GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

DESCRIPTION

Reliability and simplicity have made GLOCK® G17 Semi-Auto Pistol one of the most widely used sidearms in law enforcement worldwide. The GLOCK G17 is a full-size service pistol, shooting the 9x19mm pistol cartridge (9mm Parabellum), a standard military round that’s easy to find ammo for anywhere. The GLOCK 17 is a short-recoil operated, striker fire pistol. The Safe-Action trigger system makes shooting in stressed situations infallible. The main frame of the GLOCK semi-automatic pistol is constructed of high-strength polymer that is resistant to shock, caustic liquids and temperature extremes. The milled steel slide and the barrel are treated with matte black Tenifer finish for extreme resistance to wear and corrosion. The Tenifer treated steel and polymer frame make the pistol impervious to corrosion caused by perspiration and humidity when carried close to the body, or kept in a holster for extended periods of time. The slide cycles on 4 hardened steel guide rails within the frame. An integral accessory rail in front of the trigger guard allows for the attachment of aftermarket tactical flashlights or laser sights. The white-dot front sight and the white-bracket rear sight provide rapid acquisition in dim lighting situations. The rear sight is dovetailed into the slide and is drift adjustable. GLOCK pistols fieldstrip easily without the use of tools. The GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol is an ultra-reliable handgun that is easy to learn how to operate and maintain, making it an ideal choice for self-defense, whether it be fin the field, at home, or on duty. The model G17 comes with two standard 17-round magazines or two 10-round magazines that comply with various city or state restrictions on magazine capacity.

Favored for law enforcement worldwide
Short-recoil operated, striker fire pistol
High-strength polymer frame
Steel slide with Tenifer finish
Safe-Action trigger system
Impervious to corrosion
Integral accessory rail
White-dot front sight
White-bracket rear sight
Fieldstrips without tools
Comes with 2 magazines
GLOCK 17 HANDGUN REVIEW

The Glock 17. What can I say that already hasn’t be said? The GLOCK 17 is currently in its 5th generation and is the oldest of Glock’s pistols. Way back when Gaston Glock was making training grenades and folding shovels, he apparently heard the Austrian Army needed a new pistol, and Glock wanted to toss his hat in the ring. He gathered a group of firearm experts and went to task designing the Glock 17. The Glock 17 ended up winning the trials and became the Austrian P-80. That model is the focus of today’s Glock 17 review. GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

After that, the fate of the plastic fantastic was set in stone, and the gun’s popularity had it spreading like wildfire. This created a storm, and the industry has never been the same. It would be a challenge to find a major firearm company that doesn’t produce a striker fired, polymer frame 9mm pistol. Glock makes similar pistols in many different calibers.

The Glock 17 set the bar high and continues to do so to this day. Today we are going to be reviewing the Glock 17 MOS. This Gen 4 Glock is their first optics ready platform, but how does it hold up?

GLOCK 17 REVIEW: OVERVIEW

The Glock 17 is a full-sized handgun, and is typically used for duty use with police and military units. The gun’s simple but rugged design has made it a police favorite around the world, as well as the favorite of American Spec Ops forces and militaries across the globe. The Glock 17 offers a high capacity and a full-sized frame but still tends to be a very light pistol overall. It’s slim enough to fit into most smaller safes, including the biometric variety.

The Glock 17, by its nature of being a Glock, is undoubtedly carried by plenty of concealed carriers. The design is so popular it’s hard to pigeonhole this gun. This specific MOS model is popular for competition, and the addition of an optic opens up all sorts of possibilities for our Glock 17 review.

SPECIFICATIONS

Barrel Length – 4.49 inches
Overall Length – 7.95 inches
Width – 1.26 inches
Height – 5.47 inches
Weight – 24.87 ounces
Capacity – 17

The Glock 17 is far from a small gun, but it is surprisingly light for its size. Glock has mastered cutting weight well, and this gun weighs nearly half a pound less than something like the CZ P-09. That’s an impressive feat to accomplish. The factory magazine capacity for the Glock 17 is 17 rounds, but 10 round magazines exist for states with magazine restrictions, and extended 24 and 33 round magazines are also OEM produced.

FEATURES

Gun owners know the Glock 17 as a spartan gun. It has everything it needs to be a functional firearm, and that’s it. The gun is equipped with a rather odd rail that’s not exactly Picatinny but will accept accessories designed for pic rails. The sights are disappointing and just plastic. The front sight features a white dot, and the rear sight features a white U Notch. On the Gen 4 models, they made the magazine ejection button a little larger, and included for the first time are backstraps to change the size of the gun’s grip. They included two standard backstraps and two that come with an extended beavertail.

Personally, I like the idea of a beavertail, but the add-on grip feels too large and not very comfortable for me, and I have big hands. The biggest standout feature of this particular model is the MOS system. The Modular Optics System is an optics cut and a series of plates designed to give shooters the ability to mount a variety of different optics to their Glock pistols.

