High grip problem on Glocks

[ranburr]

After being a multiple- decade 1911 shooter, I have the same issue with Glocks and XDs. My answer was to start grinding away the slide stops. I didn't want to change my grip since I continue to shoot 1911s and other frame mounted safety designs. If I were going to committ solely to the Glock platform, I would work on changing my grip. If you decide to go with the hardware solution, I take mine down where there is only enough left to lock the slide back. I have always used them as a slide lock, never a slide release.

[Al T.]

Wow, you weren't kidding about the big mitts. Your left thumb is about an inch longer than mine.

Tried making sure the heels of your hands are touching? I've been following along on your video with my G17 and that gives me a bit more of an angle, though my hands are smaller.

Ever get down to Columbia, you are welcome to try my M&P .40 or .45.

[pointfiveoh]

Wow, you weren't kidding about the big mitts. Your left thumb is about an inch longer than mine.

Tried making sure the heels of your hands are touching? I've been following along on your video with my G17 and that gives me a bit more of an angle, though my hands are smaller.

Ever get down to Columbia, you are welcome to try my M&P .40 or .45.

I will try to take you up on that. I have some buddies in the Cola area. I'll pm you when I visit next.

My palms are definitely touching. I'm 6'5" and have parts to match so my hands do tend to cover up the whole gun.

[cgcorrea]

I used to have this issue when I started taking up a more aggressive thumbs-forward grip. The meatty portion of my support hand thumb was pressing on the slide lock/release, on an otherwise very effective grip. Not only was the slide on my gun not locking to the rear on an empty mag, but the slide lock/release would sart to cut into that meatty portion of my thumb during high volume courses of fire, causing it to bleed a little. I asked Jason Falla to take a look at my grip during a break @ a course that I took with RB1 earlier this year, to see what I was doing wrong. He showed me what his grip looked like, and it didn't look much different from what I was doing except upon looking up close, I could see that he was leaving more room for his support hand on the pistol grip, than I was leaving for mine on my gun. I saw that I needed this room to place the bulk of that meaty portion of the weak hand thumb a bit further behind the slide lock/release. So I started "hitchhiking" my strong hand thumb during the draw to leave that space, and then I rest it over my support hand thumb once I have finalized my support hand placement. I began to train to this tiny adjustment, and have not experienced any failures to lock back since. I realize that it's probably difficult to picture what I'm trying to describe, so I'll try and see if I can get my wife to take some pics of what I'm talking about when I get home this evening. I have gigantor hands too, so I know how annoying it could be when handling certain guns. Hope this helps.

[Mjolnir]

I had the same problem. I got used to my USP V1, where my strong thumb would just ride the safety all day. Well, when I switched to Glock, my strong thumb went to look for somewhere to rest - and the only thing it found was the slide release. So yeah, I had a few failures to lock back.

I simply retrained myself to rest my strong thumb on top of my weak thumb, slightly away from the frame of the pistol. It's habit now, and I haven't had a FTLB in 1200+ rounds.

Good luck!

I went from 1911 "riding high" (thumbs, that is) to a Gen 4 Model 17 and I find myself actually pinching the slide with my strong hand which caused malfunctions which LAV caught immediately and had me alter my grip for the remainder of the class. The pistol was then reliable but I had to remain conscious of this so I purchased Grip Enhancers for both of the Gen 4s and it "solves" the issue for now.

It's kinda like an M&P now.

I'm missing the steel...

[SeaSoldier]

For some reason that I hadn't figured out I could run a G19 all the way through a 3 day class and not bump the slide lock up while firing. Switch to a G17 and I would bump it on the first mag. I have switched to an RTF and another stippled frame G17 and no more problem. The extra traction keeps my off side hand pretty well planted.

[JV_]

I could run a G19 all the way through a 3 day class and not bump the slide lock up while firing. Switch to a G17 and I would bump it on the first mag.

I have the same issue.