Do Glocks really go Kaboom...?
- Thread starter Airborne
- Start date
BrokenArrow
New member
Glocks (all guns) do kB. Some, with less case support and thinner chambers (like the Glock 40/357/45) will do it at lower pressure levels, and with more catastrophic results than some with more support and thicker chambers (SIG, HK). That's common sense, not rocket science. BTW, I do know some real rocket scientists, and they agree. 
Glocks (and other guns) have kBd catastrophically (ruptured barrels, cracked slides/frames) with factory ammo in well maintained guns too BTW. Injured LEOs too. Contact the Amarillo Texas PD and Bernalillo County Sheriff's Dept (NM)among others.
I don't think it's worth worrying about as much as some do. I wouldn't. Even the guys I mentioned above don't.
Hey Ben, most cops (according to Win, Rem, Fed LE ammo sales) wouldn't have switched to the 147 9mm, and still be using it, if it wasn't the best, would they?
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[This message has been edited by BrokenArrow (edited March 03, 2000).]
[This message has been edited by BrokenArrow (edited March 03, 2000).]
[This message has been edited by BrokenArrow (edited March 03, 2000).]
Glocks (and other guns) have kBd catastrophically (ruptured barrels, cracked slides/frames) with factory ammo in well maintained guns too BTW. Injured LEOs too. Contact the Amarillo Texas PD and Bernalillo County Sheriff's Dept (NM)among others.
I don't think it's worth worrying about as much as some do. I wouldn't. Even the guys I mentioned above don't.
Hey Ben, most cops (according to Win, Rem, Fed LE ammo sales) wouldn't have switched to the 147 9mm, and still be using it, if it wasn't the best, would they?
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[This message has been edited by BrokenArrow (edited March 03, 2000).]
[This message has been edited by BrokenArrow (edited March 03, 2000).]
[This message has been edited by BrokenArrow (edited March 03, 2000).]
Getting a good aftermarket barrel for your Glock will hedge the bet in your favor.
As we all know, the standard .40S&W Glock barrel has a very loose chamber (very bad) and a huge unsupported 6 o'clock chamber opening (a very bad combination). This is the most ideal situation for case ruptures which is the typical kaBoom! On the other hand, having a thinner chamber wall should not be a problem unless there is a metallurgy defect, which apparently has happened, according to some people.
Also, the standard Glock barrel uses polygonal rifling, which is really the cherry on top, for causing kB!'s. That's because the bullet is squeezed even tighter than a typical standard rifled barrel. Yes! That means pressures can be even greater! This fact, combined with the loose chamber and unsupported 6 o'clock chamber opening, is absolutely the worst case scenario. This is why a Glock will kB before other gun models using the same defective ammo.
A well built aftermarket barrel for your Glock solves all three of these Glock engineering defects. Yes. Even a good aftermarket barrel can blow with a bad factory load or especially with bad reloads, as will any pistol.
I'm currently using a Glock 35 with KKM barrels and it works perfectly in the feeding departement. One reason for the excellent feeding is because I use 357 Glock magazines that were designed specifically for the 357 SIG. If the magazine does its part correctly, then ramming a 9mm bullet into a 10mm chamber is a piece of cake. And the brass is not brutally destroyed as it is with the standard Glock 35 barrel.
As you can see, I have a little disagreement with "Glock Perfection" engineers when it comes to their barrel development I do wish Glock well and hope that they keep making safety improvements. Giving customers the option of a well supported chamber would be quite helpful
cheers,
pete
[This message has been edited by petej88 (edited March 03, 2000).]
[This message has been edited by petej88 (edited March 03, 2000).]
As we all know, the standard .40S&W Glock barrel has a very loose chamber (very bad) and a huge unsupported 6 o'clock chamber opening (a very bad combination). This is the most ideal situation for case ruptures which is the typical kaBoom! On the other hand, having a thinner chamber wall should not be a problem unless there is a metallurgy defect, which apparently has happened, according to some people.
