Springfield Armory Echelon 4.0C, new compact pistol designed for concealment
Springfield Armory introduces the Echelon 4.0C pistol, a compact variant of the Echelon series, designed for concelaed carry as a service or defensive weapon
Springfield Armory Echelon 4.0C, new compact pistol designed for concealment
Officially announced in early December and now being distributed on the US market, the new Springfield Armory Echelon 4.0C 9mm Luger semi-automatic pistol is a compact version of the Springfield Armory Echelon model first introduced in July 2023.
Manufactured for Springfield Armory by HS Produkt of Croatia like its full-sized sister, the new Echelon 4.0C was designed for easy and effortless concealability and comfortable carry, both concealed and open, and is more or less on the Glock 19 ballpark size-wise: it's 184 mm / 7.25" long overall, weighs in at approximately 680 grams (24 oz) when empty, and comes from factory with a 4-inch barrel.
In terms of intended use, the Echelon 4.0 aims at taking a slice of the lucrative concealed carry, personal defense and home protection market – particularly in the United States – but will also constitute a viable alternative as a service pistol for law enforcement and private security.
Like its full-size counterpart, the Springfield Armory Echelon 4.0C pistol is built around a trigger group self-contained in a steel chassis dubbed the "Central Operating Group", which is also the serialized component and thus legally represents the gun, simplifying the replacement of components for customization or maintenance.
Springfield Armory Echelon 4.0C 9mm Luger semi-automatic pistol – right side
Springfield Armory Echelon 4.0C 9mm Luger semi-automatic pistol – left side
The black polymer frame of the Echelon 4.0C offers all the features of the full-size version: a MIL-STD 1913 Picatinny rail for accessories, ambidextrous magazine release and slide stop, an oversized trigger guard, adaptive gripping texture, textured indexing points, and three interchangeable backstraps.
The slide is Springfield Armory Echelon 4.0C is machined from solid billet, and offers a set of aggressive front and rear slide serrations; the front serrations are milled in a large relief cut that the Company calls a "Forward trench"; creating a natural index point, this relief cut assists shooters who charge or press check their firearm from the front of the slide while keeping hands clear of the action.
The slide is protected by a QPQ (Melonite) salt bath nitride matte black finish. Coming from factory are a tritium/luminescent front sight and a U-notch "tactical rack" rear sight that can be used to rack the slide against an edged surface in an emergency.
The Echelon 4.0C pistol also comes from factory with Springfield Armory's own Variable Interface System directly milled on to the slide.
A unique patent pending red dot sight mounting system, the Variable Interface System accepts three popular mounting standards – Leupold DeltaPoint Pro, Shield RMS/SMS, and Trijicon RMR – allowing the use of a myriad of popular micro red dot sights that share the same footprint, with self-locking pins and without requiring adapter plates.
The barrel of the Springfield Armory Echelon 4.0C pistol is likewise Melonite-finished, hammer-forged, and features six right-handed grooves and a 1:10" twist rate. The captive recoil spring design improves reliability and facilitates field-stripping for cleaning and maintenance.
Alternatively, the Echelon 4.0C pistol is also available with a 4.7" / 117 mm barrel featuring a 0.5x28 thread at the muzzle, covered by a screw-on thread protector, allowing the use of accessories such as flash hiders, muzzle brakes, compensators, or (where legal) sound suppressors.
Each Springfield Armory Echelon 4.0C pistol comes from factory with two double-stack metal magazines with a polymer pad: a flush-fit 15-rounds magazine and an extended 18-rounds mag. MSRP for the US market starts at $679.00 and goes up to a maximum of $719.00 or $739.00 depending on the variant.
For any information concerning availability and pricing outside of the United States, consult the authorized Springfield Armory distributor for your Country.