Glock 17L

3

357ALLDAY

Inactive
Hey all,

I recently purchased a Glock 17L and it's failing to feed the second round (first round in the magazine) on a regular basis. I tried downloading the 17 round mags to 15 and I had no further failures. I've never had a problem with my 26, 19, 23 or 17.

I called the best customer service in the gun industry (yes, sarcasm) and Glock told me to try heavier loads than 115gr. I didn't know perfection required a special load in their guns (more sarcasm). I was using American eagle 115gr and PPU 115gr with factory new Glock mags.

After reading other posts I noticed that some guys have had good luck by switching to 15lbs recoil springs from Wolff in their Glock 34s. I ordered the guide rod and spring kit from brownells today. I'll post back when I test the gun in a few days. I like glocks but prefer Sig's or Ruger's customer service. I had problems with a Sig P224 a while back and they fixed it ASAP and paid shipping both ways.
 
It could just need the slide slicked up some. A weaker spring would allow freer motion back until it wears in and self slicks up.
 
I've put about 400 rounds through the gun and plan on trying again once I get the new recoil spring. If that doesn't work, I'll call Glock again and see if they'll take care of the problem.
 
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357ALLDAY Hey all,

I recently purchased a Glock 17L and it's failing to feed the second round (first round in the magazine) on a regular basis.
Does it happen with multiple magazines?

Are you hitting the slide lock lever with your thumb? that's pretty common with what you describe.

I tried downloading the 17 round mags to 15 and I had no further failures. I've never had a problem with my 26, 19, 23 or 17.

I called the best customer service in the gun industry (yes, sarcasm)
Why sarcasm? I've never had a problem with Glock customer service. They fix it free for life and return it quickly. Few others do that. and Glock told me to try heavier loads than 115gr. I didn't know perfection required a special load in their guns (more sarcasm)
Light loads cause problems in many guns....but it isn't just the bullet weight, it's the powder charge.
. I was using American eagle 115gr and PPU 115gr with factory new Glock mags.

After reading other posts I noticed that some guys have had good luck by switching to 15lbs recoil springs from Wolff in their Glock 34s. I ordered the guide rod and spring kit from brownells today.
Aftermarket guide rods are the #1 source of problems in Glocks.

I'll post back when I test the gun in a few days. I like glocks but prefer Sig's or Ruger's customer service. I had problems with a Sig P224 a while back and they fixed it ASAP and paid shipping both ways.
Sig? They shipped me the wrong gun twice in the last week! Last Monday, customer had sent back a P238 that had the finish flaking off. Sig offered to let him "upgrade" to a 938..........and when I opened the box there was a heavily used Mosquito in the box.

Last night it was a replacement 938.........but Sig shipped the wrong finish.

I'll take Ruger or Glock CS any day over Sig.
Click to expand...

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Yes it's happened with two magazines that work just fine in a gen 4 Glock 17. I guess I'll have to call Glock back once the after market recoil spring malfunctions. So far not impressed with their customer service. This is just my opinion.

I would say it's not my grip because I've had no issues with my Glock 26, 19, 23 or 17 and it only happens on the second round. The ejection is very weak too. The spent casings sometimes land on my left arm.
 
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Is the slide and barrel well lubricated where those 2 meet up?

I have one of these and it was a little finicky at first. My other Glocks I could run practically dry without issue, the 17L likes the barrel and slide to be well lubricated.

115's will work just fine. It cycles the slide far enough enough to eject and try to grab a new round, if the mag fully loaded is putting up just enough resistance when the slide tries to strip the next round that it causes an issue until you get a round or two out of the mag. Is it the same mag or different mags that have this issue. Are they brand spanking new? If they are new I would load them up with 15 rounds, let them sit for a day like that. That should help break in the spring enough to not cause that issue.

Aftermarket rods/springs are fine and dandy but the stock spring will work for most ammo. Maybe the spring just needs broken in a touch more, try locking the slide back for a few days. If you have a dry lube spray give the spring/rod a quick spray.

I would try that before dropping money on parts that may not even be necessary.

Right after I posted my original reply I saw your newest post about weak ejection. That really sounds like really weak ammo. Have anything other than el cheapo plinking rounds laying around, something like SD hollowpoints? Try those out and see how the ejection is. Its possible something is wrong with the gun but some of the things you've mentioned sound like an ammo issue along with the mag springs needing to get broken in a little more.
 
