...about Glocks???

[Mike from Texas]

I guess that's why there are so many varieties on the market. I HATE a DA/SA trigger. I want it to be the same every time.

I've been carrying a Glock for 2 years and no ND here and honestly no fear of it happening. Just follow the 4 rules and it is just as safe as any other weapon on the market.

There can be a ND with any gun out there. I saw someone get killed with a Ruger Single Six due to a ND.

[Fosforos]

The trigger pull on a Glock pistol can easily be adjusted to 11 lbs by installing a "New York" trigger spring or to 8lbs by installing the 8lb connector. Both parts are original Glock parts. Any Glock armorer can do this for you.

[E10]

Does your revolver have a safety?

No, but it doesn't move the hammer back nearly halfway after each shot, either. The Glock striker is placed on '40%-cock' when the slide actions. Not exactly double-action, is it? Yes, the most effective safety is the one between your ears, but sometimes those fail, too. Besides, they're ugly guns.

[RECIT]

I have a G19 a Beretta PX4 and a Springfield 1911. All three types of auto pistol...I prefer to carry my PX4. With a manual safety/decocker and double action ability it is the most comfortable to carry for me. The G19 is in a range bag all the time, but with the proper holster I would not think twice about carrying the glock. The safety on my 1911 was just worked on by my gunsmith and its HUGE anyway. If I had a lighter weight model with a better functioning safety I guess I would carry it. But probably not. The capacity is low, its heavy, MY safety is a little janky, and it would be hard for me to conceal because I am a small guy. So glock w. the proper holster is a great carry weapon in my opinion.

[03Lightningrocks]

Snip..... So glock w. the proper holster is a great carry weapon in my opinion.

Police agencies all across the nation are in agreement with you.

[fickman]

Snip..... So glock w. the proper holster is a great carry weapon in my opinion.

Police agencies all across the nation are in agreement with you.

So you drive a Ford Crown Victoria?

[03Lightningrocks]

Snip..... So glock w. the proper holster is a great carry weapon in my opinion.

Police agencies all across the nation are in agreement with you.

So you drive a Ford Crown Victoria?

Nope........and not really a fair analogy. But funny...none the less.. I do however drive nothing but Fords.

[fickman]

OK, I felt bad about a drive-by snide comment, so I thought I'd expand on it.

FWIW, my brother-in-law is a LEO and uses Glocks exclusively. It's funny, because people are always asking him for his opinions on firearms, assuming he's an aficionado, an enthusiast, or a professional. He knows how to shoot his gun very well. He knows how to maintain his gun very well. He'll tell you himself that he's not a firearms expert, though. He just knows his equipment and is very brand loyal. Why Glocks? The same reason he only drives Ford F-150s. His dad (also LEO) used one, it was reliable, he's never had a problem with it (a couple feeder issues in thousands of rounds that he equates to the ammo), so there's no need in his mind to start experimenting with everything else. My BIL's agency issues 9mm Glocks. He carries a Glock chambered in .357 SIG that he bought on his own. One of the reasons he normally gives for only owning Glocks is that his holsters and magazines are interchangeable.

Police agencies might use Glocks because they're the best, or they might use them because they tend to be reliable and inexpensive, both of which are important to a government buyer. I personally know of two cities in the Metroplex who have rules about sidearms based solely on public perception. One won't allow .45's because it looks bad in print if a story hits the papers. One won't allow single action handguns because they get calls from citizens about "seeing cops with their guns cocked".

Just because a cop uses a specific firearm doesn't mean he's an expert on guns anymore than a pizza delivery man is an expert on cars. A lot of the time, they stick with what's worked in the past, what they're comfortable with, and what they can afford.

There are a few attributes of Glocks that are worth bringing up. I don't think somebody sounds anti-Glock because they repeat the same points - people keep asking the same questions. It's only fair to allow all of the positives and negatives be heard.

I used to be staunchly anti-Glock, but have come around. I still don't own one, and there's other things I prefer more than one, but I'll no longer try to talk somebody who wants one out of it. That doesn't mean there aren't legitimate concerns.

1) Having to dry-fire the gun for disassembly is very important. In fact, the more you clean your gun, the more likely you are to become complacent during this step. A professional skydiver once jumped from an airplane without his parachute because he'd become so comfortable jumping out of planes that he didn't have a healthy fear anymore. A first-time skydiver will probably check their straps 1,000 times before they jump. This isn't a knock on the gun, just something to be aware of.

