Glock has really shocked me!

[Doug M.]

"Ugly" is a non-issue. A personal defense firearm is not erotica. It is a tool for serious use. If you care about "looks", your priorities are Adam Frank Union.

The "dingus" on the trigger is not a safety in the usual sense. It is there to ensure that only a conscious trigger press activates the firearm. The grip angle issue is not trivial - one should not be carrying a firearm that does not work for them. Glocks work for 90% or more of the population. If they don't work for you, don't have one. They are generally reliable. They may not be tolerant of careless/stupid handling. No one should ever be tolerant of such. NDs are the responsibility of the shooter, not the firearm. I have been carrying a compact (M26, then M33) in a Kramer pocket holster for 30 years or more. I carried them as BUGs in LE. They work. That's what matters.

I'll admit I like my Shield with RDS, and if I were not already well equipped in Glocks and their accessories, might consider the M&P pistols as "better". I have some number of Glocks and magazines, including a Wilson AR9 set up for Glock mags (in most ways a poor fiscal choice, but it does work).

There may be other platforms out there that serve the purpose just fine. Go ahead and carry one. Changing platforms for the newest is not generally wise. It is your right, but from a fiscal and psychomotor skill adjustment, less than prudent. I have a Sig 239 that I like reasonably well, but I am highly unlikely to buy another Sig product; maybe another of the old metal models. I sure as hell would not have a 320.

 

[viceunit]

The PD I retired from adopted G17 as the issued duty weapon in 1990. They have been a Glock agency since, now over 35 years. They rode the .40 S&W train for a number of years, but recently went back to 9mm in Gen 5 G17's. In that 35 years and with hundreds of officers carrying the Glock pistol there have been no AD or ND, and I attribute that to the excellent training that my former agency provides. These days a Gen4 G26 is my retirement carry and that thing has been dead nuts reliable and as accurate as the larger frame Glocks. I'll admit, it is not as aesthetically pleasing as the S&W 2 1/2" model 19 I carried for years - but it carries easier and has 5 more rounds on tap.

 

[Pointblank2U]

My Glock 19 and 26 are two pistols that I know will work every time and I won't care if either of them has to sit in evidence for a year or more. I'm not going to risk that with one of high dollar Smiths.

 

[Rustyt1953]

I fail to see what aesthetics have to do with the efficacy of a pistol.

I have scoured the web and can find no instance where a BG yelled: "Stop! You're not going to shoot me with something gaudy, are you?"

 

[Harv 24]

Boy, for a forum dedicated to S&W, there sure are a lot of threads about Glocks....Just sayin...

 

[stansdds]

I have fired Glocks, but I never warmed up to them. Maybe the Ruger RXM would be a better fit in my hands, but I have not bothered to go to my local, friendly, gun shop/enabler to look at one. Until I find something that is definitevly superior, I will continue to rely upon my old S&W Model 6946.

 

[chief38]

Thursday, March 1, 2018 I saw my first Sig P365 ($469.99). I looked it over carefully and compared it to a Glock 43 ($299.99). Within 1.5 hours a LEO friend bought that same gun. He and his partner fired just under 200 rounds through it when the trigger stopped working. On Monday, March 5, it was on its way back to Sig, the first of three trips for the same issue.

Sig has a history of releasing $500.00 +/- products to the public to do the final R&D on the model, and Sig then works to correct the issues. The P250, P365, P320 and Mosquito models were released to the consumer before they should have been. That is a poor business practice when a life depends on on a product.

Yes - Sig did have a few minor issues with the first edition of the P365 which were rapidly and properly corrected. After the initial flaws the P365 has more than proven itself to be a reliable, accurate, incredibly designed and durable pistol. Colt had some similar issues with the reintroduction of their Python - again, a rapid and through fix! SA, FN, and many other company's in their frustration to get their new products to market fast, sometimes get a bit rambunctious and overlook a few things. There is often a very fine line between getting a new product to market before your competition and 100% perfection.

On the other hand, look at S&W! One of the most popular and oldest gun manufacturers in the world (that was famous for their high quality) that had the market, the reputation, the manufacturing capacity BUT let their QC go below sea level! So who is worse?? At least the other company's quickly and properly admitted, addressed and fixed the issues at hand. Has S&W??? I only WISH they did!!

When judging a company you need to look at the vast majority of their products - and not just the exception. if you have read the many posts on this very Forum you will find it is hard to deny. And BTW, we are the S&W aficionados!

 

[DixieRanger]

A recent thread 'In Praise of a Glock' has 100+ posts and counting with posts as seen here. Gaston started a revolution and it continues 40+yrs and likely will not end. As Glocks are used by countless LE departments and military units as Delta and Seal, doubt they would use if design and function were not worthy. Like this thread but we're rehashing and for me it's a ho-hum here we go again. They are butt ugly but they work each and every time.

 

[YouveHadYour6]

I feel it deserves to also be pointed out - amongst the plastic-fantastic pistols, IMHO Glock looks a hell of a lot more like an actual gun than some of the stuff from other reputable makers. Ugly being in the eye of the beholder, I'll personally take a Glock-block every time over some of the melted-plastic looking things Beretta, Taurus, Sig, and others have tried in the name of a 'perfect striker-fired compact'.

