Glock question

Matlack said:

No. Read that wrong initially.



Yes, it clicks on the front and seats well in the back. It needed some fittingin the back of the grip. I was reading it can happen, but not on all glock gen 3's with factory mags. It is definitely an improvement to the magwell. That's why I was wondering if there were any quality aftermarket mags or if I was searchingfor a solution I reallydidn't need. Supposedly all factory mags, and any with a steel lined mag, will eventually stop dropping free. Theoretically yes, but that would require a very high round replacement count IMHO. I doubt I would ever get to that point. Hopefully, and I believe factory glock mags are, the mags are using a spring steel and manufactured prestressing them to tight tolerances. Thats probably the issue with the RWB ones, lax manufacturering and crap material. But I dont trust them for regular use.

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alucard0822 said:

That is odd, mine is a 4th gen, clearance all around, wondering if there might be a seam or something, can you see where it is hitting? mine has the least clearance on the sides. Might be something a little sandpaper on the magwell could fix, although I wouldn't carry it if it wasn't 100%. I have heard that GLOCK mags swell, and eventually won't drop free, was the case with early mags, but all my small frame GLOCKs are gen 4, they have been carried, mags fully loaded for years, and 0 problems. Almost all of my GLOCK mags are factory, have a couple 21rd Pmags for the rare occasion I run my G19 in competition, and they are OK, but have seen a LOT of problems with other aftermarket mags.
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Matlack said:

I will go further with my thought processes into this change and why I thought to ask members here on the board. I got the gun as second hand as a LE trade in. Now that I have a CCP and cool weather is here and I can wear a jacket I wanted to carry a more full size handgun. From what I have, I decided on the Glock based on size, fit to my hand, and reliability. I think it will be a good carry gun with a jacket IWB or OWB. I wanted something with more rounds than the Shield should I need it. Of my handguns, it is one that has worked flawlessly and is a decent size for CC. My Shield is the only semi auto "carry" gun that I own and it is a great little gun. But, as I mentioned, I am thinking I would like something that has a larger round count per mag. The Glock 19 fits my criteria, reliability is the single most important thing for me when carrying as I want it to function without issues if it is ever needed. With that I started thinking what would I improve on it, if anything. My first thought was the magwell. Is it bad, no. Could it be improved? Sure. So I looked at various magwells for it and settled on the Magpul enhanced magwell. Immediately I had issues with the glock mags not seating, which was a no go. I have never had to do a mag change in an stressful situation, I hope I never do, but if I could simplify it I thought it would be a worthwhile improvement. At the range I can take my time swapping a mag and I have no issues when taking time. But, I also thought, if I can improve it overall I should. Yes, the enhanced magwell does allow for an easier, more forgiving, swap. But it prevents me from using factory mags. I had debated making mods to the Magpul magwell to make them fit, but that would probably eliminate most of the improvements it provides. I could try to grind down the lip of it, but it wont be perfect flat when I am done with it. I could remove part of the lip so the mag fits, but that creates a step and would probably eliminate the benefit. So then I thought about the mags I have. My Shield doesnt have a magwell enhancement, but I never thought about it much. I dont know why I thought about on the Glock, but I did.

The mag release button, is similar. There is nothing wrong with it, I just dont get it every time. Glock does make several enhanced mag release buttons for it that make it easier. I will probably do this as it is a direct Glock replacement for under $50. Same thing, training will probably make this quicker and easier. Since I will be practicing it mag swap, I will probably just get better with it as well.

I bought the PMAGs when I bought the spare glock mag, it's a PMAG and should be good right? Well, not necessarily. I read that they had issues when they first came out and recalled them all. Some people have stated they have had different issues since the replacements hit the market, but a lot of people like them. I havent had an issue, but I wanted opinions on them anyways. The RWB I bought earlier this year because they are metal lined just like the factory mags, just much cheaper. So I bought two of them to try. They were basically cheap knockoffs. Straight out of the bag, the springs were tight as hell. I could only fit about 11 rounds in without assistance the first time I loaded them. The twelfth round was almost impossible to get in and getting to 15 wasnt going to happen at that point. The spare glock mag worked flawlessly from the package, so I thought that was strange with the RWB. The RWB took several load/unload cycles to fully load them. They did not drop free from the beginning, but I wanted extra mags for the range so I didnt care at that point. But now that I am considering carrying with it, it is definitely a mag I dont want to carry with.