2) Glocks are not double action. If a round fails to fire, the trigger is locked back until you manually cycle the gun. Most people would say to never double-hit a faulty round anyway, so this isn't a knock against them. It is, however, something that all Glock owners should be aware of. A 1911 would have to be manually cocked to re-hit round, so you might as well cycle it, too, and get that round out of there. A revolver would just go on to the next round. There are disadvantages for revolvers, though. The answer isn't get a revolver. . . the answer is, know the positives and negatives of your firearm.

3) Glocks have no manual safety. This fine. Neither do any of my revolvers or my Sig Sauer P229. For an emergency, it might be better to not have another step preventing you from firing. It is important to know, however, especially when re-holstering your firearm. Go out of your way to ensure - 100% everytime - that the trigger is clear when re-holstering. Never re-holster in a hurry.

4) The weight distribution of a Glock tends to exaggerate the recoil for a given caliber in my experience. The polymer frame with a metal slide causes the gun to be a little top-heavy and have a little too much weight distributed towards the end of the barrel. Firing a Glock puts a larger percentage of its weight in motion than a comparably sized non-polymer gun. The advantage for Glock is a lighter burden on you while you carry. The disadvantage might be accuracy if you haven't spent the time at the range to know exactly how your gun behaves.

5) As already mentioned, Glocks are a little boxy and might be less comfortable to carry IWB than some of the other options available.

There is always a give and take. Glocks are well made. They have quality parts. They are reliable. They are affordable. Their parts are affordable and accessible. They are popular for many reasons. You're not bashing them to point out their shortcomings, though. All guns have shortcomings, and the user can overcome most of them as long as they are aware.

[G.C.Montgomery]

There is no real classical manual safety. If the gun is loaded if a finger, shirtsleeve, pen or penknife pull the trigger back the gun will go bang. The end result is a phenomenon called Glock leg. There is a video onb utube that demonstrates how a DEA agent can inflict himself with this. A manual safety should be one step to prevent this from happening. While there are Glock fans that claim that it could n ever happen to them. Just about every Glock owner who experiances this would have claimed it couldn't happen to them.

While it's a valid complain that Glock triggers must be pressed before disassembly, let's not forget what happened in the case of the DEA agent because everything about the events leading up to the ND suggest that he an amateur shooter at best and most likely a typical, untrained idiot. The agent got his processes wrong, acted negligently and strummed a round off into his own foot. The gun worked as advertised and a manual safety would help only if it was engaged at the time he mindlessly pointed the gun at his foot and pulled the trigger.

"Glock Leg" is a cute term but lets be honest. Nearly all of such injuries are a result of negligence on the part of the operator. If it was simply a matter of not having manual safeties we'd have a phenomenon called "Revolver Leg" too. In the last twenty years, I've seen far more people (particularly LEOs) shoot themselves while holstering a pistol after forgetting to decock a DA/SA pistol and engage a safety. The only guns with which I've seen more such incidents were 1911s and Browning HiPowers. In nearly all cases, the problem started with idiots leaving their booger hooks on the bang switch as they attempted to holster the pistol. The few exceptions involved poorly designed thumb breaks that got inside the trigger guard. And I've lost count of how many of those shooters realized they'd forgotten to engage the manual safety or otherwise thought it was engaged when it was not.

[Furyataurus]

Any updates Rockrz????

[Liberty]

While it's a valid complain that Glock triggers must be pressed before disassembly, let's not forget what happened in the case of the DEA agent because everything about the events leading up to the ND suggest that he an amateur shooter at best and most likely a typical, untrained idiot. The agent got his processes wrong, acted negligently and strummed a round off into his own foot. The gun worked as advertised and a manual safety would help only if it was engaged at the time he mindlessly pointed the gun at his foot and pulled the trigger.

"Glock Leg" is a cute term but lets be honest. Nearly all of such injuries are a result of negligence on the part of the operator. If it was simply a matter of not having manual safeties we'd have a phenomenon called "Revolver Leg" too. In the last twenty years, I've seen far more people (particularly LEOs) shoot themselves while holstering a pistol after forgetting to decock a DA/SA pistol and engage a safety. The only guns with which I've seen more such incidents were 1911s and Browning HiPowers. In nearly all cases, the problem started with idiots leaving their booger hooks on the bang switch as they attempted to holster the pistol. The few exceptions involved poorly designed thumb breaks that got inside the trigger guard. And I've lost count of how many of those shooters realized they'd forgotten to engage the manual safety or otherwise thought it was engaged when it was not.

