Springfield XD 9 SC OD

Springfield XD-9 SC OD 

The XD pistol features three safety mechanisms. The first is called a 'trigger safety', similar to that found on Glock handguns. The trigger safety requires the shooter to depress a secondary embedded trigger while pulling the primary trigger. This ensures that the gun cannot be fired unless the trigger is depressed. The second safety is called a 'grip safety', most often associated with the many 1911 variants on the market. The grip safety is situated on the back of the XD's grip, and is depressed by the palm of the shooter's strong hand when the pistol is held. This ensures that the gun cannot fire unless the shooter has a firm and steady grip on the weapon. The third mechanism is an internal 'drop safety', which prevents the striker from releasing if the gun is dropped or exposed to a significant impact.

Two significant features in the XD's design are the striker status and loaded chamber indicators. The loaded chamber indicator is a small button, just above the breech on top of the gun's slide, which pops up when a round is in the chamber. This button doesn't rise high enough to interfere with the shooter's sight picture, but is high enough to be seen easily, or felt by hand if a shooter needed to verify the gun's status in the dark. The cocked indicator works much the same way, but is located on the rear face of the slide, so the shooter can instantly tell whether or not the gun is cocked.

Other features of the XD include an integrated picatinny-compatible rail under the muzzle to accommodate the installation of lights, lasers or other accessories. An ambidextrous magazine release allows the shooter to drop the magazine from either the left or right side of the weapon.