Posted: 3/3/2004 1:55:07 AM EDT
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I have a Glock (Gen 3) 23. Looking for ideas Curently the only modificaton on the gun is the trigger. I have a 3.5bl connector and a #1 New York trigger. I am concidering night sights. I carry the .23, some of the people at one of the local gun shops recomended some modifications to me: Titanium striker Titanium firing pin safety Extended slide stop lever Night sights Titanium or steel guide rod Some type of after market recoile spring. Some type of afermarket slide cover plate. 3.5lb connector with NY or standard spring. Replacement of factory trigger bar A match grade barrel for better accuracy I was informed that the titanium striker and firing pin safety would give the gun a smoother trigger. They showed me pictures of guide rods breaking, along with some other convincing stuff. I told them this is not a comp gun it is a carry gun. Any recomendatons? If you have how have you modified your Glock? Are night sights worth the money for conceald carry? (all my departments duty guns are equiped with night sights as a requirement). What do you have as far as a trigger configuration? Thanks. |
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1) A GOOD holster and belt. 2) Night sights- YES. XS if you like them. I do. 3) A light. M3 is the best I have tried, GLOCK OEM is ok, Surefire X2000 looks good, but I haven't tried it and it is pricey. 4) Spare mags 5) Lots of ammo and trigger time. The rest is, IMHO, not really helpfull. |
Ditto again...crap like that other stuff tends to make the gun LESS reliable not more. They just want your $$$. |
First, the Glock is a very well designed, reliable gun. You must be VERY careful what modifications (if any) you do to it or you will lower it's reliability. Take all modifications 1 at a time.
Avoid titanium parts in firearms like the plague. Titanium is light and strong but does not stand up well to impacts. The titanium striker will deform and fail to fire and possibly even cause a dangerous situation.
Nothing wrong with these, it's all preference. The "hump" on the extended slide stop lever was actually harder for me to actuate, I stuck with stock. Might be different for you. What I DO like is the extended magazine release. Much easier to do a mag change and keep the pistol on target. These certainly aren't "necessary" for function of the firearm, just your personal preference.
Avoid titanium. Avoid the "progressive" recoil setups for the Glocks as well, they are DANGEROUS. A tungsten or steel guide rod is not a bad idea, plastic was chosen in the Glocks for cost cutting and it does the job for the most part. Yes the guide rods CAN break but it seems to be hit or miss. As for recoil spring choose a well manufactured spring such as the stock Glock, Wolff or ISMI. Since it is .40S&W it is a bit undersprung but not by much. Stick pretty close to stock spring weight which I believe is 18lbs on the G23. A 20lbs spring would probably be ideal.
Nothing wrong with stock, this is BS.
This is all preference. Be WARY (doesn't mean avoid all of them) of 3rd party trigger parts that are not manufactured well or use poor materials. Carefully inspect and strength test any 3rd party trigger parts. Don't want trigger parts breaking.
Depends on what you are trying to do. If minute of torso @ 50yards is ok with you, stick with the stock barrel. If you're trying to shoot competition or from very long distances you might find a match grade barrel useful. Some match grade barrels reduce feeding reliability in dirty conditions. If reliability is paramount you should probably stick with the stock glock barrel. Hope you like your Glock. There seems to be 2 schools of thought on them. One says don't modify it whatsoever because whatever you do will degrade reliability. The other seems to want to slap on every gee-whiz modification that comes out for them and usually ends up mucking up a perfectly reliable, good pistol. I think it's somewhere between. I believe there are certain areas where reliability or "personal ergonomics" could be improved with modifications that do not have a negative effect on the firearm. As mentioned above some of the best items for your Glock would be a good holster, a tactical light, lots of spare magazines and lots of practice. |
| I bought a Glock 35 when they first came out. I had the dealer put Trijicon night sights on it. It was my personal preference as I like 3 dot sights better than the factory sights. I put on a holster in the store and tried the gun in it. I felt that the extended mag release would hit it. So I had the dealer remove it and put a stock one back on. I have put a lot of ammo thru that pistol and never had a problem. IMHO a lot of the stuff they are trying to sell you is CRAP. Clint Smith of Thunder Ranch wrote an excellent article in American Handgunner about BS bells and whistles people put on their Glocks that hurt reliability. |
