Glock Accuracy

[fourarmed]

What sort of accuracy should be expected from a 9mm Glock? My wife bought a Model 19, and shoots it pretty well on plates and that sort of thing, but has not done well with it on more demanding stuff like IHMSA field pistol. I put up some handloads using 125 grain .357 hollowpoints, and shot some groups with those and with several factory loads using 115 gr. ball. I was shocked at the results: in ten-shot groups at 25 yards, five or six shots would group in 3 or 4 inches, but the rest would be all over - or even off - the paper. Under identical conditions my S&W model 19 will group under 2", my untuned 1911s around 3", and my bullseye guns under 2". I realize that I'm comparing apples and oranges with those guns, but my first impression of my new M&P .45 is that I can do better offhand with it than I can over bags with the Glock, and the triggers are similar in nature.

[Love Life]

Get you a lighter trigger and a thinner front sight blade. Doing that worked wonders for my wife's Glock 17.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I had a nice desertation on here until I hit the wrong button on this GD keyboard and dumped it so this is the short version.

Glocks are 2-3" pistols at 25 yards. That's 4-6" at 50 yards and it only gest worse.

If you are really looking for auto pistol accuracy I have seen high end 1911's that were 1" guns at 50 yards, and this is not uncommon, and neither is the price.

Glocks are what they are and for what they are intended for I don't think there is much better.

If she uses the gun for IDPA and things like that she'll do fine. If she wants to shoot disciplines where accuracy is more of a factor then it's time to look for a 1911.

Since she would already be very familiar with running the Glock she would just have to adapt to the safety feature on the 1911 which should be a smooth transition.

Glocks are the easiest pistol to learn Pistolcraft with. You can only do three things to a Glock, Insert mag, rack slide, and pull trigger. It doesn't get any simpler than that.

That's the beauty of the Glock system.

Randy

[jmort]

^ What he said. Glocks are functional, not tack drivers.
This article from Handguns Magazine entitled "Long Shot" is very interesting and gives some real world information
http://www.handgunsmag.com/2010/09/24/tactics_training_shot_022305/

[Poohgyrr]

Food for thought: I run a BarSto 357Sig barrel in my G35 now, because the accuracy in my hands from a braced sitting position, is about half the size of the stock 40S&W barrel. Using Winchester & Speer hollowpoints in 125 gr vs 180 gr. And recoil is very different as well.

I don't know why, but it is what it is. Just FYI.

And yes, S&W 357 M19's & M686's "usually" shoot quite a bit better for me than the "standard production" autoloaders I've shot over the years. Over the years, I've heard lots of other folks say the same thing that you're posting about this.

FWIW

[Clay M]

Remember the trigger is the only safety so if you are using it as a carry gun ,you may not want to lighten the trigger pull.My son is a Glock fan .They are great tools for what they were designed for, but so far I haven't seen any thrilling accuracy.

[khmer6]

Bought my wife a glock17. Shoots pretty good, better than my 92 with cast. And yes, I've shot cast in the Glock barrel. I have a 4.5# trigger on my Glock 10mm. Love it. That thing can punch holes all day long with some seriously stout loads. Trigger job is very easy and simple on glocks. I believe there were some defective trigger bars, there wasn't a recall but a local pd changed all there's out because of light primer strikes. The new part has a - 1 at the end I believe.

[xacex]

I tried to get over the Glock dislike I had, and bought one for myself to see if they were as good as I have been told. Well, I had a Glock 22 break a slide stop, and jam the gun to a stop, and the accuracy was as bad as the Ruger 40 cal I had in the early 90's. I tried to like it, but it just wouldn't let me. My 1911 may need to be cleaned and oiled after every session, but I know I will hit my mark right off the bat, and I wont need the extra capacity the Glock has. There is a reason police have a low hit rate with their sidearm these days, and it does not have everything to do with their experience. Now if they would just make a 1911 that was as light as a Glock I would be in heaven.

[khmer6]

I hear you on that one. I have to usually warm up my gloves before I'm on site. My 1911s takes a round or two

[Lloyd Smale]

with load developement and cast bullets i can get my glocks under 2 inch at 25 yards. My 20 will shoot close to an inch.

[Justinsaneok]

401175tc bullets at 1000fps 2" or better at 25 yards paper plates at 100 if I guess right. 2.5lb trigger lonewolf barrel. I'm just used to it.

[Justinsaneok]

WWB ammo shoot all over the place. It might have just been the thousand I got at one time but those were the bullets that made me buy a Dillion, lee pot and a mold. I almost sent my gun back to glock and it was just ammo. Cheap fed champion shoots awesome. My glock 19 was more accurate than I could shoot it.

