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Tools and Uses => Firearms and Accessories => Topic started by: passivekinetic on August 08, 2013, 09:55:25 PM

Title: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: passivekinetic on August 08, 2013, 09:55:25 PM
Hey, I don't understand why some folks "insist" to get Gen 3 Glocks instead of Gen 4.

What is the pros/cons of this decision?

Personally I started shooting Gen 4 so it just feels more natural to me.

But I am curious, since I don't hear people say they want Gen 2.

But I think Glock continues to make Gen 3? So if that is the case then there is quite a lot of demand for Gen 3 still.
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: bass monkey on August 09, 2013, 08:43:56 AM
All about personal preference and what feels good to you
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: Kingkeoni on August 09, 2013, 08:53:59 AM
In my opinion, the Gen 3 is the "perfect Glock"

A lot of the changes on the Gen 4 were unnecessary.

The Gen 4 had some early reliability problems that have tarnished its reputation as well.

Remember though that when the first Glock came out, it was rejected, by a whole lot of people as a Tupperware gun that would blow to pieces as soon as you pulled the trigger.
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: passivekinetic on August 09, 2013, 11:16:35 AM
In my opinion, the Gen 3 is the "perfect Glock"

A lot of the changes on the Gen 4 were unnecessary.

Interested to hear your opinion on these.

(I really know very little at this stage. I was intending to take a Glock armorer course but the dates don't work for me. Maybe I will see if any books + DVD are available to study).
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: OldFaithful on August 09, 2013, 02:14:16 PM
I like the gen 4 because of the larger magazine release button. The grip is different than the gen 3 and I love it.  They changed the recoil spring with the gen 4 too, its larger. Yeah there were so problems upon release of the gen 4 with the recoil spring and ejecting brass, but they've been addressed and fixed
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: BLKDRGN on August 09, 2013, 03:12:45 PM
My friends had no problems with their gen 4's. No jamming or ejection problems. Some of the other changes are more cosmetic imo while others may seem unnecessary but it doesn't hurt. Ex. mag release on both sides may seem unnecessary but let's say you are in a gun fight with a criminal. He blows off your right hand but you still have the capability to use your left to change mags.  :crazy: :rofl: Downside I can think of is your old gen 3 mags wont work i think.
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: Kingkeoni on August 09, 2013, 03:52:45 PM
My friends had no problems with their gen 4's. No jamming or ejection problems. Some of the other changes are more cosmetic imo while others may seem unnecessary but it doesn't hurt. Ex. mag release on both sides may seem unnecessary but let's say you are in a gun fight with a criminal. He blows off your right hand but you still have the capability to use your left to change mags.  :crazy: :rofl: Downside I can think of is your old gen 3 mags wont work i think.

Bro, you're a little confused.

The reversible mag release is not an ambidextrous magazine release.

If the bad guy blows off your hand off, you have to use the mag release the same as a Gen 3 Glock. ( Just with your weak hand)
You can either have it as a dedicated right or left hand mag release.

The other thing is that all Gen 3 magazines work in Gen 4 Glocks. As long as you have the mag release button on the standard right hand configuration.
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: drck1000 on August 09, 2013, 04:21:00 PM
I haven't had the extraction, ejection or brass to face problems that I've read about with the Gen 4 Glocks. I have to Gen 4 17s and a 34. It seems like the problems were early on with certain recoil springs and ejectors.

I've also read where the current production Gen 3 Glocks have shown basically the same issues as the Gen 4. I've read where the coveted Gen 3s are the ones that are produced before late-2010 or so.

Personally, I like the more aggressive grip texture of the Gen 4.
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: Kingkeoni on August 09, 2013, 06:24:55 PM
Personally, I like the more aggressive grip texture of the Gen 4.

The grip texture is nice.

Have you ever handled or shot the RTF Glock?
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: SpeedTek on August 09, 2013, 06:33:04 PM
Personally I hate Glocks....

BUT Prefer a Gen 3 with the Aftermarket Extended/Large Mag Release.  Without it I have to flip up the gun to release the mag due to short fingers.

Extended Slide Release PLEASE

Modified Ergonomic Grip. Recontoured to fit the hand better and slight angle change.
I cant shoot a standard Glock.  My Arthritis kicks in after the first shot.  I almost dropped a customers Glock last week on the Sil side. (Anyone seen that?)

Of course the 3.5lbs trigger mod.

Dont forget the Glock is also Invisible to X-Ray machines!!!! LOL
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: Kingkeoni on August 09, 2013, 06:35:02 PM
Personally I hate Glocks....

BUT Prefer a Gen 3 with the Aftermarket Extended/Large Mag Release.  Without it I have to flip up the gun to release the mag due to short fingers.

Extended Slide Release PLEASE

Modified Ergonomic Grip. Recontoured to fit the hand better and slight angle change.
I cant shoot a standard Glock.  My Arthritis kicks in after the first shot.  I almost dropped a customers Glock last week on the Sil side. (Anyone seen that?)

Of course the 3.5lbs trigger mod.

