[Morgo]

Honestly unless she is really weak I doubt she would notice much difference especially in something as short as a 30 shot course.
The 17L is still very light, the barrel drop is going to be as minimal as it gets for a 6" handgun.

I've taken numerous new female shooters to the range to shoot handguns specifically, while they mostly shoot .22 they still shoot a few mags of centrefire through various handguns including my desert eagle, which is a lot heavier than a G17L.
I've never had any of them complain of fatigue after.

 

[mmcbeat]

I had forgotten all about this thread until it popped up again. I did get my 17L. I installed Ameriglo Defoor sights and an extended magazine release I had in my parts stash, T.H.E. brand if I remember correctly. I do like the gun, it’s never seen a holster but I shoot it quite a bit. It’s a blue label gun from Glock’s 2018 Vet promo, came with minus connector and three magazines.

 

[RUT]

I've owned two 17Ls in the past and never they shot any better than my G19. They are quite a novelty though.

 

[ScipioAfricanus]

I've owned two 17Ls in the past and never they shot any better than my G19. They are quite a novelty though.

What sorts of distances are you talking about?

How can the 4.02" barrel on the G19 possibly compete with the 5.31" barrel on the G34 or the 6.02" inch barrel on the G17L?

At urban/domicile distances of, say, 10 feet, I can see how there wouldn't be too much difference [I'm thinking late at night, in parking lots, or on an upstairs landing which led to bedrooms].

But as you get out towards 30 feet or more, the longer barrels have to start dominating in accuracy, don't they?

Unless the longer barrels were so heavy that the shooter got muscle fatigue and became too exhausted to hold up the gun properly?

 

[bocadave]

I love mine that I bought about six ye

ars ago. It's like buying an Edsel you either love it or hate it!

 

[harold63]

But as you get out towards 30 feet or more, the longer barrels have to start dominating in accuracy, don't they?

Unless the longer barrels were so heavy that the shooter got muscle fatigue and became too exhausted to hold up the gun properly?

A 4" barrel is plenty long enough for great accuracy, mechanically. Sight radius, OTOH, may suffer a bit but if the sight pic on the 4" barrel is tight, you can expect very good accuracy long as the gun was built right. Sight picture, bullets, and loads prolly make a bigger diff, accuracy wise, than a 4" barrel compared to 6".

My niece got tired shooting a Taurus G2c. It's not the weight of the gun as much as it is holding up the weight of the arms. Arms are heavy and if you're not in decent shape, your delts tire pretty quickly.

 

[ShipWreck]

Instead of buying two G34s last month, I would have gotten 1 G34 and a G17L, if there were 5th Gen 17Ls out.

 

[Doc Holliday]

It's a range plinker, certainly not for combat or heavy use at all. Anything gets into that slide cutout, dirt/gravel/debris...you've got a one-shot wonder.

 

[ShipWreck]

It's a range plinker, certainly not for combat or heavy use at all. Anything gets into that slide cutout, dirt/gravel/debris...you've got a one-shot wonder.

I know law enforcement officers who have carried the Glock 34 in years past - and it has the top slide cut (until the 5th gen models came out). They have been fine.

 

[Doc Holliday]

I know law enforcement officers who have carried the Glock 34 in years past - and it has the top slide cut (until the 5th gen models came out). They have been fine.

Don't take my word for it, go ahead and throw some gravel in there...see what happens. They're just lucky they didn't get anything in there while rolling around on the ground.

 

[harold63]

It's a range plinker, certainly not for combat or heavy use at all. Anything gets into that slide cutout, dirt/gravel/debris...you've got a one-shot wonder.

Just keep this handy. Works great. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Gorilla-...N1QOiO5Di98xXCeJ93bY0snF3_M61NiQaAlY5EALw_wcB

 

[harold63]

Don't take my word for it, go ahead and throw some gravel in there...see what happens. They're just lucky they didn't get anything in there while rolling around on the ground.

Definitely agree. It's a failure hazard waiting to happen. I've given a lot of thought as to how to cover them, permanently, and it look decent (34's and 5's).

 

[bocadave]

The G17Ls are fun range guns. Couldn't see carrying one. I did get a standard G17 slide and set it so I can swap out if I should want a short 17. Back when the 34's came out they were hard to get so I made a 34 out a spare G19 I had. Thanks to LW parts I came out with a great shooting mutt I call a 19/34. Glocks are fun to have!!

 

[harold63]

I came out with a great shooting mutt I call a 19/34.

I'd hit it.

 

[ScipioAfricanus]

So is the G17 the longest 9mm Glock which does NOT have a cut-out on the slide?

 

[mmcbeat]

So is the G17 the longest 9mm Glock which does NOT have a cut-out on the slide?

Not quite. The Gen 5 G34 does not have the cut-out in the slide.

 

[ShipWreck]

So is the G17 the longest 9mm Glock which does NOT have a cut-out on the slide?

No, the factory 17L does have it.

 

[ScipioAfricanus]

Okay, I rotated the 3D picture of the G34 Gen5, and it has a solid slide [no cut-out]:

https://us.glock.com/en/pistols/g34-gen5-mos-fs

Whereas the 3D picture of the 17L still shows a cut-out on the slide:

https://us.glock.com/en/pistols/g34-gen5-mos-fs

In fact, it looks like the 17L hasn't been updated since Gen3, circa 1998.

So two quick questions:

1) How did Glock re-engineer the 5th generation G34 so that it could support a solid slide?

2) If Glock can re-engineer the G34 so that it can support a solid slide, then might Glock also be able to re-engineer the G17L so that it could support a solid slide?

 

[DJ Niner]

Second question first; the G17L slide was ALREADY engineered to be lighter, by adding internal cuts to remove "excess" steel at various points (see pics below). This got the slide weight down to within 10 percent of a stock G17 slide (17L slide was still about 1.5 ounces heavier). Although not highlighted in red, also note the deep/dark oval cut at the right-center of the G17L slide photo.

G17L slide on top, G17 below in the first two photos:

G17L slide on the bottom, G17 on top in the following two pics:

I don't think there is any more excess weight that can be trimmed from a G17L slide without potentially affecting long-term durability (the photos are of older Glocks, so perhaps the slide cuts or configurations have been changed over the years).

Perhaps someone with a Gen3 G17L could check their slide and see if the cuts are still there, and still similar to these early-model cuts?

To your first question: I have not yet checked to see if the G34 slide has the same internal lightening cuts as a G17L. If not, then adding them in the Gen5 G34 could (at least partially?) make up for it not having a window cut.

.

 

[bocadave]

I think all G17L are Gen 3 but i am not sure. Mine is a Gen 3 and has a cut out slide but no ported barrel. I think Glock had problems with the ported barrels but kept the slide cut out. They are are just a well balanced long barrel shooter that is a bit funky looking