Springfield Armory introduces the XD(M) 10mm Auto pistols
Springfield Armory announced the launch of two new 4.5" and 5.25" barrel variants of the XD(M) semi-automatic striker-fired pistols, now chambered for the powerful 10mm caliber
The XD(M) line of pistols from Springfield Armory is boosted by the launch of two new models in 10mm Auto
The 10mm Auto caliber was invented by legend Jeff Cooper in 1983, and was abortively accepted into service by FBI in 1989, being replaced shortly afterwards.
While largely overlooked for years – mostly in favour of its own derivatives, .40 Smith & Wesson and even .357 SIG – the 10mm Auto cartridge remains one of the most powerful available for standard full-size semi-automatic pistols, and the advancement of the manufacturing materials and technologies available to the gun industry made guns chambered in 10mm more reliable and solid than ever before, not to mention way less bulky and heavy..
This led to a revival of 10mm Auto in north America, while it remains a niche caliber in Europe. Now, a new name joins the already vast plethora of manufacturers offering modern handguns in 10mm Auto: Springfield Armory, mostly known for its line of high-quality 1911-based handguns and for the XD, XD Mod.2, XD(M), XD(S) and XD(E) series of pistols manufactured by HS Produkt in Croatia.
The new 10mm Auto Springfield XD(M) 4.5", seen from the left side
The right side of the XD(M) 4.5" 10mm Auto pistol
The new 10mm Springfield XD(M) pistols will be available in two different barrel lengths
Yesterday, Springfield Armory announced two new XD(M) striker-fired pistols chambered in 10mm Auto – more specifically the XD(M) 4.5", sporting a 11,43 cm barrel, and the XD(M) 5.25" Competition coming with a 13,3 cm barrel. Both offer the same technical features found on the previous entries in the line, a railed polymer frame with interchangeable grip panels, single-action trigger, and ambidextrous magazine release.
The barrels of the XD(M) 10mm Auto pistols are cold-hammer forged and feature a matte black ferritic nitrocarburized protective finish ("Melonite") and six right-handed grooves with a 1:16" twist rate.
Their forged steel slides sport the same Melonite treatment, a fiber-optic front sight and a low-profile combat sight for the XD(M) 4.5" or a fully-adjustable competition sight for the XD(M) 5.25. The latter also features a wide lightening slot on top of the slide, between the ejection port and the front sight.
The right side of the Springfield Armory XD(M) 5.25" 10mm Auto pistol
The 10mm Springfield Armory XD(M) 5.25" pistol seen from the left side
The overall weight of the two guns tops respectively 31.2 oz (880 grams) and 32.8 oz (929 grams) when empty.
Each 10mm Auto Springfield Armory XD(M) pistol comes issued with a set of interchangeable grip backstraps and three double-stack metal magazines with a polymer elevator and floorplate, holding 15+1 rounds of 10mm ammunition.
The reliability of the new 10mm XD(M) pistols is witnessed by a 2:42 hrs video uploaded on YouTube by Springfield Armory and covering the extensive torture test that the new model underwent: 10.000 rounds of Federal Premium Hydra-Shok 10mm ammunition were fired without any work done to the pistol (outside of a recol spring change and adding some Lucas Extreme Duty Gun Oil at 2000-rounds intervals), while the magazines were left uncleaned and exposed to wind, dust, and grit.
In the United States the manufacturer's suggested retail price for the new Springfield Armory XD(M) 4.5" and XD(M) 5.25" 10mm Auto pistols is set at $652,00 and $779,00 respectively.