I can’t help but get excited every time a new micro compact pistol hits the market. Between being such a huge market and with advances in firearms technology most every name out there is getting into the game and trying to one-up the competition. Smith and Wesson has already been at the front of this segment with their M&P Shield line which recently included the EZ models and the Shield Plus. For their hat trick they’ve turned things around somewhat with the CSX.
First there’s the CSX name. This is a callback to older revolvers and handguns known as the Chief’s Special, thus making up two thirds of this carry gun’s name. Where the X came from I’m not sure. It seems unlikely to be the tenth Chief’s Special in the series. Possibly because the flush fit magazine holds ten rounds? Though with the size of this teeny tiny defender most people will likely want to use the ever so slightly extended 12 rounder because more ammo is always a good thing and real estate for your grip is quite limited here and every bit helps.
What makes the CSX a standout in today’s market is a couple of things. It uses an aluminum frame rather than polymer, something which I don’t believe has ever been offered from the factory on a micro compact double stack carry gun. Then there’s the external hammer. This little guy has the lines of a 1911 and is indeed a hammer fired single action pistol, but under the hood it isn’t at all like a 1911 in operation.
It has fully ambi controls save for the magazine release which can be reversed. The manual thumb safety is exactly where 1911 owners would expect to find one but the slide can still be manipulated with the safety engaged which is a great addition. The slide catch is also quite familiar but can now be found on both sides of the frame where they are somewhat protected by way of being partly set into the frame. For one handed use both of these controls felt accessible and positive.
Moving forward we have a semi-flat faced trigger which pivots unlike the linear draw of a 1911 and has a drop safety akin to many striker fired alternatives. Smith & Wesson’s website claims “our flat-faced trigger ensures consistent finger placement for accuracy and repeatability” which I hear being parroted quite a lot lately. I can’t say that I’ve ever had any such issues with curved triggers but as is the current trend you only get the one option from the factory. Compared to a Sig P365 the trigger guard is rather small which could pose an issue for larger hands or while wearing gloves.
The slide has front and rear serrations which are a more traditional angled cut compared to the M&P’s more wavy design. At the back is an ever so subtle raised section to help keep one’s hand from slipping off of the back. This is a trend which seems to be, if you’ll pardon the pun, gaining traction in the market.
Out of the box it comes with metal three white dot sights with a small screw helping to secure the rear in place for windage adjustment but otherwise they are fixed. At this time no other sight options are offered from Smith & Wesson. The top of the slide has been serrated for potential glare reduction beyond being visually appealing. Very few markings are present with “CSX” and the S&W logo on the left and the caliber stamp only on the right side of the chamber which also has a witness hole to verify if it’s chambered. Currently there are no frame mounting options for accessories.
Fit and finish overall seems quite good and I dare say it’s an attractive little backup gun. It combines smooth surfaces with patches of S&W’s light sandpaper-like grip texture from the M&P 2.0 lineup in a small front strap section, the magazine release, and primarily on a swappable backstrap.
The CSX feels good in my medium sized hands with the extended 12 round magazine providing just enough space to get every finger around the grip with zero room to spare. There’s a subtle palm swell in the polymer backstrap which I found to be well proportioned. Overall the factory configuration seems to have been built specifically for my hand size which is awfully convenient for reviewing purposes. Thanks, S&W! I haven’t tried the flush fit 10 round mag but from the pictures I saw it didn’t seem to show a lot of gain in concealment at the loss of grip space so the extended 12 seems the way to go.
Regrettably there are a couple of downsides which need to be addressed, all which came about on the range.
The first is the trigger which must be said is not at all like a 1911 in feel. It’s an unhappy marriage of gritty and spongy take-up and release but its biggest issue comes from a “false reset.” After firing, as you begin to release the trigger there’s a soft audible and tactile click which is real easy to mistake as the reset. Attempting to fire the gun again at this point results in a whole lot of nothing other than a potential flinch many of us get with these itty bitty carry guns. The trigger must be fully released before it resets and is again ready to go.
Next is the grip texturing. An unfortunate side effect of having a half smooth and half textured grip is that the textured parts now have to serve double duty as they are supplying all of the traction on the gun. After the first magazine I set the CSX down to take some notes and noticed an ache in the web of my thumb. Sure enough, this is one of the areas where that grippy sandpaper texture is present. It might seem like a good idea to texture this area but in practice my hand would strongly disagree.
In addition, my middle and ring fingers wrapped far enough around the grip for the tips of these fingers to fall upon more of this texturing and sure enough, they also got aggravated with only a few rounds through the pipe. It’s quite uncommon for me to find a gun where I take a few shots and immediately set it down and “nope” out. Regrettably, the CSX is on this list. I can only imagine what personal defense rounds would feel like going through it.
Returning to the 12 round magazine, S&W opted for a more cost effective solution of putting a polymer grip extension “ring” around the magazine which is very loosely held in place by friction. All this does is fill the gap between the bottom of the frame and the magazine’s baseplate. These extension rings are a terrible idea overall and the CSX’s was already becoming a nuisance during the first two mag loads. S&W should revisit this and make a dedicated extended baseplate, something which won’t wobble around if carrying a spare mag in a pocket. Fortunately the CSX’s magazine did not pinch my little finger under recoil, an ailment which I run into far too often with these miniscule carry guns.
This next issue is not one which I personally experienced but have heard from other online reviews. If you tend to ride your thumbs high when you shoot pistols the CSX apparently has some slide bite, just enough to irritate you while shooting. At least the back of the slide is rounded should it catch you on the way back. Sharp slide backs can absolutely cause scars. Ask me how I found this out!
Accuracy wasn’t easy to gauge due to the uncomfortable recoil and less than stellar trigger. If I really took my time and focused then it seemed to be on point at a cozy 20 feet but being right handed it’s very easy to hit low and left with this bitey little guy.
Unfortunately there’s another point against the CSX which comes from disassembly. Drop the mag, clear the chamber, retract the slide part way then hold it in place. Next, employ your second and third hands to punch a small pin out through the right slide release which will remove the left slide release as one component. The CSX will need some manner of disassembly aid, there’s simply not enough present for you to push against with your finger alone. The remainder of disassembly is fortunately lacking additional tools required surprises.
The S&W CSX is a gun which I really wanted to like and I’m glad to see more companies trying something a little new. To my knowledge the CSX is the only double column hammer fired micro nine currently available. Regrettably, other than being the first of its kind there are some literal rough edges which need to be worked out. Unless you’re comfortable using one and the grip texturing doesn’t bother you then I would have to suggest waiting to see if a CSX 2.0 is in the works. Otherwise, I say stick with polymer framed striker fired options for now.
