Model: PG-XD grip extension
Materials: Injection molded polymer
Introduced: November 2003
Facts: Will not alter capacity of magazines.
MSRP: $9.95
Manufactures website: www.pearcegrip.com
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The Pearce Grip Extension for the Springfield Armory xd/hs2000 series handguns. The XD/HS2000 Pistols have been around in one form or another since 2000. Most of the gun magazines gave the pistol good marks as the HS 2000 and even better as the Extreme Duty series by Springfield Armory. One of the main complaints though was the lack of aftermarket parts--why buy an HS 2000 or XD if nothing is available for it. Now, almost four years later, that statement is almost void. All the major holster makers now have products for all three sizes of the XD including duty holsters. A full length guide rod has been available for about the last six months and now Wolff offers one as well. Any Sig pistol sites can be used to easly replace the sites on the XD. With the release and popularity of the Subcompact XD-9, XD fans wanted more. Springfield Armory has at gunshows shown the new xd-40 subcompact that should be available sometime in 2004. One of the main complaints common to users of the XD Sub and the Glock Sub compacts are that the Grip is too small. And now with the intoduction of a .40 caliber xd sub, it is a whole lot of pistol to handle with the grip barely 75 percent in your hand. |
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Pearce Grip, located in Texas, has been offering solutions to grip problems since 1997 and offers Grip extensions for various firearms including Glocks, Kahrs and Para-ordnance pistols. As of November 2003 Pearce began offering Grip Extensions for the Kel tec, Taurus, more Glocks, and XD pistols. The XD grip extension Model PG-XD is a welcome addition for any XD sub compact owner. With a grip length of about an inch and a half, most people can fit two fingers around the grip with the pinky finger falling off the grip and hanging under the base plate. This is fine while shooting slow and with target ammo, but try a fast string of shots or plus loaded ammo, and it takes some getting used to. 40 caliber ammo will only exacerbate the situation. By adding the grip extension, the grip will grow to about two and half inches-- plenty of room for all three fingers but still being very concealable and more comfortable to shoot. |
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To use the extension, simply remove your factory base plate being careful not to loose the magazine locking plate. Install the Pearce extension reversing the order you used to get the base plate off. My only complaint was when installing the extension, it was a really tight fit when sliding it on as opposed to the factory base plates. This though may be a good thing, being a tight fit means that the extension will not fly or fall off when being droped on the floor during a magazine change. I loaded a magazine installed with the extension and checked it. The Pearce base plate did not swell or expand as the base plates in cheaper magazines do. I then loaded the mag in the pistol and performed a series of drop tests. Holding the pistol extended I released the magazine over a hard dirt surface. Out of the five times I tried the test, the extension never fell off or slipped out of place. I then moved over concrete and tried the same test. Out of the five times I droped the magazine the extension never fell or moved out of place. I then tried the frisbee method and threw the magazine accross the dirt and concrete. In all 10 times, the extension did not move. In all after droping the extension 20 times the extension did not move or break although several rounds flew out of the magazine. The extension is quality built and any lesser product would have chipped or broken thereby rendering the magazine useless. |
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The extension not only fits the sub compact, but it can replace any XD or HS2000 base plate. Therefore, if you have large hands, the extension can make the four or five inch XD/HS2000 fit you even better. If you shoot competitions or use the xd-40 mags loaded with 15 9mm rounds, they can swell and will not drop free until there are only twelve rounds left. Therefore, another plus to using the extension on the full sized magazines is that it makes it easier to pull the magazine if you have to get rid of it. The overall quality and feel of the PG-XD are first rate. The lines of the grip blend smoothly into the pistol with nothing obtrusive and almost seemed if they belonged there all along. The PG-XD employs Pearce`s mag track system, to help you distinguish your magazines from each other. The mag track system is simple, it uses 5 dimples on the bottom of the grip that you can mark and use to come up with your own tracking system. All these features added together makes me believe that Pearce has done it again and has now provided XD fans with another quality aftermarket part that only improves the XD shooting experience. |
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The Pearce grip extentions will work with the newly available full capacity magazines. water is introduced into the polymer as a way of giving it some elastic properties. Over time as the grip sits in the various warehouses and on the dealer shelves, the water evaporates slowly. This will cause the grip to become very stiff and have very little give. To fix this, take a pot of boiling water and drop your grip in for about 30 seconds. Pull it out and let it dry and cool off. Reassemble your magazine with the freshly rehydrated base plate and try loading ammo. Since your base plate has gained back some of its elastic properties, it will flex several thousandths of an inch and you will find that those last rounds go in just a bit easier. |
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| Written by James Nicholas |
XD-HS2000.com your resource for information and products XD.
Have new products for the XD e-mail me at
Birmingham, AL