Is the Glock the best combat handgun of all time?

Is the Glock the best combat handgun of all time?

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JCooperfan1911 said:
The Colt’s M1911 In caliber .45 Automatic is the rightful prince of combat.

The Glock is a toy.
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And the M1 Garand isthe king of battle rifles

Cooper whom I would guess you get some of your thinking from would have had our soldiers carrying either less ammo or more weight, there’s no free lunch.

Last time I checked “toys” are what we hand toddlers and kids with no concern for safety.
 
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toivo said:
All that polymer, and only one P320? What are you, a SIG Hater? :D
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Like I said not all are in that pic. And I will correct you, ;) that is not a P320. It’s a M17/P320. :neener:
I also have the M18, but I do plan to pick up a P320 Carry as soon as all this panic buying is over. I was looking for one just before the panic started and couldn’t find one.
I really need to take another group pic of my polymer frame guns, but it’s a lot of work to get them all out and then put then back up again.
Ernie Bass said:
PS If I was in the military and had to carry a Glock, then I am going to piss off the Armorer, because I am going to dremel the finger guard on any issued to me because I dislike blisters on my shooting finger.
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Nope. The Armorer would just think, want a moron and report your actions. Then you would be in hot water. In the Corps you would be standing in front of your Battalion Commander for Office Hours. You would most likely be reduced in rank and fined. I know many Marines that lost rank and money for doing stupid stuff.
 
This is a good thread that stimulates thinking. To be honest, I didn’t think I would make it through the whole thing. Everyone was cordial and no one seemed butt hurt.

It probably helped that I’m one of the ambivalent ones, but I just may dust off one of Glocks next time I head for the range.
 
Trunk Monkey
I want a Phaser

Or a Blastec DL-44.

Never have to worry about ammunition shortages again
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You also might need a really long, heavy duty extension cord for charging your Phaser and Blastech DL-44.
 
Yes, absolutely, and it isn't even close. The Glock was revolutionary. Not the first striker nor the first polymer, but the first to combine a bunch of forward thinking concepts into a simple, practical, lightweight package. The Glock redefined reliability in handguns and has set the standard since its introduction. The Glock redefined firepower in a handgun like no gun since the Browning High Power. The Glock dethroned the 1911 in the US, at one time being on 3 out of every 4 duty belts. Glock continues to expand their lineup and sells as many of the pistols as they can make. The Glock has become part of our culture, recognizable to even non-gun people. Everything that comes out on the market is compared to the Glock because the Glock is the most influential and dominant handgun on the market.
 
With the questions phrased, word-for-word, as in the topic title, I am going to answer “No.” A Glock may be “a” best, for some folks, but that is not how the question was asked.

The narrative of the original post seems to emphasize a variant of the Glock G19, and I will further emphasize my answer as “NO.”

I have never been in the military, but have a police background, in a big-city PD, so have some ideas about duty/service handguns. (The USA was not doing much, militarily, in 1982-1983, but Houston, Texas was vying with Detroit as murder capital of the USA, so I went to Houston, for adventure.)

Before the Gen4, Glock pistols, especially the double-column-magazine Glocks, were poor fits, in many hands, including my hands. (Large, deep palms, but medium-length fingers, and relatively short thumbs.) An individual can have the grip area sculpted, but a member of military/police/government entity may be prohibited from doing so. I believe that any organization, that recruits folks with medium-to-small hands/fingers, should acquire handguns that accommodate these folks. Starting with the Gen4, the Glock became a better choice for organizations.

I see and hear too many accounts, from many shooters, who state that they cannot shoot a G19 as well as a G17. I count myself among them. The “heel” of the G19’s grip does not make contact with the “heel bone” of my long hand. This results in less stability, while shooting, especially when shooting one-handed. A soldier may need his/her support hand to be doing something other than supporting the handgun. A private citizen gun owner can add things such as mag wells, to add some length to the grip frame, but a member of a govt/military entity may not have this option.

I have a G19x and several G17 pistols, which I would carry through the Valley of the Shadow of Death, as a support/alternative weapon. I cannot shoot a Glock G19x/G17 as well as a good 1911, or a K/L/GP100 revolver, but the context of this topic indicates that a long weapon would be “primary,” so, the pistols would be mostly for dealing with close-range emergencies. So, yes, a Glock could be “a” best, but I am not going to agree that an unspecified Glock, and especially a G19, is “the” best.

I will confess to having a bias against the too-quickly-cobbled-together SIG P320 and its derivative models, but that would, if anything, make me more likely to have clicked “Yes” for Glock. (I am not a hater of all things SIG. I would trust functionality of my old duty P229R in the Valley of the Shadow of Death, though I retired it when its .40 S&W-powered Muzzle flip, from that high-bore-axis barrel, became too much for my aging right wrist and thumb to continue to tolerate, in live-fire training. When my chief OK’ed 9mm as an alternative duty cartridge, I switched to a Gen4 G17 for a primary duty pistol.)
 
I am now thinking this ... as the most common sensible concept.
Everyone should at this High price and good money return time .
Sell most of your pistols and carbines , they are nearly useless.
Just buy one Glock, 17 or 19 . Just buy one AK 47 . 9mm. & 7.62 x 39 are the best in their own category.

No need for anything else... The two above are all you need. Right is Right . Am I Right ?
 
GunnyUSMC said:
Nope. The Armorer would just think, want a moron and report your actions. Then you would be in hot water. In the Corps you would be standing in front of your Battalion Commander for Office Hours. You would most likely be reduced in rank and fined. I know many Marines that lost rank and money for doing stupid stuff.
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Lol, I was speaking tongue in cheek. I was in the military. I was trying to make a point. Sorry you missed this.
 
