Springfield Armory
XD-M Elite OSP
The Top-Tier Tactical Tool
Springfield Armory is a foundational name in modern combat weapons. Their storied line of XD-M pistols sets the bar for reliability, accuracy, human engineering and safety. Now Springfield Armory has taken everything righteous and wholesome about the XD-M and amped it up to the next level. This new apex predator is the revolutionary XD-M Elite OSP (Optical Sight Pistol).
Black Ops
In retrospect it was inevitable the CIA should use gun writers as counterterrorist operatives. Their wizened trigger fingers combined with the rare ability to turn a pithy phrase on the fly makes them vital national security assets. A new mission promised to test even their superhuman capabilities.
The target was a bloodthirsty terrorist with the nom de guerre Ugotabe Kidnme. Kidnme frequently called big-boned people “fat” and he considered roasted beagle puppies a delicacy. His henchmen had downed a V22 Osprey carrying the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders enroute to a USO show. Now the 20 gorgeous girls, buffeted but otherwise unhurt, languished in Kidnme’s evil lair.
The chiseled gun-writer-turned-CIA Special Activities Division asset inserted via HALO parachute drop, just like always. He now stood invisible in the darkness outside the evil fortress, his heart rate languishing in the low 60s. He placed explosive breaching charges and retrieved the Springfield Armory XD-M Elite OSP pistol from its custom thigh rig. He closed his eyes, activated the Streamlight TLR8G combination white light/green laser and touched off the charge.
The blinding flash left the evil “Tangos” within momentarily stunned. The gun-writing SAD asset pushed into the expansive smoke-filled edifice, the reticle of his Holosun slide-mounted red dot sight automatically compensating for the dim ambient light. The nearest terrorist, a shockingly hairy man, shook his head to clear his muddled senses and foolishly raised a poorly maintained Kalashnikov rifle. It was on.
The agent flowed through the room with a ballerina’s grace, dispensing double taps like party favors at the Playboy mansion. The SilencerCo Omega 45K sound suppressor coughed twice each time the asset indexed a new target. In seconds the slide locked back and 11 terrorists lay cooling on the hard stone floor. The XD-M Elite OSP carried a total of 23 rounds onboard but he had inadvertently pulled one. The asset would address it on the range when he got home.
Stroking the bilateral pushbutton magazine catch, the operator dropped the empty magazine. He had a fresh box through the flared magwell funnel before the terrified cheerleaders had time to gasp. The gun-writing SAD agent briskly slid his weak hand backward against the Holosun sight to drop the slide, causing one of the young ladies to swoon over his rarefied tactical coolness.
Just then Ugotabe Kidnme himself arose from behind the huddled mass of tousled girls, a stubby AKSU74 panning the group. The puppy-munching villain grinned through stained teeth as he prepared to deliver a well-rehearsed despotic monologue. Without a word, the SAD agent dropped him at a range of 60 feet with two well-placed 147-gr. SIG SAUER V-Crown hollowpoints.
“Quick,” the asset shouted. “Everybody grab a puppy and follow me.”
In an instant the cheerleaders were on their feet and stacked behind the gun writer, each grasping a wriggling beagle puppy saved from Kidnme’s nefarious stewpot. As they streamed aboard the waiting MH47G Chinook helicopter, the asset was nearly overcome by the sweet smell of runny mascara, newly liberated beagles and palpable unfiltered gratitude.
The Night Stalker crew chief turned to the flight engineer and keyed his microphone, “Wow, that guy is incredible!”
The flight engineer responded, “Yeah, I know. I read Shooter’s Rx in GUNS Magazine. He really is that awesome!”
The flight back to Bagram was little more than a blur. During the exfil the rescued cheerleaders tried vainly to smear his face paint camouflage with smooches. The asset nonetheless resisted them all for he was a happily married man with the most amazing wife in the universe. The wispy tails of liberated puppies buzzed in appreciation. At the airbase, irascible editors Brent T. Wheat and Roy Huntington stood clear of the aircraft until they were certain all of the liberated cheerleaders were accounted for.
“I just got off the phone with the President,” Roy shouted above the dying turbines. “He wants you in the Oval Office tomorrow to accept the deed to one of the Florida Keys, a really nice European sportscar and a huge cube of cash. There’s a jet waiting on the tarmac.”
“No thanks, boss,” the exhausted gun writer responded flatly. “Our standard agreement still stands. I’ll drop by Martinsburg when we get back and borrow another rare machinegun from the BATF reference collection to paw over for a while. I don’t do this for fame or money.”
The three quiet professionals shook hands, smiled, and disappeared into the darkness to track down some hot pizza and cold Coke. They were the silent heroes, working tirelessly in the shadows to preserve freedom, promote democracy, and ensure the uninterrupted flow of gun-related minutiae.
Springfield Armory XD-M Elite OSP offers a host of features, making it a ready-to-roll
tactical pistol right out of the box!