[Clay M]

I shot my sons Gen 4 Glock 21 today and was very impressed with this gun.It is the best Glock I have shot so far.I got some good groups with it and his Glock 19C.I like the double round coil springs in the Gen4. Very nice gun. I am a 1911 guy so it is a big difference.

[Char-Gar]

Glocks are what they are. They are serious social handguns to save your skin from predatory human beings. They are excellent tools for doing that very thing. Don't expect or require them to do anything else and you will understand why they are so popular among folks with those needs.

I have a Gen 3 17 and Gen 3 19 and I keep them close at hand. They are located within a foot or two of my Uzi carbine. I live just three miles from the Rio Grande river and hip and thigh with the Mexican Cartels. That is why I have these things.

I also have a nice supply of fine accurate weapons that I keep and shoot for enjoyment.

I don't confuse these two very different types of firearms and their purposes. To do so would be like wondering why my Ford F150 pickup won't drive and handle like my wife's 5 series BMW.

[TES]

I can't believe I'm saying this but what LL said...:kidding:

[grampa243]

i guess i've shot better glocks then most of you guys have seen. LOL trigger jobs do help :)

[TES]

Yea and I saw a trigger spring / spring steel portion that looked like it had been...well shaved down. Has anyone tried this?

[Salmoneye]

My Wife has a bone stock Gen 2 G19 (all black internals, non drop-free mags) that can ding a 9" skillet at 60 yards offhand all day long...

I have no other experience with anything else Glock, so my mileage definitely varies...

[fish0123]

Before you start modifying your glock, try practicing with it some more. As stated, they are meant to be used in self defense situations, most of which are inside of ten yards. I shoot my glock 30 a lot, and have found that it is far more accurate than I am.

[Bulltipper]

I love my G36 because it shoots well out to 25 yds, has tritium sights, and wears well in an IWB Don Hume holster. Glocks are functional duty and CC weapons. They are not sniper rifles. Royal Arms in Ontario CA has a great aftermarket trigger, CNC aluminum and it gets rid of that plastic feeling creep and the reset is better too. Mine took a couple boxes of ammo to fully break in, but I am happy with it now. In a defensive situation, critical accuracy at over 25 yards is rarely needed...

[Any Cal.]

I shot one that leaded a bit and it ran 3" @ 25 yds. When clean it could do noticeably better. Would also go 13" @ 100yds pretty consistently w/ ammo that leaded, so I am sure a clean barrel and better ammo could get you 2" or better @ 25 and on a paper plate at 100. Beyond that a different trigger system would probably become pretty important, as well as target sights.

[bambambam]

Have you tried a heavier bullet? My 17 will not shoot the lighter bullets worth a ****.I went to a 147gr and it tightened groups up so that I was competive.

[jmort]

That is about right or a little more.

ACCURACY AND VELOCITY
MODEL LOAD VELOCITY ACCURACY (ins.)
25 yds. 50 yds. 100 yds.
Glock 23 Wolf 180-gr. FMJ 876 3 4.8 10.3
Walther P99 Wolf 180-gr. FM 890 2.6 3.3 8.7
Les Baer Prowler Wolf 230-gr. FMJ 783 1.2 2.6 7.1
Notes: Velocity readings taken 12 feet from the muzzle with the Oehler 35P chronograph. Groups are an average of four five-shot groups fired prone


Read more: http://www.handgunsmag.com/2010/09/24/tactics_training_shot_022305/#ixzz2UMN4wL00

[HATCH]

Glocks are very sensitive to trigger pull. if you aren't holding it just right you end up pulling it every time.

I own 4 Glocks.
21,22,23,30
i have owned a 17 + 19 too.
For me the all shoot law and to the left. Basically about 730 on the clock in the 9 ring.
I only shoot ten yards and i can put them in a quarter at that distance.
Now if i stop and think about it i can grip the gun and pull the trigger and get them in the bullseye every time.
But to draw and fire its 730 every time. still acceptable for me.

I got a sw mod 25 in 45 colt that i can make 5 shots look like a big cloverleaf. The 6th is a flyer.... Happens everytime.

[Clay M]

We just went out and tested some different ammo for flash shooting in the dark.Most brands were about the same. The Hornady Critical Duty 9mm 135 had the least flash of all.Very impressive ammo in the Glock 19C.I love shooting the new 21 gen 4.To me it is the most fun to shoot of all the Glocks,but then again I am very use to the recoil of a .45 ACP.

[9.3X62AL]

10 years of LEO range duty with the Glocks, and another 8 years after retirement playing around with these ugly ducklings. They WORK. EVERY TIME. They are as aesthetically pleasing as a mud fence, and most of them won't make the cut for Camp Perry.......but they will run minute-of-carjacker all day long. My old shop has about 3,000 deputies on board, roughly half of their sideiron is made by Glock, and EVERY ONE was a personal purchase. The majority are in 40 S&W, many are in 45 ACP, and a few are in 9mm. Our daughters are moving into homes of their own, and as they do so they get Glock pistols as house-warming gifts.