Which then brought to the question. Do I really need the magwell enhancement and run the PMAG's or some other brand I dont have? Do I take the grip and remove material to allow the mags to fit with the enhancement? Or do I get rid of the magwell enhancement and run the glock mags? I am not going to modify the the grip, so that is out. As I think about it more, leaving in the magwell enhancement would completely eliminate my factory mags. It's not something I would take in and out when I go to the range. And it wlll fail to feed if I even tried to leave in the Glock mags. So, over $20, its not worth it. Just keep practicing mag swaps with the Glock and build that muscle memory. Once I start carrying it, I may just decide to keep on carrying it. But, I need to carry it first to see how I like it while out and about. Even before I carry out of the house, I will carry it around the house first. Same reasons, I want to make sure its a good fit for me before I ever run the chance of having to need it out of the home. I havent even tried drawing it from a holster yet, because of this magwell enhancement. I have been trying to figure out what to do about it. But my decision should be clear now that I have thought it out. Sometimes you need to say or type something out loud.

Maybe I should just buy another Gen 3 since I have this magwell enhancement?

Some additional observations since I am sitting here today. I measured the mags just for grins. The Glock mags are .906" unloaded, with minor variations nothing above .910", and .912" loaded. A slight increases in thickness of the tube. The PMAG's are .895" give or take unloaded and .915" ish loaded, makes sense since they arent steel lined they will flex more. And the RWB are all over the place up to .928" unloaded and over .93" when loaded. It looks like the Glock mags have tighter tolerances and are certainly better manufactured than the RWB. The Glock steel liner was flat when it was formed without any significant waves in it, unlike the RWB. The PMAGS appear to be shooting for the .915" or so when loaded and go under when unloaded which allows them to drop freely. So if I had to guess the forming of the steel liner isnt well controlled with the RWB. I may try to put these in a vise and try permanently deform them to under .915", I dont know if it is worth it just for range mags, it may cause more issues than its worth. But it may bother me to the point that I may do it. Only time will tell on that decision.

If anyone had any other suggestions, I am all ears. I havent measured the magwell, I think I will do that now. I wonder if the design is available somewhere?

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alucard0822 said:

I use the Magpul magwell on my G19, less to do with mag changes and more to do with my hands being just a hair big for the grip. With the magwell it is perfect, and my grip locks in. Factory mags seat just fine with it, really slim magwell 0 issues. It might help reloads for some, but I don't really notice, indexing my finger on the front of the mag guides it right in with or without it. I wouldn't want a big USPSA magwell on a carry gun, but I like the little bit of flare at the bottom to lock in my grip.

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hogarth said:

Yep, Gen 3's. (there are no Gen 4s that are marked LE restricted). Get some Gen 4 mags and try those. They should hang low enough when inserted to work for you.

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Matlack said:

Just wanted to provide an update and say, you hit the nail on the head. I got a gen 4 and it works perfectly. Thank you for the recommendation. I would never have thought about trying a different gen mag. So now I can keep the magwell and factory Glock mags.

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Matlack said:

I will go further with my thought processes into this change and why I thought to ask members here on the board. I got the gun as second hand as a LE trade in. Now that I have a CCP and cool weather is here and I can wear a jacket I wanted to carry a more full size handgun. From what I have, I decided on the Glock based on size, fit to my hand, and reliability. I think it will be a good carry gun with a jacket IWB or OWB. I wanted something with more rounds than the Shield should I need it. Of my handguns, it is one that has worked flawlessly and is a decent size for CC. My Shield is the only semi auto "carry" gun that I own and it is a great little gun. But, as I mentioned, I am thinking I would like something that has a larger round count per mag. The Glock 19 fits my criteria, reliability is the single most important thing for me when carrying as I want it to function without issues if it is ever needed. With that I started thinking what would I improve on it, if anything. My first thought was the magwell. Is it bad, no. Could it be improved? Sure. So I looked at various magwells for it and settled on the Magpul enhanced magwell. Immediately I had issues with the glock mags not seating, which was a no go. I have never had to do a mag change in an stressful situation, I hope I never do, but if I could simplify it I thought it would be a worthwhile improvement. At the range I can take my time swapping a mag and I have no issues when taking time. But, I also thought, if I can improve it overall I should. Yes, the enhanced magwell does allow for an easier, more forgiving, swap. But it prevents me from using factory mags. I had debated making mods to the Magpul magwell to make them fit, but that would probably eliminate most of the improvements it provides. I could try to grind down the lip of it, but it wont be perfect flat when I am done with it. I could remove part of the lip so the mag fits, but that creates a step and would probably eliminate the benefit. So then I thought about the mags I have. My Shield doesnt have a magwell enhancement, but I never thought about it much. I dont know why I thought about on the Glock, but I did.