Usually, when you cut a Glock slide to fit an optic, you are now dedicated to using one optic from one company on that gun. With the MOS system, you can interchange different plates to accommodate close to a dozen different companies. Aftermarket companies have even released their own plates to accommodate new optics like the SIG Romeo1.

The system is easy to use and allows you to use affordable optics from companies like Burris or professional-grade optics from companies like Trijicon and Leupold. While the system has never let me down, it does add a layer of complexity and a potential weak point by having multiple plates and multiple screws. It also mounts the optic slightly higher than most common purpose cut slides. GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

FIT AND FINISH

Glock has mastered the Tenifer finish. Their finish is very strong and very durable. The majority of police forces in the United States utilize Glocks, so they know a thing or two about a tough and capable finish. The Glock’s finish works, and always has for me. It doesn’t fade, or scratch easily, and rust doesn’t even think about the Glock.

The gun’s roll marks are simple. It has a small Glock logo, the model and generation number, the country of production and caliber. It’s all small and written on one side of the slide. It’s professional, good-looking, and spartan in design. The spartan design seems to be Glock’s bread and butter.

ERGONOMICS

The Glock Gen 3 and 4 grips have always been a sore spot to me. The angle is okay, but that’s not my main issue—it’s those blasted finger grooves. I’m not sure whose hand they molded them on, but it wasn’t mine. I’ve never cared for them and really liked the Gen 5’s lack of finger grooves. GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

There is a thumb divot built into the frame which is nice and comfortable and allows you to assume a nice tight grip. Speaking of thumbs, the Glock 17 has the slide lock in a very easy to reach place. Even though the thing is tiny, it is easy to reach. Maybe too easy for my fat thumbs. Like a lot of SIG’s when I assume a thumb’s forward grip I have issues with my thumb holding the slide lockdown, which creates problems with the slide locking back on the last round.

Another problem I have when firing is the amount of slide bite I get from the Glock. After a hundred rounds I’m bleeding, which isn’t very pleasant. Installing the beavertail would help, but now the grip feels uncomfortable and odd. It should be noted my hands are large, a 2XL glove large, and this won’t likely be a problem for you. GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

The gun only has rear serrations, and the stippling on the grip is remarkably simple but effective. A lot of guys take a soldering iron to the grip to improve it for some reason, and I’ve never noticed a need for extra stippling on my Glock.

There are no additional manual safeties on the gun, just the trigger safety, firing pin block, etc., making this a much simpler Glock 17 review. The G17 is a simple design that’s made with combat in mind and performs as such.

ON THE RANGE

The big selling point of this gun is the Modular Optics System, so I reviewed the gun with a Burris Fastfire 3 mounted. The Burris Fastfire is an affordable but well-made optic I use for fun and long-range shooting. It’s not exactly a duty grade optic, but it’s a quality one.

The Glock 17 is a full-sized gun with a full-sized grip, and that makes controlling the weapon easy. Muzzle rise is minimal, and the gun is easy to control in rapid-fire. The Glock’s trigger is okay, not terrible, but for a duty pistol, it is more than acceptable. It’s a bit gritty, a little heavy near the end, but completely acceptable for accurate shooting.

I did change the trigger on mine to a Suarez flat face trigger. When shooting a ton of rounds through the gun I find my finger rubbing on the trigger guard, creating some pinch and rubbing my finger. The addition of a flat-faced trigger solved this problem for me.

The red dot sight opens up your ability to reach out and touch a target and to do it rather fast. The red dot reticle is smaller than a front sight, and it’s quicker than aligning front and rear sights. The farthest I can go at my personal range is 75 yards, and with the Glock 17 MOS, I can easily place all of my shots into the torso and mostly place them all in the chest. On my small steel popper, I can hit it more than 50% of the time at 75 yards.

The size of the dot makes a difference. It’s smaller than the front sight so I can see my target better and therefore aim better overall. Being able to fully see what I’m hitting makes it easier to focus my shots.

The addition of a red dot sight and the controllability of the Glock makes it easy to transition between targets rapidly. Multiple targets are easy to engage, and you can do it with precision. Accuracy at long range is one thing, but rapid-fire accuracy is another, and the Glock has it. GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

You can produce very small and tight groups with the Glock if you take your time and excel with the fundamentals. The Glock 17 MOS is plenty accurate. Best of all, it’s incredibly reliable. The Glock 17 for sale doesn’t stutter or fail.

My main problem with the gun is that, as an optic’s ready pistol, it should come with suppressor height sights to co-witness with your optic. Instead, Glock just tosses on their standard crappy pistol sights. This is possibly the biggest issue I have in this Glock 17 review, and will be a huge issue in other Glock reviews as well.

