Smith & Wesson recently released a new handgun that is a departure of what most people have been using for the past couple of years, the CSX. Since the last ten years, handguns that are polymer striker-fired have been very popular.
SIG Sauer introduced the SIG P320 AXG Series. The AXG uses aluminum frames instead of the traditional polymer frames that were used previously.
Polymer frames are one of the most innovative developments on the market.
Smith & Wesson’s original leak was also before the planned launch date. Is this a marketing plan or an actual leak?
We won’t likely ever know.
There was a lot of speculation on the internet about what this gun was.
The first picture clearly showed that the gun was a hammer-fired pistol, with an aluminum frame. Leaker confirmed that the gun shipped with a 10- or 12-round magazine. We knew nothing else at first.
Despite not having all the information I needed, I called my local gun shop. They placed me on the waiting list to be the first one.
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Let’s take a deep dive into this Smith & Wesson CSX Review to find out what this gun has to offer. We’ll also discuss if it’s better than other options.
Features
This gun, as we mentioned earlier, has an aluminum frame and a single-action trigger. It can hold both 10-round and 12-round magazines.
The specs are very clear. The only thing that is unusual is the combination all of the features.
It is quite unusual to find an aluminum frame and a micro-sized pistol with 10- or 12-round capacity.
Particularly if you have a trigger that is one-action only
For years, striker-fired guns were all the rage. It’s not surprising that Smith & Wesson did not follow this pattern.
This gun has a lot of information.
We will have to review each feature in detail. It might seem that we are a bit sloppy in our Smith & Wesson CSX reviews.
We want you to be confident that you have all the information you need to decide if this gun is right for you.
Magwell
The edges of the Smith & Wesson CSX magwell have a slight bevel. There is no flare. There is nothing in the design to help you get the magazine in quicker.
It’s also not difficult to get the magazine in a hurry.
My hand, which is typically six-foot tall, acts as a funnel to get the magazine into this small grip.
My hands are just low enough to the grip so that the magazine doesn’t slip free. Only if I slightly loosen the grip.
Grip/Ergonomics
This gun is different from other firearms in terms of ergonomics.
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It has a removable front-and backstrap.
The front is not replaceable, but there are two sizes of removable backstraps.
The grip is made of aluminum, but both straps are made of polymer. They look the same as the Smith & Wesson 2.0 series.
I find the backstraps reminiscent of the Smith & Wesson M&P full size version. It has the exact same texture.
This is a very aggressive and good handgun control system that will not let you down under recoil.
Here’s where things get a little weird.
Smith & Wesson ships guns with the full-sized large rear strap. The half-moon cutouts on the small backstrap are not as prominent as its full-sized counterpart.
The gun looks missing parts when you run it with the small backstrap.
This strange half-moon cutout is located on the aluminum frame. It doesn’t make sense.
I can feel the frame with my palm. It’s still very slick, and you won’t have any control over the firearm.
I don’t care if the leverage is applied at the rear and front of the grip.
You can have more control over the side of your firearm by sending it to a gunsmith. They can inspect it, particularly in the area between slide stop and magazine release safety.
Although I doubt it, we might see someone do that.
Beavertail
This gun has a nice little beavertail.
It is extremely ergonomic and well-rounded. It slides right underneath the hammer so you won’t get hammer-bite while using this firearm.
Slide bite is not an issue unless you have large hands. It’s not an issue for me.
Texturing
As we have already mentioned, the gun’s front and back straps are very texturized.
The sides are the real problem. Controlling recoil is not going to be an issue, according to me.
It would be nice to see some texturing.
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I would prefer the amazing texturing on the front, and back straps. The texturing on the sides is much more appealing. That is definitely what the gun does.
This gun is a good choice if you plan to conceal carry it and have sensitive skin to aggressive texturing.
The back strap is very thin and shouldn’t touch you. To avoid irritation, you can sand the back strap.
General Feeling
The Smith & Wesson CSX’s ergonomics are my favorite thing about it.
The gun’s length is measured from the back to its front strap. This makes it easy to grip the gun well.
The grip’s shape and design forces my hand to be very high into the grip.
I feel that I have a natural, authoritative grip on the CSX.
The gun is quite small. Although it is small, it feels larger than it actually is.
If you find the Sig P365 and Springfield Hellcat too small for your hands I think you’ll love the Smith & Wesson CSX grip.
Sights
The Smith & Wesson CSX comes standard with three-dot Smith & Wesson style iron sights.
They are made of metal and have three dots.
The rear white dots would have made it more difficult to see. I would prefer a blacked out style of sight.
I don’t know of any aftermarket options.
The CSX’s sights look like they could be a Smith & Wesson cut.
Unfortunately, Smith & Wesson sights will not be possible due to the slide profile.
They were not to hang over the gun, even if it was Smith & Wesson-style.
