XDM compact vs S&W Shield for CC

An SP101 conceals pretty well however I have 1 particular issue with the SP and one for revolvers in general.

The SP101 is just a plain heavy gun. It does not feel bad in the hand but carrying it around all day you will notice the weight.

The issue with revolvers is the width of the cylinder and the shape. It darn near seems to always be pressing up against my hip bone and gets uncomfortable. Many guys do carry revolvers, but they just don't work for me.

Get what you want, but I can tell you from personal experience that I have continually gone smaller and lighter with my CCW rather than the other way.
Started off with a full size 1911, then went to a 4", then to the XDs which seems just right. Enough firepower to not be trifled with but thin and light enough to wear everyday.

You are comparing two different guns. Recoil will not be a problem with either, weight will. When you compare weight, remember the XDm carries more ammo and the carry difference will be noticeable.

For maximum conceal-ability, you probably will need to lean toward a single stack. You always have the option of carrying an extra mag if you feel the need.

My Shield is a superstar and my buddy's XDs is an equally good firearm. Toss up to what feels better in your hand.

I keep an XDm in .40 in my car all the time and I carry it on me often in colder months when it's easier to conceal. It holds 16+1 rounds which is a really good thing IMO. I carry a Ruger LCP in the warm months for a CCW weapon. It is hard for me to conceal the SA when it's warm but it can be done with an IWB holster. I have one that works for it but I prefer a shoulder holster for it that I have.

My XDm is no different than other medium to large frame pistols I have. But I do have a compact Taurus that is considerably easier to conceal. It's thinner, shorter and not as long as my other guns I have carried concealed except for my Ruger LCP of course. The only reason I don't still carry that gun is that I like the extra capacity. Still I can conceal the Taurus in the summer months pretty easily compared to other guns. It's good to have options I guess. Heck I've carried my S&W 629 with an 8 3/8" barrel concealed at times. I have a shoulder rig for it and it rides under a hooded sweatshirt pretty well. I'm talking a sweatshirt with a zipper of course. I only carry it that way to keep it from bouncing around when I'm riding my ATV and with the bears being as thick as they are in my home area I don't like going out without a genuine dangerous game caliber gun with me.

I wonder if I can find a rig for my sp101 for that role or if it too is too large,

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Just to share with the OP. There are lots of IWB holsters out there (I like hybrid holsters)for the SP101. A 3" SP is the first handgun I ever bought and started carrying. It worked well for me, but then something happened. I lost 50 lbs. Suddenly my comfy to carry SP101 became a mountain of steel, trying to gouge and burrow it's way through my hip. I still have to get myself a good Holster for IWB carry for that gun, but my Simply Rugged works great for OWB carry. I also needed to buy pants that were 3 sizes smaller, and establishing the balance of holster and clothing fit can be tricky.

So when the XDs came onto the market place, I took a look. In the flush fit magazine I got 5 +1 rounds of .45 acp (I know you are looking at 9mm) as apposed to the 5 rounds in the SP, and if I felt the need to carry a reload, I got an extended magazine with 7 rounds in it. More importantly, I got a slim profile gun that I find I can conceal in an IWB holster. I am able to carry it in the 4:00 position, even when wearing more form fitting clothing in summer. That works for me, and may not for you, but I just wanted to share. If you went with the 3.8 double stack, or the 4.0 XDs, I doubt you would have much more difficulty concealing either of those too.

I have a lot of interest in the XDs .45 also. Even started a thread about it, asking those who know and own one.

This may be a little off thread, if so, I apologize. However it seems pertinent. My interest lie in a small, slim (single stack) CCW pistol in .45 caliber.

Any experience with a Glock 36? Reliability? Ease of carry?

As of this point, I have narrowed my purchase choices down to the XDs .45 and the Glock 36. Going to the range tomorrow in order to rent and try both out.

I'm afraid I can't offer a comparo between the two as I only have the Shield in 9mm. I will say though that the Shield is a surprisingly good firearm. Or so it seems so far. Probably not more than 300 rounds through it so far and besides it working flawlessly with a variety of rounds, it is astonishingly soft shooting and has a decent trigger (I may Apex it but only because I'm a tinkerer. It really doesn't need it).
For those who would say that every 9mm is a softy, I only shoot nine's and have enough muscle/mental data to sense the difference. I really don't know how they do it given that it's a fairly small design, though not a mini or a micro design by any means. And that may be it's only drawback. It does seem bigger than the smallest Kahr, a Boberg 9 (a bit of an esoteric comparison) and a few other mini's.
That said, I believe that the Smith is made in the U.S. (anyone chime in to correct me) while the XDM is made in Croatia. A fine place but I'd rather pay people who live here.
FWIW, I have the original model with the safety.
GL. There is so much good design in this size/performance category that it's hard to go wrong (unless you choose one of those 1911 designs that have been left in the dryer too long; I'm just not a fan; Flame on!)
B

I would like to hear how those little .45's work for you at the range, I saw your other thread and am following it closely as well.

