Posted on 01/17/2012 7:38:30 AM PST by C19fan
In 1980, Gaston Glock was the manager of a car-radiator factory just outside Vienna. At home, he ran a side business in his garage, making knives and bayonets for the Austrian army. He lived in a comfortable though not overly prosperous way, all but unknown beyond his corner of Austria. He knew next to nothing about firearms. Less than 20 years later, he was the world's leading manufacturer of handguns, and the business born in his garage had annual revenues of more than $100 million.
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glock ping
Everyone has their bias - while I admire the Glock’s design, functionality - my bias is that I insist on having not only a visible hammer, but a safety as well. I would rather have to spend the time removing the safety and pulling the hammer back - than risk a mis-fire.
They may be my last acts on earth; but I won’t ever run the risk of mis-firing a weapon. I just don’t trust the Glock. Yes, it’s probably an unjustified bias; it’s probably ridiculous to a Glock owner; but there it is.
For an experienced gun owner, it is great firearm.
Keep your booger hook off the bang switch until you want it to go BANG.
pOw!
What would you recommend ?
I love the Glock 19. Its a hoot at the range and I was really hot to get one but over time I have come to value the manual safety on my Ruger P85 as well as the decocker. Now I’m looking at a small weapon for CCW and I discovered the Bersa .308 with safety and decocker. Still in all the Glock is a great weapon. The cops in our county carry them.
I’ve got four of them (17, 19, 21, 26)...I agree...however, even with the admonition about ‘booger hook’ there are other peculiarities worth mentioning : limp wristed stovepiping, KBs, and warranty voided reloads...
That said...I just love the hell out of the 33 round mags...got quite a few of them.
Vive la difference.
I learned handgunning with a .357 Mag revolver, a Colt Trooper Mk III.
Yes, it has an visible hammer. Who cares? I was taught never to manually cock the thing. It's fired by squeeeeeeeeezing the trigger. (Big long squeeze). Safety? What's a safety?
I don't carry a Glock, but they don't bother me at all.
Mis-fire is a ambiguous term. Do you fear negligently putting your finger on the trigger and pulling it prior to really wanting to do so?
I have a 20 and 21. Neither are the SF, as I actually prefer the "chunkier" model. Feels more stable in my hands. Maybe I'm just more used to it compared to the newer model.
I love my full sized and compact 1911s. IMO, nothing's prettier (pistol wise) than a nice, deep-blued finish with walnut grips. However, my "ugly" Glocks have performed well and have been just as reliable as any other handgun I've owned.
I found the Glock 22 to be a little more versatile since picking up Wolf .357 Sig and 9mm conversion barrels. The 9mm shoots the cheapo Russain ammo just fine. Although the .40 is excellent, the .357 Sig is a genuine badass round.
I agree. The Glock’s I have shot are nice, however when it came time to recommend a 9mm for a first timer, I looked elsewhere. After shooting many, the first timer chose the FNP-9 (http://www.fnhusa.com/support/images/dynamic/m/FNM0127mb.png). It has hammer, safety, decocking etc, came with 3 magazines, and they liked how it fit their hand and that they could shoot it accurately. At the end of the day it is always about the person and less about the gun.
Agreed, if you are a new shooter you do not need a glock to start off with unless you intend to puts lots of range time in.
With glocks you have to practice one of the basic rules of shooting, finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire.
I have a 17, 19, 23 and 27. I enjoy shooting them but my go to gun when there is a bump in the night is a S&W model 19 .357 magnum.
I own three Glocks, and if my only weapon had to be a handgun, I'd pick my Glock 21.
What did they blame negligent discharges on before Glock came along? I know they existed, and they still happen today with other weapons, too.
My opinion is that the Glock design is less tolerant of morons. Is that such a bad thing?
For a Glock I carry a 19, the wife has a 26. 9mm rounds are easy to find and not to costly to keep proficient. The limp wristed stove piping was an issue while teaching the children, but was easily fixed with some coaching.
For anyone, what ever you are comfortable with. If you are not comfortable with it you will not practice, with it to stay proficient, defeating the purpose you got it for in the first place. Find a gun dealer and find one you like. What I like and you like are probably different.
I fear my finger, a piece of string, a branch, a drop, a careless moment of someone looking at the gun, pulling it out of a holster and catching the trigger on anything with greater than a 5oz pull. I fear the discharge. I'd rather be safe, than run the risk. My Barretta knock-off (Taurus PT-9) has a safety that has to be disengaged, and a hammer that needs to be cocked prior to pulling the trigger.
Ever see the YouTube of the police officer shooting himself in the foot during his "Quickdraw McGraw" immitation? Cannot happen if you have the safety, and actually use it. When I draw my weapon from the holster, my hand grasps the handle, my thumb first disengages the safety, then is on the hammer; I draw, release the safety, pull the hammer back with my thumb, focus on my target, and squeeze. I may not win any championships - but that has never been my concern.
My concern is pretty basic. Quickly and accurately put every shot into the "kill zone", and never run the risk of putting around off before I'm ready for the consequences.
I have owned numerous Glocks in the past but currently do not own one. The grip angle is too steep for my shooting style. The 1911 and Beretta 92 are my guns of choice.
I guess that depends upon your 'target' audience. In a combat situation; I think the Glock would be pretty close to ideal. A firefight where you cannot return fire, because you sacrificed your life fighting the safety - is a strong proponent for the Glock. Put your finger on the trigger and feed the bad-guys lead. Simple, reliable, fast, durable and as I said earlier, pretty much ideal.
But, for home defense where the ownwer may only shoot the thing a couple times a year (if that); your audience may not feel comfortable with the 'readiness' the Glock was designed to embrace. Different audience. As another Freeper mentioned "At the end of the day, it's more about the shooter, than it is about the gun".
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