Posted on 03/06/2010 8:03:05 PM PST by smokingfrog
You've seen the endless discussions on internet discussion sites. You've read the articles. You've seen the topics discussed ad nauseam by gun owners who range from novices to experts. What all these pundits have in common is a simple enough prospect, but one in which they hold the firmest of convictions and the most powerful of faiths: They are convinced that the Glock pistol is inherently unsafe.
In fact, the Glock is a remarkably popular weapon with civilians and law enforcement agencies alike. There are very good reasons for this. If the Greek philosopher, Plato, could have imagined a handgun in his world of forms-those concepts that embody the ideal versions of all we are capable of imagining, the earthly manifestations of which are but imperfect copies-he would have envisioned a combat firearm with a simple means of sighting, a barrel, a hand grip, a simple and light trigger, and a cocking and ignition mechanism that fires when the user pulls the trigger (but does not fire unless the trigger is pulled).
The closest "imperfect" manifestation of this Platonic form would be the Glock. Available in multiple popular calibers, the Glock comprises precisely the minimum number of features a combat handgun must possess. It has a comfortably sized, slip-resistant grip for the average male or female hand, which remains comfortable across a broad range of ambient temperatures. It offers a simple, easily upgradeable sighting system. It exhibits reasonable combat accuracy at 25 meters. It has an acceptable light trigger that is long enough on the first shot to permit mere mortals to recognize that the trigger finger is moving, but it has a very short trigger reset that permits rapid fire of multiple shots.
(Excerpt) Read more at humanevents.com ...
—NO—
I don’t think they are unsafe. I do wish they had the option of a safety in the same place as the 1911. I personally would prefer a manual safety.
If it had the safety, I would also want the light weight trigger spring.
Proud owner of 2 Glocks and 1 Toyota..If you do not want to shoot the gun ,do not pull the trigger..
DUH..
Slainte.
Look at the Smith and Wesson M&P, which does provide for an optional ambidextrous safety. The grip has inter-changable inserts for various hand sizes and is (to me) more ergonomic.. Added bonus is that you are not giving your money to some uppity Euro company.
I have a G-26, first Gun I ever bought. Now for me I have found out I don’t connect to it as I thought I would have. The Sig and I connect, the HK-USP and I connect, hell the SW-357 and I connect. Having a firearm is like finding a girlfriend I have found out. I will be trading it in on something else....., but thats just me.
Think of the Glock as a high capacity revolver with a 5 1/2lb trigger. No safties and very simple. Point and click.
I love mine.
Thank you....
My own PERSONAL preference is for an external safety. But, I do carry a double action only pocket pistol that has a heavy trigger pull as a safety. I guess I consider the Glock (with the safety switch on the trigger)in a good holster to be as safe as a strong trigger pull/no safety in the same sort of holster. It is when the gun is out of the holster that I think the Glock is somewhat less safe. Glocks have been super reliable and accurate for me so there is some fodder for the other side of the argument. I have a Glock, but usually carry a 1911 style pistol with external safety. I must say that I have carried a Glock in the past and would do so again with no reservations.
Me too. :-)
I heard a story about a cop who hung his glock from a coathook in a bathroom stall by the trigger guard. He bumped the gun and it emptied the entire magazine before it stopped twirling around. And nobody got hurt...
Not sure it is true, but it does make an amusing story!
Ed Miller, and Phil Elmore are spot on...but not about the Glock.
Every weapon that I used to own (before the tragic tsunami induced capsizing, just off the coast of Santiago, Chile) was an inherently unsafe weapon...to those just beyond the muzzle...
Only if you are standing in front of it and I have good reason to pull the trigger!
I am sort of like you. I have owned several Glocks including an oddball 17L which had the long slide and the cutouts but a solid barrel. Also a model 19, model 21 and several 17’s.
They are excellent guns and I could certainly live with one but it is not quite my cup of tea. My next auto will probably be a 1911, preferably a Colt series 70 but a lot of others would be fine. I also really like the Sig P226 and 220.
My all time favorite tho is the Browning Hi-Power. It just feels perfect in my hand.
Now you’re going to get somebody to try this. :-)
I like the Glock, but I got a couple of H&K squeeze cockers because my wife feels very comfortable having them around kids.
She thinks that by the time a child is old enough and big enough to squeeze and cock it, the child is old enough to know what to do with a gun.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.