Old Glocks

[lobo9er]

Wondering how the older glocks out there are holding up? Recently been thinking "how about a glock". Just wondering how the glocks from the 80's are doing now a days. Were polymers equal to what is available today? Is there anything to look for when checking out a used glock?

 

[Jbabbler]

I took this one over to Glock in Smyrna and got a checkup recently. They replaced all of the internals with new components 100% free of charge. There was nothing wrong with it, I just wanted to see if it needed anything. This one was buildeded in 1989

 

[Loosedhorse]

Because of the laws here, we can only buy used Glocks (manufactured before 10/21/98). They are holding up fine!

 

[Dogguy]

If I remember correctly, my oldest G19 was made in 1989. I bought it new in 1990. The finish on the older Glock slide was sort of fragile but the tennifer treatment prevents rust no matter how much of the matte black wears off. The polymer frame still looks like it did when I bought it. I've never had a problem with function. The gun went unused for quite a long time in the 90s but it got a lot of shooting and knocking around prior to that and then for a couple of years after. At the 18-year point, I had a Glock armorer inspect it. He replaced a few worn parts and springs and I had night sights installed. I rebuilt the innards of all my original magazines and they still function fine.

Overall, the gun has a lot of finish wear but it's still as functional as ever.

Some people think Glocks are indestructible and never need lubrication. While they can withstand more abuse than most and they can function without lubrication, they work better and wear less if treated properly. Just about everything on a Glock is repairable. Internal parts are easily replaced and don't cost a whole lot (I think the entire cost of my old G19's overhaul was $25 for the parts). I would look carefully at the frame on an old Glock that has a lot of apparent wear. It's pretty much immune to wear and breakage but there are yokels out there who can break hockey pucks. As usual on older used autos, inspect the bore and slide. Both can be replaced but they're expensive compared to the small parts.

 

[Ghost Tracker]

The only consistent GLOCK issue, especially in (uber reliable) 9mm, is a pesky trigger return spring than occasionally gives way after several tens-of-thousands of rounds. It's usually undiscovered until full-disassembly as the gun still functions normally. Few firearms have been as closely & carefully scrutinized as the GLOCK in longterm performance because sooo many of us pig-headed nay-sayers WANTED the ugly, polymer-framed upstart to FAIL so we could be right about it being a stupid POS. Well, it has consistently shown us to be the narrow-mined, opinionated geezers that we WERE. As a one-time COMPLETE GLOCK BASHER...I was wrong, Gaston was right, I like & trust my Glocks completely. I double-dog dare you to wear one out. Chuck Taylor has made a career out of TRYING to wear-out an early G17. The round count is, I think, now over 185,000 rounds with nothing more serious than a few cheap, easily replaced parts*. Dremel tools ruin more GLOCKs...than shooting them.

*But nothing is foolproof for a sufficiently talented fool!

 

[rcmodel]

I don't expect to live long enough to wear mine out.

It is only 12 years old and I'm 67 and nothing has fell off or stopped working yet.
Off the Glock I meant.

Myself?
Not so much.

rc

 

[Ghost Tracker]

Myself? Not so much.

Gettin' harder & harder to find replacement parts huh RC? Yeah, me too .

 

[Baba Louie]

It does make one wonder how well the polymer framed pistols will fare over the next 60 years or so compared to original SAA or 1911 or S&W M&P all metal & wood design the past 100 years? Same with plastic rifle furniture as well. Will they do as well as their all metal counterparts over the long haul?

I suppose my old Nylon 76, which still shoots well for a 40 year old (OK 35 yrs old), should give me a clue.

I'd forgotten about Chuck Taylor's G17 experiment.

 

[Gordon]

I have a 1987 G17 that fired tens of thousands of nasty surplus ammo and still works ok with only the springs changed a couple times (and the sights) . The Tennifer DOES prevent rust somehow, I kept it in my boat cabin for a couple years!

 

[XD 45acp]

I often too wonder about the chemical composition of the polymer breaking down over time. I notice some other things I have that are of polymer compound that were supposed to last, but have fell to some sort of chemical breakdown and are now weak. Snap-on screwdrivers were made of the newest polymer compounds, and I have a set splitting with a white haze, and a wreched smell. I bought them in '81. So,... yes I too am wondering about the "Down the road" integrity of the polymer frames.

