i am 3 weeks away from my 21st birthday, and the first place i plan to go on May 1 is to the local gun shop and get me a pistol. Second will be for a case of budweiser. Going to get a XD but cant decide which one. Really looking at the compact in 45 but should i get a 4 or 5 in barrel? I intend to carry this gun on occasion, but not everyday. I have shot a few pistols, but never on a regular basis, so not really familier with all there is to know. Help me decide!!

get the XD in 4" (or less) in 40S&W. Much more versatile. They are fine guns. Then practice a lot!
Peter.

Why 40? I intended on getting either a 9 or 45 due to the supply of cheap ammo out there. I then opted for the 45 for more power. I reload, but only for rifle now as i only have a single stage press. I could see me reloading in the future for handgun, just not right away.

You can get cheap "white box" 40 S&W ammo from Walmart. Price it out. I consider the 40 superior to the 9mm, and in fact, with 180 bullets, superior to the 45 ACP. NB. I do NOT want to get into an argument about the relative merits of the 40S&W and the 45ACP. With handloads and a decent 40, it can be loaded up to close to 10mm specs.
Peter

If you are looking for cheap ammo, .45 is not the ticket. I just bought an XD 4" in .40 and so far it is the best autoloader I have ever owned.

upon further inspection, i realize that the compact is onle offered in 45 acp. Really dont understand their marketing scheme on this one. I was really turned on by the 40 S&W after delving a little deeper. I really want a compact sized grip in a 40, damnit.

model7LSS, I am not sure what you mean. My son has a compact (size) XD in 40S&W. I don't know the barrel length, but it is a very compact gun.
Peter.

If you are getting an XD for CCW, get the 4" compact. Great pistol. Yes 45acp is abit more expensive, but unless you are shooting more than 100rds a month, it's min. diff. More ammo than that & you should think about handloading, even for the 40. The 40 is a good round but it has to work to be a 45.

Now, SA does make a subcompact in 40 with a 3" barrel, but this is a little smaller than i want. after looking at prices for 40 and 45 components, i dont think im going to shoot enough to make a difference though i will be reloading. So i guess 45 it will be.

XD comes in two styles of GRIPS --

"Compact" is a short grip. It also takes a full length "standard" mag.

In 45 ACP -- the compact grip holds 10 rds. The full size grip holds 13 rds.

In 45 ACP, this grip option comes in 4" and 5" barrel lengths. I didn't check out any other calibers.

I got the 5" barrel, 45 ACP with the compact grip option. Then I put a Glock GTL 21 on the rail. 14 rds of 45 ACP with a laser sight. It's like a really compact shotgun -- "point and shoot."

I bought this for carry in the car and "field" carry where it's open in a holster on the belt. I wanted full size, 5" bbl. and high capacity. I'm not going to CCW this gun.

The "Fobus" style holster supplied with this gun is decent enough. With the compact grip and a very large sweatshirt this gun "conceals" -- more or less. The 5" barrel will stick out under the shirt when you sit.

I don't care for the 40 S&W at all. That's just me.

For "carry" I have a 9mm Kahr, or a Smith J Frame in .357 -- and some other options. 45 ACP is, pretty much in my view, not real practical for concealed carry. But I carry a 45 ACP "in the field" -- That or a Smith 629 in 44 mag.

So it pretty much comes down to how much you want to hide this gun. The compact grip, 4" bbl. in 45 ACP is versatile -- handy size and features for a defense gun, but a bit large for every-day CCW.

well yesterday after a good amount of rigamorale i bought my first pistol. XD 4" in 40 S&W. This gun just felt alot better in my hand than the 45 so i went with it. Planning on shooting it today if the damn rain ever lets up... thanks for your insight