Review: Glock 43 w/ Shooting Results

[LSP972]

I have a bit over 100 rounds (all FMJ so far) through mine now; with only two six round magazines, the going is slow. I'm going to order some more, and get with JBP55 and check out his Taran +2 base plates.

The trigger on mine is pretty miserable, but despite that the little pistol shoots quite easily. I have a problem with every other Glock model; my finger drags along the inside bottom of the trigger guard, and soon becomes irritated and eventually painful. And so it is the same with the G43. When I get my second one, I am going to attack this one with the dreaded Dremel, to thin the lower trigger guard (from the inside) and relieve the trigger guard/front strap juncture to get my hand a bit higher on the gun. I have done these two mods to three G19s, and it makes quite a bit of positive difference for me, in the way the pistol handles along with no more sore finger tip.

IOW, my initial positive reaction to shooting JBP55's G43 has been verified with my own G43. I think Glock pretty much gave us what we have been asking for with this one. Not sure what I'm going to do about sights just yet; I happen to be one of those odd-balls who actually likes the issue sight configuration… although I know that relying on plastic sights is rolling the dice. Probably going to skip any trits on this one; I put it in the same category as a J frame. That is, I'm not going to try and make a 50-yard pistol out of it, and anything I can ID in dim light at close range should be "hittable". Yeah, I know… lots of faith in that thought. But I'm getting old, cranky, and just not as concerned with some details as I used to be.

Does anyone even offer metal sights duplicating the issued plastic ones?

And SkinTop911, you were absolutely correct; the G43 grip is, without doubt, more "agreeable and stable" than the Shield was, for me. While I can get a full grip with the flat base plate, that finger groove plate feels like it was made just for me.

Good thing I binge-loaded plenty of Euro Pellet not long ago…

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[S Jenks]

Does anyone even offer metal sights duplicating the issued plastic ones?

http://www.glockstore.com/glock-factory-parts/sights

Not pimping Glockstore, they just were the top of the search results.

[LSP972]

That's Lenny Magill's business, right? I remember that guy when he was running around the Bianchi Cup with a video camera, hustling... never mind.

The front sight on my G43 appears to be "standard", but the rear sight is definitely different (and bit more narrow, a bit taller). I'm seeing the area Glock rep today; maybe he has some scoop on this subject.

Thanks, S Jenks. Looks like I need to brush up on my Glock-fu.

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[LSP972]

BTW, forgot to mention; I have found what may be a 'tactical oops' with this little critter. Its hard to do this without pics, but I'll try.

The magazines have a slight taper at the top; from the feed lips down just under a half inch. Also, the magazines are not a precise fit in the well; you can twist the mag slightly in the well. When inserting a magazine at speed, if you torque the fresh magazine ever so slightly to the right (as viewed from the top of the pistol, muzzle away from you), the upper right edge of the magazine, in front of and slightly below the feed lips, will hit the magazine catch inside the mag well and stop; period. You have to start over, or sometimes twisting the mag back "straight" will allow it to fully seat.

It looks like they anticipated this, because the area in question is slightly relieved; just not enough. But the only way I see to totally prevent this is to remove material from the area... and there isn't much there to begin with.

Deal breaker? I don't think so, but you need to be aware of it. I haven't seen any reference to this yet, so at first I thought it was just me... until a buddy called me to ask about it last night. Its happening to him as well. Not constantly, for either of us, but often enough to notice it.

Hopefully, more time on the gun will solve the issue. However, I already see some gouging of the polymer material there, and that could possibly exacerbate the issue- so, be aware.

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[JBP55]

BTW, forgot to mention; I have found what may be a 'tactical oops' with this little critter. Its hard to do this without pics, but I'll try.

The magazines have a slight taper at the top; from the feed lips down just under a half inch. Also, the magazines are not a precise fit in the well; you can twist the mag slightly in the well. When inserting a magazine at speed, if you torque the fresh magazine ever so slightly to the right (as viewed from the top of the pistol, muzzle away from you), the upper right edge of the magazine, in front of and slightly below the feed lips, will hit the magazine catch inside the mag well and stop; period. You have to start over, or sometimes twisting the mag back "straight" will allow it to fully seat.

It looks like they anticipated this, because the area in question is slightly relieved; just not enough. But the only way I see to totally prevent this is to remove material from the area... and there isn't much there to begin with.

Deal breaker? I don't think so, but you need to be aware of it. I haven't seen any reference to this yet, so at first I thought it was just me... until a buddy called me to ask about it last night. Its happening to him as well. Not constantly, for either of us, but often enough to notice it.

Hopefully, more time on the gun will solve the issue. However, I already see some gouging of the polymer material there, and that could possibly exacerbate the issue- so, be aware.

.

This issue, fixes and the revised magazines have been discussed for a while on GT.

[LSP972]

Yeah, I guess I should brush up on my Google-fu too; I was informed at lunch that this is a well-known issue.

Sigh...

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[abu fitna]

I have run about 700 rounds through a recent build 43. Fed reliably also a pretty wide assortment of ammo types - Tula, S&B, Blazer, Remington, Winchester, American Eagle 115gr; Herter's TNJ (nyclad) 115gr; Remington 147gr; as well as Speer Gold Dot 124 gr +P; Federal HST 124 gr +P; and Georgia Arms loading of the Gold Dot 115 gr to +P+ (out of a batch lying around from years ago testing).

The magazine hang up is a periodic issue, and will need to be corrected. Trijicon HD sights work well as always.

Trigger is heavier than most other Glocks, as others have noted. Crisp, though - hopefully smooths down with use.

