I might have an opportunity to pick up a used Glock 21 (Full size .45acp).  I was wondering if any of you have experience w/ that pistol?  From my understanding, some people on here think glocks are POS, but others will sing it's praise.  I'll probably put a few rounds down range w/ it this Wednesday, but I wondered what some of you thought.  My buddy hasn't offered my a price yet, as he's still on the fence about selling it, but I figured I'd get the low-down on it while I'm thinking about it.  

I love the original Glock offering, the Glock 17 9mm. I also like the Glock 19 pretty good. But after that my opinion of Glock starts to take a U-turn.

-Charging Handle

G-21's are just fine, if you have big enough hands for them.

Learn the manual of arms, there is no slide release on a Glock.

Find out what trigger setup is in there, 5.5 lb is the "regular" set up and is pretty good for a mass produced pistol.

Quoted: G-21's are just fine, if you have big enough hands for them. Learn the manual of arms, there is no slide release on a Glock. Find out what trigger setup is in there, 5.5 lb is the "regular" set up and is pretty good for a mass produced pistol.

I think I'm ok on hand size.  I have a 5" 1911, and that's no problem, and I even have a little hand size to spare.  

Not sure what you mean by "learn the manual of arms."  If you mean learn how a Glock functions, I'm pretty familiar, as I've shot them before.  

I'm assuming the trigger pull is the factory standard 5.5lbs.  He hasn't modified, or had the weapon modified at all.  

It's from a trusted friend, so I know it's been taken care of.  I'm primarily wondering about longevity and reliability of the pistol.

Thanks for the replies and future replies!

Specifically, Glock's have slide stops, they aren't supposed to be used to release the slide. They recomentd an overhand "sling-shot" method where you grasp the slide, pull it back forcefully, then let it go to put the weapon "in battery"

Reliabilty is above avg. Durability is also above avg. Glocks have 34 or 35 parts depeneding on the model. All the parts are "drop in" so the are very easy to work on.

Hi BigJ491, I like my G21 and have spent a few bucks here and there to customize it.



The next thing on my list is a grip reduction and when they make a quality high power laser/light that doesn’t weigh a ton and that operates with a pad instead of a switch or a button it will be complete.  

It's my understanding that the early Glock 21's have a reputation as jam-a-matics.  I'm not sure when they finally fixed it, but it is supposedly fixed now.

I'm not a huge fan of the newer Glocks but a couple of hi-caps full of .45 are hard to argue with.

The 21 is a full size gun, there'll be no CCL use with it for most folks.

Everyone that owns one that I know all love them. No problems reported, very accurate as most Glocks are.

Hi-cap mags aren't cheap though. Fully loaded, the gun weighs about 10lbs.  

Quoted: The 21 is a full size gun, there'll be no CCL use with it for most folks. Everyone that owns one that I know all love them. No problems reported, very accurate as most Glocks are. Hi-cap mags aren't cheap though. Fully loaded, the gun weighs about 10lbs.

10 lbs? That's 'cause 14 of my littlest friends are packed in there.

My G-21, fully loaded, weighs less than my 4506 unloaded weighed. The G-21 is IIRC marginally lighter than a USP 45, which has 1 less amigo in it.

In my hands, my G-21 is one of my most accurate and soft shooting .45's.
I love it.  I had Heinie Slant-8 Night sights installed and that's it.  Not another custom feature.  If I had to "head to the hills" with a single handgun...I'd take my G-21.  I bought mine new about 3 years ago.
New it ran $525.00
Good luck!
VF

The grip is has the largest girth I ever felt on a .45APC gun. It's like holding two 1911 grips. The 1911's grip is one of the slimist for a full size .45APC gun. So when you say you don't have a problem with 1911 grips your not say much. Damn, I bet a midget would find the 1911 grip just perfect.  Glock should have used metal mags for the 21 like HK did with the USP45F to keep the grip size down.  Also keep in mind that Glocks were designed for the 9mm round. Scaling that up to .45 is problematic at best.  

Quoted: Hi BigJ491, I like my G21 and have spent a few bucks here and there to customize it. image.inkfrog.com/pix/THISISME/DSCF0028.JPG The next thing on my list is a grip reduction and when they make a quality high power laser/light that doesn’t weigh a ton and that operates with a pad instead of a switch or a button it will be complete.

Sweet setup! Hows it sound with the suppressor compared to without?

Hi tivoli410, Without the SOS-45 it is as loud as any other .45 acp and with the suppressor it’s about as loud as a high power pellet gun.

Not Hollywood quiet but easy on the ears. It’s nice to be able to go out to our family’s favorite shooting spot and not have to use hearing protection.

Let me start with I have large hands and I liked the G21 I fired. I did T&E on it for a friend and damned near shot it in a pin shoot. My opinion is if it fits your hand and it isn't for CCW purposes buy it. Regards, Richard:D

PS The G30 is also a fine weapon.

Love mine.  The width of the grip fits a large hand, the finger grooves on the 3rd gen. frames are better suited to smaller hands.  A Hogue handall grip sleeve thingy helped alot (I have big hands).  No failures to feed/extract/or fire in over 1500 rounds.  Noticably softer recoiling than even heavier steel framed pistols that I have tried. The used glocks that i've seen hold thier market value, so if this no frills, reliable, super tough pistol is at a good price....    BUY IT

Quoted: The grip is has the largest girth I ever felt on a .45APC gun. It's like holding two 1911 grips. The 1911's grip is one of the slimist for a full size .45APC gun. So when you say you don't have a problem with 1911 grips your not say much. Damn, I bet a midget would find the 1911 grip just perfect.  Glock should have used metal mags for the 21 like HK did with the USP45F to keep the grip size down.  Also keep in mind that Glocks were designed for the 9mm round. Scaling that up to .45 is problematic at best.

The 1911 is slim because it uses a single stack mag.  The Glock .45 is double stack and is wider for obvious reasons.  The 1911 is slim, side to side, but is still fairly deep, front to backstrap.  Don't get me wrong, I love the 1911.  Am eyeballing a mil-spec 1911 for my next purchase.
The original Glock was designed for the 9mm because, well, that was the original model.  Not sure where your getting that the .45 series is a scaled up 9mm.  The .45 series frame is designed and built to handle the .45.  The 9mm and .40 are pretty much the same.  The .357 sig is the same as the .40 and newer models of it can barrel swap between the .40 and .357 sig.
IMHO, the Glock handguns are superior combat weapons.  I have carried a model 23 every tour of duty for four years and it has qualified me at a master level of proficiency for that time.  I put my life, and the lives of my teammates, on it without hesitation.  It has better than 3000 rds. through it with no malfunctions and only a slide spring replacement, and that was just a precaution, didn't actually need it.

Enjoy what ever you decide on and become proficient with it.  The finest handgun made is no better than a piece of junk if your not adept with it.

The Man in Tan