Glock 17 for the first handgun

My first carry gun was a Glock 19. Bought back in the late 90's, no generation back then.

There were already 2 generations by then, gen 1 and gen 2.
The gen 3 started in 1998.
(Gen 1 glock 19's are extrememly rare but they did exist)
 
OP, the Glock 17 is a great first handgun. Don't know why some people are pushing Shield, Glock 19 and other smaller guns. The OP said he is a "big dude" therefore, he should be able to grip the G17 nicely.

I would also suggest the Glock 34 which is the same frame as the Glock 17 but with longer slide/barrel, lighter trigger and adjustable sights. This gun would be great for home defense and the range.
 
A 17 is a great choice ... Light recoil .. accurate.. Inexpensive practice ammo .. Great selection of self defense ammo ..
I own a Vickers tactical Glock 17 .. I have a safe full of pistols ... This 17 is my home defense pistol .. My wife also shoots it well ..

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I am not a gun expert like I'm sure many of you are, I own several guns but I'd say my trigger control has never been great simply because I never payed attention. Recently I started trying to learn this craft instead of just owning a gun and I recently bought a G17 gen 5. The trigger in my inexpert hands is very good compared to some of the other guns I own so I'd say the trigger has probably improved since the gen 4 because if the trigger were bad I'd not be able to shoot this gun well, and I shoot it better than any other guns I own.
 
Great choice...or a G19...get some instruction from a first rate outfit...and if you plan to use in for defense, on the hip or on the night stand, change out the issued sights for Glocks version of tritium night sights...cheap if you do it when you buy the gun initially. Best Regards, Rod
 
Just a point on hollow points in NJ: as another poster said they are verboten, but Hornady Critical Defense is perfectly fine and actually a pretty good choice regardless of restriction.
 
Limited to 10 rounds, I (personally) would look into a 1911 or Browning Hi Power.
I'll assume you mean a 9mm 1911 (I have two), and they're great shooters. But there's this:

• Most of them are heavy (exception for aluminum frames).
• They're absolutely convoluted to field-strip and reassemble compared to a modern gun.
• A good one is expensive, maybe twice as much as a Glock.

I agree that a 10-round mag mates well with a narrow single-stack grip, but I'd never start anyone off with a 1911. My first handgun was a Glock 19, for what that's worth. A Glock 17 (or one of its direct competitors, like an S&W M&P9 or a SIG P320) would be great, smart choices that the original poster is very unlikely to regret.
 
I’ve had my Gen3 Glock 17 since 2009, I got it when the GSSF indoor league started at an LGR when I lived back east, and we were having too much fun when the non-Glockers complained to the owner of the place and that was the end of the league.

While there isn’t anything man-made that can be called “perfection”, there also isn’t anything wrong with these guns that about 12K rounds of live-fire practice can’t fix-LOL! This one has a Hogue grip sleeve and a Grip Force Adapter and I’ve had the striker engagements polished a while back, and I like the GL9 Magpul mags for the 17 (and the 19).

The best defensive & competitive shooters I personally know have a least a 17 & a 19 sitting in their safes, when they are not carrying them, training with them, or competing with them. The Glock 17 works for me, and if it works or doesn’t work for somebody else, that’s OK also.
 
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Glock 17's are a great choice if you don't intend to try to conceal carry. If youhave a shooting range available where you can rent guns try out a few other guns. Some of my favorites in 9mm are:

CZ 85 Combat (if they don't have one rent a CZ-75). These are all-steel guns and are very accurate and have a great DA/SA trigger. If you aren't comfortable with DA pistols or safeties stick with the Glock. If they don't have a CZ rent a Browning Hi-Power 9mm as others have mentioned.

1911 in 9mm. Try a .45 ACP too if you haven't shot that round and you are a big guy, you might like it. It is not snappy and recoil is more of a solid "push". Since you are limited to 10 rounds anyway, might as well make them big rounds.... Again, this gun is a SA design. With a grip safety and slide safety. Pick the gun you shoot best and then learn how it works.

Glock 21 - .45 ACP Glock. One of my favorite guns. I am as accurate with it as I am with my 1911. Glock 19 if you like the grip size and like 9mm. Lots of cheap .40 Glock 22 trade-in's as well if you shoot, and find you like .40 S&W.

Personally, the gun I keep locked up next to my bed is the Glock 21. If I want to go to the range I like the 1911 or the CZ-85. Or buy a shotgun....
 
Glock is a good choice, FWIW I have a 26 (baby Glock) and a 21 .45. I bought a Springfield XD in .45 but wished I had got the 21 all along, now I have it and the XD just sits.
Glocks are simple to use and simple to clean, also they're the easiest pistol in the world to detail strip. My Beretta 92 is more accurate, and has a safety, which I like - but I have the aftermarket "Siderlock" safety (puts a safety button on the trigger) on both of em. Most Glock "loyalists" are strongly against any kind of safety on their Glock, and I can see their point... but I like having the option of being able to safe the gun with a round in the chamber.

The only thing I did that I'd recommend others to get, for their Glock is the extended slide lock/disassembly latch. It is cheap and very easy to swap out. And after spending too much time fumbling with the OEM latch, it makes taking the gun apart much much easier.

http://glockparts.com/Products.aspx?CAT=5205
 
VP9.

All the qualities of the 17 while improving on all the negatives of the 17. The size difference is not worth not going VP9.

The G19 has the attributes of being one of the smallest "compacts."

Glock gives you the Safe system.

Otherwise the VP9 will feel better to 10 out of 10 people, the trigger is better. Even if it didn't make it shoot better, the experience will feel better.
 
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First handgun? Something chambered in .22 long rifle. Once you master that, your first centerfire handgun should be something with a manual safety, so that rules out a Glock. After a few years, and 10K rounds of training, then, maybe, a Glock.
 
Hopefully by now the original poster has been shooting a few years and has 10k plus rounds under their belt and can enjoy the Glock 17
 
My daughter has been shooting a G17 in USPSA since middle school. We had a local guy (Glock sponsored) rework the trigger and everyone who's shot it agrees it's one of sweetest they've ever handled.

I have always emphasized being able to pick up anything and be competent.

We regularly practice blind drills with everything from her Shield and my G43, up to a 1911. She has much smaller hands than me and has no issue. I also have no issue handling the compacts with my slabs of meat. I compete with an (original) XD and we regularly swap out for a match just for variety.
 
Zombie thread alert.
But I see nothing wrong with a Glock as a first handgun. We don't make people learn to drive in a three on the tree straight six, no reason not to learn with a modern handgun.
 
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