Glock 101 for New Shooters

Once it’s finished I’ll send pics…

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We haven’t seen any need to do it.

Thanks for the reply, My question was concerning making changes to your carry gun so it is no longer a stock pistol. One of my instructors made the recommendation when I purchased the G19. However, the question comes up that you have made it less safe.

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@J_Richard, I think it’s like everything else about carrying - should you ever be involved in an incident that involves the police, you are going to want to have a very clear reason for every choice you made.

If you changed your gun, a prosecutor may ask why: did that make the gun more safe? more accurate? easier to get a bead on someone in the dark? more easily fired? did that more easily fired contribute to you shooting when you shouldn’t have? Were you planning to make it easier to kill someone? Can it be spun to seem like you were just looking for a reason to shoot?

It has less to do with what you really intended than what it can be made to LOOK like you intended, I think. If all things are fair, that shouldn’t be an issue, but we know things aren’t always fair. If a DA or prosecutor decides to put you on trial as the potential bad guy, they will look for every opportunity to use anything and everything against you.

Some people carry exactly what the local police carry because it makes it very hard to argue with. Others carry only stock, because any change might be interpreted to have a risk-prone or nefarious purpose.

I will be changing out sights on my (soon to be picked up) new EDC because I want to be sure, should I need to use it to defend myself at night or in low light, I can place shots where I mean to… and not have bullets end up in random places where an innocent person could be hurt. That’s a change that I can defend and it’s not particularly ambiguous.

Because I shoot glocks, and they are a highly reliable gun, I’m not likely to make changes to improve reliability. A glock, as manufactured, is already reliable. My eyes, however, are not as sharp in low light as they were 40 years ago.

That’s just an example of why I choose to (mostly) not alter them. You will need to decide where to draw the line for yourself. Just keep in mind the value of the modification, vs the potential for having it re-interpreted and used against you.

So what would your explanation be for why you changed the connector?

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Thank you for your reply. I am simply looking for the consenses of how people think in making modifications to firearms.

I totally agree with your assessment of what the DA will question. I have personally asked our DA why, in one recent murder trial, his first question to the defendent (pleading accidental discharge) was “did you make any changes in your gun?” The gun involved was a police issued Glock that was sold and then purchased by the defendent. In PA I believe the State Police issued have an 8 lb connector. The pistol when tested actually tested at 11 lbs due to the condition it was in.

When I purchased my Glock, my neighbor also purchased an identical model. We both wanted AmeriGlo Tritium night sights. Since our local store only had one available with regular sights, (we flipped a coin and I lost) my neighbor got the gun in stock with regular Glock sights and order the sights to be installed later.

When it was my turn to do paperwork, I was able to order my Gen 5 Model 19 with the AmeriGlo sights installed as standard equipment Does this make my Glock safer than his simply because his altered the factor standards?

I noticed that today’s USCCA Gun Giveaway - Nighthawk Custom T-4 actually comes with trigger pull of about 2.8 lbs. I am not trying to compare apples and oranges in comparing a $3,500 gun to a $600 gun. I am trying to see why it is not a good idea to make a pistol smoother to shoot if one can do that. The same as changing the recoil spring rod from one that is plastic to one made from titanium steel to increase it’s strength and weight. Would my gun be safer if I had a custom made Glock with the 3.5 connector than installing it myself?

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that’s all the right questions to ask. If you consider these things in advance, then you are prepared should you ever need to explain it. I don’t think there’s a right answer… prosecutors vary, their sympathies may lie with self-defense or against it, with civilian carry or against it, with or against any individual. Ultimately it will become the defense lawyer’s responsibility to get the right information in front of a jury, and to present it in a way or with experts that give it weight. (One of the reasons I’m a USCCA member is to have access to those resources if I ever need it.)

Are your manufacturer-installed sights safer than the same sights installed after-market by a qualified gunsmith? I’d certainly argue not. Are those sights to your advantage in both effective self-defense and in preventing stray rounds and collateral damage? I’d say so. Certainly that’s a choice I’d be willing to make. Lighter trigger pull? Probably not a choice I’m going to make - partly because I don’t see the need (personally) and because it opens more questions I’d have to answer should I ever have to shoot a bad guy. So for me, one works, the other doesn’t. that’s my personal comfort level, I think we each have to decide, with the advice of our lawyers if needed, what we’re good with.

You can shoot hardcast lead loads in a Glock if you’re shooting lubed bullets and shoot no more than like 2 mags at a time, then you have to clean the gun.

But it is generally good advice, because if you’re buying hardcast lead bullets from some random dude at the gun show, you’re probably going to have a bad time. Also, hardcast are super bad for your rifling.

I do shoot them occasionally because I use my G29 for bear defense. Because a compact 10mm sounded like a good idea with full power loads. I might be a tad stupid. Maybe don’t take my hardcast advise. Or any of it… hahahaha.

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My hubby would be totally down with this :joy:

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@Zee thanks for your reply, this is why I like this forum. There is a lot of good advice on here and people will express good opinions.

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I always replace mine.

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@Phil-G45, share what you’re opting for and your reason?

Yes, I agree with that statement, was going to replace the trigger on a new Glock 19 before even shooting it for the first time. Decided to shoot it stock first, and as it is a carry gun. really like the trigger the way it is. Sites need to be changed for me though.

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I agree about the factory sights for sure!

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Keep your finger out of the trigger guard until your ready to fire and watch out for material getting in the trigger guard when reholstering. Was at Frontsight in NV. Guy shoots himself in right leg while holstering a Glock 19. He yelled out “Not again. The same leg!”
Turns out he’d done the same thing the year before. Shirt material in the trigger guard both times.

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Dang… slow to take the lesson I guess. Good thing he wasn’t carrying apendix or center front. :woman_facepalming:

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Also, please don’t take the slogan “Glock Perfection”” to heart. A double feed cost me dearly at a competition this morning and yes, I cleaned and lubed the gun last night and was using premium ammo…

That said, I trust my Glock with my life and always will. All mechanical devices can fail.

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The trigger on my G45 got better each time I fired it.

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I’ve carried my Glock 19 Gen 4 for about 6 years now actually I forgot but it’s been a while.
I also sometimes carry a Springfield XDS 9 and sometimes I carry my Sig P320 once in awhile. I like all three of them.

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Just to reinterate, with any of the striker fired/no manual safety guns you need to really pay attention to that trigger. Remember the lighter the trigger, the easier it is to “accidentally” fire the weapon . A qualityholster that completely enclose the trigger guard and thereby protects the trigger is an absolute must. Also, for SD use NEVER carry reloads, regardless of quality (you will have the opposition accusing you of having “extra dangerous” ammo). A good choice for ammo is to find what local or state PD carries, and then if it works in your piece you’re golden.

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It’s okay to keep your Glock stock.

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