I am interested in purchasing a new Glock 19. But before I do I would like to find out whether Glock has ever had any trouble with misfiring.

I understand that the Glocks have 3 safeties built into the weapon, and that the only way it can fire is for the trigger to actually be pulled. But I also read that many folks don't seem to trust that and will not carry a Glock that has one in the pipe.

If Glocks are unsafe, who makes a gun very similar to the Glock 19 that is safe enough to carry with a cartridge in the chamber?

22WRF

I carried a pair of Glock 17's for several years as duty guns.
[Yes I would have prefered to have continued to carry a 1911, but that was not an option.]

In Uniform I carried one Glock in a holster the other in my left front pocket, every day.

So I do not consider it unsafe to carry one in the pipe.

Actually I had two in the pipe, well OK in two pipes.

I have found the Glock, especially the Glock 17 and 19 to be some of the best handguns on the Planet.

What about the Glock 19 do you like? There are many things about a Glock I like and many I don't like.

Off the top of my head, I would say the Walther P99 would be a good safe alternative to the Glock. It is striker fired like the Glock, but unlike the Glock it has a double action/single action trigger with a decocker.

If you are just going for the polymer frame, the HK USP and Beretta PX4 are about as safe as you can get.

The HK USP has a horrible trigger stay away!!!!

quote:

Originally posted by Zephyr:
The HK USP has a horrible trigger stay away!!!!

Seriously?

I have three HK USPs and while I wouldn't say they have match grade triggers, they are what I would expect for a carry gun.

22WRF, In all sincerity,if you are in any way concerned about your aforementioned situation seriously then carry a revolver.I recommend Bill Jordan's book,"No Second Place Winner".It will tell you all + give you damned good reading besides.

quote:

Originally posted by Norman Conquest:
22WRF, In all sincerity,if you are in any way concerned about your aforementioned situation seriously then carry a revolver.I recommend Bill Jordan's book,"No Second Place Winner".It will tell you all + give you damned good reading besides.

I agree IF a person is uncomfortable with carrying a semiauto with "one in the pipe" then by all means get a good revolver.

The only way the Glock would discharge would be if the trigger were fully pulled. It is extremely safe. The Walther P99 is another excellant choice. I owned one and wish i had never sold. The XD is very similar to the Glock and offers almost the exact same feel but also offers a grip safety if you like another safety feature.

22WRF, you use the term "misfire" when, from the context I believe you must mean "accidental discharge (AD)" or as some say "negligent discharge ND". You can search for these on Google. I believe there was one case where a cop hung his Glock pistol on a clothes hook in a restroom on the trigger guard (the gun was holstered I believe). The gun fired repeatedly! However, as was just said, the gun is inherently very safe as only a trigger depression will cause it to fire. The misfire is a different problem, as, with any single action pistol, the slide must be operated. In the case of a GLock, however, the slide need only be moved abut 1/10" to reset the trigger and it can be pulled again.
Having said that I have two Glocks and neither has ever misfired ie. not gone bang.
Peter.

Peter and Others

Thank you for correcting me. You are correct. What I was questioning was accidental discharge of the weapon while holstered.

I guess I need to find some literature to read on the various handguns.

Glock trigger is a sort of double action. The striker is partially cocked with the three safeties in place. Pulling the trigger completely cocks the striker.

The upshot is that the striker is not charged sufficient to ignite a primer if the safeties fail. The striker will move forward, but it will not have enough force to fire the gun.

That's the story according to Glock.

Personally, I think they're top heavy, front heavy, wrong angle in the grip and the crappiest, mushy, squishy trigger on the planet.

Springfield XD makes a good gun, Smeith & Wesson. Both mfg's are getting law enforcement contracts away from Glock these days.

quote:

Personally, I think they're top heavy, front heavy, wrong angle in the grip and the crappiest, mushy, squishy trigger on the planet.

They must have done some studies when desinging the gun to determine all of those things?

Nope, he said "personally"! Obviously those who believe that John Browning is seated at the right hand of God will not like the Glock. The trigger can certainly be improved significantly by using a 3.5 lb. trigger. But, the gun is safe and utterly reliable.
Peter.

It would be nice if there was a local store that had a firing range and one of every single weapon that they sold on that range so that one could try out each weapon in order to decide which one to purchase.

Gentlemen,PLEASE get a grip on the situation. There is NO SUCH THING AS A TOTALLY SAFE handgun.Learn to use what you have with as much proficiency as you can muster! Dear God,our forebears did just the same with far less to work with.Look down now,see a set of cajones?Then you are on he right track.

AT the risk of being Tarred and Feathered...

I am a 1911 kind of guy, in 45 ACP of course, I have been so since the 9th grade, around 1966...

I think it is the best Pistol on the Planet.

However, because of RULES I was required to carry a 9mm. I had a choice between a glock 17, a SIG 226 and a Beretta 92.

I liked the Glock the least of all, as I considered it a Tupperware Gun.
I was able to go to all 3 of their factory Armour Schools, and shoot all 3 a fair amount.

After all of that I chose the Glock 17.
I carried 2 of them EVERY SECOND OF EVERY DAY, until I retired.

I shot several thousands of rounds through Glock 17's. I had 2 that shot over 70,000 rounds each.

Now, I am not a fan of 9mm. But the Glock 17 is one of the best handguns, IMHO.

I will also state that THE DAY I retired, I went back to 1911's in 45 ACP, I am wearing one right now, but the Glock 17 never let me down.

No one is going to tar and feather you over the 1911. The choice of caliber, maybe(!) I prefer the 38 Super! However, my "BugOut bag" will contain my Glocks and my 9x21. Hi cap every time!
Peter.

If anything is reliable it must be a Glock 17, which (I think) started it all. Every Glock 9mm is reliable by definition, which is not true for the other calibers in my experience.

So long as you, or nothing else, touches the trigger, Glocks are quite safe.

But, if you are intimidated by it, I strongly suggest looking at H&K's P7 PSP. It is completely inert, until you squeeze the cocker, and has a decent, single-action trigger.

Its also very easy to conceal. Its unsuited for competitive shooting, but I presume that's not a concern of yours.

Back in 1988 the military conducted a torture test to find their new 9mm. It was a forgone conclusion that the old 1911 was going away because the perameters established forced colt out of the game. As we know by now Beretta M9 was the victor but not the winner. According to the torture test results, some 800,000 rounds were fired from each fire arm with every malfunction documented. They were frozen, submersed in water, mud, sand, etc...

Results: Three guns performed flawlessy with zero malfunctions.

The 1911 std issue
The browning hi power 9mm
The GLock 17

The Glock did not have a secondary external safety so it was disqualified. Go figure.

I have owned a Gen 2 17 since the early 90's and just bought an Gen 3 RTF 17 with a streamlight. The Gen 2 has never malfunctioned ever and my new Gen 3, right out of the box shot over 300 into a ragged hole with no malfunctions. Its off to a good start.