[rookie]

i have always wanted a glock just b/c they look cool. i know this is a bad reason to want it but i'm kid! haha
anyways i heard that glocks are known for jamming up(if that is what you call it) so my question is...are glocks just a well known company or are they good products? also i was reading this magazine about changing a glock to a rimfire? what is a rimfire? i have a few guesses from looking at the name but they are probably way off?

 

[wes]

Glocks are great handguns,however,a Glock is a thinking persons gun, they have automatic safetys,no real manual safety,for this reason you have to be very careful. You can drop,throw,drive over a Glock and it probably won't go off,but,if you press,(notice PRESS.not pull) the trigger on a Glock,it WILL fire.

 

[Klaus]

Glocks are well made guns. They do not have any unusual jamming problems that I know of, in fact they are extremely reliable. As far as the rimfire thing, many semiautomatic pistols have .22 LR conversion kits that are usually used for training. It generally involves replacing the slide, barrel, spring, and magazine.

 

[MangesMade]

Wes, no offense, but the Glock is the Pistol that you don't have to think about, no saftey levers or buttons to push and pull. Once a round is chambered, the only way to fire it is PULL the trigger. I don't know the difference between press and pull, but the first detent trigger, which is a type of trigger within the trigger which is the saftey,this must be pulled before the trigger can be pulled. It won't go off by just touching the trigger...or dropping it, no more than a revolver will. The Glock actually has the same feeling trigger as a Revolver, double action and every round thats fired the trigger pull is the same....unlike other auto's. That was one of the unique things about the Glock that made it easy for officers to convert from Revolver to Glock Auto. not only is it a safe pistol, but it's very very reliable, and accurate. I've owned other brand auto's but once they put the Glock in my hand I've been a Glock lover. Not saying others aren't good, but a newbie or woman, or anyone that's not used to combat stressful situations may forget to unsafe the pistol, they'll be pulling the trigger and not even realize it's not shooting until it's too late. It's happened more than once and not only to the untrained. Oil Well, if you don't go Glock at least go with the Decock models. (No Saftey). You never put you finger on the trigger of any firearm unless your going to shoot it. Hope this doesn't start a Dewman. Oil Well, that might not be so bad, kinda miss ole Dewman.

 

[rookie]

again thanks alot for input!!!!

 

[wes]

No offense taken,but let me clarify, When some departments switched to Glocks,they had a higher than average A.D. rate, some of the officers were holstering their guns with their finger on the trigger,with a manual safety on, no big deal,but with a Glock,well,you know. As far as pressing vs. pulling,I say that because to some,pulling means yanking,pressing is just a kinder,simpler action,ie. better trigger control. I too,have a Glock 19,and do like the pistol. So what I mean by thinking is thinking about what you are doing to be safe.

 

[wes]

BTW,I'm more of a 1911 guy,but would not recommend someone starting-out to learn on one.

 

[Klaus]

Well, didn't they teach the officers not to put your finger on the trigger until ready to shoot? Having your finger on the trigger while holstering a sidearm seems pretty dumb, regardless of the type of safety. Personally, I like the automatic safeties in guns like the Glocks, Sigs, Steyrs, etc. I do understand the preference some folk have toward manual safeties, and will not argue about it.

 

[wes]

Oh I agree Klaus,but you know how hard it is to teach some people something,and have them remember it. I always try to pound into a stdent about "finger off the trigger"till they just do it.

 

[rookie]

this may sound stupid but:
ok from wat i understand with a semiauto, you pull back the top part or cock it (not sure of technical term) then that allows you to pull the trigger one after another. so say you cock it and shot 2 rounds, do you just put it in you holster or do you do something so it isn't live, or is it always live. what is the process of handling a semi-auto handgun.
one thing i do understand is trying to be safe and never point a gun at anything you don't want to shot even if it is unloaded!!

 

[colt45]

An auto loader is just that. It is always live as long as there is ammo in the mag. or chamber.
If the slide is closed consider it loaded until you have checked it yourself NEVER take anyones word that it is unloaded until you check it.
To answer your question, No on a glock you don't have to do anything but holster it. If you do not want a round ready to fire, Than yes, You have to drop the mag, work the slide and eject the chambered round then let the slide close, place the lone round back in the mag, and the mag back in the gun. You can now holster the gun with an empty chamber, But you will have to work the slide in order to chamber a round to fire the next time you draw the gun.
Until you become more familiar with your new glock(if you get one) I recomend you do keep the chamber empty when holstered or stored.
Glock also recomends that the gun be stored slide closed, chamber empty, and triger pulled.