We might as well consider this gun without any compatible sight options.
Red-Dot Options
This gun begs for a red-dot option. I don’t understand why Smith & Wesson didn’t release a red-dot compatible model at launch. They will, I think.
Smith & Wesson is a little bit of an old-school business. They might feel that this gun is a bit more elegant than your usual red-dot users.
Although I disagree with this, it may be the way they think at the end.
We’ll just have to wait and watch.
Controls
This review is highlighted by the Smith & Wesson CSX controls. Smith & Wesson did a remarkable job with the controls.
Safety
Two safety features are available on this firearm. One is what I would call an external safety at my thumb and the other is a trigger safety. The trigger safety will be discussed in more detail later in the CSX review.
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The Smith & Wesson safetyties on the Shield Plus and Shield series are not my favorite. They do a great job on the safety of the EZs, M&P full-sized guns.
Although this safety is very low-profile, it’s still very positive.
I can ride my thumb on the safety in the same way as I would with a 1911-style safety. However, I wish they had made it a little wider.
The safety tad could be increased to increase usability without compromising conceal carry ability.
It works great for safety, even though it is very low-profile.
I don’t see anyone having any issues with the safety. It’s ambidextrous and perfectly matched on both sides, so that both right-handed and left-handed users will have the same experience.
Magazine Release
The magazine release is installed on the left-hand side for right-handed shooters. The box also contains a magazine release that can be used by a left-handed shooter.
The CSX magazine’s releases are identical to its safety.
For those with large hands, the magazine release is easy to reach. You might need to lift your hand to reach the magazine release if you have smaller hands.
It is well-protected, and it sits quite low in the firearm’s frame. I don’t think this release will be accidentally pressed when removing the magazine from the firearm.
The frame is just in front the magazine release. There is a slight hump on the frame that I can see as being painful for larger-handed photographers if they press the magazine release.
It’s not a problem for me, but if your hands are extra-large or large, you might want it checked out at your local gun shop before you bring it home.
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It’s not a deal-breaker, though, since this gun isn’t one you’ll be doing a lot of reloads.
Slide Stop
This gun is unique in its size because it has ambidextrous slides stops that are very similar to each other.
Although there is a slight difference in the two, the users will not notice it when they actually use the slide stops.
It is a little more difficult to use the right-side slide stops (made for left-handed shooters), than the left-side stop.
Smith & Wesson made it easier for right-handed shooters. They account for the majority of gun buyers.
These are very low-profile and Smith & Wesson did a fantastic job.
I have no complaints, except for those with shorter thumbs who might have trouble reaching them.
It’s not as long as I would like them for myself, but I would have to reach or break my grasp to drop the slide stop on this gun.
When loading a magazine into a firearm, you could always use your thumb support hand to drop the slide stop.
There are many options, no matter how the device works.
All Ergonomics
Overall, the ergonomics are excellent.
They did a fantastic job designing the safety. Although the slide stop could be mounted a bit farther to the rear, I am happy with the way it is.
Also, there are well-designed forward and rear slide serrations.
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They are sharp enough to give you a good grip on the slide. However, they aren’t so sharp that they can cause aggressive holster wear.
The grip is very ergonomic.
The gun fills your hand well and feels great. Despite being small and easy to transport, this gun gives you a great grip.
Despite that, you should continue reading this Smith & Wesson CSX Review. Once we get to the shooting portion, I will have some surprising notes that could deter buyers from purchasing this firearm.
Trigger
As we mentioned earlier, the Smith & Wesson CSX trigger is a single-action trigger.
The trigger itself has an interesting shoe. It is designed to look like a 1911-style trigger, with the trigger shoe pushed back to the rear. In reality, it’s a deceit.
This trigger is hinge-style and feels just like one when it fires.
Although it does have some 1911-style feel, the trigger shoe’s shape makes it more hybrid.
Let’s now talk about the sensation of the trigger.
You will feel a slight amount of take-up when you release the safety.
Once you have disengaged that, you will hit a wall. You’ll feel a little creepy at that wall before you feel a fairly clean, but heavy break.
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The trigger will then reset.
The reset itself is horrible. Although it’s short, you won’t feel any reset on this gun. This is why I wouldn’t shoot this gun to reset.
It is very easy to reset the trigger falsely and then short-strike it.
This trigger is good.
It’s not terrible, but it’s not a great trigger for a single action. Although I had hoped for more, I am able to accept what Smith & Wesson delivered.
Aftermarket
This gun is so new, we don’t really know much about the aftermarket. Smith & Wesson launched the gun very quietly, without much fanfare.
They didn’t have any holster options, sights or any other aftermarket accessories that you might want.
We are currently making holsters to fit the Smith & Wesson CSX.
I don’t know anything about any other companies or what accessories will be available for aftermarket.