I don't even get why in 2025 we're debating these guns, but oh well - in 100% honesty I've had fewer failures from Glocks than S&Ws in the last 25 years - and reliability counts for a lot.

 

[ColbyBruce]

chief38, I personally would not label a dead trigger as a “minor issue”. Such a flaw could have catastrophic consequences for the man or woman who purchased it, believing it was a stellar firearm from one of the best manufacturers. Sig got on the issue, but it was not rapidly corrected. The P250 problems were resolved in a timely manner; the Mosquito was dropped; the P320 series had a “voluntary upgrade” rather than a recall. There are still reports of problems with the P320 variants.

I have Sig P250sc/P239/SP2340 in .40 S&W, P239 in .357 Sig, P225/P229/SP2022 in 9mm and have owned a dozen other models. I gave my son a P230 and SP 2022’s in 9mm and .40 S&W. I truly like most Sigs, but the recent products and business practices leave a lot to be desired.

I haven’t had any issues with the various S&W Shield/SW/SD/M&Pc I owned; however, the RSA in my son’s .45 Shield broke in less than twenty-five rounds. S&W sent him a redesigned replacement by FedEx the next day.

 

[Shibadog]

I totally agree with the manual safety aspect. I have a Glock, but would never edc one because of that.
To not have a safety on something with a trigger pull that light is asking for trouble and I would bet striker fired weapons of this sort are responsible for a vast majority of accidental discharges.

I agree. I was taught back in the late 50’s by my Dad that the safety on a firearm is to be moved to “fire” only when you’re ready to shoot, and return to “safe” as soon as you’re done. Worked well then, still works today. I’ve got a Reflex (my only plastic gun) with a manual safety. Frank the non safety model scares the wadding out of me. A cocked and unlocked SA with a light trigger for carry? Really??. Seems a bad idea to me.

 

[jimmyj]

My EDC is a Glock 43X with 15 round Shield magazines.

 

[Lt.Donn]

Perhaps they are simply focused on LE and military applications.

Bingo...we have a winner

 

[gator59]

My EDC is either a Glock 43 or a Kimber Solo. Either one will get the job done if I do my part.

 

[RestingBear]

The PD I retired from adopted G17 as the issued duty weapon in 1990. They have been a Glock agency since, now over 35 years. They rode the .40 S&W train for a number of years, but recently went back to 9mm in Gen 5 G17's. In that 35 years and with hundreds of officers carrying the Glock pistol there have been no AD or ND, and I attribute that to the excellent training that my former agency provides. These days a Gen4 G26 is my retirement carry and that thing has been dead nuts reliable and as accurate as the larger frame Glocks. I'll admit, it is not as aesthetically pleasing as the S&W 2 1/2" model 19 I carried for years - but it carries easier and has 5 more rounds on tap.

Viceunit’s experience mirrors mine almost exactly. The highway patrol agency (about 1200 sworn officers) that I retired from has carried Glocks since 1991. While I can’t absolutely claim that there have been no AD’s/ND’s in our agency, I am very confident that they have been practically non-existent. I have never witnessed one. I say that because that kind of event would quickly make its way through the grapevine. Bear in mind that all of our agency Glocks were equipped with the 3 1/2 pound trigger, at least during the time of my tenure there - 31+ years total - 23 years with Glocks. If any large batch of those pistols should have been prone to accidental discharge it would have been ours. I truly believe all the paranoia over Glocks and striker-fired pistols in general being prone to AD’s is greatly overblown. As Viceunit said, it’s all about proper training. My two cents.

 

[65-2x2]

1911, bulky?

 

[David.Hylton]

Glock will tell you that their pistols are safe without an external safety, But, they added a safety to their submission for the Army's handgun competition because it was an requirement. But they did not include it on the replicas they sold to the public.

I think this for legal reasons. If they made it available then the lawyers could use it for leverage during law suits.

Many other firearms do not have external safeties. Keep your finger off the trigger until until you are ready to shoot and it's not an issue.

 

[chief38]

chief38, I personally would not label a dead trigger as a “minor issue”. Such a flaw could have catastrophic consequences for the man or woman who purchased it, believing it was a stellar firearm from one of the best manufacturers. Sig got on the issue, but it was not rapidly corrected. The P250 problems were resolved in a timely manner; the Mosquito was dropped; the P320 series had a “voluntary upgrade” rather than a recall. There are still reports of problems with the P320 variants.

I have Sig P250sc/P239/SP2340 in .40 S&W, P239 in .357 Sig, P225/P229/SP2022 in 9mm and have owned a dozen other models. I gave my son a P230 and SP 2022’s in 9mm and .40 S&W. I truly like most Sigs, but the recent products and business practices leave a lot to be desired.

I haven’t had any issues with the various S&W Shield/SW/SD/M&Pc I owned; however, the RSA in my son’s .45 Shield broke in less than twenty-five rounds. S&W sent him a redesigned replacement by FedEx the next day.

I am not making excuses and/or labeling a dead trigger as a minor issue but I think we are talking about a single instance here - not a systemic failure.

 

[ColbyBruce]

“I think we are talking about a single instance here - not a systemic failure”

No, the problem occurred more than once.

 

[judgecrater]

Well yeah, "they are extremely reliable, accurate, consistent and very well designed." I have shot the others you mentioned but shoot better with my Glock 26. Fortunately, we all get to pick the one we like. I am in the majority as a Glock guy.