40 S&W and Glocks

[WilsonCombatRep]

Great thread. As an aside, my XD longslide ammo test gun in .357 SIG works great!

[Fire-Medic]

Thanks Bill, that confirms what I was suspecting from my translating the dynamics of what was going on from my experience with the M4 system.

Again I'll note that the "fix" for many of the M4's problems was not a stronger magazine spring, or recoil spring, it was a heavier buffer. The H and H2, etc., exist for good reasons.

I really think Glock missed the boat not turning the GAP models into .40s and calling it a day.

A Gen 4 G21/G20 size gun chambered in 40SW would appeal to many folks as well, but I can understand the need for the pistol to fit a broader audience with the smaller grip.

This will most likely be my next Glock pursuit when funds allow. Buying a G20 Gen 4 and getting a 40SW conversion barrel fit to it. I have had the chance to fire this combo in a Gen 3 in the past and it was very pleasant to handle and shoot. It would also in my humble and non professional opinion be a hit with the competition guys who could have a much softer shooting 40 with physically bigger magazines to grab hold of and a much larger mag well area. I would imagine being able to shoot that in SSP or Production would go a long ways with many guys. I am also aware that the comp guys make up a small minority compared to the LE market but I would just see that model as a win win for LEO and Civilian/Comp guys alike.

[Chuck Haggard]

I have a friend with a G20 with a Robar grip reduction, he also has a .40 and a .357 barrel fitted to the gun. That is a very nice .40

Jim Cirillo told me that he thought the .40 should have never been shoe-horned into the 9mm guns, that it needed a larger frame. Jim was a pretty smart guy.


I think a G35 without the slide cut-out on top would also be a good .40/.357 platform.

[ranger]

I have a Gen 3 Glock 20 with KKM conversion barrel to 40. Put the combo together to shoot Limited Class in USPSA. There are several threads on competition oriented forums about the G20 in 40 for Limited.

[Fire-Medic]

I have a friend with a G20 with a Robar grip reduction, he also has a .40 and a .357 barrel fitted to the gun. That is a very nice .40

Jim Cirillo told me that he thought the .40 should have never been shoe-horned into the 9mm guns, that it needed a larger frame. Jim was a pretty smart guy.


I think a G35 without the slide cut-out on top would also be a good .40/.357 platform.

I'm no expert but I would agree with him on that statement. You won't have issues beating up a setup built for 10MM.........

[Kimura]

I have a Gen 3 Glock 20 with KKM conversion barrel to 40. Put the combo together to shoot Limited Class in USPSA. There are several threads on competition oriented forums about the G20 in 40 for Limited.

What do you use for mags? I thought the 40 round was too short for 10mm mags, how do you compensate for that?

[Fire-Medic]

What do you use for mags? I thought the 40 round was too short for 10mm mags, how do you compensate for that?

Load them longer if needed

[ranger]

What do you use for mags? I thought the 40 round was too short for 10mm mags, how do you compensate for that?

They run fine in the G20 mags so far at normal 40 length or you can load longer if your conversion barrel will accept the longer loaded bullets. You can also use heavier bullets - 200s and 220s.

[Jeep]

I have a friend with a G20 with a Robar grip reduction, he also has a .40 and a .357 barrel fitted to the gun. That is a very nice .40

Jim Cirillo told me that he thought the .40 should have never been shoe-horned into the 9mm guns, that it needed a larger frame. Jim was a pretty smart guy.


I think a G35 without the slide cut-out on top would also be a good .40/.357 platform.

My guess is that the .40 is not going to be a huge focus going forward. Instead, I think the world is going to go increasingly to the 9mm and is going to standardize there, which should also result in 9mm ammo becoming even cheaper compared to other calibers. If that happens, more people will move to the 9mm.

I don't think the .40 is a bad round at all--M&P's and 229s launch them well--and it offers some advantages over 9mm, but as those advantages become increasingly marginal standardization around the 9 seems to me to be probably inevitable. Which is a long way of saying that I tend to doubt that Glock will keep putting a lot of work into .40 guns. We'll see.

[JHC]

My guess is that the .40 is not going to be a huge focus going forward. Instead, I think the world is going to go increasingly to the 9mm and is going to standardize there, which should also result in 9mm ammo becoming even cheaper compared to other calibers. If that happens, more people will move to the 9mm.

I don't think the .40 is a bad round at all--M&P's and 229s launch them well--and it offers some advantages over 9mm, but as those advantages become increasingly marginal standardization around the 9 seems to me to be probably inevitable. Which is a long way of saying that I tend to doubt that Glock will keep putting a lot of work into .40 guns. We'll see.

Won't that be wild when it becomes a niche round for action pistol sports and maybe as a semiauto option as a woods pistol. Oh how the mighty have fallen sort of thing. I thought it was pretty phenomenal shooting a friends 2011 in .40.