Early Glocks

G

gyvel

New member
Since the FTE Gen 4 thread was locked, and no one could answer my question, I will ask again in a new thread: Not a big fan of Glocks, but what (if anything) was wrong with Gen 1 Glocks? In other words, has each "gen" corrected some previous problem?
 
doing some research, it seems like there weren't very many made.

Apparently just over 100,000 total pistols made in 9mm only.

They seemed to have issues with cracking frames. The Gen 2's fixed the frame problem as well as upgrading internal parts. I don't know what was wrong with the internal components.
 
Nothing, really. Production increased and so several small changes occurred: captured recoil spring, 2 pin locking block, light rail, finger grooves, magazine bodies, floor plates, followers, etc. The latest generations don't do anything better than the 1st generations except you can attach a light.
 
I purchased a Glock 17 just before the LA riots of the early 90s, shot it a few times and it just left me cold, so I sold it (at a profit:D) during Clinton's AWB.

A couple years ago, I decided to get another first gen 17 and found one at a decent price, but I was never sure if all the "upgrades" were to correct flaws or just to make changes to assuage gripes from shooters.

Glad to know that their are no significant mechanical changes other than the recoil springs.
 
I'm somewhat curious to see how well their polymer is holding up at this age...
some are great, but some have not aged well...

Wish there was a way to quantify all the differences by geographic region...
I'm betting those kept in hot cars suffer more failures over the years ;)
 
Wish there was a way to quantify all the differences by geographic region...
I'm betting those kept in hot cars suffer more failures over the years
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I suspect that the heat is not the issue. It would be exposure to a lot of ultraviolet radiation that would cause problems with plastic. If it were kept on the dash in a hot car, there would be problems, but if out of sunlight, not so much.
 
Slam fire was a issue, TFL 2002 thead. Striker and related parts replaced. I wonder what the former striker looked like. :o
 
Slam fire was a issue, TFL 2002 thead. Striker and related parts replaced. I wonder what the former striker looked like.
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IIRC, the edge of the firing pin stop plunger that goes up in the bottom of the slide would get "peened" to the point it was rounded and not effectively stop the firing pin from going forward when the slide went forward at speed or when it was dropped.

I think that plunger was re-designed.
 
I don't think each revision has been made to fix issues, but some add versatility to the platform filling a role that wasn't originally popular (accessory rail, removable backstraps, shorter reach, single stack designs, etc.). When the Gen 4's were released, many issues not seen in Gen 3's were reported too. My Gen 4 G26 had multiple FTE's at the first range visit, but zero issues in 800+ rounds since then. I chocked my problems up to the tight magazines.
 
I have a gen 2 G19. I wouldnt hesitate to buy another - the early generations are where glocks earned their reputation. IMO, gen2 and gen3 are the way to go.
 
A pretty good question.. I bought my first Glock 17 in 1988 and carried it as a duty pistol throughout '89. That first generation pistol was extremely reliable, especially when qualifying against the 1911's which were popular with my department at that time (in the 1911's defense, the practice ammo we used to qualify with back then was not exactly premium...). It was very accurate and I had no issues with the performance, except... The lightly pebbled frame was extremely slick. When working in the rain or with sweaty hands the gun would shift very easily in the hand. I think the primary reason for the Gen 2 was simply to allow the operator to hold on to the gun more securely.
 
You know you can send the pistol to Glock and they will replace the parts with the exception of frame, slide and barrel.
 
It's not on their dime but still hard to beat. My extractor and parts took flight last month and I was gonna put in a new one till somebody told me just to send it to Glock and let them rebuild it. Also he said it would be just dumb not to get night sights installed for 57 bucks. So mine is in right now. I think it cost me all of 4 bucks to ship the stripped slide in and put 100 of insurance on it. Its pretty easy to live with that and where do you get night sights for 57??????:rolleyes: The whole in out bill and cost should be under 70:D.
Mine has been a heck of a duty piece with nothing but hot ammo put through it qualifying 4 times a year for 15 years. It's seen at least 8 overloads downrange too. Uncle Fed got ahold of a bad batch of Federal hydrashocks and I ended up with some of them in our once upon a time practice issue. You know it when one appears as she rolls right up just like a 44 mag. It blew the extractor the first time but never got loose or showing wear in any way. That's pretty solid by me.
 
stuff

The early grips could be slick, especially if wet as in sweaty hands, heavy rain, etc.

The polymer recoil spring guide rodcould melt, if subjected to rather unrealistic 1000 rd type strings of fire.

The grip could be addressed by stippling, or more simply friction tape. I never worry about melting a guide rod.
 
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