[HDS]

In sweden in order to be allowed to own and keep owning a handgun (permits renewed every 5 years) people there have to qualify for a gold badge, which is 6 shots, one handed at a 26 yard pistol target, 46 points required. Shooters in sweden manage this with glocks as the following pictures shows, at least they managed it once.

http://www.ladda-upp.com/bilder/56176/50glock
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/39873256/Web/glock34-25m-50p.jpg
http://img600.imageshack.us/img600/3479/20120403215225.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/V5mU4.jpg

These are just some random pics I took from a swedish form in a thread about glocks. I bet several of these people load and tailor their own ammo as well. I am not swedish and not subject to these rules so consequently I am a much worse shot and could not do these even two handed, but shooters in sweden are trained in this and the proper form and grip from the start in order to qualify, often they begin with anatomically gripped .22lr target pistols.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Hatch: You are "mashing!" This is attributable to several issues. The primary one is too much finger on the trigger, the second is thumb on the gun, and the third is just the way you hold the thing which affects the other two.

Pay attention here.

First grip the gun between your three bottom fingers and the heel of your hand.Pics 1,2 this is the only thing carrying the weight of the gun. Your thumb is pointing strait up and your trigger finger off the gun. Note how you can control the gun with only this grip? I used my desk magnifyer so that you could see how the fingers trap the gun into the heel of your hand.

Pic 3 shows the finger's front pad on the trigger. This would be all you need for strong hand and weak hand only shooting. Note; the thumb is strait up,, You will find this lends stability to the hold,,, The opposite of what you would think.

Next fold your support hand top three fingers around your firing hand bottom three fingers, and close the heels of your hands together . Your thumbs should be pointing strait up and your support thumb should be crossed over and behind your firing side thumb. Neither thumb is touching the gun.

Last, the trigger finger's front pad is placed on the trigger, but the rest of the finger is OFF THE GUN! When you press the trigger it will move "strait back" and the gun will not shift to the left. When you have too much finger on the trigger when you start to pull the trigger the muscles in your finger's second and third pads push the gun to the left as they contract.

This will take lots of practice however I assure you it will fix your mash. It must become part of the draw, however the basic grip must be established before the draw so that when you present the gun to the target the grip is correctly established before you start the trigger pull or else,,, YOU guessed it,,, You will mash the trigger and the shot will go low left.

It took me 4 years to figure all this out, and numerous trips to Front Sight to get it perfected. By following these simple steps you can duplicate it in a few days.

I wouldn't lie to you, this is all there is too it,,, and I can't tell you how many times my instructors told me that exact same thing. However they never showed pictures of the exact grip and that's why it took so long for me to figure out.

If you are shooting a 1911 you do exactly the same thing except your thumbs ride the safety.

Try it, It works.

Randy.

[Bulltipper]

YEP, What Randy said!

[khmer6]

Holy smokes batman. That's a nice guide Randy

[fourarmed]

The "always goes bang" business is why my wife bought one. However, as we spend a lot more time and ammo shooting targets than we do shooting scumbags, we eventually get to thinking we would like something better than 4" groups when fired off bags, and this gun just won't do that with 115 grain ball. It sprays pairs of holes all over the target. That pairing of holes makes me wonder if there isn't some mechanical glitch. I have yet to buy an appropriate mold. I guess I will see if I can find some 147 grainers.

[Love Life]

My glocks like the RCBS 124 gr RN GC mould in 9mm. Easy cheese.

[Potsy]

Up front, in my limited experience, I'm a 1911 man. To me, better feel, better trigger. I think of a gun like some do a woman, if she doesn't feel good in the dark, I don't much care what she looks like in the daylight.
Plus, the grips on the full sized .45's and 10mm's are just to big for me to shoot comfortably. I've shot them, and hit with them, just didn't like the way they felt.
That said; I've never done any formal accuracy testing on Glocks, but I've never picked one up that didn't hit where I was aiming and cluster holes (sometimes one ragged hole with) at least well enought to suit me, and I'm guessing I've shot 15 or so different ones in the last 15 years. Bear in mind, all shooting has been done with jacketed bullets and most with factory ammo.
Last fall I took my brother in laws new full sized .357 Sig (not real familiar with their model numbers) and rang an 8" gong at 100 yards with boring regularity. Then I did the same thing on a stop sign sized gong at 200 yards. Not really exacting standards, but all I'll ever need.
And as far as triggers go, a buddy put an overtravel stop and a 3lb spring in a mid-sized .40 a while back. Dunno if I'd want that for a carry gun, but it gave me a whole new outlook on what they are capable of.
I doubt I ever own one, but I'd not feel undergunned if I had to.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I brought this back to the top just because it is timeless and needs to be kept up top. I shot 3 gun last Sunday with my G35 and did fairly well. I amazed my self by hitting 2, 12" square steel targets 2 hits each at 40 yards with 5 shots.

