I waited in anticipation for the Prodigy Compact with 4.25-inch Commander length barrel from Springfield Armory to arrive for testing and evaluation. It is the compact version of the full-size Prodigy. The major differences are a shorter grip, a shorter barrel length of 4.25 or 3.5 inches and an aluminum frame as opposed to the steel frame of the full-size model. This is to make it a little lighter for its concealed carry role.

This would be the first Double Stack (DS) 1911 that I had reviewed and put to the test. I wasn’t sure I would like the feel of this pistol, primarily because I grew up with the original single stack 1911. An acquaintance of roughly the same age (read: old, or Baby-boomer) recently shared that the younger generations somewhat, un-affectionately call us older gun nuts “1911 guys,” similar to “Fuds,” because we are beholden to the original 1911 design and aren’t as thrilled as they are by the each new polymer, double stack handgun to come down the line. They aren’t wrong in that assumption. The truth is, though, there would not be any DS 1911s or 2011s, as they are interchangeably referred to, if John Moses Browning hadn’t developed the original single stack 1911, by which all other pistols are now measured and judged. So, when the package arrived from Springfield, I was both thrilled and anxious as I opened it and held it for the first time (of course, after removing the mag and ensuring it was empty).

First Impressions

As it turns out I didn’t need to be anxious at all. It felt great in the hand; weighty, solid, my hand loved the grip size. It came naturally to point of aim as I raised it. The grip stippling was fantastic, giving my hand confidence that I could maintain a firm grip under any conditions, without wearing the skin off my hand during an extended range session. The Prodigy Compact also sported a Vortex ST red dot sight, which was already installed and co-witnessed nicely with the high iron sights. Well, it is one thing to like the feel of a pistol and quite another to see how it does when you shoot it and run through practical drills. But before I get to the range sessions, I would like to go over some of the technical details of the Prodigy Compact.

It isn’t the smallest compact on the market, for sure. But it isn’t the largest either. It is, I think, Springfield Armory’s successful attempt at providing a “Goldilocks gun.” For those not familiar with this often-overused term, it is an attempt to provide a pistol that is “just right,” meeting every handgun need in one optimally sized firearm. This is a natural evolution undertaken by gun manufacturers who are responding to consumer input. In other words, consumers want a really small pistol for concealed carry, but then they want more capacity, next a longer sight radius and a larger frame so they can shoot it more comfortably and hit their intended target easier, etc., etc. Those buying large service and competition guns begin to want a smaller, lighter, easier to carry pistol without any loss of capacity, accuracy or reliability. So the small guns get larger while the large guns get smaller, and finally you have the optimal package or the point at which the manufacturer cannot provide any further concessions to the original model without adversely affecting the capability and reliability that was intended for the original, whether that was as a top notch competition pistol or a really well thought out concealed carry firearm. Just look at all the various models of the Springfield Armory Hellcat, the Sig P-365 or the Prodigy to illustrate this evolution.

I am not saying that the Prodigy Compact with Commander length barrel will fit everyone adequately and perform every task that every shooter needs without having to buy another firearm. There really is no perfectly sized or perfectly designed pistol capable of meeting everyone’s needs. That would be bad for the gun business (everyone would just buy one gun and that would be it!) and for people like me who love firearm variety and seeing the next cool firearm development. What I am saying is that it will meet most handgun needs and fit a large percentage of shooters reasonably or very well.

The Prodigy Compact’s primary role is as an Everyday Carry (EDC) pistol, but it is also designed to serve well as a service arm, in competition, or for home defense and plinking. And as you will see, it performed admirably in all these roles!

First, let’s cover its EDC role. It is a little bit larger and bulkier than most compacts, but not by a significant margin. It conceals just about as well as my RXM and Rost Martin RM1S. The longer barrel has no ill effect on concealment, but it is a little wider and longer than the aforementioned guns. That said, it was not any more noticeable tucked in appendix carry (IWB) or strong side outside the waistband (OWB) carry under an untucked button-down shirt. Where you may notice the difference is in the weight. Carrying around a pistol that is 6 to 10 ounces heavier than what you are used to could be noticeable depending on how long you typically carry every day and your mode (sitting or driving most of the day or standing/walking around). The best way to ensure the slight differences in length, width and weight do not bother you is to wear a good supportive gun belt and a quality holster.

Springfield Armory provided me with an excellent Rouge IWB/OWB kydex holster from Crossbreed. It was left-handed since I am a southpaw and also fit one of our left-handed testers! We wore it in both configurations and practiced drawing as part of several drills and ringing steel and it did an excellent job of retention with the ability to draw the Prodigy Compact swiftly and seamlessly. It also felt great, concealed well and held the gun tight against our bodies. It is important to be able to draw a pistol swiftly and consistently when needed and this combo just worked.

