Welcome to the “competition” pistol known as the XDM 5.25. I got to shoot one at SHOT, and despite my disdain for the grip safety that Springfield armory employs, I was actually really impressed. Couple that with Superbowl’s love for his XDS, make it a 9mm with a massive magazine capacity and you have my ears perked.
My first impressions of this weapon now that we have our hands on one to really manhandle are definitely mixed. My lack of experience with competition style pistols really has me going back and forth on the XDM. It is light, controls are easy to reach and manipulate, the sights are spot on and it’s really accurate. It feels great in the hand with good balance and if all you do is pick it up, rack it, do some reloading/mag changes without firing a single round you will fall in love.
This is where it goes sideways. As I said this is the first competition gun I have ever shot and I was a little surprised. Mainly because I was expecting a rock solid platform, limited muzzle flip if any, needle threading accuracy and all while the pistol does it all for me. This is not the case, thus my apprehension.
Here’s the kicker.
There is not a single pistol in the world that replaces mechanics, practice and user proficiency.
Not one.
So if you think buying a “competition” pistol will remedy your ills, that means buying a Corvette will make you a professional race car driver. Not true. The moment I focused on my fundamentals. My grip, sight picture, trigger squeeze and follow through… this pistol was easy to mitigate and stay on target accurately.
I have my work cut out for me in this review, so stay tuned for the update down the road. In the meantime, keep practicing because buying a guitar does not a rock star make. The XDM 5.25 just proved that to me.