Have both glocks and XD's & XDM. Love them, biggest difference by feel and external looks is that the Springfierlds have a few bells and bits the Glocks don't. IE a grip safety, cocked indicator, and loaded chamber indicator. All nice but not must haves for many people. Both are very good pistols, just find one you really like the looks and feel of and go for it. You can get one of the others next time. After all one is never enough.

I agree.

I favor the XDs slightly, because they feel a little bit better to me, and can usually be bought a little cheaper, in the standard (XD, not XDm) models, but both are always good shooters and super reliable.

On the flip side the GLOCK will be easier to care for (the inside looks like an aircraft carrier flight deck by comparison), parts are less expensive, spare mags as less, and they are uniformly built. For instance, try to put sights on an XD. The dovetails are basically "custom" to each gun and sights need to be fitted by a smith. Not what I expected from a first line manufacturer.

GLOCK is the way to go.

I say neither - get a Beretta PX4

I'm a big Glock fan, but I'm not all that hot on the .45GAP models. If you simply MUST have a .45 bullet, and CANNOT get your hand around a large-frame Glock in .45 ACP caliber, then I suppose you are the target market for the .45GAP. My experience indicates .45GAP ammo is much more expensive and harder to find, and that will limit how much you can/will shoot. Shooting less means a lower development of shooting skills (you are not as good a shooter as you might be, otherwise). Thus, I have a hard time recommending any of the .45GAP Glocks.

Originally Posted by sgms

Have both glocks and XD's & XDM. Love them, biggest difference by feel and external looks is that the Springfierlds have a few bells and bits the Glocks don't. IE a grip safety, cocked indicator, and loaded chamber indicator. All nice but not must haves for many people.
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All current production Glocks (generations 3 and 4) have both a loaded chamber indicator (the extractor protrudes when the chamber is loaded) and a cocking indicator (the trigger - rearward is uncocked, forward is cocked).

The grip safety is generally considered useless as a safety device unless you are serving as mounted cavalry or are planning on dropping your weapon on the ground on a regular basis. It does, however, induce a feeling of safety in many users that makes them more likely to do something stupid with a weapon, that they might not do if the grip safety was not there (like stick a loaded weapon in their pants without a holster). Just my opinion, but a strongly-felt one, having seen the results first-hand, many times.

The absolute BEST weapon is the one that fits you personally. That said: I myself started out wanting a .45 and agonized and debated quite a while over what to get. I ended up deciding on the Glock 22 .40 cal. The Glocks are virtually indestructible and freakishly reliable and accurate. The .40 cal is a excellent balance of firepower and control. There's a good reason why so many in law-enforcement carry them so I'm pretty biased towards them.