Performance

Once you draw a pistol it has to function and it has to be able to hit its intended target. The Prodigy Compact was both reliable and accurate. To test its reliability, our team shot it as it came right from the factory. No lubing before we tested it and we did not clean or lube the Prodigy at any time throughout our testing. After putting in excess of 500 rounds through it there was not one failure of any kind. However, at the end of my testing, I decided to push my luck to see how it would do with some cheap, bargain brand full metal jacketed (FMJ) ammo. It chugged along for a couple of magazines full and then on the third magazine change I experienced a couple of stove pipes/failures to eject. That doesn’t tarnish the Prodigy’s reliability record in my estimation because it ran perfectly with at least six different cartridges from four different manufacturers of different weights and bullet profiles. What this did tell me is that this is a very tight, precise pistol that deserves to be fed premium ammunition, especially if you are depending on it for EDC and defense of yourself and your loved ones. To prove my theory that it was the cheap ammo and not the Prodigy, I immediately loaded two more full magazines with premium ammo and blasted away while the gun was hot and dirty and nary a hint of another failure occurred. This is a super reliable pistol for how tightly and precisely it is built.

Okay, the Prodigy Compact is portable, and reliable, but how about capable? The best way to test the accuracy of a firearm is to take the element of human error out of the equation. So, we used a Ransom Masters Series mechanical rest with remote cable pull to test four different cartridges of differing weights, bullet shapes and manufacturers. We used the Springfield Armory Life protocol of three, five shot groups for each type of ammunition from 15 yards. The chart below details the results, which showed just how inherently accurate the Prodigy Compact is. The best single group was .66 inches from Federal’s Premium LE Tac HST with 147 grain bullet, which also posted the best average of .93 inches for three groups. Black Hills 124 grain JHP was right behind with a best group of .76 inches and average of 1.03 inches. Hornady’s 115 grain Critical Defense had a best group of .98 inches and an average of 1.55 inches while Black Hills Honey Badger with its 100 grain radically tipped bullet averaged 2 inches on the nose with a 1.93-inch best grouping. I would feel very adequately armed and confident using any one of these cartridges for daily carry and self-defense due to their excellent accuracy and rock-solid reliability in this firearm.

SHOOTING RESULTS MECHANICAL REST:

PERFORMANCE (15 YDS.)

Prodigy Compact – 4.25 inch barrel

Load Velocity Group (Best) Group (Avg.)

Federal Premium LE Tactical 147-gr. HST 988 fps .66” .93”

Hornady Critical Defense 115-gr. FTX 1,122 fps .98” 1.55”

Black Hills Honey Badger +P 100-gr. 1,221 fps 1.93” 2.00”

Black Hills 124-gr. JHP 1,108 fps .76” 1.03”

Accuracy results for three, five-shot groups measured in inches at 15 yards from a Ransom Master Series mechanical rest. Velocity is the average of 15 shots measured in feet per second (fps) by a Garmin Xero C1 Chronograph. Abbreviations: HST (Hydra-Shok Technology), FTX (Flex Tip Expanding), gr. (grain), JHP (jacketed hollow point).

Although I wanted to test the inherent accuracy of the Prodigy, I couldn’t help wanting to see how I would do with at least one of the cartridges. I chose what worked best in the mechanical rest and using a Ransom multi-cal rest, I shot three groups of five rounds each with the Federal Premium LE Tac HST 147 grain ammo from 15 yards. Of course, the Vortex ST helped immensely, with the fading light and my 62-year-old eyes. I was not disappointed. This gun can shoot and made an average shooter like myself feel pretty good! I shot a best group of 1.13 inches, and my overall average was 1.35 inches. I’ll take that any day of the week. One of the most critical factors enabling great accuracy from any firearm is its trigger. The Prodigy Compact has one of the best I have felt in a long time. Besides being smooth, crisp and short, ten pulls on my Lyman digital trigger pull gauge gave an average 3 lbs. 11 ounces! This is a great pistol indeed!

SHOOTING RESULTS MULTI-CAL REST:

PERFORMANCE (15 YDS.)

Prodigy Compact – 4.25 inch barrel with Vortex ST red dot sight

Load Velocity Group (Best) Group (Avg.)

Federal Premium LE Tactical 147-gr. HST 968 fps 1.19” 1.35”

Accuracy results for three, five-shot groups measured in inches at 15 yards from a Ransom Multi-Cal rest. Velocity is the average of 15 shots measured in feet per second (fps) by a Garmin Xero C1 Chronograph. Abbreviations: HST (Hydra-Shok Technology), gr. (grain).

A team member and I also shot drills on paper and rang steel from 20 yards inward to about 7 yards. Again, the Prodigy just felt great in the hand and honestly, it was hard to miss our targets with that red dot. The grip circumference is large at 5.75 inches on top and 6 inches at the bottom of the grip, but it felt better to me than the smaller grip circumferences of my RXM and RM1S. The stippling was perfect. It gave great purchase even with sweaty hands but never created any hot spots or abrasion during our extended shooting sessions. Since the Prodigy comes with two 15 round magazines, but accepts longer ones, Springfield Armory sent us a 26 rounder to test. It was as reliable as the flush fitting magazines and seated and dropped free with no issues. Given its accuracy, sweet, crisp trigger and ability to use higher capacity magazines, the Prodigy compact would make a fine competition pistol that would work as well for you as many higher priced double-stack 1911s. Just sayin’.

Final Thoughts

Finally, with its accessory rail that accepts most any weapon light or light/laser combination it could also serve admirably as a service weapon or bedside protection when something goes “bump in the night.” My Streamlight TLR-8 fit and functioned on it perfectly. In my humble opinion, with its portability, capability and reliability, this truly is a do-it-all “Goldilocks” gun with features and value well beyond its MSRP of $1549.00.