Joined the Dark Side

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nanney1

New member
After 1,000 + rounds on my Shield 9, I decided it was not the gun for me. I just wasn't happy with my accuracy, and I didn't want to add an aftermarket trigger. I liked the size and may revisit with a 2.0 model in the future. I really wanted to like the Shield, but it just wasn't the right fit for me right now.

So, I traded it in at a LGS toward a Glock 19 Gen 4. I had previously tried both the Gen 4 and Gen 5. The finger grooves on the Gen 4 felt good to me. The cut out on the grip of the Gen 5 stung my pinkie finger. So, that was the deciding factor.

I had tried several different guns that I shot better than the Shield: Glock 19, M&P 9 2.0 full size and compact, and Sig P320. Wasn't sure which way to go, so I figured I couldn't go wrong with the Glock 19. Will try it out tomorrow at the range.
 
As soon as I saw the title referencing the dark side I knew this would be a Glock thread!

OP glocks aren't my favorite, mostly just because they do not excite me, but you could do far worse.
 
The force is strong with you.

I have both. The shield conceals easier, but I too prefer the glock. While it's not perfection (sorry glock), my glock 19 does shoot better than the shield.
 
Just wear gloves...and wash good when you get home ....( and handle something made from steel)...and the rash will go away ...eventually....:D

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Actually, while I am no glock fan...or of anything made from poly -- I don't think its a terrible gun, and you're not the first one to have issues with the shields..../ good luck with the new gun.../ I hope it suits you better.
 
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I have both a Shield 9 (1.0) and a Gen4 G19. There's no question but that the Shield carries more easily. That said, if it's not for you, it's not for you. My G19 is what I bought when I needed a jack-of-all-trades pistol, and it was also what took me to The Dark Side. Glocks certainly aren't for everyone, but I sure do like mine.
 
As to the "Dark Side" reference, it's really just a joke based on some of what I've read online. I've never met a fanboy and I'm not sure I would know how to identify one. I have seen one guy locally with a large Glock Perfection decal on the back of his truck. And there was the guy at the range who had a Glock 17. He told the range officer that if the Sheriff's Dept. carried the 17, then he didn't think he should get anything else. The RO, who was a member of the department agreed.

On the other hand, I've found more negativism when talking to store clerks and range officers. Most of them prefer something other than Glock.

And since I conceal carry, and don't tell others that I'm carrying, I rarely have face to face conversations in my daily life about guns.
 
The Glock 19/23/32/38 series are all very Shootable.
I tried a Sub-Compact Gen 4 G27 for a while. It is a great pistol, but was slower to shoot well than the larger Compact G23.
You will like the G19.

A word about the Gen 5 Grip Cut Out. Someone is making a Magazine Floor Plate that fills the hole in. Glock had done away with the cut out on the Gen 3 and Gen 4 Models. Someone must have decided this feature needed brought back to aid in magazine removal during a jam. This is a feature that should have stayed in the history books in my opinion. Bottom line is do not shy away from a Gen 5 just because of the cut out bothering your Pinkey, just get the after market floor plates that fill in the hole, problem solved.

Bob R
 
Well, I was the owner of the Shield 9mm myself for a few years, and it did perform very well. But I too wasn't 100% happy with the accuracy. Probably more me than the gun. But then I got my hands on a Walther PPS-M2 and never looked back. Everything the Shield did, the Walther did better. Gave the Shield to my son as it is still a hell of a fine handgun. I've wanted to like Glocks as I know they too are a very good handgun, but with my small hands they just never fell good when I grip them.
 
I never liked Glocks until my FiL bought one and I shot it a few times. I've bought a G43 and a G22 since then. I don't necessarily love they way they feel in my hand, but I shoot them well.
 
Back from the range with the new G19 and it was.... interesting. First 60 rounds experienced multiple failures: stovepipes, failure to feed, and one time a failure of the slide to lock back on the last round. I was becoming a little frustrated when I realized that I had seen all of these same things happen in a video yesterday. A petite young lady was limp wristing and had all of those issues.

I think I was overly focused on accuracy and wasn't paying attention to my grip. However, I did not have these issues previously with the rental G19's I've used previously. So, maybe some break-in was needed, maybe the ammo was a problem??? Federal 115 fmj that I've never had a problem with before. On the plus side, my accuracy was much improved over the Shield 9mm.

So, I focused on firming up my grip and the G19 performed without issue for the remaining 40 rounds of the 100 round box. Then I loaded up a magazine of my carry ammo, Federal HST 124 and it ran perfectly as well.

Just to be safe, I went and got a 50 round box at the range counter of Sellier & Bellot 115 grain and again, all 50 ran smoothly without any failures. So, it looks like the initial problems were operator error due to limp wristing. Aside from the first 60 rounds, the pistol was fun to shoot. Improved accuracy lends itself to more fun while shooting.
 
Federal (especially Champion) is the most downloaded ammo I've used. Their 115 grain is very weak and barely cycled my new G34. I've since gone to using S&B 115 and 124 grain and this ammo is much better.

Your Glock 19 is a fine choice.
 
After reading around on some Glock forums, it seems the recommendation is to run 124 grain for several hundred rounds before switching to cheap 115 grain range ammo. And that once it is broken-in, then it will run most anything. Seems odd to me but I'll purchase 124 for the next few range trips.

But, I really think the issue was my grip rather than the ammo. Once I got a better hold and firmed up everything, I experienced no failures.

I usually buy the Federal 115 or Winchester White Box at Wal-Mart. I don't know that they carry 124 fmj. My local gun store has Federal American Eagle in 124gr and Magtech Sport 124gr in stock. I may pick up a box of each.
 
My Gen 3 19 shoots every type of ammo beautifully, including Wally’s Fed Champion aluminum cased ammo which you can now get for less than $0.18 a round.

I put a Grip Force Adapter on mine which instantly improved the way this gun points to the target. I highly recommend that you at least try one of these if you have a Gen3 or you could try one of the beavertail adapters that come in the box with a Gen 4 or 5.
 
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JDBerg said:
My Gen 3 19 shoots every type of ammo beautifully, including Wally’s Fed Champion aluminum cased ammo which you can now get for less than $0.18 a round.

I put a Grip Force Adapter on mine which instantly improved the way this gun points to the target. I highly recommend that you at least try one of these if you have a Gen3 or you could try one of the beavertail adapters that come in the box with a Gen 4 or 5.
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What will the beavertail backstrap add? I hadn't considered changing it out. Does it allow for more control, or make for a higher point to move your grip up?
 
There are things about firearms that you hear from other people, then there are things about firearms that you find out for yourself. I place more credence in the latter tha the former. It’s a fact that the aftermarket Grip Force Adapter (GFA) on my Gen3 19 prevents slide bite on the web of my shooting hand. In my humble opinion the GFA does seem to help reduce recoil and get the sights lined back up for follow-up shots, as the beaver tail does seem to lock the gun into my hand a little tighter.

Also, I did let a friend try out my G19. He is an accomplished 1911 and revolver shooter who normally doesn't like the way that Glocks point. He said he liked the way my G19 pointed to the target with the GFA on it.

So if you try out either the Grip Force Adapter on a Gen3 or the Glock beavertail setup on a Gen4 or 5, and it works for you, great. If it doesn’t work for you, take it off & forget it. Learning what doesn’t work for you with firearms is almost as good as learning what does work!
 
I no longer own my Glock, simply because I am getting rid of my poly frame firearms because I prefer metal frames. With that said, if I could only have one 9mm, it would be a Glock 19. IMO I would be hard pressed to find another handgun that can surpass the Glock for doing everything well.
 
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