Springfield XD or HK USP?

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Resurrection is fun.

It's a hot night. My mind races. A 17 hour flight to La Paz is etched in red traces on my eyeballs. I had packed my HK USP .40S&W with its captured recoil buffer system and Peters Stahlish lock up. I had two of its priceless magazines in a futuristic custom Bladetech retention system. Sweat trickles down the small of my back, saturating my black lock-knit HK polo shirt and it threatens to soak my Royal Robbins Khaki travel pants. Good thing I am carrying strong-side. My feet are resilient in my Himalayan walking shoes. I thumb the decocker--or is it the safety? I can never tell and in the thin air I vow once again to never admit to anyone it might bother me.

Against a haze of air starved bugs and the cacaphony of a strange tongue clawing its way into the oxygenless atmosphere, I feel the Hostile Environment finish on the lever of the USP where I have it hidden from prying eyes. I try to reassure myself about my beyond top secret assignment. I feel the stippled black polymer--never call it plastic--and it feels like money--or at least like a credit card chewed upon by a teething kitten.

Nevertheless I feel better now. If I ever have to shoot from the bottom of an outhouse, the inside of a fish processing ship, Pamela Lee's boudoir--any repellant place at all--I have been reassured by the Company and literally thousands of internet street pros that I carry the final say in handguns. Tension is in the air, maybe I will torture my pistol before the dawn breaks. Maybe I will be tortured myself. . . .

Thirty hours later, lost near the Rio Camblaya following the coup attempt, a welcoming smile. Thank God she spotted the epaulettes on the Norwegian ice-fishing vest concealing my USP. I climb aboard the helo on my way to my next exotic assignment, my HK having proven itself in "combat" once again without firing a shot in anger. . . .

The World of Compromise Uncompromisingly cries out to my inner poseur. . . beckoning to me to tell the world of the superiority of my sidearm.
 
i personally love the xd's more than any other semi auto handgun out there. when it comes to the h&k's i never plan on buying one unless I find one reduced significantly. i just don't see where the h&k is that much better than the xd's for the money. I think the xd is the best handgun value out there today and well worth what they cost. I would rather save the money on an h&k and have an xd and alot of ammo, to shoot!
 
Boats, I love that bit, it's truly a classic, but I must take issue on a couple things:

The difference in price between factory .40SW USP and XD magazines is less than two boxes of ammo - less than one if you're shooting some sort of premium JHPs. At worst a mild penalty for a USP owner and at best a minor benefit for an XD owner.

And the control lever doesn't have the HE finish - it's just plastic. Um, polymer. German polymer, sprinkled with fairy dust (Märchenstaub, as I prefer to call it), lovingly crafted by wise but martial elves in the heart of the Black Forest. :D
 
The only reason I would pick an XD over the USP is the price. If you can afford the USP, get it.
 
Wow, truly an ancient thread. But it's HK related, so I'll jump in.
HK sales would have doubled if they had Boats as the marketing chief.:D

Get both, else the USP. German engineering vs. Croatian design. Since it's not a car, the German design is even uber reliable this time.:p
 
Both guns are of about equal quality. However, having owned both I can say I never noticed any problems with either gun, and a XD can be had for about $400 less than a USP.

I'd go with the XD simply because it's cheaper.
 
Hmmm... An OLD thread here. I'll chime in anyway:

I've fired an XD40, XD45, USP40 and USP45 (full sized on the USPs).

Both XDs are awsome. The USP40 is awsome. The USP45 is too big for my hands, and only holds 12 in the magazine. The XD45 holds 13. So my order of choice would be:

XD45 (reliable, cheaper than USP, comfortable to shoot, and it's a .45!)
USP40 (reliable, comfortable, emulates the 1911, double action, H&K quality PLUS it is my wife's favorite)
XD40 (all of the above on the XD45, but I like the 1911 emulation of the H&K, and it kicks more than the XD45)
USP45 (too darn big)
 
Just bought the Springfield XD Tactical .45cal with the 5 in barrel. Only 50 rounds through it but I absolutely love this gun! I already owned an XD subcompact in .40 cal which is a great gun. The H & K just didn't feel very balanced to me. 13 + 1 in a .45 ACP is hard to beat too.
 
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