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Tokyo Marui's XDM-40 4.5": first impressions


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My XDM arrived in a few days ago. I'm really pleased that I bought this pistol: it's one of those rare occasions when the thing in the flesh (so to speak) is actually more impressive than the picture of the thing you're gawping at on the webpage. Overall, I'm really impressed with it.

 

First of all is the overall heft. I was afraid it was going to feel light and plasticky, but it doesn't. In the slide, the front and rear sights are metal, there are internal metal rails, and of course parts of the BBU and striker mechanism. In the frame, there is an internal metal subframe with rails, and the rest of the trigger/striker system. Once you add the weightly and good-sized magazine, the whole thing is a good deal heavier than you expect it to be, just looking at it.

 

Features are pretty standard. Taking the slide off is a breeze, and the recoil spring guide and spring are not too bad to get out. A bit harder to reinstall. The "round chambered" indicator from the r.s. is non-functional and permanently "on", but the "striker cocked" indicator is nicely functional. The changeable backstraps is getting pretty common these days, but that feature works well too. The funny little plastic gizmo is to push out the rod that holds these in place. I tried all three and settled back with the medium, which is mounted on the gun when it ships.

 

Second great feature is the way this thing shoots. I'm using duster, by the way. There's a pretty loud report, and much more of a sense of recoil than I expected. I love it! The pistol is also very accurate: I'm getting good groupings, though just slightly right and below where I aim. Both sights are non-adjustable, unfortunately. The front sight looks as if it's slide-in, but actually is held in place by a clip from below. Haven't been able to test effective range yet.

 

The magazine is just a little smaller than a hi-capa, and so a good fill of gas enables you to get off a fully loaded magazine of bbs. It holds a maximum of 26 rounds.

 

Bought it from Echigoya, which had the best price and shipping around.

 

I don't own and have never tried the PX4, so I can't do a comparison. But this a bit larger pistol, more in the G17 range. It immediately made me start thinking about holsters. Anyways, if you have been interested but hesitating, I'd say go for it! I certainly wasn't disappointed, and so long as I haven't raised your expectations too high, I don't think you will be either.

 

No photos yet. But coming soon.

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Hi mimesis,

 

Perhaps this should've been in the reviews section? XD It's just that I think if you can get the mods to move it back to the reviews section you'll see more people reading the review as from the current sub-sub-forum you're in (from the homepage of the forums) you'll probably not get a lot of viewers? :P

 

Anyway awesome review :P Was planning on getting this with a friend but once the HK3P Glock came out we went with the Glock since it was cheaper. It's nice to see Marui upping their already incredible standards :D

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Which new TM is "cheaply built"? In the last couple of years I've bought 2 of the Five Sevens, a G17, a G18c, a Detonics and the PX4 and I've not had a issue with any of them.

 

Now while I will agree that the Five Seven has had some issues, the only ones I've seen to have trouble are those that were used exclusively with Green Gas or Propane. This pistol was deffinately never intended to us those propellants (if its not in the operating manual-it's not recommended-period). Even Guarder failed to create a slide/frame combination that worked well. Slides still gave out and frame issues were also mentioned more than a few times.

 

The relatively new PX4 is probably one of the most solid TM designs that have come out from that company and is significantly more robust than my old standby TM P226 (which is a tank-in a good way). Even without a magazine, the pistol has a very solid feel and all materials are first rate.

 

I'm interested in this XDM, but I just bought a Echo 1 Timberwolf and I'm giving it a workout.

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Just got mine today. The Marui PX4 still is more sound than this gun. The lack of a recoil buffer turns me off. Still, it can be remedied by adding a rubber spacer between the front of the slide held in place by the recoil guide rod and the recoil spring. On the Marui PX4...you have probably a quarter inch's worth of recoil buffer that buffers the impact between the slide and the metal chuck it slams into. On the XDM, the recoil spring compresses in between the base of the recoil guide rod and the back of the front of the slide. Add a little bit of rubber buffer on the back of the front of the slide and the slide should last longer. The Marui 5.1 also lacks a rubber recoil buffer. As a result, the base of the bushing that goes flush onto the slide gets sheared off as it slams into the base of the recoil guide rod. I've seen it happen to at least 5 Marui Hi-Capa GBB's at the local CQB arena. As far as I know, they all used propane/green gas. For the hi-capa series, I ended up making a recoil buffer using the red barrel plug.That thing is rubbery enough to provide cushion...but hard enough for it to be more durable.

