Properly Reloading a Glock

[Sam1911]

Glock was very specific in how they wanted training done for LEO users of their pistols.

Now, there is something in that, too. Consider who this is aimed at, and the pool of trainees the world over who will be tasked with learning to make a gun go. There's enough involved in simply making all those many thousands of folks from all backgrounds reach some level of basic proficiency. Glock (and the departments buying) aren't concerned with getting those officers doing anything that will be, "measured in tenths and hundredths of seconds."

But when Glock fields a competitive team with shooters like Dave Sevigny, Randi Rogers, KC Eusebio, etc., etc. they don't try to tell them to slingshot the slide. Glock steps out of the way and lets the masters (and Grand Masters) tell THEM how to make the guns go.

 

[GLOOB]

Paper doesn't shoot back.

By the time you need your first reload, the tenths of seconds don't matter, anymore.

I suppose both parties could have shot empty at the same time, standing toe-to-toe out in the open. He who reloads faster wins.... well, if you think that the 16th shot is going to be magically more accurate than the previous 15.

If you like to use the slide release, no problem. If you like to slingshot, no problem. Just practice.

 

[Sam1911]

Paper doesn't shoot back.

Hee hee.

That's true. A good competition shooter probably would just die if they had to perform under that kind of stress, while a cop who's been through Glock's recommended training regimen will survive thanks to his gross motor skilz.

 

[GLOOB]

Well, there's an article I read when I was a teenager that sticks with me. It was about a world class revolver competitor-turned-police officer. First time in a shootout his partner was amazed. He'd never seen someone shoot that quickly. Said it sounded like a machine gun. Of course, he missed all six.

 

[Sam1911]

I wonder if it's just the competetive shooters who miss that much, or if average beat cops ever miss too?

 

[hentown]

Lots of videos out of cops' missing lots of shots up-close.

 

[ATLDave]

I wonder if it's just the competetive shooters who miss that much, or if average beat cops ever miss too?

Oh, never. And certainly not cops who use Glocks.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYWgrHwrlf8

 

[ATLDave]

Well, there's an article I read when I was a teenager that sticks with me. It was about a world class revolver competitor-turned-police officer. First time in a shootout his partner was amazed. He'd never seen someone shoot that quickly. Said it sounded like a machine gun. Of course, he missed all six.

Yeah, annecdotes found in gun magazine articles are the most reliable sources of information. Columnists just never make up something because it makes good copy.

 

[GLOOB]

SAM1911, your sarcasm is noted.

I'm trying to imagine a Grand Master police officer casually leaning behind cover while reloading. Then striding out of cover even while hitting the slide release... so he doesn't waste any time scoring hit after hit on the bad guys. I don't even need to imagine it. I've already seen the movie. The cops were Grammaton Clerics?

If we made Grand Masters into police officers, there would be no more crime! We ought to test everyone's split times in grade school to figure out who will be SWAT!

 

[Sam1911]

If shooting was the only skill a cop needed, then sure.

But it isn't, by far. Shooting is almost the LAST skill a cop needs to master. Some won't fire a shot under fire in their entire careers. But they'll be called upon to do a lot of other things well every single day.

So it makes sense to give them a very basic set of skills that will make the gun work sufficiently and then spend the rest of the training time and dollars on other more important skills.

If they want to be GREAT with their firearms, they'll have to do that on their own time, on their own dime, and will have to step beyond the training and (probably) the equipment they're given by their employers.

 

[Deaf Smith]

It makes me wonder where these statements come from. I'm all but positive there's no scientific data out there on this subject, and yet people love to say it. People can aim, drop the magazine, load their next mag, etc., but the precise motor skills of hitting a slide stop lever (as they've done on every other occurrence of loading a fresh magazine into their firearm) elude them? I can't even type it with a straight face. It's just silly.

As for damaging the firearm, I'm not buying it. Use the slide stop lever if you prefer it. Otherwise, with one of the other techniques. You've got several viable options and they all accomplish the same goal.

Expert in all IDPA classivcations and class 'A' IPSC.

Been in matches for 30 years. Used the slide lock, used the sling shot method, the FBI method, and 'glock bounce' method.

So I know abit about reloading a simi-auto fast.

