The Best Springfield XD Accessories For Your Pistol

Springfield XD Accessories 

Recently, we did an article on what we think are some of the best 9mm handguns on the market. The round, even though it has been around for a long time, is easily one of, if not the, premier handgun cartridge. It is for that reason that we recommend it for concealed carry and also recommend the Springfield XD for your everyday carry as well.

In looking to get a concealed carry 9mm handgun, one of the best on the market is the Springfield XD(M). For this one, we’re focusing on their competition model, which comes with a 5.25 inch barrel. That makes it a breeze to shoot, as it has a long sight radius. Additionally, there’s been weight taken out of a slide, and a rail is on the front in order for the mounting of accessories. While we don’t specifically mention a light here, as we try to make these lists tailored, you certainly could add one.

This list is meant to help you get started in carry in the Springfield XD. On the list, we focus on a few things. First, we want to get you a good holster in which to actually carry the XD. Second, we think that the ergonomics can be modified just a little bit in order to fit the preferences of induvial a little bit better. Finally, the addition of some slightly upgraded sights, as well as a cleaning kit, can help make the Springfield XD one of the greats on the 9mm market today. Really, the ability of manufacturers such as Springfield to put out factory-tuned competition guns at relatively affordable prices makes our ability to defend ourselves with fantastic tools that much easier. Now is a great time to being to get involved in 9mm. The round has been around (I apologize for that pun) for nearly a century, and with guns like the XD, we full well expect the space force to end up doing moon raids with 9mm pistols much like this one in another century.

Crossbreed Deluxe Holster

When it comes to concealed carry, one of the first things that we think about is a holster. A good holster should retain the gun safely, help you draw quickly, and avoid accidentally exposing the firearm to anyone else. There are a variety of ways to accomplish this, and they’re all worth thinking about.

One way to address your holster needs is with this great option by Crossbreed holsters. This is an inside the waistband holster with two really sturdy belt clips and a Kydex pocket for the Springfield XS-S. This simple to use, no nonsense holster will help lay the gun flat against your body, which aids in retention, comfort, and avoids printing. Additionally, the backing is made out of quality leather, so eventually it will mold to your body for a very comfortable fit.

Promag 32 Round Magazine

Of course, concealability is not always a concern. At certain times, it’s ammo capacity that’s on your mind. That’s why we recommend these 32 round stick magazines by Promag. To be fair, these would be a little bit impractical for concealed carry, as they stick out of the bottom of the gun a fair bit. They would, however, be really useful in two plausible scenarios.

First, a longer magazine is a great thing to have in a competition. Reloads cost precious seconds, so the fewer of those that you have to do, the better you end up scoring. Second, many of us carry a bag of some sort on a daily basis. This would make an excellent secondary magazine for that kind of situation, where you’d reach for it after the magazine in the gun goes dry. It’s also a lot of fun to dump 32 rounds of 9mm in a single go, so we think these Promags certainly have their use.

Hogue Grip Sleeve

While we’re on the subject of ergonomics and concealability, it’s worth considering the overall grip as well. Again, we think that Springfield did a good job- they are on our top ten list after all. That said, polymer can get a little slick, especially in rainy, or worse, bloody conditions. You may want to do something that gives you a better chance of maintaining good hand position in a bad situation.

If such a bad situation arises, you may want to have something like the Hogue HandAll Hybrid Grip sleeve. This is basically the high-speed version of what old special forces types used to do to remedy their A1 handles on M16s. They used inner tubes from bicycles. You can do better than that with this made to measure Hogue rubberized grip that is not only comfortable, but grippy as well. It also adds just a little bit of girth to the Springfield XD’s grip, if that something you need in order to make the gun more comfortable for you.

Talon Grips

If you tried out the Hogue grips and still aren’t satisfied with the level of texture, you might want to try something else out. Now, the DIYer in me suggests skateboard grip tape, hot glue, and a razor knife. But, I have been told by others, that might not be the best way to modify a competition style pistol that costs a fair chunk of change. So, what else can we do to get some more grip on the Springfield XD?

Talon had about the same idea that I was working towards with the grip tape, only they sell it in a pre-cut fashion that will actually look good on the gun when it’s finished. This adhesive grip is cut around all of the controls for the Springfield XD and installs in seconds assuming you’re careful. It’s a great way to add a ton of texture to the gun without adding any real weight or bulk whatsoever.

Trijicon Night Sights

As a competition gun, the Springfield XD comes with pretty good sights right out of the box. There are, however, people looking to squeeze every once of performance that they possibly can out of their XD. To that end, sights a great start. One spot in which the sights on the XD might come up a little bit short is in terms of night fighting, which is a distinct possibility in the concealed carry realm.

