February 10th, 2025
8:08 runtime
Springfield Armory is known for its broad and popular line of polymer-framed pistols.
But theres another option in the Springfield line that dates all the way back to the year 2001.
The reason is largely due to their accuracy, but also their reliability, ergonomics and performance.
Can you ring steel at 200 yards with a 9mm pistol? The author can. And he set out to see if he could do it with the new Springfield Armory XD Mod.3.
When I saw that Springfield had released thenew XD Mod.3, I was immediately interested.
I thought I had better just see for myself how good this really is.
Would I be able to get the accuracy and range that I expect from my XD-Ms?
The view at 25 yards. All defensive pistols should offer good accuracy at this distance. But how far a gun can shoot accurately can really set it apart from the competition.
Would I be able to take the new XD out to 100 yards?
Wringing It Out
Let me explain my philosophy on shooting pistols at extreme distances like 200 yards.
I do a lot of gun, optics, ammo, etc.
At 100 yards, a red dot may cover the majority of the target. The shooter will need to apply all of the fundamentals to make accurate, precise shots.
reviews, and what I want to test is accuracy, reliability and performance.
Move that to 100 and 200 yards, and that speaks volumes about the guns capabilities.
Also, its just plain fun and challenging to shoot at that distance, so why not?
For this shooting test, the author used the Vortex Defender-CCW red dot sight on the Springfield Armory XD Mod.3.
After that, was doing pretty good at banging the steel at 50.
Thats not bad, in my opinion.
So, it was then time to put it to the distance test.
At long distances, a rest or shooting bag can help you get shots on target. A quality gun and shooter skill are still determinant.
Reaching Out
To hit the targets at 200 yards, I do need a red dot.
Fortunately, the XD Mod.3 comes from the factory optics-ready.
First, I discovered that with a 50-yard zero I can hit spot-on center mass with that zero.
With excellent ergonomics and high-quality construction, the XD Mod.3 is capable of accurate shots to extended distances. The author is shown here shooting standing at the 200-yard target.
Then, at 200 yards, I will only have to hold over a foot or two.
This has been consistent with most all the pistols I have tested and reviewed.
For the red dot on this review, I used theVortex Defender-CCWwith a 3 MOA dot.
At 200 yards, a red dot may completely cover your target. This is where practice can teach you how you may need to adjust your aiming for longer-range shots.
Just what can we expect from the XD Mod.3?
I got the Defender mounted and zeroed at 25 yards using AACs 115-gr.
FMJ ammo, range ammo.
The first shot was literally right in the bullseye, which was a great start.
It grouped really well with a variety of ammo at that distance.
I had to try it standing.
But, I wanted to see what I could do at 200.
Your dot almost takes up the width of the target at that distance.
I estimated on holdover based on past shooting about 1-2 above the head and hit first shot.
That always is a great way to start, and I even hit it the second shot!
However, I missed the next seven.
I did hit once I compensated for the wind and started hitting it consistently.
I then was able to hit seven more out of 10 shots.
This would be a good place to drop the mic and walk off the stage.
But that was not in the cards.
I wanted to see if I could hit it at 200 standing.
It was one of those days I just mentioned above, and I hit it the first shot.
There you go folks, Springfields NEW XD Mod.3 taken the distance.
Im certainly sold on it!
