The 26 is definitely the best of the smaller Glocks.
The 26 is definitely the best of the smaller Glocks.
**OK**
No. I can't stand the 26. Much prefer the 43, 43X and 48.
I agree completely that the G26 is the best carry Glock and I ended up there by accident. Bought a CZ P10S, been carrying it for a while marveling at how easy it carries for its capacity and shootability, then realized it’s just a CZ G26.
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I've owned both, no longer have either. I am not convinced there's a comparison to be made...but I am probably biased, since I didn't like them for different reasons. For my purposes about all they share in common is they have 10 round factory magazines...?
The 43X was snappy, very snappy to shoot carry ammo. In the holster, as basically a thin Glock 19, the grip length AIWB had about the same concealment feel. I sold it for a Glock 48, which solved the snappiness issue, but ended up having reliability problems after having it milled for a dot. Sigh.
The Glock 26 I owned with a Glock 19 at the same time. That made sense, as sharing magazines was totally a big plus. But, I ended up using a factory 12 round in the G26 and discovered that it carried about the same as the G19, so why did I need a Glock 26. And fat, due to the double stack design. And heavy, in terms of my "how many ounces per round" metric. Still, it was accurate (very accurate) and reliable. I appreciate I'm in the minority here that doesn't think much of the Glock 26, unless it's a BUG, in which case I totally get it.
I prefer my P365X over both of these, by a large margin.
Sometimes I wonder if the root of the preference for fat subcompacts is from bigger folks with larger hands. They prefer the stubby wide grips because they can wrap the L or XL hands around to get good purchase, and the wider 1.4" slide doesn't bug them carrying because the ratio of the width to their physically larger torsos is about the same as large double stack guns. And they can shoot them well with a two finger grip. I'm a smaller person (5'6") with smaller M/L hands, which might explain why I ended up not liking either of the two subcompact double stacks I had (and I had both a G26 and a P30SK).
The 26 is more reliable and shoots better than the 43, but I've found that if I can carry a 26 then I can generally carry a 19...so I don't have much a use for the 26.
With the exception of terminal ballistics, the 42 does everything better than the 43. I own both, but am stuck between the two and deciding which one is more useful. One of the things I've seen mentioned here is that the grips on the slimline Glocks are generally very slick and squirmy. Anyone fighting with that should employ the use of a Hogue rubber grip or texturing such as Talon Grips before you give up the gun. It makes a huge difference.
"Are you ready? Okay. Let's roll."- Last words of Todd Beamer
I find all the 'more reliable' comments interesting given I've not seen much (any?) reports of failures of the 43X with OEM parts and mags. I wonder how much of that reputation is now built out on 10 rd aftermarket mags and mag catches?
I don't like the G26 at all, but I'm not a fan of shorty grips in any semi-auto. G43x is the smallest non-revolver I can shoot at levels I consider acceptable for carry.
Sorta around sometimes for some of your shitty mod needs.
I really wanted to like the G43X, for a lot of reasons. But, it kept doing this to me:
I have friends who swear by the 43X and shoot it very well. They all have smaller hands than I do. What? Everyone's a little different and not everything works for everybody? That's just crazy talk...
I always got along well with the G26/27 series. I may have to check out the new MOS version.
Yes, probably, with the caveat that the 43 platform's reputation for having a narrower reliability envelope than the 26 predates mags like the Shield.Originally Posted by BehindBlueI's
Additionally, it took years and several iterations of design changes for it to pass FBI reliability testing, and even then only with a unique exclusion that it is ordered directly through an FBI program with Glock to ensure agents receive a gun with the changes (as opposed to buying a new-old stock model or used gun which lacks these design changes). Additionally, the 43/43X is approved only in its stock form. Due to reliability issues, it is not approved with the use of any red dot sights, aftermarket magazines, or WMLs as the FBI could not get it to pass testing with these attachments.
The 26, however, has no such restrictions. An end user can add a RDS, WML, any number of extended magazines or the Glock OEM +2 baseplate and the gun will still work fine. The gun is literally purposed to be interchangeable with higher capacity mags, even. I think it says a lot that Glock doesn't even produce a +1/+2 baseplate for the 43 series themselves, only a finger extension.
Ergo, the 26 is a more reliable gun.
"Are you ready? Okay. Let's roll."- Last words of Todd Beamer
Personally, while some of my negative thoughts on the slim line blocks are based on anecdotal observation of individual guns, it’s also based on test results from two large federal agencies which involved stock OEM guns and mags.
One of those agencies tested the Glock 43 and 43X 6 times, resulting in 6 failures and returning the guns to Glock for improvements before finally getting them to pass testing. Even then, the testing process had to be reduced to 6,000 rounds instead of that agency’s normal 10,000 round protocol. Though approved, the gun is only authorized with only one of their two types of duty ammunition and was not authorized for use with WML, which are issued on their service sized Glocks.
The other, my own agency, Initially approved the Glock 43 via let’s call it an “irregular” process. The Glock 43’s I saw in use did very poorly most could not make it through a 50 round course with our duty ammo. Although in fairness, these guns generally do better with standard velocity ammo versus plus P.
When the 43X and the 48 were introduced, we tested them using the 43 as a baseline. Suffice to say they did so poorly that not only were the 43X and the 48 not approved but the Glock 43 was de-authorized.
Wow, I really appreciate this information. I’ve seen you mention that the slimline Glocks were comparatively unreliable but didn’t realize it was this egregious. Out of curiosity, have you also tested the P365 series with WML/RDS? Just wondering how those performed with those attachments.
Back to the original post, I also agree that the 26 is superior to the 43x/48. I can shoot the 26 much better than the slimline Glocks. Like TGS, though, I realized that if I can carry a G26, I can carry a G19. So, that’s what I do. I can shoot a G19 very closely to even a G34 on virtually all range drills, though I assume I’d see a difference on something like a USPSA field course. I’m a decent-sized guy so I can conceal even a G45 without much effort, so I personally don’t gain too much from the slimline Glocks other than weight savings really.
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