Glock Perfection. Why not?

[Aloha!]

So far I've heard people say Glocks are not perfect (or pretty to look at). But I have yet to hear anyone say what's wrong with them. I own a model 21, 45-auto, and the more I learn about it, the more I love it. It has less moving parts than most other semi-autos, reliable, and shoots just about any ammo. Less is better, and perfection is keeping things simple.

Can somebody please tell me what the downside of a Glock is?

 

[Sactown]

Pretty is in the eye of the beholder.
My problems with it were (have since learned and adapted)
1. Trigger. Coming off 1911 and Sig triggers, this took me a bit.
2. Grip angle. Angle was radically different than any other gun I own.

It took me longer to shoot glocks well than any other gun I have owned, but now I can shoot it as good as anything else I have. Oh yeah, I have a G34. Great handgun.

 

[cgv69]

I own 2 Glocks (G17 & G19) and I like them, and more importantly, I trust them very much. So much so in fact, I have recently sold off some other hand guns and have decided to focus on my Glocks. That said, I do not find them to be perfect.

My main issue with them is the grip. The "One size fits all philosophy" does not work for me. The finger groves are annoying and so is the hump on the back strap. You may find them perfect and that's fine but IMO, Glock needs to incorporate front and rear grip strap inserts so that individual users can easily and cheaply modify the grip to fit the their hands. Most other makers of polymer pistols these days have figured this out already. I have no idea what's taking Glock so long?

Other minor complaints would be the standard sights (they blow and need to be replaced). The grip itself is fatter then it needs to be IMO. I'm a decent sized guy with hands to match so it's not too bad for me but if my hands were smaller, I'd probably hate it. Lastly, ambidextrous controls would be a good idea.

Just my $.02

 

[WarMachine]

Nothing ever crafted by man has been "perfect." Of the millions of people on earth, no company could possibly make single gun to please everyone. I for one am not a fan of the trigger and the finger grooves in no way fit my hand. Just because something works for someone, doesn't mean that it will work for everyone.

 

[Chipperman]

If Glocks are perfect for you, then that's all that matters.

Glocks are fine, but not anywhere near perfect for me.

 

[Aloha!]

I agree about the grips. I really like the interchangeble grips on the new S&W MP40. One things that gets me (I guess maybe they're not perfect afterall...), is the spent cartridge goes right for my eyes. My G21 is only a few months old, but the mags are really tight with a full load. I have kept them full, but this has not loosened them up at all. Any suggestions?

When I was in the police academy, no one ever had a problem with the Glocks. But the Beretta 92F's were malfunctioning all the time.

 

[gudel]

Glocks reputation in reliability is well known, undisputable. The springs can be stiff, specially when new. Same thing on my G21. Just leave it loaded for 3 weeks or so.
Oh yeah, never had any problems with my 92FS either.

 

[Tim Burke]

The grips on the 21 feel like a 2x4. The 40s have a tendency to kaBoom. Still, it is a very good first effort for a fledgling gun designer. However, believing it to be Perfect™, he hasn't made a second effort.

 

[CZF]

I have long fingers, but the G20/21 size is too big for me.
Much prefering the G17 sized G37 or the G30 in a Glock .45.


Really loving Czs- the only other autopistols around me are Glocks.
They point well and work well for me. Same for my other half and
her G19.

 

[Soybomb]

I don't like the trigger, I don't like the grip angle, and I don't like that I'm well advised to buy a 3rd party barrel for shooting reloads or lead. If none of these are issues for you it might be the best gun for you. If they are however it is far from perfect.

 

[politicalpolls.us]

I love my Glocks. Great guns. The only real downside to the Glocks are what military folks say is their ability to shoot rapidly at targets with quick recovery. I heard a Navy Seal talking about that the Glocks he shot were just too light and that the Sig Navy Seal model was perfect for quick shooting due to the weight of the gun. Reliability and everything else is not what people don't like about them in general.

Most of what I see on the message boards tends to be like two guys drinking beer and arguing about Ford vs. Chevy vs. Dodge. Sigs, Glocks, HK, CZ, and the like are all good guns. They're all made for a reason.

 

[Majic]

Glocks reputation in reliability is well known, undisputable.

But not perfect!

 

[M2 Carbine]

Lets see.
I don't like the grip, trigger, trigger pull, shape, it's ugly, it can't handle lead ammo..................well it's safe to say I don't like anything about the gun except it's fairly accurate.

I built 22 zip guns out of 2x4's when I was a kid that felt better shooting than a Glock.

I shoot the 17 and 19 once in a while and it's a chore.

A friend wanted to give me his new Glock 17 because he was having so much trouble with it and I wouldn't take it.

Life's too short to waste time on a gun that you don't like.

 

[HSMITH]

Well, about all I have to say is that I have yet to find a BETTER gun than a Glock in the same price range.

I have or have had one or a couple of just about everything out there. Still own a few Glocks.

I am a revolver guy at heart (guess that is why the Glock trigger never bothered me), a 1911 guy second and a 'whatever works everytime on time guy' for everything else handgun related.

 

[420Stainless]

I like everything about them except the way they look. Since there are other choices where I like everything, including the look, those choices are closer to perfection for me.

 

[BullfrogKen]

Tim,

Once again we find common ground. I agree with every comment you made, especially the 2x4 statement.

