Help me choose a glock please.

[ZombieTactics]

I have been a Glock owner since the Gen1 Model 17 first hit the market.

I strongly recommend that you buy a Glock 22. Then get a 40-to-9 conversion barrel from Lone Wolf and a few Glock 17 magazines. This way you can have the best of both worlds. My personal Glock 22 has been rock-solid with this setup.

[the_donald_]

I can't count the number of times I've overheard people stare at the ammo shelves and mutter to themselves, "I wish I had a .40". For over a year now, the shelves have been consistently stocked with .40 in my area.

9mm or 45? Forget finding them at the cheaper prices we used to see a few years ago, let alone consistently stocked and in inventory. (YMMV)

I will agree that the recoil & getting quickly back on target are benefits of the 9mm. Clearly the the 9mm glock platform is also tried and true, there's no arguing that fact.

But...if your strict needs are "killing paper" and HD, HD being the more important of the two if SHTF. Then, I can see why going with .40 makes sense. More stopping power being a high priority and all.

You'll likely find them both manageable at the range in terms of accuracy and recoil. I would suggest you go with the one that you feel you will be able to wield when it matters (i.e. lost motor skills because of adrenalin or being half-asleep if someone breaks in at night).

Whatever you decide to get...practice, practice, practice.

[DIG]

I've had Glocks in 9, 40, & 45. I prefer and have had the most fun with the Glock17 with XS sights. It's cheap to run, easy recoil for quick follow-up shots. Don't get caught up in the internet ballistics debate (9 vs. 40 vs. 45, etc...). Shot placement is key.
Good luck.

-

[faterikcartman]

Glock 22 RTF (rough textured frame) with Glock night sights.

[masayuki]

I shoot my AR at least twice a month and I intend to bring my future glock along with it each time. That is about the amount of practice I will get on a regular basis. That is why I feel comfortable with going for the higher caliber. But I am still entertaining the idea of the G17 because I hear so many people swearing by it. Thanks to everyone so far and more guidance is surely welcome.

[tacticalcity]

First, good choice sticking with a full size frame. The only reason to choose a compact or baby frame is if you are actually going to carry concealed. The smaller frames during actual hardcore training often result in slide bite. This is because there is not enough room on the grip for your entire hand, and when drawing from a holster as fast as you can over and over again your hand naturally wants to creep up until the fatty web of the hand is so high that the slide when moving rubs against it. Doesn't hurt as much as sting for a second. On the compact and baby size Glock slide bite is more a question of how often it happens, and not if it will happen. However on the full size frame it becomes far less likely to ever happen at all.

As for caliber. I used to be a fan of 40S&W. Not so much any more. It is a "snappy" round that has an odd felt recoil. It also has overpressure issues that raise some eyebrows with regards to safety amongst the math geeks. However, mathmatically it has the least amount of actual recoil (different from felt) vs. knockdown power. Many including myself would suggest you feel it more than you should and it is difficult to control, but that is a perceptual argument that does not lend itself well to paper.

I switched to 9mm for my Glock. I wanted speed, and lots of firepower because it fit in well with the kind of training I've been trying to do lately. Which is to say using it as a secondary weapon to my AR. If I am shooting my handgun it is because my AR either ran out of ammo or had a malfunction. So I want as much ammo and as much speed as I can get out of my handgun. I don't want my rate of fire cut in half due to recoil if I actually need a high rate of fire - meaning accurate well placed shots of course. I am a big fan of .45ACP if the firearm is a 1911. But that has more to do with the heritage of the weapon combined with the added weight of the weapon to better absorb some of the recoil. In a Glock, I personally favor 9mm. It is a light weight handgun, and does really well with 9mm ammo.

If this is your first handgun, there is ZERO question. Get the 9mm. Mastering a handgun is difficult enough. The 40S&W will just make it that much harder to reach high level of proficency. Once you've got the basics completely mastered, you can upgrade to a larger caliber. Trust me, mastering the 9mm will be hard enough.