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Correction...the impactt point on the slide isnt from the recoil spring to back of the front of the slide. Rather...the front metal frame hitting part of the plastic slide (like the glocks). I have glued a couple of pieces of hop bucking rubber (roughly 1mm in thickness) in an attempt to cushion the impact between the contact points. The slide still locks back. I have photos of the before and after slide travel distance when the slide is all the way back as well as photos of what i did. Whether or not the "fix" lasts is subject to testing. I mean really....its whether or not the rubber withstands the impact as well as the the gorilla super glue holding the pieces of rubber in place.

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Sorry maybe "cheaply built" is a bit harsh but I have a marui g17, px4, 2 1911 meus both with hurrican kits, 5-7 and xdm. I also have a ksc g19 with airsoft surgeon metal slide, maruzen p99 with shooters design metal slide, ksc usp compact with shooters design metal slide and a wa kimber tle pro rl. In my opion marui guns are a bit toyish, they work well but compared to ksc wa and maruzen p99 (the only maruzen I have held) they are a bit cheap looking, I think the xdm on the other hand with the matt slide and nicely textured frame looks well and defo the most real looking marui around, and I have shot nearly a 1000 bbs through it since I got it with green gas and there is very little sign of ware I love this gun so much I have ordered another just to have one in new and perfect condition.

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I agree that when I handle, say, a TM MEU, I feel the need almost immediately to stick at least a metal slide on there, despite the fact that I know that it will perform best left entirely stock, whereas when I handle the XDM I don't have even the mildest urge to upgrade. (That being said, if a silver metal slide for the XDMdid happen to be made by SD, I'd be tempted...)

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Ill have my own review of the TM XDM 40 within the week (providing that I find the time to write one and include pictures...maybe when my second XDM comes in. The one I currently have on hand has already been fitted with a Detonator CNC SFA .45 ACP metal slide.

 

For those wanting a review on the Detonator slide, I submitted one on ehobbyasia (pending approval). In case they didn't like what I wrote...here it is anyway :)

 

--------------------------

 

snoopy's review of the Detonator CNC SFA .45 ACP Metal Slide for the TM XDM-40 4.5

 

The Metal Slide/Outer barrel kit came in packaged securely inside a box with specific cutouts for the slide, outer barrel, and a small plastic baggie with a couple of screws, a POM piece for the back rail, and another piece of CNC'd metal rail/slide stop bit. Upon inspection, the finish was excellent. Instructions that came with the kit had illustrations along with a step by step writeup for installation. It also had a disclaimer at the bottom of the instruction sheet about the chamber/outer barrel assembly having wear marks after putting the XDM into use.

 

Installation was a breeze. Supposedly its a plug and play install. For the most part it is. On my unit, I had to sand down and polish the slot where the loading nozzle slides onto. Everything lines up properly on the slide. However, the cutouts for the front sight were a hair loose which results in the front sight moving side to side slightly. It might not be that much, but it is there. For a $240, it shouldn't be like that in my opinion. Nothing is perfect I guess. This slide was close at least.

 

The outer barrel is made out of super light weight aluminum. Cutout for the hop unit/inner barrel assembly is different to the stock Marui version as the metal outer barrel doesn't allow for flexing. The cutouts on the chamber/barrel assembly was done well and allows for easy installation. Personally, I thought it moved too freely compared to how the hop/inner barrel assembly was in the stock outer barrel.

