Why are Glocks so popular? Make a non US citizen understand.

[breakingtime91]

Handy, you nailed it. Decent guns but no where near where most lift them up to.

[psalms144.1]

It's all been said before, but, in case it hasn't hit home yet, Glocks are cheap. Cheap to produce, cheap to sell. That, in and of itself, would make them the darling of US LE. Add in the fact that, pre-2010 they were boringly reliable in 9mm, are easy to maintain (armorer training is a joke, and, frankly, a waste of money), and they're as accurate as 90+% of the people who'll ever shoot one, and you have the rest of the story.

I have a love/hate with Glock, especially after the Gen4 introduction fiasco, and I have significant heartburn with the way they've responded to some agencies who have openly questioned their perfection. I personally feel they've also "jumped the shark" when it comes to making their end users into beta-testers.

I also shoot SIGNIFICANTLY better with the VP9 I shot for the first time last week (compared to the G19s I've shot more that 100,000 combined rounds through over the last couple of decades), so there are, IMHO, "better" options out there from other similar platforms from a pure "shootability" perspective. Hell, I shot my new HK45C with its horrible, heavy, crunchy, hitchy DA trigger better in qualification yesterday than my Gen4 G19 - and those were the first 60 rounds I put through it.

YMMV, of course, and if Glock does it for you, more power to you. I've reached the age where I can't be bothered championing or defending any platform or manufacturer...

[Handy]

Glocks don't appear to be cheaper to buy at retail than a VP9 or PPQ. They were in the '80s, but the price/profit of Glocks have climbed until they are pretty much like any 1st Tier polymer striker gun.

Rugers and Sigmas are cheap.

[psalms144.1]

Glocks don't appear to be cheaper to buy at retail than a VP9 or PPQ. They were in the '80s, but the price/profit of Glocks have climbed until they are pretty much like any 1st Tier polymer striker gun.

Rugers and Sigmas are cheap.

I was largely referring to agency and individual officer sales. Glock is still the most afforable, though S&W has dropped the M&P price to match Glock, and Sig's P320 is darned close to it. The VP9 is still quite a bit spendier - close to $200 or 50% more

[spinmove_]

I was largely referring to agency and individual officer sales. Glock is still the most afforable, though S&W has dropped the M&P price to match Glock, and Sig's P320 is darned close to it. The VP9 is still quite a bit spendier - close to $200 or 50% more

I have to agree with Psalms' findings. Glocks aren't the best at anything, no doubt about that. But they're good enough in every area that matters and priced accordingly which makes them a compelling option. Glocks aren't your thing? Cool, I get it and there's nothing wrong with that. We live in a great time where you don't have just one option that's good. Find what works for you and train/practice.

[Handy]

I was largely referring to agency and individual officer sales. Glock is still the most afforable, though S&W has dropped the M&P price to match Glock, and Sig's P320 is darned close to it. The VP9 is still quite a bit spendier - close to $200 or 50% more

Well, that's great for cops and all, but the majority of all of these guns are purchased by consumers at retail prices. I don't know if it makes sense to refer to a discount availabe to a tiny minority of buyers - buyers who can only buy certain guns under department guidelines in the first place.

For 95% (? 99%?) of pistol buyers, Glocks are just as spendy as their German counterparts.

[EVP]

Psalms144

I hope you write a post about your experience and findings with the vp9 after you have given it some time.

[GardoneVT]

Well, that's great for cops and all, but the majority of all of these guns are purchased by consumers at retail prices. I don't know if it makes sense to refer to a discount availabe to a tiny minority of buyers - buyers who can only buy certain guns under department guidelines in the first place.

For 95% (? 99%?) of pistol buyers, Glocks are just as spendy as their German counterparts.

But the German counterparts aren't used by Small Town PD.

It is ironic that while most Average Joes and Janes buy Glocks because LE use them and thus they "must be good" (or The Gunslinger Sheriff Deputies wouldn't use them, right?) , the LE agencies buy them because they're the lowest quality bidder for a tool they can fill their employees' holsters .

[TiroFijo]

Glocks don't have 33 parts. They have 34 part numbers, but the actual number of separate parts used to assemble a Glock at the factory is about 42 for a Gen 2 and 47 for a Gen 4. The trigger assembly alone accounts for 5 total parts.

This is just another example of how Glock has successfully marketed a false representation of its simplicity and safety to the public. The popular comparison was to the Beretta 92, which has 63 parts. But if you make an apples to apples comparison with a 92D it drops to 55 parts - and 10 of those parts are just grips and grip hardware.

Not counting the grips, it is reasonable to say that a Gen 4 Glock is more complicated than a Beretta 92D.

Anybody that says that a beretta is less complicated than a glock has never done a complete disassembly the beretta. For the safety lever you need three hands, a lot of light, and good luck to no loose the micro parts.

The comparison of the HK and glock is still valid, since 42 is 2/3 of 63.

Anyone that works on his own guns will quickly realize how simple are the glocks to detail strip and reassemble.

But hey, just keep piling up on why "cheap" is the only reason glocks sell so well, in spite of much "superior" offerings.

[Handy]

But the German counterparts aren't used by Small Town PD.

It is ironic that while most Average Joes and Janes buy Glocks because LE use them and thus they "must be good" (or The Gunslinger Sheriff Deputies wouldn't use them, right?) , the LE agencies buy them because they're the lowest quality bidder for a tool they can fill their employees' holsters .

That's assuming that Glock isn't discounting LE sales so much BECAUSE of the marketing value of filling PD holsters. If you could sell a million guns by selling 10,000 at cost, wouldn't you?

A lot of 92 pistols were sold because of the M9. Local PDs are just a grass roots version of winning the service pistol award.