I was concentrating on my grip at that moment, and of course the Front Sight. On that stage I dropped one shot(out of center mass zone) out of 40 pistol and 30 rifle shots. Ranges from 5 to 100 yards. Not bad and the time wasn't bad either.

If you go back over my instructions from the above post and actually do some dry firing your shooting will improve dramatically. Also don't be even the slightest bit concerned with Dry Firing a Glock. You can do it indefinately with no harm whatsoever to the gun!

Randy

[9.3X62AL]

I'll add some info to the GOOD STUFF Randy has shared. 115 grain FMJ ball factory loads are very seldom any 9mm pistol's best and brightest performer. Just like the open-base M-193 bullets in an AR-15, they aren't known for gilt-edge accuracy. Once you start using better bullets/boolits, the 9mm's accuracy potential can be better exploited. When match-grade 9mm pistols strive for excellence, they tend to favor the sub-sonic 147 JHP ammo over most others. I'm not enamored of this fodder for social engineering venues, but it can shoot very accurately in well-tuned pistols and accurate carbines or SMGs. I've had the oppurtunity to shoot a couple 1" @ 50 yard 9mm pistols--one being a much-modified Beretta 92, the other a box-stock Springfield Loaded 1911A1. They do exist, but they aren't common. 3" @ 25 yards works well for felon-repelling, but I'm not above *gilding the lily* if such mods don't compromise reliability.

[Petrol & Powder]

10 years of LEO range duty with the Glocks, and another 8 years after retirement playing around with these ugly ducklings. They WORK. EVERY TIME. They are as aesthetically pleasing as a mud fence, and most of them won't make the cut for Camp Perry.......but they will run minute-of-carjacker all day long. My old shop has about 3,000 deputies on board, roughly half of their sideiron is made by Glock, and EVERY ONE was a personal purchase. The majority are in 40 S&W, many are in 45 ACP, and a few are in 9mm. Our daughters are moving into homes of their own, and as they do so they get Glock pistols as house-warming gifts.

Well Said! They work and they work every time! I never hated Glocks but it took awhile before I warmed up to them. The more I played with them the more I appreciated the design. It does what it is designed to do and it does it with monotonous regularity.
As for accuracy, it's not the same class as my P210 but it's more than good enough, it's lighter, it holds more rounds, it is way less expensive and probably tougher!

If you want to read about Glocks in America and the history of the gun, there's a book by Paul Barrett titled, "Glock - The Rise of America's Gun"

[Rodfac]

Well said, 9.3x62.... I'm a 1911 guy and never had LEO experience...but I'll say this about Glocks accuracy (combat accuracy)...I'd have gladly traded my 1911 for the capacity and reliability of a Glock 19, 22 or the .45 model for my two tours in Vietnam. I wasn't looking for a Camp Perry bullseye piece, just one that would simplify the problem of unwanted AK users in a slit trench.

W.R. Buchanan...that's about the best description of Front Sight's training syllabus on grip that I've read...better than their course notes in fact. I tried it my first time out there, with a rented G17...the first Glock I'd ever shot and it worked very well for me....won the steel challenge and shot distinguished as well. The 2nd year there, I took a new Ruger SR1911 and applied the same thumbs up grip technique with equal results. They've changed the way I shoot, and for a vast improvement I'd add.

But back to Glock's in general: My wife's had a G19 for a cpl years now with over 1500 rounds through it with no hiccups. She now owns a G23 and has 600-800 rounds through it with no issues. Gotta say the design is about as simple as is possible to come up with...about like a really good revolver...point and shoot...if no bang; then tap and rack and try again. Both guns will keep an decent ammunition, including my hand loads, on a quarter at 15 yds from a modified Weaver Stance. Nothing more is necessary or wanted.

Best Regards, Rod

[Clay M]

They are at least as accurate as my wrist rocket slingshot.:wink:

[EMC45]

I too have a G36, completely stock except for tritium sights. I like it. I can shoot it fairly well too. My main fodder for this is the Lee TC 230gr. regular lube groove bullet over 4.5-5gr. Bullseye, lit with a Wolf LPP in assorted brass. It does well. Stock barrel and no leading. Size my bullets @.452 and let 'em rip. Me and MGD45 (member here) took turns ringing the 2/3 IPSC steel target at 100yds with it. He did a good bit better than me:oops:, but I was holding my own and was rewarded consistantly with the "CLANG!" of the target. These guns will shoot.