Deaf

 

[1911 guy]

Ditto what Sam1911 said in his first post on page one.

When using a 1911, I use the slide stop/release. When using anything else, I slingshot to avoid clustering myself with a different platform than I'm used to.

The slingshot method has the advantage of working the same way with every autoloading platform I am aware of and I've been transitioning to this even with my 1911 because of this.

It is slower, but not by much. If I were gaming (IPSC or similar) where tenths of a second counted, I'd stick to slide stop. But I don't, so I'm not.

 

[judgecrater]

Take your pick. I have been releasing using the slide stop on my Gen2 G17 since 1988 and it still works fine. Even if you did need to replace it every 30 years or so, they are about $8 and take 5 minutes to put in.

 

[hentown]

"Slingshotting" generally refers to using the thumb and index finger of the support hand for manipulating the slide. What Deaf posted, and what I prefer, is reaching over the slide with four fingers, firmly grasping the slide and pulling back and releasing abruptly.

I mostly shoot Glocks. Seems to me that Glock wouldn't have used a piece so flimsly as that little piece of stamped metal, if they'd intended for the slide stop lever to regularly be used as a slide release. Glock has been known to dispense placebos to the ignorant proletariat; e.g., the machining done for NYPD on their G19s, which were THE ONLY G19s that required such machining, or the -1 trigger bar for the G21s, which compensates for the ignorance of the l.e.o. geniuses who squirted oil into their G21's slides' internals.

 

[EddieNFL]

Yeah, annecdotes found in gun magazine articles are the most reliable sources of information. Columnists just never make up something because it makes good copy.

Yep, same here on the net.

 

[hentown]

But when Glock fields a competitive team with shooters like Dave Sevigny, Randi Rogers, KC Eusebio, etc., etc. they don't try to tell them to slingshot the slide. Glock steps out of the way and lets the masters (and Grand Masters) tell THEM how to make the guns go.
__________________

Good point, Sam. With the obvious lesson being that the Grand Masters don't usually have folks' shooting back at them! The Grand Masters can afford to gamble on hundredths of a second!

 

[La Linea]

slingshot or slide release

Here's my experience.
As a LEO, my agency transitioned over to Sig 229 in about 91 or 92, can't remember. Completely different animal than a revolver as we all know.
I used one of these until about 2003, and the dogma from my agency then and now probably is get used to and use the slide release when reloading.
Slingshot was taught as an alternative method, but the strong or weak hand slide release was the preferred method, depending on the size of your hand/fingers.
In 2003 I changed agencies, was issued a Sig 226, but same deal, primarily use the slide release and whack the bottom of your mag to seat it. Hard.
Couple years ago, this agency switched to the Glock 22 and holy cow, these old firearms instructors were told to teach us to NOT use the slide realease routinely.
Yep, I couldn't not use it, I and others were being chastised for dropping the slide with the slide release or whatever Glock calls it.
The instuctors basically told us that Glock discouraged it for that use and actually said that the Glock slide rail system couldn't take the abuse long term.
I also was having a hard time not smacking the crud out of the magazine when seating it and would often drop the slide I hit it so hard.
Actually I still do it, it saves some time to have the slide drop when you aggresively seat your magazine and get on target faster on the timed stages.
So, it is interesting to read this stuff from others perspective.
However, unless the instructor is standing right behind me, I still do it the Sig way I learned and practiced for many years.
It works for me, and if it wears out the slide rails prematurely, I guess we'll find out.

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

The instuctors basically told us that Glock discouraged it for that use and actually said that the Glock slide rail system couldn't take the abuse long term.

It can't possibly wear out the slide rails. The only wear points, if there are any, are going to be the slide stop and the notch in the slide. I don't think we're all singing off the same page of the hymn book.

 

[Sam1911]

Good point, Sam. With the obvious lesson being that the Grand Masters don't usually have folks' shooting back at them! The Grand Masters can afford to gamble on hundredths of a second!

Gamble. Yeah, that's it. They probably aught to get cops to show them how to shoot when it really matters.

 

[Hangingrock]

As an example a Glock G17 loaded standard capacity magazine plus round chambered totals (18) rounds. Should I shoot to slide lock empty my world has come to an end as I know it. The slide release method would be of slight consequence.