The really good news is that you are choosing the right brand of handgun. Glocks lend themselves very well to being a first handgun and/or a self defense handgun. They are the easiest firearm to master thanks to the way the action and trigger work. For the same reason they are the least likely for you to screw up when under high stress. Sigs, Berettas, H&Ks and even 1911s are all harder to master, and even once you've mastered them the difference between how you perform on a range with them vs. how you will perform under the stress of a real life threat increases. The simplicity of how a Glock functions is key to it being ideal for self defense.

One major downside to Glocks is their sights. That U shapped rear sight mark throws a lot of people off, including myself. It is one of the reasons (in addition to the boxy looks) NOOBS often don't like the Glock. So I ALWAYS uprgrade to Night Sights from either Trijicon or Meprolight. The reason is that the 3-dot system is much easier to use than the standard Glock system, and I am all about making the firearm as easy to master as possible. The glow in the dark feature is great as well and worth the expense. But the main reason is I want 3 dots. For around $125 your local gunstore will both sell them to you and install them. If buying through an FFL without the ability to install them, then check out Cordova Shooting Center in Rancho Cordova just outside Sacramento. They both sell and install them. Don't want to buy them from them? I sell them as do many other vendors on this forum.

[masayuki]

And what is the benefit of RTF? I know nothing about this yet.

[tacticalcity]

RTF is just a different type of texture on the grips. I personally prefer the standard/old style grips. I've never had any trouble gripping them no matter how wet my hands were (I train rain or shine). The rough texture came from the compeition world. Those guys were applying skateboard sand paper type tape to the surfaces of their weapons to avoid any possible slippage during their match. So Glock redesigned their grips to feel like sand paper. My main reason for not liking it is that it cuts up my hands. At the end of a long day of training your hands are rubbed raw.

The new GEN 4 GLOCKS all have an RTF surface. So pretty soon we won't have a choice. Guess our hands will just have to develop thicker skin.

I am also not a huge fan of the built in finger grooves on the Glock. The grooves and the sights are two features I am forced to overlook because the action is so great. I really wish that they had included an interchangable front strap on the GEN 4 GLOCK and not just an interchangable rear strap. I would love to have the new features minus the finger grooves. The grooves on the full size frame fit my hand but the groves on the smaller frames do not even come close.

An interesting aside, the H&K USP already had grips with the rough texture type of surface. I am sure other firearms have used it as well. It is one of the things USP haters complained about back when they came out. Many years later the gun world embraces the concept and everybody starts switching to it. Guess the USP was ahead of its time!

[BamBam-31]

USP checkering is a little more aggressive, and it only covers the front and back straps. RTF is kinda like chickenpox.

[tacticalcity]

The checking on the USP covers the sides. Owned one for many years. There is a small area near the front on both sides without it, but it is a very small area when compared to the amount of surface area covered with the rough surface.

While it might have be more agressive on the USP, it is only just barely more pronounced. The RTF has rubbed my hands just as raw after an 8 hour day of intense training more than once. It is not a major sticking point for me. I am fine using either. I just feel it is worth mentioning it is not the most comfortable grip in the world. Your hands with adapt to it.

If you get a better deal on the GEN 3 (or vice versa) then go with the one that is the better deal. You will not regret the decision either way. Both work great. It is a very minor consideration.

[Glock21sfsd]

Glock 21 SF 45 FTW!!!!!!!!!!

[HCz]

From what I hear, RTF2(used in Gen 3) and RTF used in Gen4 are a bit different. Gen4's RTF is not as sharp as RTF2

[masayuki]

Isn't a Gen 4 out of the question anyway in Cali?

[den888]

Buy a G22, 23 or 27 and also a 9mm conversion barrel and 9mm magazine and you can easily shoot both .40 and 9mm out of the same gun.

[HCz]

Isn't a Gen 4 out of the question anyway in Cali?

Not completely out. If someone has one (inherited, LEO, moved to CA) and wants to sell it you can get one. But they seem to be hard to get.