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I just received my slide for my XD-9 subcompact back from the Springfield Custom shop.
If you just want to get night sights installed, you can just send them the slide, which can be sent via ground for a lot cheaper. To return the slide via Fedex ground, they only charge 8.95, as opposed to 30 if you had sent the whole pistol and thus it would need to be sent overnight.
The customer experience with Springfield was great. They quickly responded to my emailed questions, and it only took about 2 weeks total from when I sent it until I got it back, including ground shipping both ways.
You can check their prices at
(click on download xd worksheet)
which are quite reasonable considering that installation is included, and that XD sight installation is notoriously difficult, but you can trust Springfield to do it correctly. Also, I had a small scratch on the slide and at my request they did some kind of magic to it that greatly reduced the visibility of the scratch, for free.
When they sent the slide back, they sent it in a small plastic case, pictured below, which may come in handy. It's not super sturdy or anything, but it's big enough to hold the whole pistol. They sent the case inside a cube shaped cardboard box. The packaging was discreet, and did not say Springfield Armory, or anything that would make people think the package was related to guns.
I went in a dark room and I thought the lamps were quite bright; I'm satisfied in that department. I couldn't get a decent picture of them in the dark room though. Springfield only offers green front and green rear for all night sights.
The Springfield Custom sights are the XD-M style sights with Trijicon lamps installed in them.
Since Trijicon sights cost exactly the same, here's how I would compare them.
The Trijicon sights are much more similar to the stock XD sights.
Springfield custom sight pros:
The Springfield rear sight has a flatter profile, which may make it less likely to snag on the draw.
The back of the rear sight is flush with the back of the slide, so the sight radius is a little bit longer.
Springfield custom sight cons:
Since the Springfield's profile is lower, it's a little more difficult to rack the slide one handed by hooking it on a belt or something. It's not impossible though, I think with practice it would be pretty reliable.
The notch in the rear sight is narrower than on the stock XD sight, which means getting a flash sight picture is a little more difficult.
The Springfield sights don't have a white ring of paint around the tritium insert. They have a metallic ring. I think I'd prefer the white, which the Trijicons have, but this may be a preference thing.
All in all I'm pretty happy with the Springfield sights. I think I would probably prefer the Trijicons slightly though.
If you just want to get night sights installed, you can just send them the slide, which can be sent via ground for a lot cheaper. To return the slide via Fedex ground, they only charge 8.95, as opposed to 30 if you had sent the whole pistol and thus it would need to be sent overnight.
The customer experience with Springfield was great. They quickly responded to my emailed questions, and it only took about 2 weeks total from when I sent it until I got it back, including ground shipping both ways.
You can check their prices at
(click on download xd worksheet)
which are quite reasonable considering that installation is included, and that XD sight installation is notoriously difficult, but you can trust Springfield to do it correctly. Also, I had a small scratch on the slide and at my request they did some kind of magic to it that greatly reduced the visibility of the scratch, for free.
When they sent the slide back, they sent it in a small plastic case, pictured below, which may come in handy. It's not super sturdy or anything, but it's big enough to hold the whole pistol. They sent the case inside a cube shaped cardboard box. The packaging was discreet, and did not say Springfield Armory, or anything that would make people think the package was related to guns.
I went in a dark room and I thought the lamps were quite bright; I'm satisfied in that department. I couldn't get a decent picture of them in the dark room though. Springfield only offers green front and green rear for all night sights.
The Springfield Custom sights are the XD-M style sights with Trijicon lamps installed in them.
Since Trijicon sights cost exactly the same, here's how I would compare them.
The Trijicon sights are much more similar to the stock XD sights.
Springfield custom sight pros:
The Springfield rear sight has a flatter profile, which may make it less likely to snag on the draw.
The back of the rear sight is flush with the back of the slide, so the sight radius is a little bit longer.
Springfield custom sight cons:
Since the Springfield's profile is lower, it's a little more difficult to rack the slide one handed by hooking it on a belt or something. It's not impossible though, I think with practice it would be pretty reliable.
The notch in the rear sight is narrower than on the stock XD sight, which means getting a flash sight picture is a little more difficult.
The Springfield sights don't have a white ring of paint around the tritium insert. They have a metallic ring. I think I'd prefer the white, which the Trijicons have, but this may be a preference thing.
All in all I'm pretty happy with the Springfield sights. I think I would probably prefer the Trijicons slightly though.
