I don't get the Glock Grip cliche - evidence

[Glenn E. Meyer]

So in another thread, a poster says the Glock doesn't fit his hand. I've seen folks say that they just can't shoot a Glock because of the grip angle.

I don't get it. What does it mean empirically? A person with handgun experience picks up a Glock and cannot make reasonable hits at usual distances? They spray the environment. Are my hands special? I can shoot a Glock or 1911 with a good deal of accuracy.

But I see this all the time and it seems to me (no offense), it is some kind of virtue signaling from some to show how cool they are.

What is the empirical evidence if one of these folks shoots a standard test with a Glock 19, let's say vs. some other wonder gun of choice?

What is the performance degradation? I recall Karl Rehn doing such a test with small guns vs. bigger handguns for novices and advanced shooters and showing the decrements of novices with the smaller guns. I've noted that it takes me a touch of reinforcement to get my small gun skills up to speed if I have practiced with them.

Anybody ever do that for the Glock grip haters?

[Duelist]

No, haven't. But I have handed someone the gun and a box of ammo and said, "Just shoot it." Usually, the response it, "Oh, that wasn't that bad."

I was messing around with my 642 and my G26 the other day, and noticed that they have about the same bore/grip angle. So there's that.

[JSGlock34]

Too often I hear the gun store advice of "pick the pistol that feels best in your hand", usually followed by the person gripping the pistol incorrectly. You don't know what you don't know.

To be sure, there are people who struggle to operate the controls of certain pistols, and may be better served by another handgun. Still, the Glock is the most common service pistol on the planet, so it seems to fit a great number of hands without much issue.

[Duke]

Shot a Glock for 10+ years.

Trained with pat Mac, thunder ranch, Panone, many others. Have my own range. Can shoot whenever I want.

Can spit cards strong hand only at 7 meters...but No improvement when shooting at speed.

Switched from Glocks to DA/SA beretta. 3 months later got a fast coin

We have to move away from the “if you can’t shoot such and such then you just can’t shoot”

It’s 2018 and the Glock is one of the only guns out there with 30+ year old unchanged ergonomics. And to that end most everyone has some kind of grinding or stippling done.


I have weird sized/shaped hands. It is what it is. Throwing bullets is pretty serious business. Should probably use what gives you an advantage

[CCT125US]

Certainly a difference between can't shoot, and one's preference. I am not a Glock guy. My first gun was a USP .45, my second was a G26. Purchased a second G26 for my wife many years ago. They have since been sold off. I am in the camp of not caring for the Glock grip angle. I believe it is more out of unfamiliarity than actual performance degradation. I have a few more rounds through HKs than Glocks. Several months back I borrowed a friends G19.5 just to give it a whirl and see what the fuss was about. In my initial mag, I believe I passed the iHack and several other standard drills following that. I remember thinking of all the money I would have saved if I just picked up 2 G19s when I started shooting. My issue with Glocks is they don't offer a paddle release, LEM, that accepts HK mags.

[awp_101]

OK, I'll play.

I'm not a Glock hater, I've carried G19s and a G30 for 9 of the past 10 years. The short version is I have to work harder to shoot a Glock (except maybe the 43) because of my medium size hands with stubby fingers. With the aftermarket support and the fact you can find parts and mags without even trying, I really want to like them. I'd love a 20 and 21, maybe even a 29 but unless I start doing back strap mods it's simply easier for me to spend my time and money on pistols that actually fit me better and are easier for me to shoot.

[BehindBlueI's]

Are my hands special?

Probably not, but some folks' are. Someone with very small hands might very well need a grip reduction or smaller grip to get a good grip on the gun. Especially with some of the relatively snappy .40 Glocks.

My hands are definitely custom. My right hand has metal in it, but more importantly the bottom two fingers are crooked. The pinky also rolls out quite a bit (if the top of my other fingernails point at 12, my pinky is pointing at about 2). Not only do I get blisters very quickly from shooting finger grooved Glocks, I perform measurably worse at things like the FAST, Bill drills, etc. where speed is a factor. I never feel like I have a good grip on the gun, and wearing skin off your finger is never great for flinch. For pure accuracy and low volumes of fire, I can shoot nearly as well, but still measurably worse.

The Gen 5 changed that. I shoot the 17M just as well as the P226, with the exception of the 1" square on "Find your Level" and that's due to sights, not the gun. So, at least for me, it's not the angle so much as the grooves and the texture. I have zero use for Gen 3 or 4 Glocks due to the grips.

[Artemas2]

It is like limp wristing. Person can't perform and blames it on either on the gun or the latest fun phrase they heard on the internet, or a 1980s era gun magazine.

That may not include people who have legitimately small hands and would be better served with an M&P, CZ, VP9, 1911 and so on.

Glocks do require a small amount of forward wrist rotation to level the sights, which if you are using said sights correctly the "grip angle" is likely only going to affect your initial presentation until you get a few reps in.

The more into the minutia that you get the worse the problem comes up.

My opinions on this are based on my observations from the local ranges and may not reflect some of you 25 yard X-ring punching P-Fers

[Glenn E. Meyer]

I understand the higher end shooters who evaluate their performance empirically or with specific hand issues. I guess I was reactive to several I just can't shoot comments from seemingly ordinary folks with normal mitts.

I don't particularly like the larger SW revolvers for my hand but if I had to shoot one, I could and have at matches.

[Gio]

Regarding grip angle, I think the slightly more forward rotation of your hands required to align Glock sights leads to improved recoil control. I can shoot a Glock flatter than any other polymer service pistol as a result.