Glock 34 Gen4 Long Term Test

Mikey · Apr 17, 2014

I don't normally post much on any of the forums I visit however I thought I would try to give back a little bit with this thread. The purpose of this thread is to document my experience with my Gen4 Glock 34 throughout the year as I put 20K+ down the pipe. If folks are interested in this I will continue to post updates and answer questions, if not I will just let the thread die.

I decided after last year's shooting season with my M&P that I wanted to try something different in 2014. I am currently an IDPA (Expert) & USPSA (B Class) shooter and I am working hard this year to make Master in IDPA and A Class in USPSA. I decided I wanted to concentrate my shooting on IDPA SSP and USPSA Production and that I wanted to use the same gun for both. My M&P Pro 9mm was frustrating me with accuracy issues (old production barrel) and a trigger that despite APEX improvements wasn't really working for me due to the lack of reset. At the end of the day wanting a new toy also played into my decision to buy the Glock 34.

Buying a new gun is just the start for me. I bought the following parts after putting only 60 rounds down range to get it to where I would be happy.

Dawson Sights - Black Rear, Fiber Optic Front - $80
Dawson Grip Tape for the gun - $8 (Already removed from gun)
Dawson Grip Tape for the magazines - $16
Pearce Grip Frame Insert - $6
Zev Tech Ultimate Standard Trigger Kit - $155 w/midway coupon
Bladetech Holster - $60
Jager Guide Rod - $30
ISMI 13lb Recoil Spring - $8
Glock 20/21 Mag Release - $8

So far I have 4,865 rounds down the pipe and that's just the start. Here are some pics I took last night before I cleaned it. It had been 3,410 rounds since its last cleaning, though the outside does get wiped down before it goes back in my safe each time.

I plan to write some short reviews on each of the above products when I have time.

Pmbspyder · Apr 17, 2014

Very cool, keep us updated! Threads like these are always appreciated!

ctb766 · Apr 17, 2014

Agreed, any issues thus far with the first 4800+ rounds?

Mikey · Apr 18, 2014

So far I have not had any issues that I blame the gun for.

On occasion the slide does not lock back which is because I tend to ride the slide release. I need to experiment with a stock slide release instead of the extended release that comes standard on the G34.

I have one magazine that doesn't like my reloads. I researched this and apparently my loads are too long at 1.15 - 1.16 and I need to shorten them up. The frustrating part is they work fine in the other 8 magazines I have.

When you install the Zev Tech trigger kit it comes with two striker springs. One is labeled 2lbs and one is labeled 3lbs. The lighter the striker spring the lighter your trigger pull, so naturally I installed the 2lb spring first. This resulted in light strikes about 1% of the time so I switched to the 3lb spring and have not had any troubles since.

joppaj · Apr 18, 2014

Nice write up Sir, thank you.

Mr Bear · Apr 18, 2014

Thanks for the info. Passed on to 2 friends who have newer G-34's.

BRONZ · Apr 18, 2014

I love my 34.

Great thread

bitterkenny · Apr 18, 2014

Good stuff. Have you had any issues related to the slide cutout? I have a Gen 4 34 and while it's been 100% reliable at the range so far, that cutout makes me nervous for some reason.

Mikey · Apr 18, 2014

No issues with the cut out at all. The cut out is there to reduce the weight of the slide so it remains similar to the Glock 17, this allows Glock to use the same recoil assembly in both guns.

Pretoria78 · Apr 18, 2014

Very nice, Mikey. I've got 20,000 rounds thru a July 2012 manufactured Glock 17 Gen 4, and the only issue being stoppages due to sand in the mags and riding the slide stop a few times during recoil. I hope your 34 serves you just as well.

4095fanatic · Apr 18, 2014

Very nice. In the last year I've put 2,000 rounds through my Gen4 G34, and aside from the front sight flying off at the last trip (Trijicon HD NS, aftermarket, so really can't blame the pistol for that) no issues.

MaxVO2 · Apr 22, 2014

****I have over 10k rounds through my Gen 3 G34 and it is still shooting great, no issues. Trigger, springs, and sight mods have been done on the gun and it is just now feeling like it is breaking in... The thing just flat out works with the reloaded ammo as well as "junk" ammo that jam up some of my crazy expensive other guns I no longer ever seem to shoot as they are finicky. The gun is more accurate than I am.

bitterkenny · Apr 22, 2014

I've had my 34 since Sept of last year and I agree that it's a great shooter.

