Bringing back confidence in a self defense firearm?

[Paincakesx]

Alright, so I recently purchased a Glock 23 which was very lightly used. Everything on it looked practically new. I test fired it before purchasing it and fired 200 rounds, which it fired flawlessly.

After firing about 400 rounds through it without a single issue, me and a few friends went out to a rural area and plinked for a bit. To my horror, I discovered that my gun was having a failure to feed on nearly every loaded magazine I ran through it (happened with all 4 magazines I brought with me).

Worried, I took it to a local Glock armorer who works in a gun range, who test fired it. Gun shot flawlessly again. I then fired a magazine of the SAME ammo that I was using during the time of the jamming, which shot with no problems whatsoever. I then fired about 100 more rounds, again with no problems. I used all 4 magazines, none of which gave any problems. The armorer watched the gun as I shot it and said that I held it with a firm and proper grip, with no limp wristing. He also said that the gun cycling with no abnormalities.

This leaves me both concerned and relieved. On one hand, I'm relieved that the gun apparently works again. On the other, I'm absolutely confused as to why the gun apparently decided to crap out on me while I was shooting it a few days back. I'm tempted to think it's a fluke, or maybe I cleaned / lubed it poorly before shooting, but it is still in the back of my mind.

I love my Glock and intend to carry it, and as far as I know, it is reliable again. I see nothing visually wrong with it, it shot just fine today with no issues after over 100 rounds were fired through it, and the armorer didn't see anything wrong with it either.

Despite this, I want to build my confidence with it again. Anybody have any similar experiences or thoughts? Any advice?

 

[Scipio Africanus]

Sell it, a undependable gun is worthless.

 

[Jambino46]

Best bet is just keep shooting it and see if it happens again.

 

[avs11054]

You said you went shooting with some friends. Did it have the FTF when you were shooting it or when they were? Maybe they were limp wristing.

 

[Paincakesx]

Both me and them.

I was thinking that it was the recoil spring, but today it functioned perfectly.

I don't want to get rid of it yet because I'm not sure it's ruined - I would hate to get rid of a perfectly good gun because of something that was my fault. Hence I'm wondering if others have any similar experiences.

 

[Paincakesx]

Now that I think about it, I was being a little rough with the gun that day (I have since stopped doing this) in that I was kind of slamming the magazine into the gun such that the slide would close and chamber the round without me doing so manually. From what I understand, a Glock doing this when a magazine is slammed into an open gun is fairly normal, though obviously probably not recommended.

Could this perhaps lead to the issues I was having?

I hadn't done this before and after the incident, so I'm thinking that maybe this could be the cause?

Thoughts?

 

[MarkDozier]

you are correct you need to fix the issue. thee ftf was cause by the slide not stripping the round from the mag properly and thus causing it to not go into battery properly.
Don't use it for SD until the issue is corrected. Head over to GlockTalk they can help you.
Just be sure to use the secert TUPPERWARE handshake when you sign in.

 

[Paincakesx]

That's the exact thing I'm concerned about - I don't know what needs correcting and when I brought it in to have it examined, it ran flawlessly.

 

[Vonderek]

Glock recoil springs are cheap. I would try a new spring, different magazines and different ammo and see if the problem persists.

 

[fastbolt]

In addition to the comments I posted on another of the gun forums where you posted this question, you might consider seeking some training where you might benefit from improving and refining your skills.

When the Glock armorer was observing you shoot your G23, it's not surprising to think you were probably using your best grip technique and shooting skill. This may not have been the case when you were shooting in a more relaxed manner with your friends.

It's also not out of the realm of possibility that if you were to attempt to shoot the gun under conditions of extreme stress and duress, such as during an unexpected, dynamic, chaotic and rapidly evolving situation involving the lawful use of deadly force, that you might not shoot the same way as when you were shooting for the armorer.

Perhaps investing in some training where you could learn to maximize the ability to use optimal shooting skills under various conditions might be something that would help you.

I didn't ask in the other thread, but how much experience do you have when it comes to shooting plastic-framed pistols? While functioning issues related to grip stability and technique can certainly occur with metal-framed pistols, it's usually more noticeable when plastic guns are involved.

Since the Glock armorer has determined the gun is within normal spec, and is functioning within normal spec, I'd be more inclined to focus attention on the shooter and ammunition variables which might be involved.

How does the G23 shoot when you use some better quality defensive type ammunition, instead of the bargain grade practice ammunition?

 

[Paincakesx]

Well, problem solved I guess.

Went to the range I bought it at, shot it, got jamming AGAIN each magazine. Called in the armorer who was there who watched me shoot it, and this time it jammed as he was watching. He couldn't find any reason for it, said I wasn't limp wristing, and to make sure I wasn't, I shot two of the rental Glock 23's they had there, which I was able to fire without any malfunctions.

They let me return the gun for full value, which I put towards a brand new Glock 23

Shot about 150 rounds through it, not one single malfunction.

Such a heavy load off my chest

AND to those asking how much experience I have with polymer framed pistols - not a ton, but other than this incident, I've fired well over 1,000 rounds through Glocks with zero issues. This is my only time.

 

[Ohio Gun Guy]

Good for you..... That would bother me, glad it's resolved. Make sure to keep supporting that shop. That is a stand up thing they did, taking it back.

 

[fastbolt]

Glad to hear it was resolved to your satisfaction. Let's hope the armorer is able to look more closely into the gun and mags involved, now that the shooter influence seems to have been reasonably eliminated.

I asked in the other thread whether you remembered if the G23 mags were numbered "1" or "2" on the bodies (at the bottom, I think). I'd have to call and check, but I thought there had been a revision of the mag bodies in newer production mags at one point.

Also, do you remember which follower number were in the mags of the G23 you returned? Not #6 or #7's, were they? I had a an issue with some brand new mags that came with #6 followers, and which were resolved with #8 followers (the newest at that time, and appropriate for the production vintage of the new G27 mags).

Congrats on the new G23.

 

[Owen Sparks]

Question:

Did you clean it right before it started to malfunction?

I have no idea what could be wrong with your Glock but I once had a similar problem with a nearly new 1911. The extractor was rotating in its channel because of sloppy fitting by the factory. When the gun was dirty there was enough gunk in there to take up the slack and hold in the proper position but when I fully dissembled it and got it spotlessly clean before a match it allowed the extractor to roll enough that it was causing problems. The local gun smith figured it out and installed an oversized firing pin stop and the problem was solved.

Could it be something like this?

 

[Paincakesx]

I did clean it right before the malfunction. I also cleaned it today before I took it to the range.

I took special care not to put too much lubrication, and to only do what it said in the manual.