 

[Strykervet]

I have a 2nd gen that was factory reconditioned sometime in 1988 I think. It could have been 1986 though, but pretty sure it was '88. I think it started life as a police pistol, got traded in for a .40 probably when Glock did that, and was then reconditioned and sold. Somebody else shot it for the '90's, and I got it earlier this decade.

The firing pin sleeve, it had cracked in that time, and the recoil guide rod had the end snapped off (and the original that came with it that was non-captured looked fractured). My Glocks wear titanium or steel for guide rods, other than that I like 'em stock with a little polishing. So this 2nd gen. G17 has been kicking since the beginning and it is still kicking. Number of rounds is easily 100,000 plus, including tens of thousands of NATO rounds I fired in the army (yeah, this pistol also did a stint as a backup rig to my M4 in training too).

I bought it specifically to beat up, they only wanted around $300 for it. I felt bad for it last month and gave it a coat of duracoat, now it looks new. But it got the duracoat because I didn't want to try it out on anything I could damage or hurt the value on. Now the thing looks new again! Funny thing is, it shoots like new too! Once you polish up a new or a used Glock's internals, they feel the same no matter what.

Yeah, I like my Glocks. I got a bunch of them. I'd say get anything late 2nd. gen. to late 3rd. gen. for all of them except the .40 --you want the late 3rd. gen. .40 because some important updates were made to tolerances. Stay away from the new stuff until they can fix it, lot of problems with the 4th gens.

Look for cracks in the plastic on the frame in stress areas. The Glock twists when it fires, so look along the sides, inside between corners where stress occurs, and the small parts. I've HEARD of cracks developing here, but I haven't seen 'em. I also imagine they'd be more prevalent in the .40 versions.

This old G17 of mine? It still gets carried. My wife carried it for a while this year until I got her a 649 that she likes better. Get an old Glock. They are great deals for great pistols, just know how to distinguish the generations from one another and what you are getting. Wikipedia I think has a little article on this on their Glock page.

 

[Strykervet]

I often too wonder about the chemical composition of the polymer breaking down over time. I notice some other things I have that are of polymer compound that were supposed to last, but have fell to some sort of chemical breakdown and are now weak. Snap-on screwdrivers were made of the newest polymer compounds, and I have a set splitting with a white haze, and a wreched smell. I bought them in '81. So,... yes I too am wondering about the "Down the road" integrity of the polymer frames.

Well, this old 1980's Glock's frame looks a LOT like the new G17L save the changes made to the design (which again, in my opinion, were changes specifically to make the frame better for the .40). No funny smell, no wear, it works the same. I even put the 17L slide (which is one of the last 3rd gen. 17L's) on the older frame when I want to use it without the finger grooves. No problems. I had my reservations too, but not anymore. I would still be hesitant to get an old .40 Glock though.

Sometimes that white haze inside screwdrivers is from twisting too hard and the plastic fractures inside but doesn't break. I've seen this a lot, is that it?

 

[DPris]

The polymer does degrade over time, it's inevitable.
Just nobody knows how long it'll take.
Denis

 

[dek]

Me too

I too viewed the Glock as a plastic POS when they first arrived. I was firearms officer for an agency that allowed it's agents to carry whichever handgun they preferred as long as it was 9mm. In 1987, I carried an S&W 459 and several agents purchased Glocks. When I went to qualify them, I inspected them to insure proper function. I was amazed at the design, amount of plastic (polymer), number of parts, and ease of assembly/disassembly. I prophisied their Glocks would not last two years without major parts replacement (we qualified quarterly going through 180 rounds of +p+ 9 mm per agent with an additional 500 rounds, per annum, issued each agent for practice). I also expected their scores to be significantly diminished. I took them through the course of fire twice and was pleasantly surprised to see their scores increased rather than decreased as I'd expected. After they finished, I asked if I could borrow one and fire it. I went through the course and was pleased with the weight, grip, ability to double/triple tap w/o having to readjust the grip, accuracy and feeling of lessened recoil. In fact, I fired about 500 rounds through the several Glocks (a mix of 19s and 17s) each with the same experience. I was sold. I too bought a Glock 19 that same week and carried it for the next 17 years of my law enforcement career (changing from the 19 to the 26 when they first became available). I retired in 2004 and still carry the 26, qualifying, quarterly, with the same course of fire. I must have at least 20k + through it. I also shot IPSC and IDP competiton with it and the only malfunction I've ever experienced was a broken slide lock spring (an anomaly) and the only cleaning I do is a patch through the barrel, on occasion and a small drop of oil for lubrication. Our agency went with Glock (for our issued sidearm) in 1989 and I went through their armourer's course. We seldom had parts breakage or replacement. I believe the Glock series of pistols to be one of the best designed if not the best. I do own and shoot Colt 1911s (I shot bullseye with the Army) Baretta 92F, S&W, Ruger, Walther, SIG and Springfield Armory pistols as well as revolvers. They're all good and work as designed. For bullseye, nothing beats the 1911. For carry, I prefer the Glock. It works right out of the box no tweaking required.