I find the thick body and slide of the Glocks, and any similar design, to be much too wide for comfortable concealed carry. Do it for a few hours, I can get away with it. But I know only a handful of people who can claim they carry concealed every waking hour. By that I mean from the time one puts his pants on at breakfast, until the time he takes them off at night, he has a gun on. Those that do, none of them carry a Glock, or any widebody gun. It is truly an exercise in tolerating discomfort.

I'll do with with a J frame, I'll do it with a 1911. The folks I personally know who can honestly make this claim carry 1911's, and mostly do it with OWB holsters. IWB's with anything get real uncomfortable after about 10 hours for most people. These are all just personal observations. I don't doubt some of the trainers I've met might carry concealed every waking moment. I suspect many of them do, I just can't testify to that or to their preferences. Those who have a job that includes wearing a gun openly and don't need to carry concealed like regular stiffs don't seem to have an issue.

I personally find that model particular model's biggest weakness is it's lack of compactness, and all of them are too wide for stellar ergonomics. I think they ought to have a better front sight, too. Are they still making them from plastic? But, I have developed my preferences and methods of carry around my commitment to be armed at all times. If you don't have that goal, or have restrictions of one type or another than prohibits you from actually carrying a gun for those lengths of time, you might not feel those drawbacks are relevant.

 

[waterhouse]

Perfection? Nope.

I tell all of my customers who are looking for a new gun that if a Glock fits their hand and they shoot it well, they are good guns. Extremely good guns for the price. Very reliable, and accurate. They don't fit my hand at all though, so they certainly aren't perfect for me.

I prefer the trigger of a 1911. I prefer the grip angle of a 1911. I prefer the pointability (is that a word?) of an HK P7.

My perfect gun is weightless, slim, high capacity, has no recoil, points well, and has a sweet single action trigger. It doesn't exist. And glock is nowhere close.

Someday I will have a smith build me a lightweight framed commander length 1911 with a bobtail grip, and that will be as close to perfection as I feel possible.

 

[Shootcraps]

Can somebody please tell me what the downside of a Glock is?

There is none. If it feels good in your hand and shoots good for you, then THAT is perfection.

 

[ruger270man]

Not only is my G34 perfection, but its the pinnacle of perfection.

 

[45auto]

Coming from a 1911, the Glock 45's are blocky, both frame and slide, and have a long, mushy trigger pull. More muzzle flip for me also. If you are a "shooter", you'd almost have to laugh at them...to be honest. But, you can get used to anything if you wish.

So, the question is why own a Glock?

They are lighter, cheaper and chances are they will work "out of the box" as most people like to say. That's a given.
Arguable points would be reliability and durability compared to a 1911...and I'm not "going there", old boring discussion.
The other arguable "point" is the SA versus DA or whatever trigger actions.Same discussion as above...not going there.

In regards to Glock compared to other non SA guns, i.e. H&K, SIG, Beretta, etc, etc I really don't read that Glock is more reliable than any of the above, except from "Glockers". And "Sig'ers, H&k'ers" feel their guns are more reliable and on and on.

Glock is a fine gun and deserves to be "up there" with the best of them.
The interesting question would be whether Glock would sell as much as they do if they were the same price as Sig and H&K? If so, I'd give them the "perfection" title in the "wondergun" category...1911's excluded of course.

 

[dsk]

Glocks reputation in reliability is well known, undisputable.

Not quite. The 9mm versions are typically very reliable, but the other calibers have had teething problems in the past. Even tried-and-true versions like the G19 have had issues in the hands of departments such as NYPD. I'm not saying Glocks are unreliable, but they do not have the sterling reputation that SIG's and older Berettas have.

Probably the two most egotistical gun owners on the planet are Glock and 1911 lovers. Each feels their weapon is combat handgun perfection, and don't you dare say it isn't.

 

[Onmilo]

One point of pistol perfection is how easy the firearm is to repair should it have malfunction issues.
Glocks and 1911s are very, very good in this aspect.
Both of these pistols are fairly easy to diagnose and repair just about any issue that one may encounter.
Anyone who is remotely capable of doing assembly/diassembly work with simple tools will be able to repair a Glock with a very little instruction time.

The same just cannot be said for Beretta, SiG, and Heckler and Koch handguns.
All require fairly extensive courses of instruction before one can be considered proficient in repair and diagnostics of these firearms.

As for that S.E.A.L. and his SiG, I am not real sure real Seals are still using SiG handguns.
The SOCOM Mk23 and some .357 Magnum handgun seem to be the big blasters of the day now.
The Mk 23 for offensive operations and quiet eliminations and the Magnum for the ability to be immediately deployed without the need to drain the barrel and action of water.
I know Seals train to be offensive, not defensive, and their handgun use follows that pattern of training.
As for a Glock being too muzzle lite, there really is another reason to incorporate a tactical light to your handgun besides giving your position away,,,,

 

[medmo]

"I am not real sure real Seals are still using SiG handguns."

If you are referring to the USN.... they are.

There is nothing wrong with stating your goal as being perfection.

 

[armoredman]

I have qualified with the Glock 17 and 19, scoring Distinguished Expert POST certified in my Dept. I can't stand the things. I do carry all day off duty, from wake up to lay-me-down, and my all day carry is my CZ PO1.
I do agree G-rocks are durable, accurate, etc, but I have seen them fail just like any other pistol. I just don't like the grip angle, the trigger, or the sights.

 

[jem375]

armoredman, the same with me...I carried a G26 for awhile until I bought a CZ PO1 and now the glock will be in the safe until I sell or trade it...