This is exactly what happened when I used one on my G17 and G21, I went back to the originals. I'd avoid these unless your using a special IPSC type holster and need them for faster mag changes. Mike |
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Titanium firing pin safety Extended slide stop lever Night sights Some type of after market recoile spring. Some type of afermarket slide cover plate. 3.5lb connector with NY or standard spring. Replacement of factory trigger bar A match grade barrel for better accuracy If you're going to use if for carry, you started off right execept not buying a model with night sites. Add a lite if it suites you and that should cover it. The beauty of the Glock is that it doesn't have all the added/extended/customized junk to snag, drag, break, or get in your way when the chips are down. As far as an extended mag release, it doesn't really even help me in my USPSA/IPSC shoots. I'm left handed and on 3 different occasions Ive drawn only to have had hit my mag release on the draw, it looks comical in a competition to see a guy draw, reload, shoot! In a self defense situation, it won't be so laughable... Sly |
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Very odd. My extended mag release isn't all that much more extended than stock. No problems in my holster, drawing, etc whatsoever. My magazine release is pretty darn stiff, it's OK with the extended magazine release but the stock magazine release required me to turn the pistol sideways in order to get enough force on the magazine release to release the magazine. If I could've stuck with the stock magazine release, I would've but that was out of the question with this particular pistol. Like I said, extended mag releases, slide releases, etc. are all preference. I didn't like the extended slide release as I could release the slide easier with the stock one. As for "all" aftermarket parts being "junk", I'd say wrong. The MAJORITY of the glock aftermarket parts are junk but there are certain parts which are better than stock. To say that there is no good way to upgrade a Glock would be the same as saying Glocks are perfect. They are damn good but they are not perfect. Plastic guide rods break, slide stop/take down lever "springs" break on compacts (G19, G23), trigger springs break, pins that go through the locking block break, etc. I think it's funny how the aftermarket parts makers make all this gee-whiz crap but have yet to make a part which addresses a reliability issue other than the steel or tungsten guide rods. And the only reason they made those was so they could sell springs in various weights and market it as heavier for reduced muzzle flip. Why not some higher quality trigger springs and steel locking block pins? |
| I have a G17 the only thing I have bought for it is an extended threaded barrel, that's for a as yet un-purchased Gemtech can and L.I.D. However, there is a M3 Tac-light coming in the mail. After reading the threads posted here though I may try a few of the aftermarket trigger parts to see if there is anything about them that I like. The rest of it......well, I think I'll just buy more ammo. |
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I personally prefer the extended slide release, it makes it 10X easier to use because there is something to actually grip with your thumb i've found it helps me change mags faster and without having to make excessive motions with my left hand while chambering the round, and I wouldn't think it would interfear with most holsters, but double check to be sure for me it is the first and only thing i do to my glocks |
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Nice setup CIB, G17 is as reliable as Glocks come. Low pressure, small round, minimum amount of stresses on a firearm specifically designed to that round. Terminal performance is on par with any .40 or .45cal pistol round. Most G19, 23, 22 won't make it to 20k rounds without a parts breakage. At 40k rounds pretty much all of them have broken a part, some stopping up everything. The majority of G17's are still chugging along nicely at 40k rounds without any breakages. Original design called for a metal guide rod, plastic was used to cut cost. I find it funny that round pressure & recoil is not in the equation for recoil spring weight calculations. Didn't even add the extra locking block pin until .40's started breaking the single one. I'm off to be entertained by looking at pics of high pressure round Glock frame battering. |
| I am going to have night sights installed that is a definate. So What is the life span of a Glock .23 (rounds) at what point should should I surrender it to just range use. I shoot at least 100-200 rounds every 2 weeks sometimes more. I clean it every time I shoot. This is the gun I carry. I am not sure how many rounds I have through it but it is a bunch at least 3000. I had it inspected my an armor that I trust and he informed me that their is relitivly little visiable ware on the gun for the amount that I have been shooting it. He says shoot it till it breaks!! I dont know if he is beaing sarcastic or if he actualy means that. Thanks |