The mag release button, is similar. There is nothing wrong with it, I just dont get it every time. Glock does make several enhanced mag release buttons for it that make it easier. I will probably do this as it is a direct Glock replacement for under $50. Same thing, training will probably make this quicker and easier. Since I will be practicing it mag swap, I will probably just get better with it as well.

I bought the PMAGs when I bought the spare glock mag, it's a PMAG and should be good right? Well, not necessarily. I read that they had issues when they first came out and recalled them all. Some people have stated they have had different issues since the replacements hit the market, but a lot of people like them. I havent had an issue, but I wanted opinions on them anyways. The RWB I bought earlier this year because they are metal lined just like the factory mags, just much cheaper. So I bought two of them to try. They were basically cheap knockoffs. Straight out of the bag, the springs were tight as hell. I could only fit about 11 rounds in without assistance the first time I loaded them. The twelfth round was almost impossible to get in and getting to 15 wasnt going to happen at that point. The spare glock mag worked flawlessly from the package, so I thought that was strange with the RWB. The RWB took several load/unload cycles to fully load them. They did not drop free from the beginning, but I wanted extra mags for the range so I didnt care at that point. But now that I am considering carrying with it, it is definitely a mag I dont want to carry with.

Which then brought to the question. Do I really need the magwell enhancement and run the PMAG's or some other brand I dont have? Do I take the grip and remove material to allow the mags to fit with the enhancement? Or do I get rid of the magwell enhancement and run the glock mags? I am not going to modify the the grip, so that is out. As I think about it more, leaving in the magwell enhancement would completely eliminate my factory mags. It's not something I would take in and out when I go to the range. And it wlll fail to feed if I even tried to leave in the Glock mags. So, over $20, its not worth it. Just keep practicing mag swaps with the Glock and build that muscle memory. Once I start carrying it, I may just decide to keep on carrying it. But, I need to carry it first to see how I like it while out and about. Even before I carry out of the house, I will carry it around the house first. Same reasons, I want to make sure its a good fit for me before I ever run the chance of having to need it out of the home. I havent even tried drawing it from a holster yet, because of this magwell enhancement. I have been trying to figure out what to do about it. But my decision should be clear now that I have thought it out. Sometimes you need to say or type something out loud.

Maybe I should just buy another Gen 3 since I have this magwell enhancement?

Some additional observations since I am sitting here today. I measured the mags just for grins. The Glock mags are .906" unloaded, with minor variations nothing above .910", and .912" loaded. A slight increases in thickness of the tube. The PMAG's are .895" give or take unloaded and .915" ish loaded, makes sense since they arent steel lined they will flex more. And the RWB are all over the place up to .928" unloaded and over .93" when loaded. It looks like the Glock mags have tighter tolerances and are certainly better manufactured than the RWB. The Glock steel liner was flat when it was formed without any significant waves in it, unlike the RWB. The PMAGS appear to be shooting for the .915" or so when loaded and go under when unloaded which allows them to drop freely. So if I had to guess the forming of the steel liner isnt well controlled with the RWB. I may try to put these in a vise and try permanently deform them to under .915", I dont know if it is worth it just for range mags, it may cause more issues than its worth. But it may bother me to the point that I may do it. Only time will tell on that decision.

If anyone had any other suggestions, I am all ears. I havent measured the magwell, I think I will do that now. I wonder if the design is available somewhere?

Click to expand...