GLOCK 17 REVIEW: RATING EACH CATEGORY

Looks: 3 out of 5

This thing is as sexy as a Toyota Camry. It doesn’t look bad, just plain and very blocky. Sure, the simplicity of the design is great, and looks aren’t the most important part of the design. The small markings are great and don’t make the gun look like a billboard, which I appreciate. GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

Ergonomics: 3 out of 5

The gun is functionally ergonomic, but I wouldn’t call it the “be all end all” of ergos. The grip grooves suck, and the slide bite and trigger finger rub is a real problem I have with the gun. The controls aren’t terrible, but they aren’t perfect either. Many beginners love the Glock for its simplicity and reliability right out of the box.

Accuracy: 4 out of 5

Accuracy rates a very high 4, and as a duty pistol with a red dot sight, it’s one of the most precise and accurate duty pistols on the market. The sights suck, but admittedly the red dot optic is the main draw of the gun when it comes to sighting systems. It comes second to precision made pistols, but remains perfect for combat and duty use.

Reliability: 5 out of 5

The Glock 17 for sale has been proven around the world for its top-notch reliability and dependability. In my hands, I’ve never had this pistol so much as fail to fire. The simple design lends itself well to reliability, and in my experience, the gun has no issues dealing with sand, water, mud, etc. It just runs and runs well.

I’ve heard of issues with the MOS platform becoming loose after firing tons of rounds, but have not experienced this myself. I do Loc Tite my optic and plate down. GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

Customization: 5 out of 5

I don’t think there is a handgun in existence that has the customisability of the Glock series of pistols. Maybe the 1911, maybe. You can find half a dozen different manufacturers of magazines, dozens of different triggers, sight options, and more. This pistol can be customized to a ludicrous degree. It can be whatever you need it to be. Hell, you can even turn it into a rifle.

Price: 4 out of 5

For an optics ready pistol, the Glock 17 MOS is very well priced. It can be found for under 600 bucks at most retailers, and it comes with 3 17 round magazines and 4 backstraps. The Glock series of pistols have always been affordable guns, and continue to be as the guns change in generation and features.

GLOCK 17 REVIEW: PARTING SHOTS

The Glock 17 MOS is a fantastic optics ready pistol. The gun is a reliable, accurate, and modular platform. The G17 exemplifies everything a modern duty pistol should be. The MOS system is brilliant, and I’ve yet to encounter any serious issues.

That being said, Loc Tite is your friend. The Glock 17 MOS is the perfect choice if you are new to optics ready pistols and want to experiment with the concept.

Gun Review: GLOCK 17 Gen 4

GLOCK 17 Gen 4 Review

GLOCK is the single most popular manufacturer of handguns in the United States. Thanks to a marketing department that could sell bayonets to millionaires and billionaires, GLOCK’s brick-like semi-automatic pistols are universally recognized, glamorized and immortalized. Just ask 2Pac. Oh wait. I’ve avoided GLOCKs due to their association (in my mind) with Tupperware. After resisting GLOCK’s plastic fantastic siren song for more than a decade I finally decided to see if GLOCKs are all that and a bag of chips. So I asked, and I received and I shot the ever-loving crap out of GLOCK’s standard duty model: the venerable GLOCK 17.

This is the handgun that launched the style [that should have come to be known as] Glockhaus. The gun’s bare bones ballistic minimalism offers no frills, no extraneous machining. Just the things you need and nothing you don’t. It’s the firearms equivalent of Dragnet – just the facts, ma’am. GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

In that sense, the GLOCK 17 stands in stark contrast to the sexy, stylized look of the Smith & Wesson M&P. Or the Springfield XDm. Or any 1911 on planet Earth. Let’s face it: the GLOCK 17 is ugly. I mean, if the M&P is to guns what Sarai Givaty is to a white tank top, the GLOCK is what Bee Arthur is to the string bikini these days, if you can imagine that. OK, maybe you shouldn’t.

If GLOCK’s detractors could bring themselves to stare at Gorgon’s gun for more than thirty seconds, they’d see that Gaston’s mob have incorporated a ton of well-hidden, well-placed features within the Glockhausian aesthetic. The best of these: the loaded chamber indicator.

On other guns of this type, the loaded chamber indicator is blatantly obvious. The Springfield XD’s sticks up the top of the slide and looks rather jagged. For the Smith & Wesson, it’s an obviously drilled hole in the top of the chamber. GLOCK has smartly hidden its loaded chamber indicator on the extractor, adding a little metal job that’s flush with the slide when empty and angles out when loaded. It’s perfectly placed for a quick trigger finger check, exploiting a pre-existing feature instead of adding a purpose-built part.

