Hey guys and gals, I'm new to the Glock club after picking up my first Glock this Saturday. I have been eyeing them for a very long time now and decided to pick up a Glock 19 gen 3.
Anyway, after getting a feel for it this weekend, I'm afraid I may have made a mistake. I feel like the grip is to large for my hands. If I have the gun tucked into the webbing of my dominant hand, I can barely reach the trigger. I can rotate my dominant hand so the gun rides closer to my thumb joint to get a better grip but it doesn't tuck into the webbing near as well and puts pressure on my thumb knuckle.
What do you guys think? Am I overthinking this? Should I have picked up something smaller?
Good web position:
Gun to the left position. Notice my thumb knuckle. The frame forces it to stick straight out.:
You should get something smaller. Get the excellent book " Defensive Pistol Fundamentals" by Grant Cunningham and read Chapter 3 " Picking a Semi Auto Pistol." Plenty to choose from. Try the Sig 320 among others.
What would you suggest I do since I haven't put any rounds through it yet? See if the gun store would take it back for something different? Try to sell it myself?
One tip read about too, use your left hand (support hand) to pull the pistol into your right hand thumb to release the magazine. This is what I started doing because I can't naturally reach the magazine release.
Here are some suggestions, some based on the responses from the posts:
1. Try it with the suggested grip configuration. If you shoot it the value will go down, but you will at least have an idea if it works or not.
2. Before shooting it, try to see how a Gen 4 fits in your hand. My Gen 4 21 has a different grip feel than my Gen 3s. I think it may be due the slightly thinner grip.
3. Sell it at a gun show or Gunbroker, not fired, and try to get as much as you can for it. List it as LNIB. Then you can get something else.
4. If you really like it, you can always have a qualified gunsmith, or someone who specializes in modifying Glocks, remove some material from the grip to make it fit better. I'm having the grips on my 19 & 17 reworked (removing the finger grooves, taking some of the hump off, as well as a slight trigger guard undercut to help with the "Glock knuckle"). I don't plan to sell them, so I'm not worrying about the cosmetic modifications.
#.4 would be my suggestion.
The G 19 I have had since 98 and hated the fit to my hands,I have rather large hands and the finger groves fell right where my
fingers would fall instead of on top and bottom.
So I under cut the rear of the trigger guard and that G 19 now fits like a glove. SJ 40
I say just shoot it and get a good feel for it. Glocks tend to be pretty easy to resell if you ever dont want it, just dont go making permanent modifications until you make a final decision.
I have small hands and my Gen4 G30 is technically too big for my hands, but after a few range trips I now shoot it better than any of my other guns.
If you have any frame modifications made, the resale value plummets...for good reason. No one wants something that someone else had customized to their specific anatomical aberrations.
Do not expect the gun store to take it back, unless you are willing to take a very significant discount on what you paid. The gun store position would be very reasonable, IMO, since it became a used item as soon as you walked away from the counter with it. It has been irreversibly removed from inventory (sold to you) in the dealer's FFL bound book (or electronic equivalent) and that can not be undone. The dealer would need to re-enter it as a newly-acquired (from you) used item in his bound book.
A Gen4 G19 without backstrap has a maximum grip length front to back that's 2mm shorter than a Gen3 G19. Many find that to significant.
If you find a Gen4 G19 grip too large, then there's nothing in Glock's 9x19mm product line that will have any chance of fitting you except the G43 6+1 single-stack.
Finally, I'd suggest that a few sessions at the range would very likely result in a natural adjustment to the Gen3 G19. This is Glock's historically most-used most-popular weapon, with many tens of thousands of people all over the world using it professionally or personally. It seems unlikely that you would not also readily adjust to a satisfactory grip once you have actual practice, just as many thousands of small-handed people have done in the 30 years the G19 has been sold. Musings on a never-tried G19 at home relate poorly to how it will feel in actual use.
I was going to say something similar to this but you said it for me.
I've been shooting G19s for years, Gen 2, 3 and now a 4 and the weapon has always felt large in my hands but with practice you can master it.
Meanwhile, I find dropping the mag with my weak hand works for me even for fast mag changes as my thumb is a stretch to the mag release even on a Gen 4.
You're getting the tip of your finger on the trigger above the first joint, shoot it, see how it does. If you're new to pistols in general then shell out some change for some pro instruction. It will help.
Well I went back by the gun store to get a feel for the gen 4 again. After reading so many comments from people claiming they noticed a huge difference between the gen 3 and gen 4, I really couldn't tell.
The guy behind the counter suggested checking out a local gun smith and see about getting it shaved down. I mentioned that I didn't feel comfortable messing up my frame but he said they are rather easy to find replacements in case I ever want to sell it.
I think I'm just over complicating the entire thing so I think I'm just going to keep it and get use to it.
We have a tendency to do that to ourselves. I'd take some of the advice already given, take it for a few range sessions and see how it goes. Then make a decision. I think you'll be surprised after shooting it.
Having said that, G19s, while extremely popular, just aren't for every single shooter. If it really feels poor after some range time, sell it and find a different option. Ideally you test out a few things before making another purchase.
I do not have big hands, and remember thinking the grip seems too big for me. I guess I just got used to it, I have had a gen 2 G19 since about 1996 and now I have a gen 3. I shoot them fine, remember there is a lot of good shooting ladies with Glocks!
This is exactly what has been going through my head. I think reading so many people go on about the smaller size of the gen 4 really made me have second thoughts. Now that I had another feel for the gen 4, I think the gen 3 will work great. Now I just need to start sending some rounds down range.
