I am considering purchasing the Glock 30 for home defense and a weekend at the range.  Is the .45acp ammo a recommended one or should I go with something else?  This is my first pistol and am not sure exactly what to get, but the 30 feels pretty good in the hand.

The glock 30 is one of the best Home defense, comabt handguns in the world.

It only comes in 45acp.

You could do worlds worse in picking a defensive (and plinking) handgun.

Any specific questions? Fire away.

Is there a better model to get, like the 31?  Where you can change the barrel from .357 to .40, or something like that?  Or is a 9mm a better way to go, and is there really that much of a difference in price in ammo?

I have shot pretty much every model of Glock available in the US. I ended up with a Glock 30 (and later a Glock 21 also). The Glock 30 was ALSO my very first handgun purchase. It was a 21st birthday present to myself. I haven't regretted that purchase for a second (although the lasermax laser sight was a waste of $350.00) Get the G30, a good set of nightsites (Trijicon, etc.) and a good holster (I use a Fobus Paddle). It is an excellent pistol, fits my hand well, has great capacity in a very potent cartridge. The 40's also are nice although I haven't had a lot of experience with them. I did shoot both full size and compact .357 SIG's and found them to have an uncomfortable, sharp recoil. The G27 in .40 S&W shot well as did the G26 in 9mm but I found they were just a little too small in my hand. A G19 in 9mm or a G23 in .40 S&W is about the same size as a G30 if you want a smaller caliber in a frame size that is equivalent to a G30. Hope that helps.

Thanks, that helped out quite a bit.  I am going to a gun show this weekend.  I will try out the G30, 23, and 19.  Not sure which is the better caliber for me, I am thinking the .45.

Try both a Glock 21 and a Glock 30 before you make your decision.  The smaller Glocks (anything smaller than full sized) do not fit my hand as well as the larger ones. And for home defense I'd much rather have a G-21. Its bigger, has a longer barrel (slightly increased bullet speed), better sight radius, better grip and holds 3 more rounds.

As for which caliber of Glock to buy, my first choice is .45.   I like the .45 cal round better than anything else currently on the market.  Tests show that it expands to a larger size than any of other calibers on impact.  .45 works so well that it even performs fairly well when using standard FMJ and JHP ammo (which means that you don't need expensive and hard to come by ammo to defend yourself).  The best part is that I can shoot .45 a little more accurately than the other calibers which I have tried.  

If you don't want a big caliber, then try a 9mm.  .45 and 9mm are the only two pistol calibers that you will ever need.  I suspect that the other calibers were designed by politically correct cops who didn't like the idea of civillians using a military round.  

Keep your supply lines simple, stick with .45 and 9mm and you will never be short on ammo.


-SS