Other little things stick out (so to speak) too, indicating intelligent engineering. For example, the chamber in the barrel fits flush and snug to the cutout in the slide, making for a smooth and continuous surface along the top of the gun. While it doesn’t improve accuracy or combat effectiveness, the design feature shows some careful thinking which, one hopes, carries through to the gun’s internal parts. GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

GLOCK takes a lot of heat for that Perfection motto. It reminds me of legendary football coach Vince Lombardi’s take on the subject: “Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence.” Judging from the GLOCK 17 G4, the chase is still on.

The G17’s safety action trigger provides a small amount of predictable, uniform slack up to a wall-like breaking point. The break itself is a little mushy. Never mind. The reset’s the thing.

After ignition, the G17’s trigger resets close to the breaking point with a SNICK that can be heard clear across a crowded gun range, ear pro or no. Well almost. But you sure can feel it in your finger and that’s a good thing, allowing rapid, positive and purposeful follow-up shots.

Compared to similar polymer framed pistols, the GLOCK’s go pedal isn’t the worst on offer. It’s not the best, but it certainly isn’t the worst. The 17’s trigger was designed for the masses, balancing safety with accuracy — tilting dramatically towards safety. More advanced shooters can choose from a wide variety of aftermarket trigger parts that will reduce and smooth-out the 17’s 5.5 lbs. trigger pull. GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

Number two on the list of gripes: grip texture. I get that it’s a duty gun; GLOCK prioritized firearm retention. But the average shooter will find it a tad uncomfortable. Shooters with massive paws (e.g., me) have other issues: the ridges on the front strap of the grip don’t line up with my digits. In Glockland, it’s adapt or die.

Gripe number three: plastic magazines. They’ve proven to be tough as nails and stand up to abuse just as well as any other magazine, but they’re considerably bulkier than their metallic brethren and, historically, their light weight and slightly rougher exterior has kept them from dropping free from the gun when you hit the mag release.

OK, their latest incarnations do drop free. But I’ve seen older mags sticking around where they’re not wanted (the magazine well of your gun) enough to color my opinion.

It’s easy to see why the masses migrate to Gaston’s gizmo. Thanks to the 17’s thick grip, the gun’s relatively low bore axis, its 4.49″ barrel and the fact that the pistol fires the most manageable of “serious” calibers, the 17’s recoil is not an issue. Newbies would find it downright comfortable, even. More experienced shooters will not be surprised to learn I was keeping about a 1 inch group at 15 yards, with one flier out of 5 rounds.

The GLOCK’s positive trigger reset makes it possible to “ride” the trigger and unleash lead at a furious clip. The GLOCK’s much (and I’d say unfairly) maligned factory sights — a “U and dot” style setup — make getting on target and accurately putting rounds downrange as easy as finding a GLOCK hater at a 1911 convention. FTFs? FTEs? As John McEnroe said, are you serious? Whatever else you can say about the G17, whatever was said about early spring issue-related failures, this gun just worked.

But not for me, exactly. I’m not saying the GLOCK 17 is uncomfortable, it’s just not perfectly sized to fit my hand. I’m sure there are people (millions, apparently) for whom a GLOCK is the gun they feel comfortable having and holding in good times and in bad. Anyway, there’s no denying that the GLOCK 17 is a solid shooter that gets the job done in terms of putting rounds downrange where you want ’em. GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

Despite my gripes, the GLOCK 17 is a downright solid handgun. It’s reliable, built like a friggin’ tank, and has some pretty darn attractive features. It handles well, has tons of aftermarket mods and a booming accessories market to keep new GLOCK owners well stocked with various and sundry add-ons. It works, and for the money it’s a pretty good buy.

Specifications:
Caliber: 9mm Parabellum
Barrel: 4.4″
Overall: 7.7″
Weight: 22.04 oz. empty
Capacity: 17 (factory) / 19 (flush aftermarket) / 33 (lolwut)
Price: $500 retail

Ratings (out of five stars):

Accuracy: * * * *
Somewhere slightly south of Wilson Combat territory, and nowhere near Hi Point land.

Ergonomics (Handling): * * * *
For the most part its pretty good, but the grip just doesn’t do it for me. There are inserts available to change the size of the grip for larger hands. Unfortunately no interchangeable front straps for those finger grooves. GLOCK G17 Semi-Auto Pistol

Ergonomics (Firing): * * * *
A bit of mush in the trigger, but overall very enjoyable.

Reliability: * * * * *
There has been video after video of these guns being abused, and lasting throughout the entire ordeal in perfect working order. GLOCK wasn’t about to let me do anything drastic with my loaner, but I take the word of the dozens (hundreds?) of people who have tried to break theirs.

Customization: * * * * *
I’m pretty sure there’s a rail mountable candelabra somewhere designed to work with a GLOCK.

Overall Rating: * * * *
Good? Definitely. Possibly even great. Just not perfect.