I know I haven't been around here long but this thread is a good opportunity for me to "come clean" but before I do I'd like to make sure you all understand that I ain't no one trick pony and I ain't no Glock snob. I own, shoot, love and have much pride in Smith and Wessons, Colts, and Rugers, as well as my 4 Glocks.
Having said all that I will take this opportunity to maybe defend Glocks just a bit. I don't claim that they are all perfect and I know that there are many other makers of very fine pistols but I have had great service with mine and many of my friends have even more Glocks with many more rounds through theirs as well.
In 2004 I went to the local range with a friend and he'd just bought a Glock 23, a midsize .40. When he passed it to me to try I had never even held a Glock in my hand and I picked it up and blew the bullseye out of a target at 10 yards. I was back at the range in less thab 2 hours with my own Glock 23 and continued that kind of shooting with my own gun.
In 2005 I discovered the Glock site and have been on there since then. I'm not a died in the wool Glock worshiper as I said above but with the exception of the Gen 4s I have complete confidence in them and that for me is a HUGE factor. I have no use for a gun or much of anything else if I can't trust it to do what it's supposed to do.
I carried the 23 every day. I later bought a Glock 17 as my main plinker. I don't carry 9mm but they are cheaper to shoot and I love this gun. Basically I'm a .45 kind of guy so I then bought the Glock 21 full size 45 for home defense and for the console of my truck when I'm on the road. My last Glock purchase was the 36. It is a compact single stack .45 and I added that to the rotation of guns that I carry. It rides and hides with total ease.
All my Glocks are 3rd generation. The 36 was my latest and I bought it in 2006. I keep shooting logs of all my guns and I just went into my "fortress of solitude" and added up how many rounds I've fired in all my Glocks. For all 4 the total is 23,050. I'm not exaggerating and I'm not lying, I have not had even one issue with ANY of them. I don't need to read any reports I have 23K rounds and nearly 10 years experience with my Glocks. You can read and believe all the reports you want to but in my mind there is no substitute for experience. I have never owned any other brand of semi automatic pistol that I can say that about and I've had my fair share in the 60 years I've been owning and shooting guns.
I know that Glocks are not perfect. Nothing is. And I'm glad I got all the ones I was really interested in before the Gen 4s came out. If I was buying a semi auto pistol today I would not buy a Gen 4 Glock. I've seen too many reports of problems with various models and I just don't have the confidence in them that I do the Gens 1, 2, and 3. A lot of this I believe is due to the fact that I take excellent care of my guns. I field strip and inspect each one after each trip to the range.
The reasons that I like my Glocks so much are that they are not overly expensive and they are simple in design. Easy to field strip and reassemble. even with my arthritic hands I can have one apart and back together is 20 seconds. And they are all alike. If you have ever field stipped one Glock then you have field stripped them all. They are accurate and tough and dependable right out of the box. I will refrain from using any names lest I insult some one which is certainly NOT my intention but I have stood next to a person on numerous occasion that was shooting a gun that cost over twice what my Glocks cost and couldn't get through a full magazine without a jam.
I Don't back up to anyone about my appreciation for my Glocks. I'll stack them up against any stock pistol out there. I don't really understand where all the hate comes from. I hear and read a lot of ignorant statements made and I just have to wonder where they come from. I know that Glocks may have an occasional "lemon" but I've never had one or even seen one and I don't think that it happens often enough to warrant all the hostility that's out there. I believe that a lot of it comes from other than experience.
I know that a lot of folks, 1911 types especially, are down on Glocks because "they don't have a safety". Well they DO have a safety. They have 3 safeties actually. But because they are PASSIVE safeties a lot of people don't trust them. they have the trigger safety, the drop safety and the firing pin safety. THE ONLY WAY A GLOCK WILL FIRE IS IF SOMEONE PULLS THE TRIGGER. They have been dropped out of airplanes and helicopters and tall building. They have been torture tested to the inth degree.
A very important thing to remember is that the main and most important safety feature is your brain. If a person will learn how to use that safety feature they won't have any problems.
I don't suppose I've won any converts tonight but all I ask is that before you spout mistrust, dislike, or contempt for the Glock at least give it a fair trial. If you don't like it then fine. Some really don't but don't be surprise if you find to your surprise and delight that it is a darn good shooter and one that will last and not break the bank.