 

Once installed, the slide/barrel assembly cycled perfectly. Upon close inspection, I found that the blowback unit sat a hair low (maybe 0.2mm lower) than when it was stock. This caused the unit to catch on the rear metal backing of the rail which prevented the slide from returning to battery smoothly when you slowly let the slide go forward. Taking a hobby file to where the blowback unit was catching cured this issue.

 

Also, with regard to the outer barrel/chamber assembly- I found that when the slide returns to battery during use, the chamber rides on the high side (somewhat pops up higher than the slide- pretty much matching the height of the dummy shell extractor). It could manually be pushed down to where it should be.

 

An upside to the blowback unit sitting lower than stock would be that it improves the seal between the mag seal and the loading nozzle. Also, this ensures that the internal hammer gets pulled back all the way.

 

Going back to the disclaimer on the instructions. I found that the chamber built in with the outer barrel assembly wore down prematurely. I would go insomuch as to say that very noticeable wear started to appear after emptying just one magazine. Still, it doesn't affect the function of the pistol. The slide moves back and forth freely...perfectly. While the chamber does "pop up", shaking the pistol with the Detonator metal slide/barrel kit revealed no excessive rattling.

 

Overall, the Detonator CNC slide/outer barrel kit was a good purchase. Sure...its $240, but fitting of the metal slide was easy. The outer barrel/chamber isn't perfect but it functions with the metal slide perfectly. The slide has very very minimal side to side play which allows for you to polish the rails on the lower frame for a smoother action (not that it needs it). The action of the slide going back and forth is excellent. The only negative thing about the kit is the outer barrel's chamber popping up some. For how much the kit costs...it shouldn't do that. Still, absolutely no regrets purchasing the Detonator CNC slide/outer barrel assembly.

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An update on the detonator metal slide/outer barrel kit....

 

I found that the slide catch engages almost every shot when propane is used on warmer temps (over 70 degree fahrenheit). Upon closer inspection....i noticed that the steel insert that the slide catch latches onto was cut at a different spec. Its more on a 90 degree angle when it should have been more like 80-85 degrees (starting from the left side). Also...the slide locks back 1mm earlier compared to the stock version.

 

I believe that the specs...paired with the xdm's recoil...is causing the slide locking back on almost every shot.

 

I have adjusted the steel inserts angle and lenth by filing it down. Since then, the issue hasnt presented itself again.

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I have had my XDM for about a month now and it gets a solid +1 from me. Performance wise it's on par with a Marui Glock 17, but to me the recoil feels a little stronger. Finish is excellent, one of Marui's best, especially the matte surface on the slide.

 

Fitted with a Surefire X200 mine fits well in my Bladetech holster for a Glock with weapon light. I just had to loosen the adjustment screw a little. The fit is just right, not too tight or loose.

Will likely be the same for Safariland holsters.

And I have been told it's a good fit for Serpa holsters made for real steel XDMs, but I haven't tried it myself.

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The xdm .40 has a large cylinder like the desert eagle, px4, and 5-7. This allows for more room for gas expansion resulting in improved feel of the blowback. Gun kicks way hard that im actually worried about how well the plastic slide will hold up. Unlike the glock, theres no metal insert or rubber recoil buffers to keep tue slide from slamming directly into into the rail of the frame. This reminds me of tm m9's and how the front ends of those slides blow off.

 

Metal slide....youll need it eventually.

..............

 

The outer barrel of my detonator xdm .40 (i got the .45 acp version) is starting to show considerable wear after maybe 500 rounds through it....not including manually racking it.

 

The upside however is that the wear doesnt interfere with the function. Also...my slide has broken in....or was it the lower slide rail guide? With 30 wt. Silicone oil on the slide and blow back unit...the slide glides like butter when racked manually.

 

Still...that chambers continous wearing down has me irked a little bit.

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Going to wait for Shooters design to produce a slide and outer barrel don,t trust detonator there expensive and dont have a great rep for fit and finish (a friend of mine had a v12 1911 kit and it sucked it marked really quick and was slugish compared to my hurrican kit which was less then half the price)

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