Glock has my attention

[Jim]

I started reading a book last night by Massad Ayoob on combat handguns and the practice thereof. He speaks highly of Glocks. I did a little research this morning and decided that the model 30 or 36 would be right for me.
There are thousands of people out there that will tell me why I SHOULD buy one. I'd like to hear from anyone who disagrees as to why.

[Rick N Bama]

I'm no Glock expert but I've owned 1 & shot several others. The grip angle is all wrong for me and it hurts my hand to shoot one.

Also go to Google & do a search on "Glock Kaboom"

That said, my son owns 2 & will not consider owning another brand of auto pistol.

Rick

[Bret4207]

Glocks have been dependable for me for over 15 years. Be advised they aren't recommended for cast with factory barrels, the plastic parts nick, gouge, wear, abrade, and generally don't stand up well to rough use. They also don't rust. Factory plastic sights are dismal and wear too. They generally go bang every pull of the trigger and are accurate enough with jacketed. They are not pretty.

I'm sure if you pick up other books my Mr. Ayoob you'll find him praising several other makes with equal vigor. It' all part of the "Gun of the Month" club disease all mainstream gun writers seem to go through. But hey, he's feeding his family and he is a good writer.

[Four Fingers of Death]

They are a serviceable unit. I wouldn't be shooting reloads, lead or jacketed in a 40cal or bigger bore and would fit an aftermarket Bbl. I've only used 9mms and 40cals at work. foolproof. If you are an american you will probably think the grip angle is wrong as its not al la 1911. If you live anywhere else in the world it will be perfect. I currently have a 92FS, have recrowned the bbl as it was rough out of the box, 10 mins, $20, easier than warranty work, and got a trigger job done. Benchrest it and it will outshoot my olg Glock 26, any other type of shooting, the Glock would shoot he pants off it, short barrel and all. Those nice green ones are calling me. Anyone wanna buy a tuned beretta with 4x mags

[robertbank]

I have to disagree with my friend 4fingermick. While the grip angle didn't give me fits the palm swell certainly did. I shoot CZ's, Tanfoglios and 1911's along with several revolvers so I am not stuck on one particular design but the the Glocks just don't feel comfortable in my hand. Others don't seem to mind.

While popular with Police Departments (Inexpensive to purchase by them), I think there are better pistols out there for the same or less money that are the Glocks equal including but not limited to S&W M&P (One of our guys has one at the club and does very well with it - very dependable), the CZ 75/85 family and of course the Sig 226's. Personally I find the Hi-Power by FN to be a bit dated now.

I guess it boils down to what you want the pistol for. Any of the above will do yoeman service as a defensive handgun and the CZ75/85 along with the S&W are very competitive if you like IPSC or IDPA style shooting.

Gun writers are gun writers as Bret4207 commented so chosing a gun based upon their commentary might be a leap of faith I would not entertain.

Take Care

Bob

psGlocks in 40cal seem to have had their share of problems. I pick up our Conservation Officer's brass in this caliber after their qualifiers and all the cases have the Glock six o'clock bulge on the case. Enough said.

[eka]

Well, I have several of them, including the model 36. The 36 being my favorite followed closely by the 19. The up side is...If you are looking for a rugged and dependable combat pistol, they can't be beat. The 36 is for me close to the perfect carry pistol. The down side...If you are the kind that likes to tinker and customize a little to add your own personal touches to your guns, you will get bored quickly. They are best left just as they came out of the box. Which in my opinion is darn good. You know how you can take a good revolver and sink enough custom money in it to buy a Harley? You just can't do that with a Glock.
They're plain Jane and all business.

Keith

[redneckdan]

I can't really say anything too bad about glocks. They are most definitely not "jam proof". People at the range won't let me touch their glock any more, I have the magical gift to jam every glock I touch within two magzines of shooting. I don't have that problem with a 1911, I think it has to do something with grip angle and the way I hold the pistol.

[trickyasafox]

something to consider- my father had a glock 30, and it was too fat for concealed carry. traded it in on a full size 21. i'd check out the 36, i think it is supposed to be slimmer. i've shot a few and have no complaints.

[ebner glocken]

I have a 19 and a 20. Good guns for being tough, light, minute of person accurate @ 25 yards. Funny thing though, mine shoot cast as a rule better than jacketed......good thing I didn't read about how dangerous that was before I shot over 5K rounds through my 19. My 19 or 20 are not any guns I will take to shoot in any bullseye competition, for that they sell other guns.

[mooman76]

Redneckdan

I think your problem with glocks jamming is in the design and how you are used to shooting. When firing the glock if you don't hold the gun firmly the shell will not eject properly. To further explain when I shoot I hold the gun firmly but let the recoil kick back naturally but by letting it kick back naturally it keeps slide from functioning properly thus the shell from ejecting causing a jam. I know I sounded like I contradicted myself. They call it here where I work limp wristing. I don't care for the termanology because I don't consider it that but for lack of a better word, that's what it is!

[9.3X62AL]

My old agency has around 1,000 Glock pistols authorized and in the hands of deputies. About the only "failures" I saw with Glocks involved early G-22 or G-23 models (40 S&W), about 2-3 out of 100 just woudn't funcrtion reliably--any kind of ammo, any number of magazines. Owners sent them back to Glock, and Glock made them right in short order. More recently, one of my rangemaster buddies told me that a couple of the M-36 pistols his troops have tried would have magazines disassemble themselves during a firing sequence--floorplate came undone, and mag parts and contents went on the ground.