Also, the standard Glock barrel uses polygonal rifling, which is really the cherry on top, for causing kB!'s. That's because the bullet is squeezed even tighter than a typical standard rifled barrel. Yes! That means pressures can be even greater! This fact, combined with the loose chamber and unsupported 6 o'clock chamber opening, is absolutely the worst case scenario. This is why a Glock will kB before other gun models using the same defective ammo.
A well built aftermarket barrel for your Glock solves all three of these Glock engineering defects. Yes. Even a good aftermarket barrel can blow with a bad factory load or especially with bad reloads, as will any pistol.
I'm currently using a Glock 35 with KKM barrels and it works perfectly in the feeding departement. One reason for the excellent feeding is because I use 357 Glock magazines that were designed specifically for the 357 SIG. If the magazine does its part correctly, then ramming a 9mm bullet into a 10mm chamber is a piece of cake. And the brass is not brutally destroyed as it is with the standard Glock 35 barrel.
As you can see, I have a little disagreement with "Glock Perfection" engineers when it comes to their barrel development
I do wish Glock well and hope that they keep making safety improvements. Giving customers the option of a well supported chamber would be quite helpful cheers,
pete
[This message has been edited by petej88 (edited March 03, 2000).]
[This message has been edited by petej88 (edited March 03, 2000).]
Gabe Suarez
New member
Any weapon can have this problem if the ammunition is not of good quality. I own ten Glocks and have never had a problem.
I did have a S&W go "boom" on me once...very exciting, and with factory ammo no less.
On any pistol having polygonal bores (HK, Glock, etc.) I'd stay away from lead ammo. I'd also make sure the ammo was loaded to spec (not some gun show deal). If you can afford it, go with factory ammo. This way, there is a recourse if you have a problem.
If you insist on lead bullets and loading your own, get an aftermarket standard rifling barrel.
I have a good photo of an HK that is broken in two. It wasn't a KB, but its interesting to look at. Its available on the halo group site under newsletter. I think it s isue three - Some Guns Won't Do.
Gabe Suarez
HALO Group http://www.thehalogroup.com
I did have a S&W go "boom" on me once...very exciting, and with factory ammo no less.
On any pistol having polygonal bores (HK, Glock, etc.) I'd stay away from lead ammo. I'd also make sure the ammo was loaded to spec (not some gun show deal). If you can afford it, go with factory ammo. This way, there is a recourse if you have a problem.
If you insist on lead bullets and loading your own, get an aftermarket standard rifling barrel.
I have a good photo of an HK that is broken in two. It wasn't a KB, but its interesting to look at. Its available on the halo group site under newsletter. I think it s isue three - Some Guns Won't Do.
Gabe Suarez
HALO Group http://www.thehalogroup.com
I had a kaboom with a Glock Model 24. It wasn't a bad one as it didn't damage the gun or my hand. I have never shot lead any of my glocks and never will. This was with factory ammo. I own five Glocks but doubt if I well ever buy another. At least not in .40 caliber. You can see the bulge in the web of the cases. I guess I should send this sloppy tolerance gun back to Glock.
"Some manufacturers of 9mm pistols simply rebarrelled, modified the breechface and put in a stiffer recoil spring to develop their initial .40 S&W pistols.
Since the .40/10mm bullet is bigger than a 9mm, the only way to get the .40 to feed reliably was to create an intrusive feed ramp, and possibly an oversized chamber to match. Thus the .40 S&W "Unsupported Chamber" was born. This was a quick and dirty fix by some manufacturers to get to market fast.
Other manufacturers either started from scratch or went through the added expense to redesign their 9's to safely handle the .40 with a well-supported chamber that still feeds reliably. These types of .40 pistols are therefore safer to use, whether you shoot factory ammo or reloaded ammo.
If you want to find out if your .40 has a well supported chamber, then do this: Measure the diameter of the lower, most expanded part of some fired brass. After the first measurement, rotate the brass slightly and measure it again because the brass sometimes measures greater from a certain angle because of the 6-o'clock chamber opening affect. If your brass measures .431
or greater, then your chamber is entering into unsupported territory. Also, put a round into the barrel and look at the 6-o'clock position of the chamber opening. If the thin part of the brass wall is exposed, or too much brass is exposed, you have an unsupported chamber. "Both" of these measurements are important to determine if your chamber is well supported or not. The greatest brass expansion occurs when shooting full power loads. The diameter of fully supported chanber brass usually measures around .427 -.429 for full power loads. The Glock .40 can expand brass as much as .431 .433, which is a huge difference.