Dont forget the Glock is also Invisible to X-Ray machines!!!! LOL

Eh, you're an old fut with puny hands, you no count.  :rofl:
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: SpeedTek on August 09, 2013, 06:45:52 PM
Fat Hands and Fat Fingers.......

I wont talk about your Midget....
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: Kingkeoni on August 09, 2013, 06:49:12 PM
Fat Hands and Fat Fingers.......

I wont talk about your Midget....

Come on, my wife's not that short.   :rofl:
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: drck1000 on August 09, 2013, 08:16:13 PM
The grip texture is nice.

Have you ever handled or shot the RTF Glock?
I've handled one, but not shot one. The RTF is pretty rough though, almost as rough as the checkered grips on the SA TRP. Well, not quite, but definitely more texture than say the Gen 2 with the almost smooth sides.

I have a friend who lives in TX and he says that if he chooses to carry his Glock with the RTF, that he has to wear an undershirt in between the gun and his side because it's so rough. What a wuss. Haha.
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: drck1000 on August 09, 2013, 08:19:43 PM
Personally, I leave my Glocks pretty close to stock. I'll change the sights for sure. I have the extended slide catch that comes with the 34 on all of them and I'm trying the Vickers mag release on one of them. I'm liking it so far and will probably switch my other 17 and the 34 to it.

I don't touch the trigger. Even to polish. One of my coworkers shoots IPSC too and he keeps telling me to polish the trigger, but 1) I don't want to mess it up and 2) I don't mind the stock trigger. I haven't shot with any of the "super tuned" triggers, so maybe I don't know what I'm missing.
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: passivekinetic on August 09, 2013, 08:27:01 PM
Dont forget the Glock is also Invisible to X-Ray machines!!!! LOL

I thought that was only if you order the polymer barrel option?

 :shaka:
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: passivekinetic on August 09, 2013, 08:29:40 PM
Personally, I leave my Glocks pretty close to stock. I'll change the sights for sure. I have the extended slide catch that comes with the 34 on all of them and I'm trying the Vickers mag release on one of them. I'm liking it so far and will probably switch my other 17 and the 34 to it.

I don't touch the trigger. Even to polish. One of my coworkers shoots IPSC too and he keeps telling me to polish the trigger, but 1) I don't want to mess it up and 2) I don't mind the stock trigger. I haven't shot with any of the "super tuned" triggers, so maybe I don't know what I'm missing.

Heard the trigger is "polished" after 1000 rounds? (i.e., smoother). Or did I hear wrong?
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: drck1000 on August 09, 2013, 10:20:38 PM
Heard the trigger is "polished" after 1000 rounds? (i.e., smoother). Or did I hear wrong?
You got me. Haha. If it is, all my Glock triggers are polished then. Some would be very polished. Haha.

I have seen many triggers that are super light or even double on reset after people "tweak" them, so I just stay away.

Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: Surf on August 09, 2013, 10:32:28 PM
I greatly prefer the Gen4 over the Gen3's and I have numerous Gen3's.  I have medium sized hands and I could not reach the mag release on the Gen3's without breaking my grip.  Not an issue on the Gen4's as I can reach the release but I do prefer an extended release.  I also prefer the texture of the Gen4 over the Gen3.  Hated the RTF versions.  I also like the dual recoil and prefer the impulse.  Many do not notice a difference, but I can easily distinguish the difference.  I really like it in the Gen4 G21.  I had one of the earliest or first 1000 run of the Gen4 G17 and it did develop a brass to face issue.  I ran over 25K rounds through the weapon before I changed out the RSA and ejector and that made a big difference.  Had video on it, but it is no longer. 

I like to swap sights, go with a minus or 3.5, standard spring and a polish job.  Yes the trigger will smooth out with time, but not as effectively as a polish job IMO.  I can definitely live with a standard 5.5 out of the box but I can do all the way up to changing trigger geometry and getting down to about a pound and a half if I chose, but that is not my preference.  3lbs minimum is about where I like to be.  Ironically several years ago during one of my Glock armorer recert courses, Dennis Tueller who was the instructor actually taught me the technique to accomplish the really light trigger.  I ran my Glocks for many years with non modified frames and did very very well with them.  Now I personally like to do a full custom hand fit where I remove finger grooves, slightly reduce the backstrap, undercut the trigger guard, radius the trigger guard, flare the magwell and texture the grip.  The beauty of the Glock is similar to the AR where you can easily and effectively (if you know what your doing) alter the weapon for a true hand fitted pistol.  Cost, easily customized to fit to the shooter, accuracy and reliability and it is hard to beat a Glock pistol.   
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: passivekinetic on August 09, 2013, 11:26:39 PM
Dang, dude you just gave me extra points on the PRO column to just get the Glock 21 Gen4 instead of a 1911... LOL
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: passivekinetic on August 09, 2013, 11:29:16 PM
I greatly prefer the Gen4 over the Gen3's and I have numerous Gen3's.  I have medium sized hands and I could not reach the mag release on the Gen3's without breaking my grip.  Not an issue on the Gen4's as I can reach the release but I do prefer an extended release.  I also prefer the texture of the Gen4 over the Gen3.  Hated the RTF versions.  I also like the dual recoil and prefer the impulse.  Many do not notice a difference, but I can easily distinguish the difference.  I really like it in the Gen4 G21.  I had one of the earliest or first 1000 run of the Gen4 G17 and it did develop a brass to face issue.  I ran over 25K rounds through the weapon before I changed out the RSA and ejector and that made a big difference.  Had video on it, but it is no longer. 