Have a bit of slide bite with the 19 between thumb and forefinger, but the 43 really chewed up the knuckle of the thumb. I guess it is inevitable that we will see how the finish reacts to blood over time (grin).

Having run both the PPS and Shield at various points in time, this is what I would have expected from the Glock. Objectively, very similar envelope but subjectively seems to tuck away a bit smaller than either - but we are talking very small differences. The magazines improve a bit on the PPS, but I prefer the Shield magazine for sure over the Glock.

Subjectively, I find that despite a strong preference for full size Glocks over M&P (due if nothing else to having carried the former for a long time), the Shield is more "shootable" and provides a more "fightable" gun for the envelope. Seems to be a little more forgiving of small user error. Of course, this means I need to run the 43 quite a bit more then to get the kind of consistency I expect from myself....

[abu fitna]

Up to 1500 rounds through. Started out of the box, no lube other than factory copper. Have not cleaned or lubed since.

Additional ammo types tested (in addition to prior list): Hornady Critical Defense 115gr JHP; Hornady Critical Duty 135gr JHP; Federal Personal Defense 135gr JHP; Federal HST 124gr standard pressure; Federal 9BPLE 115gr +P+; Winchester 124gr NATO spec FMJ; and Federal Nyclad 124gr JHP (last of the old stuff at the bottom of the stacks).

As always, all additional ammo selection dictated by whatever oddities I happened to have on hand - no rhyme nor reason other than this, so don't be insulted if your favorite load is not listed.

The weapon runs fine thus far. Shooter induced stoppage on 3 occasions, where magazine release was depressed attempting to establish strong non-dominant hand surface contact with grip frame for recoil control, causing failure to feed. This is not something I count against the weapon, only my fighting with the thing to correct a grip issue that was causing dropped shots in longer strings. (It has taken me more than a bit to get used to the little thing, especially when transitioning back to it from running the 19 for a while.)

One dead primer on Tula fodder, very solid primer impact noted. Round did not fire when tested in a proven Glock 19 either. Unsurprising given typical Russian (lack of) QC.

[ST911]

UPDATE

+92rds since the update above. No new loads. Added six new shooters, 2 men, 3 women, one 8yo boy with no previous shooting experience. 8yo is now the youngest shooter. One failure to return to battery with a lady shooter new to handguns, 1/10 rounds fired. All others, no malfunctions. Another lady shooter noted that she preferred her G26 to the G43. Primary reasons were preference for the larger grip area, and less muzzle rise.

Number of shooters: 36
Cumulative round count: 2,165

Updated ammo list:

Ammunition used (29):
*496rds Black Hills Ammunition 115gr FMJ (BHA brass)
50rds Black Hills Ammunition 115gr GDHP +P (Starline brass)
30rds Black Hills Ammunition 115gr TAC-XP +P (Win brass)
120rds Black Hills Ammunition 115gr TAC-XP +P (BHA brass)
60rds Black Hills Ammunition 124gr JHP-XTP +P (BHA brass)

26rds Federal 100gr RHT lead free frangible
100rds Federal 115 FMJ (aluminum case)
50rds Federal Champion 115gr FMJ
50rds Federal 124gr Hydra-Shok
*150rds Federal 147gr JHP
50rds Federal 147gr Hydra-Shok
70rds Speer Lawman 124 TMJ
50rds Speer Lawman 147 TMJ
62rds American Eagle 115 FMJ
50rds American Eagle 147 FMJ
50rds American Eagle 124gr FMJ
50rds CCI Blazer Brass 115 FMJ

100rds Corbon 115gr FMJ (Starline brass)
40rds Corbon 100gr +P Pow’RBall

50rds Magtech 115 FMC
50rds Herters (S&B) 115 FMJ
62rds PMC Bronze 115 FMJ
87rds Freedom Munitions 115 FMJ
50rds Herters-Tula 115 FMJ (steel case)
50rds Winchester Mk254 Mod 0 Frangible
46rds Remington 100gr Disintegrator lead free frangible
*16rds International Cartridge Company 100gr lead free frangible
50rds Fiocchi 115gr FMJ
50rds Remington UMC 147 FMJ

[abu fitna]

My example is now up to 2600 rounds fired total - still not cleaned in any way; same ammunition types as before with only the addition of sinterfire 9mm frangible.

3 additional stoppages beyond those reported before. Both related to failure to fully seat the small magazine, allowing first round to chamber but subsequent rounds failed to feed. I continue to attribute these to shooter error, although they are a more pronounced error with one magazine over others.

Have run Taran Tactical +2 extension on a magazine for some time with no issues in hundreds of rounds through that particular magazine, using unmodified factory spring. Additional weight of magazine is less than ideal for such a light platform, but the thing is rock solid. Carried for reload purposes the difference is less noticed than if carried as primary magazine seated in weapon in pocket holster or vest holster. Not really an issue when used in a belt holster, although if wearing only lightest clothing (gym shorts, etc.) the weight can tip over into the less than ideal range (compared to the air weight j frame, for example). I will note disassembly of the Glock 43 magazine is painfully difficult for no apparent reason... actually bent a Glock armorer's tool trying to pry the baseplate off one.

Wish there was a factory OEM mag option for 7/8 rounds. There appears to be no reason this would not work (though others may see something I do not).

Total have had only about nine folks other than myself run the thing briefly for fam fire. No malfunctions for these shooters, but they were not running hard by any means.

Trigger has smoothed down some subjectively, but still very heavy in comparison to other Glocks.