Generally speaking, ammo and gun companies don't care about reloading safety and case life. Some of the newer reloading manuals have strong warnings about reloading for pistols with unsupported chambers, especially concerning high-
pressure cartridges.
One positive side effect of Glock's famous unsupported chamber and their marketing omnipresence, is that some ammo companies have beefed up their .40
S&W brass so it has a better chance of surviving when fired in a Glock chamber."
Tom
*Good point on the quote thing. No disrespect was meant to the original authors, I just cut and pasted from my files!
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A "Miss" is the ultimate overpenetration!
[This message has been edited by Banzai (edited March 04, 2000).]
Since the .40/10mm bullet is bigger than a 9mm, the only way to get the .40 to feed reliably was to create an intrusive feed ramp, and possibly an oversized chamber to match. Thus the .40 S&W "Unsupported Chamber" was born. This was a quick and dirty fix by some manufacturers to get to market fast.
Other manufacturers either started from scratch or went through the added expense to redesign their 9's to safely handle the .40 with a well-supported chamber that still feeds reliably. These types of .40 pistols are therefore safer to use, whether you shoot factory ammo or reloaded ammo.
If you want to find out if your .40 has a well supported chamber, then do this: Measure the diameter of the lower, most expanded part of some fired brass. After the first measurement, rotate the brass slightly and measure it again because the brass sometimes measures greater from a certain angle because of the 6-o'clock chamber opening affect. If your brass measures .431
or greater, then your chamber is entering into unsupported territory. Also, put a round into the barrel and look at the 6-o'clock position of the chamber opening. If the thin part of the brass wall is exposed, or too much brass is exposed, you have an unsupported chamber. "Both" of these measurements are important to determine if your chamber is well supported or not. The greatest brass expansion occurs when shooting full power loads. The diameter of fully supported chanber brass usually measures around .427 -.429 for full power loads. The Glock .40 can expand brass as much as .431 .433, which is a huge difference.
Generally speaking, ammo and gun companies don't care about reloading safety and case life. Some of the newer reloading manuals have strong warnings about reloading for pistols with unsupported chambers, especially concerning high-
pressure cartridges.
One positive side effect of Glock's famous unsupported chamber and their marketing omnipresence, is that some ammo companies have beefed up their .40
S&W brass so it has a better chance of surviving when fired in a Glock chamber."
Tom
*Good point on the quote thing. No disrespect was meant to the original authors, I just cut and pasted from my files!
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A "Miss" is the ultimate overpenetration!
[This message has been edited by Banzai (edited March 04, 2000).]
Banzai,
That's very good information. But you probably should have put quotes around it since it came directly from the Steyr M Series Review
With the kB Faq and the Case Failure faq and more evidence coming in about the Glock chamber issue, I just can't figure out why Glock doesn't fix it. Do they hold majority shares in all of the Barrel companies or what <g>
I love my Glock 35. But I would not dream of actually using the standard Glock barrel since it's defective in my book.
Just chant with me, "Aftermarket barrel, Aftermarket barrel, Aftermarket barrel...."
That's very good information. But you probably should have put quotes around it since it came directly from the Steyr M Series Review
With the kB Faq and the Case Failure faq and more evidence coming in about the Glock chamber issue, I just can't figure out why Glock doesn't fix it. Do they hold majority shares in all of the Barrel companies or what <g>
I love my Glock 35. But I would not dream of actually using the standard Glock barrel since it's defective in my book.
Just chant with me, "Aftermarket barrel, Aftermarket barrel, Aftermarket barrel...."
jeffelkins
New member
3K rounds of various factory .40 loads through my Glock 23 and nary a problem.
This is a reloaders issue. If you shoot factory non-lead ammo, it's mainly Internet blather.
This is a reloaders issue. If you shoot factory non-lead ammo, it's mainly Internet blather.