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Thank you for the feedback. I've cleaned the gun twice with ballistol and make sure the barrel and slide have a thin coat of ballistol throughout the internals.bbi also make sure the rails are greased with shooters choice or tw25. I believe it's also weak ammo since it only happens when the mags are fully loaded.

I've left the slide locked a couple of day now and I'm going to do the same with the mags. One mag is brand new and the other had about 500 rounds through it. I'll try some of my older mags next time. I have some 124 gr hollow points that I could use. I'll give them a shot but I want this gun mostly as a range and non sanctioned competitions at my local range. Nothing serious but it would be nice to know that I have a reliable firearm that will work with weak 115gr ammo like the rest of my glocks and sigs.
 
I think once the mag springs break in a little you should be fine. If you only load 15 rounds the feeding issue doesn't occur right?

Same goes for the recoil spring, once it breaks in a little bit more you should see a slightly better ejection.

Weaker ammo unfortunately does things that can make a normally reliable gun seem like its having issues. The longer barrel while great for potential velocity increases also changes things. More room for the gases to expand before generating enough pressure to cycle the slide. Weaker ammo may act erratic as far as ejection goes while hotter loads will give a consistent ejection pattern.
 
whenever I have ft feed issues , it is inevitably the ,magazine that is at fault,try a different one. if I am right, them load the faulty magazine up and leave it in the safe for a couple of weeks----problem solved
 
That's right. It doesn't happen when the mags are loaded with 15 rounds. Thanks guys. I'll give that a shot. I just wish Glock would disclose that information up front.
 
Hey all,

I put about 300 rounds through the G 17L today and only had one failure to eject. I left the slide retracted for 3 days. I used the same ammo (PPU 115gr) and seemed to be ejecting the rounds much more positively. I guess it just needed to be broken in a little more.

I'll try to take it back out next week and see how it does then.
 
Im betting on an ammo problem. Rounds 16&17 are being pushed up against the bottom of the slide with sufficient pressure to slow the slides travel. Lower powered ammo might not have sufficient recoil to force the slide back against the full mag.

Downloading a cpl rounds reduces the upward pressure and the gun runs fine. Try some hotter ammo and i bet the problem goes away.
 
ours

Bamaboy had a fixation of the 17L, to the point that he found one and we bought it. He had issues with it in his first match, and was pretty glum. I wasn't there to diagnose, but had a good idea it was slide velocity/ammo related and a pistol that was not yet sufficiently shot in.

I increased the load from 5.3 grains Unique, (our G17 and G34 load) to 5.5, and he shot the gun some more, and it has done much better. My own belief is that the longer slide has more mass and needs a stiffer load. Working for us.
 
I think the ammo issue is related to the makers and reloading publications not using the G17L as a test gun. Or Glock did not tune the RSA (recoil spring assy.) specifically for the 17L.
 
I briefly owned a 17 L in 1994.
It was reliable in operation with the ammo I was loading at the time. I have no record of shooting any brand of factory load in it.
 
> I didn't know perfection required a special load in their guns <

LOL - excellent.

>I put about 300 rounds through the G 17L today and only had one failure to eject. I left the slide retracted for 3 days. I used the same ammo (PPU 115gr) and seemed to be ejecting the rounds much more positively. I guess it just needed to be broken in a little more. <

I got a new G19g3 about 2 months ago and had 3 FT feeds in the first 27 rds. (115g rds. w/ the mag only loaded w/ 5.)

I left the the receiver locked back over night and the mags loaded up - the problem went away with next 473 rds. having no stoppages.

The only handgun I have experience with that has had -0- problems is a czp01 I bought new about 10 months ago. 792 rds. (a mix of: new brass; commercial reloads; aluminum cased; 115g,124g,147g).

Glocks are reliable, but in my limited experience, not quite as reliable as my czp01.
 
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I received my Wolff stainless steel guide rod and 15# recoil spring. I'll be taking the gun out tomorrow for another test run. I also forgot to mention that I ended with a few pieces of brass to my face during the last range session (has not happened with my other glocks). We'll see if the theory that the factory RSA is too heavy for bulk 115gr ammo is true.
 
I ran another 250 rounds through the gun with the new recoil spring and guide rod from Wolff without problems. I also shot some hollow points and wolf ammo and it functioned flawlessly.
 
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