reasons in the links. I own the full size in 9mm.