I hate entering into this discussion because so many Glock owners seem to get emotional when mention of Glocks that doesn't suggest they aren't the perfect blaster.
I have viewed the film several times, and its never been clear to me whether it was a finger, holster component, or an article of clothing that pulled the trigger. It is painfully obvious that he was negligent and fully responsible for the incident, It doesn't take away from the fact that if there was a manual safety (and, yes, if it was activated ) We wouldn't be discussing this incident today.

You bring up a good point. Holstering a single action with safety disabled is dangerous. I think range rulest drawings again and strict SOs in IPDA prevent a lot of this from happening. Frankly I haven't heard much of these incidents but we seldom really get the real story behind NDs. Most of us SA/DA owners have experienced the Safety toggling off after being holstered. but by this time though the gun has been decocked. me dI've never used a 1911 except under very supervised conditions and haven't thought much about the important issues you brought up. Every style of gun has its specific safety issues and it is important to recognize these issues on any gun we choose to carry.

[Catfight]

One other issue with Glocks is that one needs to pull the trigger in order to dissassemble them resulting in the " thought it was unloaded" syndrome

This is patently false. To remove the slide from the frame, you only need to slightly move the slide to the rear while pulling down on the slidelock lever. This action is impossible if loaded.

[magicglock]

Catfight wrote:
This is patently false. To remove the slide from the frame, you only need to slightly move the slide to the rear while pulling down on the slidelock lever. This action is impossible if loaded.

Wrong. You cannot remove the slide from the frame without pulling the trigger first! Then one must slightly pull the slide backwards to while operating the disassembly levers. This should be a non-issue for a responsible gun owner practicing proper gun safety.

[Catfight]

Catfight wrote:
This is patently false. To remove the slide from the frame, you only need to slightly move the slide to the rear while pulling down on the slidelock lever. This action is impossible if loaded.

Wrong. You cannot remove the slide from the frame without pulling the trigger first! Then one must slightly pull the slide backwards to while operating the disassembly levers. This should be a non-issue for a responsible gun owner practicing proper gun safety.

I'm sorry. You are absolutely correct. I was presuming that the shooter would not be a complete idiot and not unload the gun prior to disassembly. As mentioned before, this is *not* a Glock issue, but a common sense "safety" issue. Its also why I stated that the action would be impossible if the gun was loaded, meaning a round chambered.

Steve

[bdickens]

Unload the pistol by removing the magazine and racking the slide manually a minimum of 3 times. Make sure that the pistol is pointed in a safe direction and that you keep your finger OFF the trigger.

Confirm that the pistol is unloaded by visually inspecting the chamber and the magazine well.

After confirming that the pistol is unloaded (more than once), point the pistol in a safe direction and pull the trigger.

There are several ways to perform this step, select the way that works best for you. Below, I have described the two easiest. All directions below are written for a right-handed person, reverse if you are left-handed.

With your right hand, grasp the pistol by placing your fingers over the slide (from the right side) at the rear of the pistol. Your thumb then wraps around the top of the grip. (Figure A) Exert forward pressure with your thumb, causing the slide to retract slightly. Do not move the slide more than (approximately) 1/10th inch/2.5mm. If you pull the slide back far enough to reset the trigger, you have gone too far. Go back to Step 3. Bring your left hand under the pistol (thumb on left side, fingers on right side) and using your thumb and index finger pull down and hold both sides of the slide lock. (Figure B) Release your right hand. The slide can now be slid off the front of the receiver.

Grasp the pistol in your right hand, holding it as you would to shoot. Finger remains off the trigger. Place the muzzle against a hard, flat surface. Push down on the pistol. Bring your left hand under the pistol (thumb on left side, fingers on right side) and using your thumb and index finger pull down and hold both sides of the slide lock. Release the pressure exerted by your right hand. The slide can now be slid off the front of the receiver.

Push the recoil spring guide ( located in the slide) forward and up. You do not need to use a great deal of force to accomplish this step. Caution: If your pistol is equipped with a non-captive recoil spring, be careful to not let the recoil spring guide loose until the spring tension is lessened.

Grasp the barrel lug and pull up and back, removing the barrel from the slide.

The pistol is now field stripped and ready for cleaning. This is as far as the pistol was designed to be field stripped.

http://www.f-r-i.com/glock/FAQ/FAQ-clean.htm