Rounds Down Range With Springfield Armory’s New Modular Echelon 4.0C Comp Pistol

The latest iteration of Springfield Armory’s highly-regarded Echelon pistol is the new Echelon is the Echelon 4.0C Comp. As the name implies, it’s a downsized version of their full-size Echelon modular pistol. With a shorter barrel (four inches), smaller grip module and a 1.25” grip width, you might expect the 9mm unit to be a bit more, er…snappy.

Compared to the full-size model it would, were it not for the “Comp” part of the nomenclature. This Echelon features an integral compensator. With the comp in place, the pistol wasn’t nearly as feisty as I imagined when I first started shooting one.

Since I’m not what I’d call an expert shooter or technical expert, this is in no way a comprehensive review of the pistol. It is my opinion and first impressions of the gun after only a couple of range sessions and about 200 rounds through the pistol.

Wanting a real-world comparison between the 4.0 and the full-size Echelon, I shot a couple of warmup drills through my full-size Echelon. It’s the pistol I wound up running through a Gunsite 250 pistol course last year when my personal pistol simply stopped running reliably. Following that class and its performance, it replaced my previous pistol of choice.

Following those “failure drills” I loaded up the 4.0C Comp and started shooting. The first impression? Tighten that grip and focus on the sights. My full-size has an optic. The test pistol didn’t. Old eyes and a lazy grip quickly showed me the error of my ways.

Once I started doing my part, the benefit of the compensation became obvious. Riding the trigger in slow fire, I found myself starting to shoot at my natural rhythm. In other words, I realized I could shoot faster without feeling like I was fighting to control muzzle rise or recoil.

If you live in non-permissive states, you get a pair of 10-round magazines. Otherwise, you get a standard 15-round and an extended 18-round magazine. I ran both, and had no difficulty with either. I ran reload and dummy round drills with both and had no difficulty quickly (for me) dropping either mag and reloading.

The Outpost Armory range doesn’t allow “civilians” to work from a holster, but in a series of dry-fire exercises, I found the gun very manageable inside a 1791 Gunleather Smooth Concealment holster.

My recent travel schedule has limited my range time. And shooting, especially handguns, is a decidedly perishable skill. So I decided to do something uncharacteristic. Rather than try complicated exercises like Failures or Bill drills or whatever, I would shoot the pistol for accuracy. That would force me to concentrate on my mechanics and remove most of my bad habits. I wouldn’t correct presbyopic eyes, but it would minimize shaky muscles and tired joints.