 

[VA27]

I've got one mfg in May of '88. I've owned it since the fall of '88. I carried it on duty for a lotta years, went through firearms instructor school with it and even loaned it to my son-in-law until he could afford to buy one himself. I still shoot it occasionally and it's just as good as it ever was, despite a few dings here and there. No worries!

 

[Ghost Tracker]

It won't be very long before (like the Colt Detective Special) that you'll still see GLOCKs around & working when the LEOs who carried them get harder & harder to find. I predict that 1990 vintage GLOCK pistols will be running fine when EVERYONE in this conversation is busy taking a long...dirt nap.

 

[lobo9er]

They seem like a handy tool for the tool box. Saw youtube vid of a guy who bought his wife and him matching glocks, a glock 27 and a 19 I think. Seemed like a good idea for the money.

 

[Deaf Smith]

My Gen 2 Glock 17 IDPA gun shoots fine and dandy.

I'd still use it for SD without a qualm.

Deaf

 

[voyager4520]

I remember one person saying he took a used gun into Glock at Smyrna to have them look it over, when he got it back they had replaced the Gen1 frame with a Gen3. He asked why and they told him "the frame was bad". He asked what they meant and the tech said "when you squeeze the frame if you hear cracking, it's bad and needs to be replaced".

 

[legion3]

I have a glock 17 first gen from 1987, (still original internals) a 17L first gen w/ported barrel from 1988 and a G19 second gen from 1988. (I did replace the internals but like in 2002 and only because not due to any issues or malfunctions)

All have countless rounds through them, especially the G19, lots of those rounds were +P+ ammo.

No issues, no repairs, no replacement parts needed so far.

I have carried the G19 a lot so its finish is not mint anymore but the 17 and the 17L look like Reagan was still in the WH - and how I wish he was!

 

[legion3]

I remember one person saying he took a used gun into Glock at Smyrna to have them look it over, when he got it back they had replaced the Gen1 frame with a Gen3. He asked why and they told him "the frame was bad". He asked what they meant and the tech said "when you squeeze the frame if you hear cracking, it's bad and needs to be replaced".

Thats why Glock will never get their hands on my older Glocks. I too have heard of such behavior even if its not wanted. And I bet the frame wasn't cracked!

When I was at armorers school they wanted my 17L first gen as they feared the barrel might hav an issue at the porting area, I declined their offer and simply purchased a factory 17L barrel to use more often, but the original barrel had plenty of round through it with no issues.

 

[BeerSleeper]

Why is that bad?

What makes a Gen1 frame more desirable than a Gen3?

 

[legion3]

Why is that bad?

What makes a Gen1 frame more desirable than a Gen3?

Because I bought the gun with that frame. I didn't buy a Gen 3!

They don't serial number the new Gen 3 Frame to the gun if I recall. But even if they did I can buy a 3rd Gen Glock all day. Glock has been known to upgrade your pistol, even if not neccessary, and it probably has to do with perceived legal issues or CYA on their part.

I cannot buy another First Gen Glock in any store. I picked up my G19 in 1988 at a K-Mart in California (How times have changed) and I don't want the frame replaced!!!!!! It can't be replaced! I had it before I was married, before I had kids, before I gained the wisdom of time and experience. No it can't be replaced.

Nothing makes it more desirable except the history and uniquness, which in turn makes it more desirable to many and to me.

 

[lobo9er]

Anymore old glock stories?

 

[beatledog7]

My Gen4 22 isn't old yet, maybe 500 rounds. But my grandson or granddaughter (as yet unborn or even planned) will someday own it. Then it will be old.