One solution would be to replace the stock sights with this Trijicon set made for the shield. Trijicon really needs no introduction. They’ve been in the optics game forever, and they make excellent stuff. With that in mind, these night sights retain the three dot setup, with a bit of an upgrade. That upgrade is the inclusion of tritium, which will keep these sights glowing brightly in the dark for many years to come. Additionally, you don’t loose much speed with these when compared to the stock sights. If you need to make fast shots, all you really have to do is follow the green dot and put it on the desired target. For accurate shooting, you can take your time and line up all tree dots.

Springfield XD Subcompact OEM Magazine

The model of Springfield XD that we mentioned specifically in the referenced article is the full-sized M model. But, it’s important to keep in mind that the XD is actually a pretty wide series of handguns in varying sizes and calibers. For this one, we wanted to show some love to one of the smaller parts f the series, the Mod 2 subcompact. The subcompact is an easily concealable model, so we expect some of our CCW friends to have picked one up by now. Of course, a gun needs magazines. These are the OEM magazines for the subcompact. They can fit 13 rounds of 9mm in a double stack. You don’t have to have the relatively large M model to appreciate that Springfield puts a lot of thought into the XD series and full well intends to give the Austrians a run for their market share.

Aliengear Holster

Returning for a moment to concealed carry and holsters, this Alien Gear shapeshifter is an awesome holster system. At its core, it’s a Kydex holster that comes on a paddle and can be adjusted to fit you the way you like it. But, that’s just the start. It also comes with a ton of other ways in which to attach the pistol to yourself, including extra paddles and some mounts. This system, for example, can be used to carry the pistol inside the waistband, but also mounted to a surface in your home or vehicle. It can also be converted for outside the waistband and is compatible with a lot of other Alien Gear products. Basically, this will get you started with their core system so that you can tinker with carrying the exact way you like. Alien Gear is one of the best known companies in the holster game and we see why: their products are really modular.

Crimson Trace Laser/Light

Thinking still about the concealed carry game, we do need to make sure that we make good hits on our intended targets. One way to help do that in an intense and stressful situation is to add a laser to your firearm. If you choose to do that, Crimson Trace is very hard to beat in terms of quality. This, the laser guard for the XDS combines a red laser and a bright white light in a small package that simply attaches to the trigger guard, making it easy to turn off and on without looking. Installation is easy,. And battery light is long. You can take some time and tinker with all the modes, and eventually take it to the range and zero the laser. Basically, this is a way of getting a fast and easy lighting and sight solution onto your XD with minimal tools that leaves you with a quality setup.

Viridian Holster With Light/Laser

Now, we do like simplicity. When a good kit comes along, it gives you the opportunity to make a single purchase and get a lot done. That’s the case here. With this kit, you get a quality tactical laser and light, as well as a holster that is compatible with that light on the Springfield XD. Aside from convenience, this saves you form having to look for a holster that fits with a certain light and pistol combo. Instead, this IWB holster fits perfectly with the Viridian light and laser combo.

Dead Air Armament Silencer 

If you happen to have a threaded barrel on your XD, we have an idea. Put a suppressor on it! This one, by Dead Air, is one of the cooler ones on the market. Basically, the suppressor is meant so that you can take it apart at each baffle. This has two major advantages. First, you can take it apart and clean it yourself, saving you from having to transfer it to a local gun store or the manufacturer to have it serviced.

Second, you can make it longer or shorter to make a compromise between size, weight, and suppression. If you wanted, there’s nothing stopping you form hand loading some really soft shooting rounds, running it super short, and making, effectively, a modern version of the Welrod pistol. Or you can run modern subsonic ammo and get great results out of the full-length suppressor. Either way, as long as you have a 1/2×28 threaded barrel, this will go right on and make your XD a great home defense or night fighting handgun.

Parting Shots….

Looking at this list, you’ll notice that we don’t touch the internals of the XD whatsoever. That’s because we think that the folks at Springfield did a really good job and have made a reliable 9mm pistol that will serve you well at competitions or in self-defense situations. Whatever you use it for, we think that a few little touches, such as a grip and a new magazine, perhaps a set of sights, will have you well set in order to concealed carry one of the finest 9m pistols on the market today. With a good holster, some sighs, or perhaps a suppressor, you can make the Springfield XD one of the top performing handguns on the market today without doing any major modifications to the internals of the firearm whatsoever, so why not experiment a little?