Compact .45 handgun a breakthrough

One of the frustrations faced by folks with concealed weapons permits is finding a gun that packs the punch they want, hits where they aim and is still easily concealable.

When it comes to punch, many shooters prefer a .45 automatic Colt pistol but tend to shy away from the caliber when contemplating a firearm for concealed carry purposes or home defense. Instead, they look to models in .380 or 9 mm configurations, considering them to be a more easily concealed firearm choice.

Thanks to the engineers at Springfield Armory, however, that might be about to change.

In a move that surprised many within the company, Springfield opted to debut the newest member of its popular XD line of handguns during the 2012 Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show (SHOT) held recently in Las Vegas. Even Rob Leatham, Springfield's own professional shooter, didn't know of the unveiling until the morning of the SHOT Show media day event. I'm talking about the new .45 caliber XD-S.

"This is so new, I haven't seen it until this morning," said Leatham shortly after I test-fired the gun Springfield is touting as "Noticeably Unnoticeable."

"Nobody knew about it outside of a few people within the factory. We weren't going to release this until March, but the gun's done. It's finished."

So release the XD-S they did, and almost immediately, Leatham faced a growing line of outdoor writers eager to get their hands on the gun. In fact, his first experience actually firing the XD-S came in front of a reporter.

"So I said, 'OK, let's see how this thing works.' The first shot was dead center, and then everyone after that," Leatham said. "It's incredibly accurate."

Leatham went on to describe the XD-S as "probably the most shootable, tiny .45 I've ever seen."

Designed to accommodate a five-round, single-stack magazine, the XD-S has an overall width of just 1 inch. The slide itself is just 0.9 inches wide. The gun has an overall length of 6.3 inches, and the barrel accounts for 3.3 of those inches. With the magazine inserted, the gun has a height of 4.4 inches. The frame is black polymer, and the slide is forged steel with dovetail rear sights and fiber optics up front.

This gun will definitely make concealed carry much easier for those who prefer a large-caliber firearm.

Leatham said that most guns start off as big guns, which manufacturers then try to miniaturize. With the XD-S, however, Springfield didn't go that route.

"We didn't go that way," he said. "This gun was meant to be a little gun, and we don't make any compromises."

Despite its small size, the XD-S felt comfortable in my hand, and I enjoyed shooting it and hit what I wanted while shooting the test distance of 12 yards.

This was in direct contradiction to my initial reaction upon picking up the compact firearm. In fact, I fully expected the gun to buck and jump like the full-size .45 I had carried while serving in the law enforcement profession. That didn't happen. Oh, it has a kick, but it was far less severe than I had anticipated, and its accuracy is enhanced by the short reset trigger.

Leatham's experience was similar to mine.

"Well it kicks, it's got a kick; there are physics, but it's nothing like I was expecting," he said. "I'm thinking like, 'Oh, boy, hold on, pull the trigger real slow because this thing is probably going to jump all over the place.' And I shot it and I'm like, 'OK this is easy.' "

The XD-S will be available in March.

Freelance writer Doug Nielsen is a conservation educator for the Nevada Department of Wildlife. His "In the Outdoors" column, published Thursday in the Las Vegas Review-Journal, is not affiliated with or endorsed by the NDOW. Any opinions he states in his column are his own. He can be reached at intheoutdoorslv@gmail.com.