If a compact Glock is too big for your hands, you have some really tiny little hands. The G19 is the perfect size pistol IMO, and most people agree, no matter hand size. If you are having issues and you feel it really is too large, go to a gunshop and try several different pistols to find one you are comfortable gripping. Don't buy anything else until you find something you are comfortable with.
I would shoot it some before you decide. I always shoot guns well whose grip feels bigger than optimal. I always try and get people to shoot a gun for a few hundred rounds before deciding the grip is too large. I think the worst way to choose a gun is by feel in the gunshop. Smaller grips usually feel better, larger grips usually shoot better.
Yes, definately keep the gun[!] but use a two handed grip...this will not only offer you great support but will also allow you to rotate your right hand slightly counterclockwise towards the trigger a bit, affording you an easier & more natural contact with the trigger. This hand placement will quickly become second nature, and before you know it you'll be onto your next Glock purchase
To the OP,
Yep,you probably should have handled several pistols in the LGS. You may have found better options that would have fit your hand better like say the M&P 9c.
If a compact Glock is too big for your hands, you have some really tiny little hands. The G19 is the perfect size pistol IMO, and most people agree, no matter hand size. If you are having issues and you feel it really is too large, go to a gunshop and try several different pistols to find one you are comfortable gripping. Don't buy anything else until you find something you are comfortable with.
Trolling a little? The G19 Gen 3 grip is the same / as large as the G17's; just a bit shorter there and in the barrel. If you compare both at a gun store or happen to have both, you'll see. Or see here: http://www.diffen.com/difference/Glock_17_vs_Glock_19
To the OP: The G19 Gen 4 is perfect - a little grip reduction and larger mag release button goes a long way. See if you can consign your Gen 3 at the store from which you bought it, and then use the proceeds to get a Gen 4.
Trolling a little? The G19 Gen 3 grip is the same / as large as the G17's; just a bit shorter there and in the barrel. If you compare both at a gun store or happen to have both, you'll see. Or see here: http://www.diffen.com/difference/Glock_17_vs_Glock_19
To the OP: The G19 Gen 4 is perfect - a little grip reduction and larger mag release button goes a long way. See if you can consign your Gen 3 at the store from which you bought it, and then use the proceeds to get a Gen 4.
So you bought a firearm in person and didn't realize at the time you couldn't hold it properly and reach the trigger? Must be a good looking sales rep. :eyelashes: I also have smallish hands, wear a medium glove. I would suggest a Gen4 for a better fit but for goodness sake pick one up and hold it and get the feel of it, preferably find someone or somewhere that'll let you shoot one before dropping $500 on it. I love Glocks but they may not be for you, something like an M&P might be what fits your hand the best. Good luck!
I tried holding the S&W M&P 2.0 and it felt the same in my had as the Glock 19 as far as grip went. I really think I have been over complicating this whole thing to be honest. I have that problem where I want my toys to be absolutely perfect and if I have the slightest hint of there being something better, I go crazy lol.
I have small hands, from 2005-2016 my EDC gun has been a Glock 19 (I've had more than a few, in 2nd, 3rd, and 4th Gen variations).
In May of 2016, I switched my EDC gun to the Walther PPS M2. I sold off two of my 19s, but kept one - a 3rd Gen (it has a NikBor slide that I really like). Now, whenever I pick up my 19 - it feels like a Brick!
I will most likely send it off for a grip reduction and finger groove removal in the next couple of months. Then it will definitely be a keeper.
I would shoot it some before you decide. I always shoot guns well whose grip feels bigger than optimal. I always try and get people to shoot a gun for a few hundred rounds before deciding the grip is too large. I think the worst way to choose a gun is by feel in the gunshop. Smaller grips usually feel better, larger grips usually shoot better.
Shoot it some more, assuming you've already shot it, , and try and make your HAND fit the gun instead of the GUN fitting your hand. I've learned to do that with my Glocks after years of shooting revolvers and 1911's. I've always hated that "bump" at the bottom rear of the grip but now I'm used to it and the G19/23/32 is my favorite sized 9mm/40/357 Sig.
But then keep track of how much ammo you shoot, save the boxes, etc., and then if you still don't like it, sell it(also save your reciept and all paperwork) and get a Gen 4 and that will probably make enough of a difference that you will more easily be able to adapt to it.
Just thinking out loud here, but the OP could post the G19 on his local Armslist, asking for a Shield 9 (or PPS), plus $100 or so. That's a trade that has a very high expectation of success, and that would put him into a quality EDC pistol that should fit him a lot better, without him taking a serious beating taking it back to his LGS, and purchasing new again.
Barring something like that, I agree that the OP should just keep the pistol, and get used to it. From the pics, it doesn't appear that the size is an insurmountable obstacle.
I say keep the G19 and learn to shoot it. I think you will find that if the 50,000 cops of NYPD can all use it, you will be able to do so as well. There is no other Glock model that has a shorter "reach" from the back strap to the trigger except the single stack models.
That said, the Gen4 Glocks are all smaller than their Gen3 counterparts because the base grip frame is smaller, and the Gen4 backstraps allow the user to make the grip bigger. I think the first add-on grip size makes the Gen4 the size of the old Gen3. Then, the larger one makes it bigger yet.
If pic#2 is your natural grip you have enough of the pad of your finger on the trigger , witch is the correct way to fire your weapon. Keep it and train to the point that it just feels like an extension of your hand.
The Glock 19 is really the most efficient pistol is my eyes. Between weight, size and capacity it can't be beat.
That being said, if it doesn't fit your hands try a sig p225.
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