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I know it isn't one of the choices listed but my Taurus PT-145 Millennium Pro does extremely well at the range. Out to 25 yards it's very accurate and I've never had a single issue with that gun. Of course it's a Taurus and sometimes they make some junk but they also make some really good stuff at times. Not only that but it holds 10+1 rounds of .45 in a gun that's 1.25" thick at the thickest point. The XDs is .9" thick. The grip is longer than the XDs grips but not by a huge amount. The Taurus is 5.125" tall while the XDs is 4.4" tall. But the Taurus is shorter when it comes to length (6.125" vs. Taurus and 7" for the XDs).

IMO the length and height are a wash with one being longer and the other taller but not by much either way. The thickness is different with the XDs being slightly thinner (by a little over a quarter of an inch). Having double the capacity makes this a no brainer for me. The Taurus wins hands down on being the better carry gun. I almost forgot. The XDs is actually heavier too. And we're talking 5 + 1 rounds vs. 10 + 1 rounds. I never want to be killed for the lack of shooting back to paraphrase Clyde, the one arm deputy in Unforgiven. And there's no way the XDs is going to be more accurate than my Taurus is. I once set up 2 .45 empty brass cases at 20 yards and another at 25 yards. I hit the two at 20 yards with my first 2 shots and missed the one at 25 yards by about an inch on my third shot. I've never tried that again but I know my Taurus is a very accurate pistol. I own a XDm which I actually carry in my car most of the time because it's a .40 and it holds 16+1 rounds (it goes back to the Clyde thing). So I'm not anti-SA by any means. I like their stuff very well and my XDm is plenty accurate enough. But it isn't as accurate as my Taurus. It isn't even close really.

Taurus seems to run hot and cold with respect to quality. There are people out there, like Cee Zee, with ones that are shining examples of reliability and accuracy, but you will also find an abnormally high number of people that have had nothing but issues with them.

While I don't think the issue is one of design, it is the quality control that seems to be lacking.

I have a PT-92 that has been utterly reliable since I bought it, the accuracy is ok for what it is, a range toy, but a Beretta 92 will shoot rings around it all day. Not knocking the Taurus, just it isn't built to the same standards as the Beretta.

For a plinker or something fun, I might....might venture into the Taurus world again, however for a CCW piece....not a chance.

Also, remember, less weight = more felt recoil.
To be honest, the the weight of the XDs nearly unnoticeable when worn in a good holster. The iPhone in my pocket is more cumbersome than my XDs in it's IWB holster.

Taurus seems to run hot and cold with respect to quality

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You're right about that. I would never have bought one except the LGS owner gave me a 30 day trial period. He said if I didn't love it (his words) after 30 days I could bring it back. But he knew that model was running really well at the time. He knew I would be keeping that gun and he was right.

BTW it has to be a Generation 3 version of the Taurus PT-145 Millennium Pro. The earlier versions had some issues. The first generation models had frames that cracked sometimes and the 2nd gen. models had a light touch mag release button which led to a lot of mags hitting the floor because someone barely bumped that button.

Still I did get a fantastic deal on that pistol. I had every intention of buying a Glock at the time to be honest. I had twice as much money in my pocket as it took to buy that Taurus. But I couldn't find a Glock that fit my hands. I have only seen one or two models from Glock that fit me well. That Taurus fit like a glove though.

If you (the OP) can find the right model though those Taurus Mil Pro pistols can be great. They also made 9mm and .40 caliber versions which were even smaller. I don't know if they even still make the .45 model. Another thing to look for is the way the trigger works. Some are DA only. Mine is SA/DA. It gives you a second stike on a bullet without having to rack the slide again.

It took me a couple of days to decide to try the Taurus out. I looked up everything I could find about them on the net. Almost everyone had a positive review of that particular model. It's just a matter of finding that particular model IMO. And a try out period would be great too. There's lots of competition between gun shops in my area so they do things like that. I don't know where you live but you might ask for even a week. If you can't find one I can direct you to the place I bought mine. Who knows. Maybe they still have some.

BTW I paid $320 for mine brand new with an extra mag and a box of ammo.

Anything further forward than 4 o'clock doesn't work for me IWB. I guess everyone is different but I can't think of anything more uncomfortable IWB than appendix carry if sitting. A good holster positioned correctly goes a long way.

I carry a Shield 40 when I need something extra light and concealable. I've found the recoil between the 40 Shield and 9mm version to be very mild. As of late I have been carrying the G27 with X-grip adapter and a G23 mag. 14 rounds of 40s&w is very comforting with all the craziness that's been going on lately.

On the XDS-45: I had one for a while but found the recoil impulse that is transferred to the trigger to be downright uncomfortable to shoot. The 9mm version is a much better fit than the 45 for this sized gun.

I sometimes carry my Shield 40 in this: http://ads.midwayusa.com/product/37...-_-pf_ci_google-_-pf_ci_google-_-pf_ci_google
Mainly in the summer, comfy and cheap to try out.

Dee, you have chosen the exact same pistol that I did. No regrets. For me it shoots more or less like a full size pistol with a shorter grip, though some would say that's because it weighs as much as a full size gun. I knew the 4" model would become a nuisance for carry but after some rationalization the xds .45 4.0" is an interesting proposition with the addition of an extended magazine. Sort of a slim modern striker fired 1911....

I could shoot mine all day long. It prefers 124gr and 147gr ammunition and eats +p Golden Sabers like candy.