Oh, and it gives you optics capability as well.
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At that time, there were few quality defensive 9mm rounds on the market.
When the .40 hit the market, it seemed to be the ideal compromise.
It offered better stopping power than the 9mm and more capacity than the .45.
The next decade saw a huge move by police departments to adopt the .40.
But something happened in the meantime.
Bullet technology got better.
Not a little better, but a lot better.
There is still quite a bit of debate regarding which cartridge is better.
I suspect the9mm vs .40 debate will rage for decades to come.
The reality, however, is 9mm is far better than it used to be.
Many shooters are also doing the same.
While not dead, it is possible the .40 has its best days in the rearview mirror.
Converting the XD from .40 to 9mm
Swapping chamberings is always a fun project.
Ive got .22 conversion kits for many of my guns for inexpensive plinking and teaching new students.
Swapping my XD 40 to 9mm has been a harder move.
Springfield Armory, however, made the job simple with the newXD OSP Slide Kits released last month.
The conversion kit works with both the4 Service modeland the5 Tactical XD 40 models.
Installation is dead simple: field strip your XD 40 and slip the new slide assembly in place.
Add a 9mm magazine (not included), and youre ready to hit the range.
The caliber swap just plain works, and does so easily.
My installation time was less than one minute.
However, I did spend a bit of time with the conversion kit, first.
I cleaned and lubed the gun as I would with any of my pistols.
I also mounted a red dot.
These add a few minutes, but the whole process was less than 30 minutes total.
For this review, I attached a Crimson Trace 1500.
Ill have more on the optic in an upcoming review.
So far, I am impressed.
Is the 9mm Conversion Kit Reliable?
Without hesitation or caveat, I found the XD conversion kit to be utterly reliable.
I ran the kit on both a Service model and Tactical model.
hollowpoints to subsonic 150-gr.
ball, the guns simply worked.
The red dot optic made the gun even more enjoyable to shoot.
I do want to point out that the conversion slide is equipped with suppressor-height iron sights.
This allowed me to co-witness them through the red dot optic.
While red dot failures are uncommon, they can occur.
Up front, the company uses a green fiber optic that jumps into your vision.
The rear notch is a wide U-notch that allows you to get on that front sight quickly.
Its a fast system I like.
One thing I tested while on the range was the guns reliability without an optic.
I removed the CT1500 about halfway through my shooting.
I wanted to see if the change in slide weight would impact function.
As it turns out no.
I dont buy the argument, but I do understand it.
However, I see a number of advantages in the ability to convert the XD 40 to 9mm.
First, 9mm ammo is cheaper and more available in my area.
That means all manufacturers will produce more of it than anything else.
Likewise, the components are typically easier to find than other rounds when I load my own.
When introducing new shooters to centerfire pistols, the 9mm is an easier cartridge to master.
My last thought is that converting to 9mm isnt permanent.
I can swap back to .40 at any time.
Should 9mm disappear from the shelves, I can still buy .40 and keep the gun running.
