Is the jury still out on Gen 4 G17?

[nternal]

It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking that newer is better but, that's not always true. As I understand it the Gen 4 recoil spring was really meant to improve the performance of the Glock 22 and that, used in the Glock 17, it created some problems. On the other hand the Gen 3 G17 is well proven in the field and has a sterling reputation. Now that the G17 recoil spring has modified (a couple of times) does anyone have an opinion on which generation G17 is ultimately better or... Does it just come down to nothing more than being able to choose grip size and the more aggressive texturing on the Gen 4?

[secondstoryguy]

The later Gen 3s aren't perfect either.

[nternal]

The later Gen 3s aren't perfect either.

I'd not heard that. Has Glock's QC slipped?

[JBP55]

I prefer the G4 Glocks to any of the previous ones.

[secondstoryguy]

I believe the problem is that Glock had a rough transition with the Gen 3-Gen 4 upgrade. The guns made between early 2009 up until late 2011 seem to have more problems than those that came before and after. The problems also seem to be subtle, making one think that it's not the gun but another factor. I've watched multiple Gen 4s late Gen 3s who's owners are perfectly happy but I watch them at the range and they while they seem to work, they clearly aren't ejecting properly. I'm not saying that all guns made between this period are problematic, it just seems that there is a higher percentage of bad ones in this group. I think Glock has finally gotten their "recipe" right on the gen 4s, but I and many others are kinda miffed that they used the shooting public as their QC testbed.

Glock can make a great gun but they have a long history of keeping end users in the dark, denying problems instead of bucking up and fixing them(god knows they have the cash to make it right).

[apollo11]

My jury has returned from deliberation, and the verdict is that I will not buy anymore Gen4's or later made Gen3's after the pain I went through.

My HK's have put me through no such pain.

[t1tan]

I prefer the G4 Glocks to any of the previous ones.

Same here


Prefered the texture and hated how crammed my fingers felt so I sold my 19 for a 17Gen 4 and took it out for the first time yestrday to start my 2,000 round challenge, 330 trouble free rounds of WWB & P9HST2. Thinking about picking up a 26Gen 4 this summer, at blue label prices it's hard to beat, but I'm still considering a PPS.

To add, mine is an SGTXXX and was test fired, 12/08/11

[Cosmo M3]

I'd not heard that. Has Glock's QC slipped?

This is not new news

[GJM]

It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking that newer is better but, that's not always true. As I understand it the Gen 4 recoil spring was really meant to improve the performance of the Glock 22 and that, used in the Glock 17, it created some problems. On the other hand the Gen 3 G17 is well proven in the field and has a sterling reputation. Now that the G17 recoil spring has modified (a couple of times) does anyone have an opinion on which generation G17 is ultimately better or... Does it just come down to nothing more than being able to choose grip size and the more aggressive texturing on the Gen 4?

You should use the search function as so many detailed threads/posts exist on this subject, and you will miss significant information from many that won't spend the time to respond to your question. For example, many folks think it is the new five digit ejector that has largely fixed the 9mm issues, there are late Gen 3 extractor issues, the Gen 4 21's get good reports, and the Gen 4 40's may well have been improved.

[JHC]

You should use the search function as so many detailed threads/posts exist on this subject, and you will miss significant information from many that won't spend the time to respond to your question. For example, many folks think it is the new five digit ejector that has largely fixed the 9mm issues, there are late Gen 3 extractor issues, the Gen 4 21's get good reports, and the Gen 4 40's may well have been improved.

This. Having such good luck with four Gen 4 9mms and three late production Gen 3 9mm's I don't feel quite as snake bit as many. I'll probably be making another Glock purchase soon and the only model that rivals one of the Gen 4 options for me is another RTF2 G17.

[Super J]

I prefer my gen 4 17 over my gen 3 17