Smith & Wesson, a large company, does a lot of volume. I expect that this gun will have some support aftermarket, but I’m not certain how much.
Maintenance
To disassemble the Smith & Wesson CSX, you must press the take-down pin from the opposite side of the gun.
From right to left, press the pin that holds these slide stops in position.
After you remove the slide, you can easily clean the gun like you would with any normal firearm.
Although I wish they made it a little easier to take down, considering the size of the gun and the ease with which they designed the controls, the set-up they have provided is acceptable.
Aesthetics
Aesthetically, I don’t know what Smith & Wesson thought of this gun.
The slide and aluminum frame add a touch of class to Smith & Wesson handguns of this era, but the front-and backstrap design completely sabotage it.
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While the grip feels great, it also looks bulky and chunky.
If you remove the grip and ignore the rest of the firearm, the gun will look great.
Smith & Wesson could have done some amazing things.
They would have preferred a system that was more like the SIG Sauer AXG with G10 for the two straps of the pistol.
To make things a little more interesting and classier, it would have been nice to have some G10 accents on either side of the gun.
Although this would have been more expensive, I would gladly pay for it, especially to acquire a better-looking firearm with more heirloom appeal.
This gun is not a $400 polymer striker-fired pistol, but it isn’t a high-class heirloom-quality firearm.
It’s somewhere in between and I don’t know which direction it will trend long-term.
It’s going to trend down, according to my gut. Smith & Wesson should come up with a performance-oriented gun that is similar to the AXG, which would really elevate it a bit.
Shooting
This is where the fun begins.
It’s difficult to load the tenth round into the magazine when you load the 10-round mag into your gun. The magazine will also swell from the incorrect installation of the spring and follower, making it difficult to seat.
The video below will help you understand better.
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The 10-round magazine has a plastic insert that is built into the base pad. This makes it possible to fit 11 rounds in the 10-round if the insert was not used in conjunction with the basepad.
This seems like a gross oversight on Smith & Wesson’s part.
They made this decision to reduce the number of manufacturing SKUs required to ship this gun to states with limited capacity.
Although the 12-round magazine is well-loaded into the gun, it has some issues.
Ejections
If you don’t fully release your grip when you unload the 12-round magazine from your gun, it’s likely that you will hold onto the magazine’s sleeves while the magazine falls free.
The sleeve serves two purposes: to increase your grip and to prevent you from accidentally inserting the magazine into the firearm. It serves an important purpose, but it doesn’t serve it well.
It doesn’t have enough contact with a magazine to keep it in place.
Smith & Wesson would be better off if the CSX was offered in a 12-round version. It would have made it look cleaner and better ergonomically.
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With a 10-round magazine, the gun is just an eighth of an in shorter than it is with 12 rounds.
This gun is much smaller than guns like the SIG P365 which measures almost half an inch.
It seems like Smith & Wesson’s design team was trying to get this gun out the door as fast as possible. They should have made this 12-round gun from the beginning, rather than trying to make it half-assed.
Fire the gun
Let’s now talk about actually shooting the gun.
This gun shoots quite well. It does not have the great upside of a single-action trigger. It shoots very typical of striker-fired triggers, despite being hammer fired.
This gun is not designed to be a tack driver.
The aluminum frame adds a bit of weight to the gun and softens the recoil. Although it’s a small gun with a lot of recoil, the gun shoots fairly well in terms if impulse.
Another great feature of the Smith & Wesson CSX I discovered while at the range is the ability to keep the safety engaged and still clear the firearm.
Most guns won’t allow you to pull the slide back while the safety is engaged.
The Smith & Wesson CSX is a rare exception.
You can leave the safety in the on position, drop the magazine and then eject any live rounds from the chamber. This is a great feature that’s especially useful for novice shooters who aren’t comfortable with firearms.
Final Thoughts
I hope you enjoyed our Smith & Wesson CSX review.
This is the first production gun to be released on the market. They will hopefully make some improvements to the magazine design over the next few months.
Smith & Wesson is well-known for recalls. I hope that the CSX has a recall, or Gen2 version, soon.
This gun was a great example of precision shooting, but they did a lot wrong. I would advise you to not buy it.
They’ll hopefully fix most of these issues if they release a second generation. It would be a great gun, I think, for most users.
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If I was in a critical situation and had to reload the firearm, there are high chances that the mag sleeves would have remained on the magazine while I tried to reload another magazine.
If you are someone who carries a spare mag, the Smith & Wesson CSX is definitely worth considering.
Smith & Wesson will hopefully fix some of these issues and try to improve the gun a bit more, as I mentioned earlier.
This gun’s concept is amazing. It has more potential than any other handgun I have seen or reviewed in recent years.
It is disappointing, however, and I hope Smith & Wesson get their act together.
We would love to hear your thoughts on our Smith & Wesson CSX Review and the CSX in general.