The Tribe
Shocking though it might seem, the aforementioned tale did not technically happen. The President has DevGru and Delta for all of his cheerleader rescuing needs. Additionally, the toxic combination of my tired eyes, sore back, and deconditioned cardiovascular system means Ruth Bader Ginsberg would likely do a better job of counterterrorist ops than I. However, should I ever actually get the call, Springfield Armory has my iron.
Their new line of XD-M Elite pistols actually consists of four separate handguns. Each pistol is optimized for a specific mission but there are certain common characteristics to be found across all four. They all sport a true bilateral-pushbutton magazine catch, extra-deep cocking grooves on the slide, a dedicated loaded chamber indicator and an ambidextrous slide stop along with a generous magwell funnel.
The flat-faced trigger incorporates a blade safety and there is an internal drop safety tirelessly lurking within each gun’s entrails. This new line of XD-M handguns also features Springfield Armory’s divine grip safety. This iteration sports a memory bump and adds a whole new layer of security requiring no conscious thought.
The grip-to-frame angle mimics the inimitable 1911 and the grip remains remarkably trim considering how much ammo they pack. The dust cover naturally includes a Picatinny rail. Each of these four handguns also features Springfield Armory’s paradigm-shifting META trigger system.
META stands for Match Enhanced Trigger Assembly. Taking lessons drawn from building superlative match guns Springfield Armory has redefined the striker-fired trigger. The META trigger offers a predictable clean take-up, a nice crisp break, and a terse reset. The end result is arguably the finest striker-fired trigger on any production handgun I have yet encountered.
The Siblings
The smallest version features a stubby 3.8″ barrel and is intended for high-threat concealed carry. Next in the lineup is the service pistol with a 4.5″ tube. This gun would be at home hanging from a cop’s duty belt, living in your nightstand or riding in the center console of your minivan. Amazingly, both of these handguns come with three standard-capacity 20-round magazines.
The third pistol is the XD-M Elite Precision sporting a 5.25″ barrel and elongated slide with a generous lightening cut up top. The rear sight on the Precision model is readily adjustable for both windage and elevation. The top-tier version is the XD-M Elite OSP. This gun features a 5.28″ extended/threaded barrel and suppressor-height sights. The Precision and OSP variants carry an astounding 22 rounds in their magazines.
The new Springfield Armory family of XD-M Elite pistols includes a stubby concealed
carry version, a service pistol, a longslide target gun and tricked-out tactical hotrod.
The Apex Predator
The XD-M Elite OSP features a rear slide deck cut to accept standard small-statured electronic red dot sights. A red dot like my solar-powered version from Holosun peeks nicely above the SilencerCo Omega 45K sound suppressor. In the absence of a red dot, the suppressor-height iron sights enhance acquisition with a can installed as well.
You can optimize the aggressively textured grip via the interchangeable backstraps to interface with your anatomy as seamlessly as might a pair of cotton socks. The gun comes in both FDE and black, but the FDE version looks cooler. The end result carries, shoots and runs like the tactical thoroughbred it is.
Left To Right: 1. The barrel features an extended barrel with threaded muzzle, along with suppressor-ready tall sights. As a plus, the sights also co-witness nicely through a red-dot optic. 2. The flat Springfield META (Match Enhanced Trigger Assembly) offers “the finest factory trigger available in a polymer-framed pistol.” 3. The slide has a cocking indicator which is easily seen in daylight or felt in the dark along with suppressor-height rear sight. 4. The aggressive texturing of the grip, along with interchangeable backstraps, provides positive engagement. The swappable magwell is widely beveled for speed loads. 5. The XD-M Elite OSP comes ready to mount an RMR-pattern sight, covered by a removable plate.
Trigger Time
The META trigger is indeed divine. The delta between crappy striker-fired triggers and superlative striker-fired triggers is defined by nuance. Springfield Armory got the details right with this rig.
Once you get beyond the beautiful trigger and truly ambidextrous controls you come to appreciate the expansive magazine capacity. As was said of the Spencer repeating rifle during the War Between the States, you load this thing on Sunday and shoot it all week. The fastest magazine change is the one you don’t have to make and the XD-M Elite OSP exemplifies this axiom.
The grip is undeniably on the long side but the magwell funnel keeps it from looking or feeling weird. The long grip also gives you plenty of real estate upon which to cling for epically sweet rapid-fire engagements. The generous grip remains a small price to pay for having nearly half a box of 9mm Parabellum chaos onboard.
The man, the myth — As a terrorist-fighting superhero., Will Dabbs would chose the
Springfield Armory XD-M OSP to rescue cheerleaders from the clutches of a puppy-eating villain.
Denouement
I haven’t talked much about how accurate or reliable this gun is. This is because it shoots delightfully straight and monotonously digested any sort of 9mm ammo I fed it. The day a Springfield Armory pistol is not reliable and straight-shooting is the day I will register as a Democrat. Fret not, the sun will burn out long before this happens.
The new Springfield Armory XD-M Elite OSP is what lesser tactical handguns aspire to become. Sleek, cool, voracious and mean, keep the OSP in mind for all of your home defense, recreational shooting and cheerleader-rescuing needs. Should the CIA ever call, it’s the gun I’ll grab. MSRP is $709.
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