Are Glocks more finicky than other pistols?

[iceman-cometh]

I recently got my hands on a Glock 17 Gen 5, which I like, but it seems more in feeding finicky than my other 9 mm pistols, all of which are steel and non-striker models. The "other" pistols don't give a darn whether I hold them one-handed or two-handed, or limp-wristed or properly, but the Glock wants me to hold it two-handed and steady and tight, or rounds won't feed properly from the mags. Now, this isn't a big deal, because I do know the proper, tight way to hold the Glock, so my query is about the pistol's sensitivity, not whether it is "broken." Opinions, please, and many thanks!

 

[Occam]

This thread should wrap up quickly as soon as someone posts the correct answer.

 

[Occam]

Which is my way of saying, "Yes." And also, "No."

I have no affection for Glocks (and their clones, not that anyone would ever make or own such a thing in Maryland!), and yet I've got ... a couple of factory Glocks and several that sure look and act like them. If they're in good shape and not too exotically monkeyed around with, they all seem to be very reliable. Some of them seem to be inhabited by some sort of ghost that makes them not only mysteriously missing provenance approved by The Crown, but also sometimes fussy until the right combination of guide rod/spring, ejector bits, sanding, lube, and other details get right ... and a couple hundred rounds go through them. I've never had a more reliable (eats anything, can be shot in any style, just always works) pistol than my venerable 1980's Beretta 92 or my current crush, CZ's 75-series variants.

I know, that's not a very good answer. Far, FAR too many variables to get what would feel like a straight, simple answer to your question. There are going to be so many personal anecdotes and experiences that it's unanswerable. I suppose it's worth simply pointing out that there are a bajillion of them being carried by military and law enforcement folks, and that's not by accident - they are pretty damned reliable, tolerate a lot of abuse, and they're easy to work on/part-swap.

If I had a Glock that I had to hold a certain special way, I'd consider it too fussy to bet my life on, and look at why it's behaving that way.

 

[steves1911]

Im no glock fanboy but they typically function reliably even when fired upside down.

 

[GunBum]

Mine feed reliably until someone limp wrists them.

 

[TI-tick]

My G-19 has had zero issues: two handed, strong hand solo, weak hand solo, zero problems.
My Cousin also has a G-19 and also has zero issues with his.
I'm 5'8" 160#'s; Cousin is 6'2" and probably 260#'s.
LGS swears by Glock. I've never met anyone at the range who's had issues with their Glock.
Glock's made $$$ over the years by producing a quality product that goes bang when intended.

Sounds like you have a personal problem.

 

[River02]

The only time my 17 has had a malfunction or failure is when I've purposely introduced said failure into the function for training purposes-- that is all.

 

[teratos]

Mine feed reliably until someone limp wrists them.

This.

 

[alucard0822]

They are reliable given good ammo and correct parts. Swap parts, run underpowered ammo, or aftermarket mags and any pistol can have problems. Striker fired pistols do have one inherent difference that can make them less forgiving for a loose grip, out of spec parts or crap ammo. Striker fired pistols basically compress the striker right before the slide goes into batteryn basically subtracting from the recoil spring's force in chambering a load. Hammer fired compress the mainspring as soon as the slide starts to cycle rearward, and the full spring pressure is available to help chamber a round. The balance between the mainspring, recoil spring, and ammo can be less forgiving if there is not enough power to cycle, or a poor grip soaks up some of the available power. Of course the chamber/ramp specs and lack of other points of failure kinda balance it out, so all in all they are as reliable as any good defensive pistol.

 

[outrider58]

No. Learn how to hold the pistol and shoot.

 

[rgramjet]

I wanted to hate Glocks. Plasticky feeling, souless with the goofy trigger safety.

I was coming from a place of Sig. Craftsmanship, fit and finish, well thought out mechanism. But....all 3 were finicky.

First Glock I picked up was the 17. It performed flawlessly. Tried everything from aluminum cased Blaser to Hydrashocks. Not a single issue.

Now Im on my 4th Glock. A 23. Love that pistol!

 

[Doctor_M]

I've run every type of ammo from really good stuff to bottom of the barrel cheap through my Gen2 G19 and it eats everything. I don't think I've ever had a FTF, stove pipe or any other issue... it is fugly, but it keeps on chugging.

 

[Kman]

My gen 2 17 and 19 feed and fire all types of crap ammo.
I wish I liked the ergonomics of them.

 

[TheOriginalMexicanBob]

An instructor I had for a number of shooting courses tried to see what it took to break a Glock…this was in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. He didn’t clean it…just kept shooting it and gave up somewhere around 150k rounds through it. He said it started going “kachunk” but still went bang every time.

 

[Huckleberry]

I love Glocks but you can't handle them limped wristed.

Glock pistols are not designed like Lamar Latrell's Javelin to complement a limp wristed grip

Glocks are just like 1911s and Steyr AUGs in that the all 3 were designed for Soldiers in muddy foxholes, sandy beaches and other less than hospitable fighting environments so they are built a little loose to handle the dirt, dust and grime that jam up guns with tighter tolerances. You can literally hose them off, reload and get back in the fight. When you get a lull in the battle then you can field strip, clean and lube before the next interation.

 

[Batt816]

My gen 2 17 and 19 feed and fire all types of crap ammo.
I wish I liked the ergonomics of them.

Same here, that’s why the P80s are so well linked as well. Glock parts, better ergonomics.

 

[joppaj]

To answer the OP's question, no, in my experience they're not finicky. I have caused malfunctions by limp wristing the recoil and once by getting my thumb to high and hitting the slide stop. Other than that they've run flawlessly for me for 22 years.

 

[outrider58]

I think it's the low bore axis that makes it 'limp wrist' sensitive. I spent a day shooting with Blaster and the only stoppage I suffered that day was the first time shooting from retention. After that, I learned it's almost impossible hold a Glock too tightly. Tighter the better.

 

[smokey]

The frame is light, relative to the slide. Limp-wristing them rapidly re-vectors force into rotation instead of driving the slide back against the recoil spring. Frame flex also contributes to this a bit. Recoil assemblies are also generally tuned to handle nato ammo, so really light ammo is more likely to cause malfunctions in the right(wrong) conditions.

Guns that have metal frames have some built-in inertia that resists the transfer of linear slide energy to rotational energy. They also generally don't lose any extra from frame flex. For these reasons, guns with heavier frames resist limp-wristing malfunctions a little more.

So, it can be more likely to be a user-induced malfunction from limp-wristing with weak ammo. Hold it correctly or use hotter ammo and it likely won't do it.

 

[Applehd]

I have no problems with any of the Glocks that I don't own...