| My G36 is stock. My G21 has a drop in Glockmiester trigger job using a stock trigger spring and a 5lb connector (all OEM Glock parts). I've only added Mepro TruDot night sights and a Tungsen 1pc captured recoil road with a stock spring from Glockmeister (I like it for the additional weight up front). I've also added on the those grip plugs. |
I'm sure he means it. With only a spring or two and maybe a minor part replacement here and there, I'd expect at least 100,000 rounds from the gun. Several G17s have gone close to or over 300,000 well documented factory rounds. Reloads are a different story since they can vary all over the board. |
I find the MRBF of the G23 to be somewhere around 7-8k. The failure is usually "minor". Trigger springs, locking block pins or slide stop/take down lever "spring". If this is a range gun shoot it until it breaks. If it's a defense gun you probably want to replace the springs I mentioned proactively every 4-5k rounds. Don't replace the polymer pins until (and IF) they actually break, they don't fatigue the way metal does. If this is your defense gun I'd recommend switching to the G17 as soon as possible. G19 would still be an improvement if you want to stay compact but it has the same slide stop/take down lever "spring" flaw. I'm in the same boat with a G22. Once my ammunition for it is gone I'm switching to G17. I'm not Glock-bashing I'm just a realist. |
After hearing all the posts about 40 S&W Glocks breaking at 40K, which I don't necessarily agree with...I'd say retire it to "range" use in late April 2014... Just so you have to buy another one. That way you'll have two and it's a nice way of thanking Glock for 10+ years of performance. Sly |
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I am still new to glock this is my first one. I prefer a .45 but I think the 30 is too fat but I might give in and try one and the 36 well I do not know how many rounds does it hold? (pleas not the if you cant stop them with .......). so for some reason I decided to go with the 23. Ok what is the flaw with the stop/take down lever "spring." Is this a problem only with the G23 or is it all of the compacts and subcompacts? Thanks |
I don't know if subcompacts have this problem, I don't think they do but I don't have much experience with the subcompacts. All the compacts I've seen (mostly G23 & G19) have a slide stop/take down lever "spring" that is very thin at one point. This spring often breaks at this point. The spring looks like it's molded into the frame but it is not. It is replaceable. This spring stays a constant, thick width on full size glocks (G17, G22, etc.). Why Glock chose to do this on compacts I have no idea. |
All of them (.40S&W Glocks) have broken SOMETHING at 40k. The vast majority have broken a few times by then. |
Not trying to be argumentative but FWIW.
I'm not sure what the reasoning behind your post is... You quoted me discussing when Silenhunter *should* surrender his G23 to range use. I'm not covering possible small parts breakage in my reply, I'm addressing his concern of having a firearm that he wouldn't trust for carry. Small parts breakage is an acceptable fact of life. That's realistic. However, I would like to post that if anyone should be in doubt... RENT A GLOCK. They're $41.66/month. That's if you pay $500 for a new one and you replace it every year. The best part about that is, you'll accumulate a lot of nice slightly used firearms & always have one you can undoubtedly trust. Sly |
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Small parts breakage IS a fact of life. The acceptability of how often parts breakage occurs depends on your intended use for the firearm. Do I loose sleep at night because I have a G22 instead of a G17? Hell no! Neither should you. But don't buy into the illusion that all glocks will last 40k rounds without a parts breakage just because the G17 does. They don't. |
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Ok, I think I have made my decision I am going to buy a .38 or a .357 magnum, airlight 5 shot snubby. No wate I am going to buy another Glock and I will carry 2 at once. :) Does anybody carry 2 guns as a civilian or off duty Police officer, incase one has a catastrophic failure? I know a few people that cary a glock as their primary and a snubby in the pocket Civilian and Off duty. Any recomendations on brand of night sights? What is the opinion on the G30 & 36? Thanks |
| i have carried a 27 for over 2 years now. The only thing i have done to it is this; meprolite night sights , a stainless steel guide rod and an extended take down. The reason behind the take down is i find it a pain using glocks factory take down and the after market gives me just enough. All that other crap they suggested is nice. I'm sure he wouldd have no problem SELLING it to you. keep in mind he has a business to run. |