I got into fireams about 4 years ago when I got a job in a shooting-related industry. My professional interest turned into a passion that lead me to collecting and training.
Being a lover of history and one who appreciates beautiful things and fine craftsmanship, I gravitated toward Smith and Wesson revolvers. I also got into fine steel autoloaders including 1911s, hi powers, Gen 3 S&W's, etc.
I dabbled in polymer, striker-for guns. But they didn't have any appeal other than as utilitarian devices. This still largely true. But I've started to develop a fondness for my Glocks (19, 21, 26).
I've come to appreciate them for the perfection with which they fulfill their mission. They are intended to be reliable, tough, light, consistent, cheap, easy to master, and safe. And they all these things. I've come to appreciate the sheer plainness and how everything is subordinate to it's intended function. There are no frills or flourishes of any kind. There is nothing that isn't essential.
And I appreciate the story of Gaston Glock coming at an engineering challenge work and outsider's perspective and remaking the world.
Lots of people complain about the ergonomics of the Glock grip. I agree that they don't fit the hand like a glove, but I find that the grips accommodate TWO hands quote well. I shoot long barrel revolvers better than I shoot my Glocks. But I find Glocks to be perfectly functional shooters.
Does anyone else have a soft spot in their heart for Glocks?
To answer the last question first, not really.
I've been shooting handguns since the 1970's, and like you I gravitated to S&W revolvers, partly because of the artistry and craftsmanship, but also because they were the duty guns I was trained with (Correctional Officer) and carried when escorting inmates.
I've also liked 1911's for many years although I didn't own one until about 12 years ago. I think buying my first 1911 was also the beginning of the end of my Glock ownership. I have only owned one, a 2nd Gen G20 I bought in 1992 the month they were first marketed. It shot well, it was accurate, it was durable and it was reliable. But it was always no more than an appliance, it had no soul. When I got my first 1911, a SA Series 70 A1, it was also accurate, durable and reliable. It was also beautiful, and had personality, traits that were totally absent in the Glock (as far as I was concerned). It felt better in my hand, I never got used to the wider grip the double stack Glock magazine requires. My hands aren't small, but they're not large either and I never felt like I had an entirely secure grip on the G20. I also preferred the external safety the Glock does not have, even though the Glock action is uncocked until the trigger is started to the rear. I sold my G20 about 8 years ago. I did like 10mm very much though and have replaced the G20 with a 1911 chambered in 10mm.
Speaking of the grip, in the book
Glock: The Rise of America's Gun, during the design phase, Gaston had two pieces of wood nailed together to mimic a pistol and had people experiment with aiming, both open-eyed and with them closed. To quote, "The consensus was that an ideal handgun should point instinctively so that an injured user could fire even if he couldn't see the gun's sights. The experts settled on an angle of 22 degrees, which Glock later reduced slightly".
I like how the 1911 feels in my hand, and it points fairly well, but my favorite semiauto to aim is a BHP. For me the grip angle is perfect, just a bit closer to 90 degrees to the slide and barrel axis than a 1911.
Nothing really wrong with Glocks, they were built to a specific specification; they and other polymer pistols just don't appeal to me.
