Over the course of the last 11 months, I've moved from carrying primarily a CZ 75 Compact or Kimber 1911 Compact to either a Glock 23 or 27. In that time, I've discovered that there really is a lot of Glock BS spread forth and I think that BS puts a lot of folks off on the brand. Unfortunately, it also drives people to the brand for the wrong reasons.
Among the myths tossed about are:
Myth: 'Glocks are perfect right out of the box'. Truth is, some are and some are not. There is no such thing as Glock Perfection outside of their marketing department. Over a number of years, I've had the opportunity to enjoy a fair number of new guns. Among those are Bersa's, Kimbers, Sigs, Glocks, a Walther, an RIA and a Remington as well as a number of used pistols. I tend to trade a lot. The worst out of the box experience for a brand new gun has been with Glocks. Next up is a Walther that took close to 500 rounds and some work to function well but at least that one could get through most of a magazine before failing. My 1911s and CZs have been near perfect, as have most of my Glocks, but I have had issues with two of them. The first was a G29 that would not reliably reset a trigger on dry fire and that would not drop mags free. The second was a G19 that had a similar reset issue, would not cycle ammo that worked well in other guns and that ejects brass into my face. The G29 never did exhibit the reset issue with live fire and eventually stopped during dry fire as well. The mags never did drop free though. The G19 worked fine once broken in and required tweaking of the extractor to help with the ejection issue (jury still out on that). The fact is, Glocks are production pistols that need broken in and tested for reliability just as every other gun does before you can trust it. The myth does a disservice to the gun community because it promotes the idea that you can buy a Glock and a box of ammo and carry immediately. That's a bad idea no matter what you buy.
Myth: 'Glocks are inaccurate'. Maybe I suck at shooting, but if so, I find that I suck less when shooting my Glock 23 than I do with most other handguns.
Myth: 'A 1911 guy cannot shoot a Glock as accurately due to the grip angle'. The grip angles are different, but can be adjusted. If you run an extended MSH on a 1911, you are getting close to the angle of the Glock grip. If you run a beavertail grip adapter on a Glock, you are getting close to the angle of the 1911. The large main spring housing on a 1911 tends to push the barrel up by adding material at the base of the 1911 grip. The Grip Force Adapter on the Glock works in reverse. It adds material to the top of the Glock grip causing the barrel to naturally point a bit lower. With grip angles somewhat adjustable on both platforms, shooting either should not present a problem.
Myth: 'If you need to modify a Glock, you are using the wrong gun'. This is a purists view. Sure, a stock Glock might work fine for you, but if you can make it better, why not do so? All of my Glocks run a '-' connector and some minor polish on some of the internal parts. All also get night sights and Talon rubber grip decals. I'm running a Grip Force Adapter on my 19 and am coming to like it even though it feels odd. Accuracy seems better to me with it and that could be that it makes the gun point more naturally to me. Guns are tools and while none should need work out of the box, there is nothing wrong with making the gun fit you better.
Myth: 'Glock triggers suck'. Ok, maybe that is not a myth when discussing a factory fresh Glock. But, you can improve them very easily and while they will never rival a 1911 trigger or even a CZ trigger, they can work well. A $10 part will reduce the pull weight a bit and an hour spent with a bit of polish, a fine stone and a pencil eraser can make a Glock trigger feel much better.
The safety issue is what kept me away from Glocks for a long time. I still like having an exposed hammer that I can put my thumb over while reholstering, but have become used to taking extra care while reholstering a Glock. I do like the fact that Glocks tend to have a very wide trigger guard that helps prevent trigger fouling during reholstering, but still am extra careful when reholstering a Glock.
The thing I've discovered over the last year of Glock ownership is that they work perfectly well in a 1911/CZ environment. I still carry a 1911 on occasion as well as the CZ but I now have the Glock 23 on me about 90% of the time. When I do carry the CZ, it's carried on the half cock notch with the safety off. The trigger pull is very close to a Glock trigger pull that way and requires no safety manipulation.
Among the myths tossed about are:
Myth: 'Glocks are perfect right out of the box'. Truth is, some are and some are not. There is no such thing as Glock Perfection outside of their marketing department. Over a number of years, I've had the opportunity to enjoy a fair number of new guns. Among those are Bersa's, Kimbers, Sigs, Glocks, a Walther, an RIA and a Remington as well as a number of used pistols. I tend to trade a lot. The worst out of the box experience for a brand new gun has been with Glocks. Next up is a Walther that took close to 500 rounds and some work to function well but at least that one could get through most of a magazine before failing. My 1911s and CZs have been near perfect, as have most of my Glocks, but I have had issues with two of them. The first was a G29 that would not reliably reset a trigger on dry fire and that would not drop mags free. The second was a G19 that had a similar reset issue, would not cycle ammo that worked well in other guns and that ejects brass into my face. The G29 never did exhibit the reset issue with live fire and eventually stopped during dry fire as well. The mags never did drop free though. The G19 worked fine once broken in and required tweaking of the extractor to help with the ejection issue (jury still out on that). The fact is, Glocks are production pistols that need broken in and tested for reliability just as every other gun does before you can trust it. The myth does a disservice to the gun community because it promotes the idea that you can buy a Glock and a box of ammo and carry immediately. That's a bad idea no matter what you buy.
Myth: 'Glocks are inaccurate'. Maybe I suck at shooting, but if so, I find that I suck less when shooting my Glock 23 than I do with most other handguns.
Myth: 'A 1911 guy cannot shoot a Glock as accurately due to the grip angle'. The grip angles are different, but can be adjusted. If you run an extended MSH on a 1911, you are getting close to the angle of the Glock grip. If you run a beavertail grip adapter on a Glock, you are getting close to the angle of the 1911. The large main spring housing on a 1911 tends to push the barrel up by adding material at the base of the 1911 grip. The Grip Force Adapter on the Glock works in reverse. It adds material to the top of the Glock grip causing the barrel to naturally point a bit lower. With grip angles somewhat adjustable on both platforms, shooting either should not present a problem.
Myth: 'If you need to modify a Glock, you are using the wrong gun'. This is a purists view. Sure, a stock Glock might work fine for you, but if you can make it better, why not do so? All of my Glocks run a '-' connector and some minor polish on some of the internal parts. All also get night sights and Talon rubber grip decals. I'm running a Grip Force Adapter on my 19 and am coming to like it even though it feels odd. Accuracy seems better to me with it and that could be that it makes the gun point more naturally to me. Guns are tools and while none should need work out of the box, there is nothing wrong with making the gun fit you better.
Myth: 'Glock triggers suck'. Ok, maybe that is not a myth when discussing a factory fresh Glock. But, you can improve them very easily and while they will never rival a 1911 trigger or even a CZ trigger, they can work well. A $10 part will reduce the pull weight a bit and an hour spent with a bit of polish, a fine stone and a pencil eraser can make a Glock trigger feel much better.
The safety issue is what kept me away from Glocks for a long time. I still like having an exposed hammer that I can put my thumb over while reholstering, but have become used to taking extra care while reholstering a Glock. I do like the fact that Glocks tend to have a very wide trigger guard that helps prevent trigger fouling during reholstering, but still am extra careful when reholstering a Glock.
The thing I've discovered over the last year of Glock ownership is that they work perfectly well in a 1911/CZ environment. I still carry a 1911 on occasion as well as the CZ but I now have the Glock 23 on me about 90% of the time. When I do carry the CZ, it's carried on the half cock notch with the safety off. The trigger pull is very close to a Glock trigger pull that way and requires no safety manipulation.