I like to swap sights, go with a minus or 3.5, standard spring and a polish job.  Yes the trigger will smooth out with time, but not as effectively as a polish job IMO.  I can definitely live with a standard 5.5 out of the box but I can do all the way up to changing trigger geometry and getting down to about a pound and a half if I chose, but that is not my preference.  3lbs minimum is about where I like to be.  Ironically several years ago during one of my Glock armorer recert courses, Dennis Tueller who was the instructor actually taught me the technique to accomplish the really light trigger.  I ran my Glocks for many years with non modified frames and did very very well with them.  Now I personally like to do a full custom hand fit where I remove finger grooves, slightly reduce the backstrap, undercut the trigger guard, radius the trigger guard, flare the magwell and texture the grip.  The beauty of the Glock is similar to the AR where you can easily and effectively (if you know what your doing) alter the weapon for a true hand fitted pistol.  Cost, easily customized to fit to the shooter, accuracy and reliability and it is hard to beat a Glock pistol.

Any suggestions on Glock armorer course? I was considering the Frontsight one. (Timing not good for me just yet so will skip the coming one).
And also books/DVDs that you feel give decent information?
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: Surf on August 11, 2013, 08:07:48 AM
Dang, dude you just gave me extra points on the PRO column to just get the Glock 21 Gen4 instead of a 1911... LOL
The Gen4 Glock 21 is an amazing pistol and I highly suggest it for a .45 pistol.  I own multiple Glocks and multiple 1911's and while I love both types, IMO comparing the two is not quite apples to apples.  They have very different personalities so to speak and I would select different ones for different applications.     

Any suggestions on Glock armorer course? I was considering the Frontsight one. (Timing not good for me just yet so will skip the coming one).
And also books/DVDs that you feel give decent information?
Most competent instructors who are highly knowledgeable on the Glock pistol platform and had formal training can more than likely give a good basic Glock armorer course due to the simplistic nature of the pistol.  An advanced armorer course or a doing custom smithing work may be another story.  Having said that I am not a fan of Frontsight, so I cannot not suggest them for anything firearms related.  The biggest draw for Frontsight is that they are near Vegas and legal brothels.  Guns, gambling and sex may sound like a great thing and I am not disagreeing if that is someones thing, but on that 3 item list, the firearms related training would have to be #10.  I would think that the Frontsight instructor has been through the Glock courses but this is not a guarantee, however being recognized by Glock as a certified Glock armorer is a good thing, especially when getting certain parts and factory support, so I might suggest taking a Glock course for the base foundation.  Also $500 for a one day Glock course is a bit steep. 

As for books or DVD's I have nothing to offer there.  There is a good deal of quality information via online content if you can filter out the large amounts of crap.  There are some online firearms forums where you can be assured of the quality of information that you are getting from certain forum members.  Unfortunately there is a steep learning curve for filtering crap via online content.
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: Jbaroune on August 14, 2013, 05:06:54 PM
I am left handed so without a doubt i chose the gen 4. Iearned how to shoot with a gen 3 and never really liked the grip. But after holding then gen  4 in the gun  shop it felt like the grip was maybe a little bit skinnier  and felt better than the gen 3.   I bought the g22 gen4 and it was very reliable right outta the box.   I ended up polishing the trigger . Installing a lone wolf 3.5lb connector and a phanton adjustable trigger & bar. The trigger is smooth light and crisp. And 5000 rounds later still reliable.   The biggest problem i had with glock is the cheap plastic trigger. The safty sticks out and digs into your finger so with an aftermarket trigger the trigger safty will depress all the way and sit flush with the face of the trigger.
Title: Re: Why Gen 3 or Gen 4 Glocks?
Post by: hepcat96821 on August 22, 2013, 12:36:34 AM
First experience ever with a glock was with a second generation.  It just felt terrible in my hands.  It wasn't anything close to the way a p220 or even a full sized xd felt.   However a year ago, I was at Young Guns, and asked to see a gen 4 g17.  That thing felt like it was made for my fat hands.  The grip texture was spot on, and it just felt like a "natural pointer" for me.  Glock had a lot of issues when the gen 4s came out, but they seemed to have fixed all of them.  I was a bit hesitant to buy one last year after reading a lot of the negative reviews on the gen 4s, but I found articles online that gave you the numbers for the correct recoil springs, and correct extractors.  So I popped off the slide, made sure everything was correct, and haven't had one problem to this day.  . Since then, I bought a g22, gen 3.  The gen 3 is ok, but it doesn't fit my hands as well.  With all that being said, my standard glock mods are....extended slide release,  extended mag release on gen 3s only, and a 3.5 lb ghost rocket kit, light weight striker, and after every cleaning, I give it the $0.25 trigger job.  I didn't mind the sights, however I did change them out, but only because at the time the tritium sights I wanted were on sale, so I picked up a few sets.