Right now, I'm debating getting a second one or getting a 17 though.

If you had to do it again, would you choose the 34 over the 17? What if you didn't have a desire to compete in IDPA, IPSC, etc? What if your primary concern is SD and HD.

Blaster229 · Apr 22, 2014

At what amount of rounds do you think you'll replace the barrel? 15/20k?

SCARCQB · Apr 22, 2014

Over 8 k on my gen3 glock 34... I still have to experience a jam on it. Reliable ,accurate and its my favorite all purpose pistol. It is indeed tactical and practical

I just bought a gen 4 g34 for my daughter... So that i can get my gen 3 back from her... Out of all the glocks, my daughter likes the 34 as well.

MaxVO2 · Apr 22, 2014

Blaster229 said:
At what amount of rounds do you think you'll replace the barrel? 15/20k?

*****The barrels on the Glock seem quite good and I have yet to replace one due to wear. I have one gun with easily 20k+ that I only clean with a nylon brush and solvent every now and again and the shop checked it out with their scope and says it has plenty of life left.

I have replaced the barrels on a couple of guns so I could fire regular cast bullets and there is more wear on *those* barrels after perhaps 7-10k rounds versus the stock Glock barrel. Glock seems to make a decent barrel out of the box and I sometimes wonder if folks paying extra $$$ for an aftermarket barrel and using normal jacketed rounds are getting anything more for their money than stock.

Mikey · Apr 23, 2014

409fanatic - I had that same issue with my front sight. A little bit of blue Loctite solved that problem for me.

bitterkenny - If I were not competing in IDPA/USPSA I would probably still choose the 34 for home defense, if I had to carry the gun I would likely carry a Glock 26 or S&W Shield. My Glock 26 is very accurate but a little more difficult to shoot and a lot slower on the reload.

Blaster229 - I concur with MaxVO2, it will be a very long time before I replace the barrel. Some folks claim to go 100K on the factory barrel. I will likely get bored with the gun or want to switch divisions before I wear out any of the major parts (barrel, slide, frame).

I am shooting two matches (PSA Steel Match and IDPA Think of the Children) this weekend in PA so hopefully the Glock continues it reliability streak.

Mikey · May 12, 2014

Update:

The gun currently has 6,395 rounds through it. No issues other than magazine sensitivity issues. While shooting the Think of the Children Match I had a mag jam due to a round loaded a bit too long (1.15). I knew this was an issue with one mag but thought the other 8 were good to go. Now I know better and adjusted my press to load them to 1.14 OAL. Since changing to 1.14 OAL (about 500rnds ago) all of my loads have functioned perfectly in every magazine, hopefully this fixes the issue for good.

bitterkenny · Jun 2, 2014

Great! Please keep posting. I love hearing about how you and your 34 are doing in competition.

I just got a second 34 Gen4 and it has only been to the range a couple of times for a boringly reliable and accurate 500 rounds. My IDPA plans for the summer are blown due to an Achilles tendon surgery. So while I'm on my ass for a couple of months, at least I can read about how others are doing…

Mikey · Jun 10, 2014

G34 is currently at 8385 rounds, with zero malfunctions. It went 3520 rounds since it's last cleaning and this time I did a full detail strip to replace all the springs. I originally planned to wait till 10K to replace the springs but with the Carolina Cup right around the corner I didn't want to risk it.

The gun doesn't show much wear. The paint is fading from the slide release and slightly from the tip of the gun due to holster wear. I abandoned using grip tape and find that the standard grip texture provide enough grip for me.

The magwell is starting to get a little beat up but its still not too bad which means I need to do more dry fire.

Slide and barrel still look pretty much new, though I did have to use some tools to clean all the burnt powder off the feed ramp.

Gun was really dirty on the inside and all signs of lubrication were gone.

Dirtiest part of the gun was by far the striker. This is where my M&Ps would start to have light strikes if you didn't clean them every 5K or so.

New Springs!

You can see in this picture that the old recoil spring had shrunk a little bit but was still going strong when I replaced it. I am curious how often you really need to replace these things.

That's all for now. I hope to post more frequently in the future.

Glock 34 Gen4 Long Term Test

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