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I think its a good well made indestructible handgun with a good reputation! My first Glock made a believer out of me since I didn’t want anything to do with them. Bought my 27 on a whim and the liking to the .40
Do I think it’s the best there ever was? No there are others out there as well!
 
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I bought a Glock 21 and liked it a lot. I bought a Glock 17 Generation 4 and I'm completely blah about it. It doesn't hold a candle to my CZ 75b. Glocks in the Military? I think the gun is reliable and sturdy enough for field use, but I think you would have to give a lot more training before issuing.
 
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GunnyUSMC said:
I still don’t get your point other then you don’t like Glocks.
I was issued and carried the Beretta M9. The gun didn’t fit my hand and I could never shoot it that good. But it was what was issued so, I lived with it. I never liked the gun.
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Oh come on. I will try again. The Point I was trying to make is the military Choice is not always the every days soldiers choice and of course any soldier would be a Moron that can't figure this out.NO,I would not take a dremel for God sake to a military weapon, again that is the tongue and cheek part I was referring to and I do believe you know this. You are not the only one that understands military law or have common sense. And I understand that You love the Glock of which I have no problem at all. But I will say this, there have been times in combat that soldiers have modified a weapon. Maybe they were Morons or just guys that wanted to win. Maybe risking a court martial was better than being dead.

Let me rephrase this so you have a better understanding of what I am talking about. If I did own a Glock, I would have three choices as a civilian. One dremel out the trigger guard myself, or have a gun smith do this or send it off to vendors that actually will do this for this for Glock owners.
 
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Several folks have commented that the Glock doesn’t fit them or they can’t shoot it well. I was one of those guys that just couldn’t accurately shoot a 1911. The first time I shot a Glock 17 I was surprised because it fit me and I was accurate with it.

Like with all other things, variety is the spice of life.
 
Pat Riot said:
Several folks have commented that the Glock doesn’t fit them or they can’t shoot it well. I was one of those guys that just couldn’t accurately shoot a 1911. The first time I shot a Glock 17 I was surprised because it fit me and I was accurate with it.

Like with all other things, variety is the spice of life.
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You hear a lot of complaints but you never really hear how much experience and time and effort was made with whatever to know if its something or not. (The military really isnt a good indicator of expereince either.)

For me, from personal experience, things that seem piss poor at first blush, often turn out to be great guns in the long run, once Ive spent some quality time with them and learned to shoot them.

I think a lot of this is really more a lack of actual experience with something, more than it is a problem with the guns.

You constantly hear from people unfamiliar with Glocks, that they dont point right and the grips feel wrong, etc, etc. Which is understandable, if all you ever shot, was a Beretta, SIG, or something similar, and have no experience with the Glocks. And shooting a mag or two out of your buddy's gun, doesnt constitute "experience". You need to put in the time and effort to actually learn the gun, and that takes some actual work.

Spend some time with the Glock, or SIG, or Beretta, 1911, ect, dry fire and shoot it a good bit, and it will soon feel natural to you when its in your hand, and all the bad things you were bitching about at the start, are usually gone in fairly short order.

Do that with each type youre not familiar with, and low and behold, they all become much easier to shoot well with, and it takes little effort on your part, to switch back and forth at will, without any problem.

If youre one of those "one gun shooters", then nothing else is ever going to be easy for you, and youll just be bitching the rest of your life about how other things suck.

Some people choose/strive to get out of thier comfort zone, continue to learn and move forward and improve, where others are happy with stagnating, and staying in their happy place and dont want to hear that time moves on and tends to leave you behind if you dont keep up.

Hey, whatever you choose, its entirely up to you. Just dont get all bent out of shape, if someone questions why theres a problem, when they dont see that theres a problem...... with the guns. :thumbup:
 
I voted yes, because I can't think of anything better for all of the following:

- Arming a Military unit with Sidearms

- Arming a LE Department

- Recommending a used pistol for HD or CCW

- Picking up from a table of well worn guns at some blackmarket arms dealer in a third world country, where things have gone sideways, and you just need a functional pistol to get you safely out of there.

There's not one make of handgun that I would consider over a Glock for all those things. They're not the best choice for everyone, but they work. And they work very well. And they have a fairly long history of doing just that.
 
I voted "no." If I'm brutally honest it MIGHT make top three. I asked one of the guys I know from the Coast Guard, if the Coast Guard had ever tested Glocks.

His answer was "Yes, and I have been one of the trial shooters three times. In every trial, every single pistol experienced a failure somewhere between one thousand and two thousand rounds. There has never been a SiG submitted to the Coast Guard for testing, that didn't go five thousand rounds with no failures."

The same guy (E-6 with 17+ years in) is also a fan of CZ pistols.

Glocks are good tools. I have two of them. But when the rubber meets the road, get you a SiG.

.I have no skin in the game. That's what I have been told by the people with boots on the ground.
 
MTMilitiaman said:
Everything that comes out on the market is compared to the Glock because the Glock is the most influential and dominant handgun on the market.
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Someone's been drinking the Kool-Aide.

On a serious note, though, it's hyperbole such as that which have most of the rest of us shaking our heads, and are the reason that the fanboys became so widely mocked.
 
Old Dog said:
Someone's been drinking the Kool-Aide.

On a serious note, though, it's hyperbole such as that which have most of the rest of us shaking our heads, and are the reason that the fanboys became so widely mocked.
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Just out of curiosity, can you point to one gun that actually takes Glocks place in that comment?

I think the hardest thing for the competition, is giving you what Glock has, and at that price point. Reasonably priced guns and accessories, that have compatability across the different sizes in the caliber. Thats pretty hard to beat, and I dont know of any others that do.
 
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