Other than those instances, the Glocks ran like Swiss watches. Only SIG-Sauer has a reliability rating like the Glock in my experience of high-line service pistols in the hands of shooters with a wide range of shooting skill levels--ranging from very casual to highly motivated. H&K USP follows closely, but a few people have discomfort with its ergonomics (bore axis height). NOTHING made by Beretta, Walther, or S&W comes close. We didn't authorize CZ-75 pistols or any single-action designs, but my experience with the CZ-75 has been very positive--small sample population (4), I caution.

[rugerdude]

Glocks are for the most part dead reliable. I have to give them that. However I have personally seen 2 that had the magazine disassemble like 9.3X62AL mentioned. Funny thing, these were both cop guns too. NOT what I would like to be worrying about when the crap hit the fan. My biggest gripe with them is the grip. They just flat don't fit my hands. Best bet, check them out at a gunshop and see how you like the fit, and see if anyone you know has one you can shoot.

[Bubba w/a 45/70]

Any reason NOT to get one???


Trading it off on a XD45.....the 36 was much more a carry pistol than that XD ever thought of being. It fed everything, shot cast with no problems, didn't go KaBoom! with even a double powdered load (accidental on my part, no real test but very nice to know), and the only way I could make it misfeed was to hold it soo loosely that I darned near dropped it upon firing.

....at least I thought that the trading it off was a good enough reason to NOT get one!


And seriously, the 45ACP bactory barrels are pretty much the only Glock barrels that will take cast boolits without problems due to different rifling than other caliber Glocks (it is more "standard" rifling than other Glocks).

[9.3X62AL]

No in-hand time with the M-36 myself. The concept of sub-compact single-column 45 ACP should just about sell itself, methinks.

Glock 45 caliber barrels are octagonal (8-sided polygonal), while the other calibers are hexagonal (6-sided polygonal). I am uncertain if the barrel form differences explain the 45's good work with lead, or whether the low-pressure/slow-twist nature of the 45 ACP is the reason. With conventionally-rifled barrels, the 45 ACP is more lead-friendly than the 9mm or 40 S&W. I have rather unscientifically assumed that the high-pressure/fast twist formula in 9mm and 40 S&W accounted for this difference. One REAL advantage the aftermarket barrels offer is tighter and more consistent dimensions in the bore, and slower twists. Better case head support in the chamber is also offered.

The whole "lead boolits in factory Glock barrels" is a self-propelled controversy in and of itself. My experience in the M-21 shows that they work fine--other peoples' work may vary from that finding. Let's remember that MANY venues of cast boolit shooting also show varying and uneven success rates for shooters. There are very few "Nevers" and "Always" in this hobby.

[KCSO]

If I had a choice between a Glock and a big rock, the rock would get my vote. I have qualified with several Glocks and shot more and have no use for them. IMHO the Springfield XD is the gun the Glock should have been, and it shoots cast everything with no problems.

If you are a 1911 man you will understand and if you are a Glock fan please ignore my OPINION.

[Bubba w/a 45/70]

If I had a choice between a Glock and a big rock, the rock would get my vote. I have qualified with several Glocks and shot more and have no use for them. IMHO the Springfield XD is the gun the Glock should have been, and it shoots cast everything with no problems.

If you are a 1911 man you will understand and if you are a Glock fan please ignore my OPINION.

I'm not trying to get into a peeing match but......


My XD wouldn't feed, at all, anything in a wadcutter design. Lead semiwadcutter boolits included. And I really didn't feel like sending in the barrel to have the ramp cut for it. That is something the factory should have done from the get go.

I'm a Glock fan. I'm also a 1911 fan. I've owned more 1991A1's than Glock's. My XD shot good, just didn't fit the bill for "it will shoot anything on hand". And I need that in a defensive pistol. When a carry gun chokes on something that it shouldn't choke on.....then I have a problem with it for my needs.

[S.R.Custom]

They are a serviceable unit.

That is about as accurate a description of a Glock as I have ever heard. It is that, no more and no less. Sorta like a Crown Vic taxi or an F150 pickup in that respect...

[9.3X62AL]

Pretty succinct, Super Mag.

[KCSO]

I've never had a bobble with 170 Lee TL's in my XD. My main problem with the Glock is that it feels like a 2x4 in my hands. The XD has more of a Highpower feel and points more naturally for me. I also highly object to plastic sights and I have replaced a ton of these. The State Patrol orders their Glocks with night sights so they start out with metal sights. The guide rods in the Glocks are also prone to breakage and the XD has a metal guide rod. I would say the true test of these guns will be in 2100 when we see how many are still up and running. I am not convinced a plastic gun will stand the test of time and I will be handing down a 1911 and a Highpower.
Personal preference is a funny thing as just yesterday I had a fellow tell me that his Hi Point was the best pistol he ever owned.

[9.3X62AL]

No doubt about it, KCSO--in some hands those Glock grips feel like you're holding a 12 oz beverage can. Please understand that I'm NOT bad-mouthing the 1911A1 or the BHP--both fit better than the Glock does for me, too. But the Glock fits well enough. Durability? Who knows? We have at least one Glock (9mm) at my agency's armory with over 100K rounds through it, and a 40 S&W with nearly as many. I think both have needed recoil spring assembly replacement, but that has been it AFAIK.

It all boils down to taste, once you get to the H&K/XD/SIG-Sauer/Glock level. Add in the 1911A1 and BHP in good variants to that list. I'm inclined to include the CZ-75 in that group, too--I shot 3 of the 9mm's intermittently that belonged to friends for the past 10 years or so, Mike in CO's CZ-97, and now my own -75 in 40 S&W. The -75 fits like a BHP, and the -97 is only slightly larger. Dollar for dollar, the CZ's give a LOT of pistol for the money.