Applying a Talon Grip to Springfield Armory XD-S 9 Mod.2 Pistol

I’ve been a fan of Talon Grips for a few years now, and reviewed them here a while back. And since I’m currently toting around one of Springfield Armory’s new XD-S 9 Mod.2 pistols, I reached out to Talon’s Director of Operations Adam Spector, who was kind enough to send me one of the very first Talon Grips for this little pistol. I installed it a couple days ago, and I’m pretty happy with the results.

Talon Grips are pre-cut adhesive-backed grip enhancements, designed specifically for individual handguns. They have dozens available on their website. You clean the surface to be covered using alcohol, and then get busy applying the Talon Grip material.

Directions say to start on the left, and I did… but be sure you start at the bottom rear left, and don’t stick the front edge down… because you will want to lift it up after you wrap the material around the front, so you can tuck it under the left side.

After you get it stuck on where you want it — you can lift and re-stick it to improve alignment — go ahead and mash it down good.

Next, grab a hair dryer or heat gun and heat it up. Don’t go nuts… they say you want it only as hot as a cup of coffee. While it’s warm, you press down all over the grip material. This secures the adhesive securely to the surface, and allows it to closely conform to the grip. I went all over the grip two or three times, until I was satisfied that I’d heated and pressed down all the surfaces and that I’d gotten them to properly conform.

I’ve had a Talon Grip on a little Kel-Tek PF-9 for years, and I’ve carried that little popper in all sorts of conditions — including heavy sweating in Florida and Georgia summers. The Talon Grip shows no sign of deterioration or lifting.

The old Kel-Tec PF-9 in the background, with the SA XD-S 9 Mod.2 in the foreground (below).

After being heated and pressed, the Talon Grip is well-adhered to the pistol frame and won’t come off until you remove it. They say removal can be done easily, with most of the glue remaining on the Talon Grip (clean up the rest with rubbing alcohol).

The Talon Grip really enhances the “grippiness” of this little Springfield, which already had a pretty good grip. In short, it makes a good little carry gun even better.

Russ Chastain

Editor & Contributing Writer Russ Chastain is a lifelong hunter and shooter who has spent his life learning about hunting, shooting, guns, ammunition, gunsmithing, reloading, and bullet casting. He started toting his own gun in the woods at age nine and he's pursued deer with rifles since 1982, so his hunting knowledge has been growing for more than three and a half decades. His desire and ability to share this knowledge with others has also grown, and Russ has been professionally writing and editing original hunting & shooting content since 1998. Russ Chastain has a passion for sharing accurate, honest, interesting hunting & shooting knowledge and stories with people of all skill levels.