 

[MikeC]

Rookie, you are correct that the user must cycle the action before a semi-auto is ready to use. If after you cycle the action and fire several rounds then yes, you can holster the gun without further action, if you are using a Glock or similar gun. NOTE, if the gun you are using has a traditional safety you use it before holstering. If you want, you can "drop" the mag out, cycle the action to extract the LIVE round from the chamber and make the gun "SAFE".
I know that someone in one of your other posts recommended a training class, so do I. Some places offer a discount on gun purchases if you take their safety class. Many classes allow you to fire several different guns so that you get some experience. Be safe.

 

[Klaus]

Well, rookie, you are on the right track. Safe handling of firearms is VERY important. Guns are not toys, though many people have fun shooting them. I can not get into a full description of how semiautomatic pistols work. The main parts of a semiautomatic handgun are the barrel, slide, frame, trigger group, and magazine. The barrel is the tube that the bullet comes out of. The front end (where the bullet comes out) is called the muzzle. The other end of the barrel, where the cartridge is held before firing, is called the chamber. The barrel fits inside a boxy metal piece called the slide. This is the part that moves back and forth when the gun is fired. The slide and barrel fit on top of the frame with some kind of rail that allows them to move back and forth, but not sideways. The frame is the part with the grip and it holds the magazine and the trigger group. The magazine is the part that holds the bullets, and usually fits into the grip. The trigger group consists of the trigger and all the little pices to link the trigger to the hammer to fire. These parts include the safeties and decockers. After a gun is fired, there are several ways to make a gun safe to carry again. There are manual safeties, that can lock the firing pin and trigger, sor the gun can not be accidently shot if the trigger is bumped. There are decocking levers, that release the spring tension and get the hammer out of the cocked position, while blocking the firing pin. ......many guns can also be manually decocked, though it is not as safe. You really need to look at a book that has pictures to understand how these things work. You can go to a library and find good information in the encyclopedias, if they do not have books on guns. Remember, a gun is a tool, that can be very dangerous if misused. Guns do not think, guns do not shoot themselves. YOU must be responsible for safety. If you are old enough to buy a gun, please do not even load it unless you are with an experienced shooter.

 

[Uncle Red]

Let's see if I can splain this so it won't become too complicated. Basically there are 3 different types of auto pistol safety systems. We are going to assume that you have loaded a mag and inserted it into the weapon and chambered a round by cycling the SLIDE(Top part) At this point the weapon is ready to fire.
1. A Single Action(SA) like the 1911 design.(usually .45ACP) A Double Action/ Single Action(DA/SA) such as the Beretta 92f(The pistol used by the armed forces. A.K.A. M9) You can do two things to safe the weapon: A. Engage the safety.(often called "cocked and locked") B. Lower the hammer by using thumb and forefinger to get a good grip on the hammer , pull the trigger, and lower the hammer slowly until it rests on the frame.
2. You can have a pistol with a "decocker" like the Sig/Sauer family. There will be a control lever that drops the hammer to rest on the frame without coming into contact with the firing pin.
3. The last type is like the Glock "Safe System". All you do is keep your finger off the trigger and put it in the holster.
Now Please realize, there are variations of these safety systems. And some systems that combine parts of these. You can get a Beretta 92 with a decocker and also as a Double Action Only(DAO) with no safety and no decocker. So personal preference plays a roll here. What makes you feel safe or comfortable. Dose that make any sense? Hope so. -UR.

 

[MangesMade]

Klaus and Unk, ya'll left out the most important thing, them sights on the side. I think ya'll called them Home Boy Sights? Oil Well, Sumphen like that.

 

[lefty o]

them sights on the side again, ohh boy. no really rookie these guys all make good points, but id recommend going and taking a training class or at least find a friend who's a shooter to help get you started-this will help get you up to speed a little quicker. and yeah as much as i hate plastic guns, the glock is a good and very reliable sidearm.

 

[rookie]

alright, all that helps out alot..i am going to look into some training classes, its good to get info from people but hands on experience is always the best. i really appreciate all your input!
thanks

 

[REM.303]

Rookie, Glocks are a good reliable gun to have , carry, shoot. But in my experance(I don't know if anybody else has noticed this). When I have shot a Glock the last 5-6 rounds fired, the gun "rolled" in my hand. This I accounted to be the center of balance shifting upward as the "weight" of the rounds in the mag moving up. For a new shooter this might cause some concerns.

 

[rookie]

hmmm.....interesting....

i will be sure to bring attention to that when i go to the range.
i have 16 weeks to go... but the place i checked out rents guns for the range , pretty cheap ,too. i think if you get a box of bullets with the gun for $18