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I’ve always been kind of ambivalent about Glock. I’m aware of and respect their reliability and functionality. They’re also ugly, and others are also reliable and functional. Maybe that shouldn’t matter, but if all else is equal, why not go with aesthetics?
I’d previously shot a 17 and a 43. 17 Was fine, 43 I didn’t care for.
Still, the G19 is probably the most popular carry gun in the country and I write about concealed carry. And maybe I was missing something. So I bought one.
Table of Contents
The basics.
The gun store had two versions: a Gen 3 and a Gen 5. I picked the 5. I preferred the straight grip over the finger grooves on the Gen 3 and it came with three magazines instead of two. Glock mags are pretty cheap so that was a minor consideration, but the grip was the deciding factor.
I’ll probably only carry one spare, anyway. At the range? More is better.
It came with different back straps. I found the one installed to be fine, so I haven’t messed with it. I might try later to see if it makes things better or worse. As I mentioned in a recent article, my range time has been limited lately so I’m holding off on some changes. Although I’m not carrying this one regularly yet, so maybe now would be a good time.
There is also a cheap, plastic cleaning rod and brush in the case. I see that in quite a few new guns lately; I guess it won’t hurt. Also a gun lock that’s in the pile with all the rest.
One of the changes to the Gen 5 is that the front of the slide is beveled more than previously, to make it easier to holster. That’s one of those, it’s so obvious why didn’t come up with this earlier, things.
Mine has the forward slide serrations, which I find pretty useless. I’m not interested in racking the slide from the muzzle end and I don’t press-check. It’s an unnecessary operation to confirm what I should already know. It creates a chance, however slight, that the gun won’t go back fully into battery. That makes it a poor club.
Mine did not come with the slide cutout for an optic, but they are available.
Some of my specs below are not identical to what I see on Glock’s site. I do my own. I have a kitchen scale, calipers, and a Lyman trigger pull gauge. Maybe I’m doing it wrong or maybe my instruments aren’t as precise. But I’d rather give you something I can verify than just take the manufacturer’s word for it.
Specs
- Trigger pull: 5.5 oz, average of five pulls.
- Empty weight with no mag: 21.6 oz.
- Loaded with 15+1: 30.9 oz.
- Width: 1.2″ at the bottom of the grip; 1″ at the slide.
- Height: 4.8″.
- Length 7.2″.
- Barrel length: Um.
It has a 4.02″ barrel, according to Glock. You can see my measurement in the picture below. That’s at the chamber. To get to the 4″ I have to use one of the protrusions that goes past the chamber. It really doesn’t matter, but I thought I’d just point it out.
Glocks are pretty simple.
That’s part of their charm. In my opinion, it’s also part of their reliability.
Taking one down is beyond easy, usually. Clear the gun and pull the trigger. Yes, it used to bother me that pulling the trigger is part of the takedown procedure, but I’ve gotten used to it.
Pull down on those two little tabs on each side, and voila! The slide comes off. Oddly, that’s the part I used to have trouble with. For some reason my brain/fingers didn’t want to move simultaneously. After a little practice it’s pretty easy.
One of the Gen 5 changes is an ambidextrous slide release. I’m right-handed so it probably won’t do much for me. Still, it can’t hurt. I’ve been known to advocate for learning to shoot with your off hand.
Safety.
The most controversial thing about Glocks when they came out was the lack of apparent safety devices, with the exception of that little blade thing in the trigger. I’m not convinced that blade is all that useful, but it doesn’t hurt anything, so why not?
Glock’s safety mechanisms are internal; they’re designed to make sure that the gun won’t go off unless the trigger is pulled. If the trigger is pulled inadvertently, well, that’s on the user.
I’m not averse to manual safeties; I’ve shot enough 1911’s that my thumb sweeps down all the time, whether there’s anything to click off or not. But I’m not exactly scared of the Glock. It’s as safe as I am. I will be taking somewhat more care when holstering than I would a gun with a manual safety, but that’s part of me being safe, isn’t it?
How does it shoot?
As I said before, I hadn’t been to the range lately. When I finally made it back, well, I kind of suck now. I ended up shooting three different guns that day. Which one was I the best with? The Glock. It’s target #2, on the right. That’s 45 rounds.
To be fair, the others were sub-compacts, so that’s advantage Glock. Still, this gun is completely stock. As you can see, it has the dot front sight and the u-shaped rear. Neither are night, just white paint. They’re adequate, but not great.
Just like the trigger. It’s weight and travel are fine, but it’s a bit mushy. I don’t care; great triggers do make accuracy easier to accomplish, but defensive accuracy can be achieved with an average trigger. The more I practice with it the better I’ll get. Just like with everything else.
Reliability matches Glock’s reputation. When I first got it I took it down, cleaned and oiled it, then put it back together. That was the last I touched it for over 500 rounds. It performed flawlessly.
How does it carry?
To be honest, this will be the weak part of the review. Mainly because I only have one holster for it right now and it’s not all that great for concealment: the Blackhawk Serpa.
I have carried it around the house comfortably a lot. I’ve been outside with it at times and it’s pretty easy to carry and conceal if you have a jacket or overshirt.
Still, that’s not how most people carry a G19. I ordered an IWB; keep an eye on this space for the review of that. It will probably be a month or so.
Upgrades.
One of the great things about Glocks is all the aftermarket parts available. You can customize it to your heart’s content.
I have to say that I find it perfectly useful for its intended purpose without upgrades. I will likely leave mine alone, except maybe a light. I’ll have to see. Maybe the sights; I’ve become pretty fond of night sights.
Still, there’s an enormous list available: rockyourglock.com is a good place to start. Sights, grips, frames, lights, lasers, holsters; they have a lot of interesting things there.
Conclusion
As I said, I was pretty ambivalent about Glock. The G19 has convinced me that I was not being completely fair to them. I wouldn’t say that I’m in love or anything, but it’s a reliable defensive pistol with excellent capacity (unless you live in a commie state.)
If that’s what you’re looking for, you can get one at the retailers below.
>> Rockyourglock.com <<
>> Palmetto State Armory <<
>> Guns.com <<
