glock 34 or 35 with 9mm conversion barrel?

[G34 CORDY]

iam going to buy a 34 or 35 for uspsa division but now i see that if i bought a 35 in 40cal i could have a 9mm just with a barrel conversion? that would be like having two guns in one. its just my range gun running reloaded downloaded ammo. so should i just buy a 34? i heard 40cal downloaded feels softer than 9mm is that true? my question is should i just buy a 34 and run with that? iam not a fan of the 40 just cause of the price of ammo and recoil with factory loads. any suggestions guys thanks

[Micah]

Welcome to the forums

You cannot legally shoot a Glock 35 in Production with a conversion barrel, and since you stated that you are not a 40 fan, go with the G34. I have shot my G34 for years now without any problems, and with 9mm brass being everywhere have reloaded the ammo relatively inexpensively.

[G34 CORDY]

how have you liked your 34 so far. pros and cons thanks

[RH45]

When I bought my first Glock, it was a 35. My thought was that it could be used with "minor" ammo, for production division in USPSA (or IDPA), and "major" ammo, for limited, and limited 10. I'd also bought a 9mm conversion barrel, not knowing at the time that it wasn't legal to use.

I also ended up buying a 34, but, with the right loads, I agree that the .40 is softer.

[rupie]

I wouldn't choose between those guns for softer recoil, the 40 can feel a little softer because to get the same power factor you can use a much heavier bullet. I shot production with a 35 using 185 grain moly bullets with solo 1000. Heres the bottom line. Make you decision based on ammo cost and availability, and if you are or not going to reload. The good thing about buying a 35 is very easy to make minor with a lot of different loads, if you want to shoot a different division you have more choices and still be competitive, production, limited, limited 10. The bad thing about 35's is if your not reloading buying ammo suited for shooting minor is tough, and expensive.

It costs a little bit more to shoot 40 than it does to shoot 9mm if you are reloading. Depending on how much you shoot is how much that matters.I have shot both 9mm with 147's and 40 with 185's shooting production. Makes no difference to me, you get used to which ever one you are shooting. When I shoot 40 minor my load ends up as a 140 power factor because thats about what it takes to cycle the gun the way I like it. 9mm cycles better because a lighter bullet has to go faster to make minor so you can theoretically make lower power factor rounds easier and still get the gun to cycle. But you could do that by buying lighter bullets for the 40 cal. All that being said I wouldn't choose between them based on recoil, as long as they are in the same ball park they will both shoot close enough to each other to make no difference in your shooting.

Ultimately make your choice based on what you see your self doing. If you are going to only shoot production, 9mm is cheaper to reload. If you think like most people you want to move around and try different divisions you might want to think about a 35. what is harder to do for you spend a little bit more each month to shoot a 40 or down the road buy another gun to shoot limited if you feel the urge to move.

If it was me if i was reloading i would buy a 35 if i was shooting factory ammo I would buy a 34, but me personally I wouldn't shoot factory ammo if I was serious about shooting.

[G34 CORDY]

thanks for the info. would it be worth it to get the 35 and buy the conversion barrel to plink around with?

[muahdib4]

Personally, I love my 35 and though I don't have a conversion barrel...I do have an Advantage Arms .22 conversion upper that I use to "plink" with. It's real picky about the ammo it runs with but it allows me to get plenty of trigger time without breaking the bank. The 9mm conversion barrel would be along the same lines I would think. I've considered getting one myself but just haven't yet, mostly since I'm poor and broke I say, get what you like and have fun. They are Glocks so they'll run.

[GlockCanMan]

XDM-9...PM Sent.

[Sarge]

how have you liked your 34 so far. pros and cons thanks

Since I bought my 34 I have not found any real "cons" only "pros".

[Jman]

Now is the time to find the best instruction available.

Practice what you learn everyday. Shoot matches regularly.

IF you do this, I guarantee you more fun and satisfaction from this sport than much of your competition.

No one cares what gun fine shooters use. Performance...matters.

[G34 CORDY]

very true guys. iam picking up a glock 34 for around 480 brand new with my law enforcement discount and that comes with three 17 round mags also. i pick it up on tuesday i cant wait to say the least!!!

[Sbbieshelt]

That's a nice price on a 34. Wish I could find a deal one like that. The 17 I saw yesterday was 665.

[G34 CORDY]

yeah i couldnt believe the discounted price so i had to buy it lol. i hope the 34 serves me well

[GrumpyOne]

very true guys. iam picking up a glock 34 for around 480 brand new with my law enforcement discount and that comes with three 17 round mags also. i pick it up on tuesday i cant wait to say the least!!!

Wow! Even I would buy one at that price! Awesome! Shoot it till the wheels fall off!

[sbo76]

production is a fun division with a large field to compete with. Have fun with your new 34!!

[gohuskers]

One of the reasons I picked up the G34 was because of the law enforcement discount. Got mine for the same price. I've put about a thousand rounds through it since I bought it a couple of weeks ago and it gets better with every shot. You may want to look at getting some better sights in the future but for now just run some ammo through it and have a good time.

[drodriguez]

There is nothing like a G34 with a nice load for production.. I have tried a G35 with minor loads and I rather stay with my 34

[racerba]

That's a nice price on a 34. Wish I could find a deal one like that. The 17 I saw yesterday was 665.

Where was that at? That price is very high anywhere in the US... Average price for a 17 should be around $525 give or take.

Edited June 10, 2010 by racerba

[BlueOvalBruin]

I started out shooting a .40 before USPSA and had my reloading setup based around that caliber. So when I was deciding between a G34/G35 I went with the G35 so I could use the same dies/brass etc. I now have 2 G35s (1 for Production and 1 for Limited) and love the setup. If I have a gun problem I can switch guns/mags and I can use minor and major ammo in both guns if I’m low on one or the other.

For reloading, .40 minor is a very forgiving round to reload for. I use moly bullets which can lead up the barrel if pressures are too high. .40 minor is pretty low pressure for the most part, even with fast powders. I was using 155gr SWC under Solo1000 and it was a great combo, next I will try Bear Creek 140gr RN which should have similar dynamics but feed better than SWC bullets. I don’t get leading with any of them in .40 minor. .40 Major is tougher to get to work with moly at short OAL and loading 9mm minor with moly has similar issues.

That said, if I was to start all over and just shoot production I would get the G34. I have a unique situation which helps me benefit from only shooting .40 but for most people the G34 would make more sense.

[RePete]

I have just finished running chrono at a state match and used my G35 and the average PF for Production was about 143 and the gun run very well, seeing as I only load to major PF.

[DocMcG]

Hello All!

I found this thread and am looking at a similar situation, but with a twist. I shoot 3Gun only and have the same question about the 34 vs. the 35. I have a friend who is selling a 35 and I am seriously considering it along with the purchase of the 9mm conversion barrel.

There are no division considerations for the conversion and no power factor to worry about. So, what are the cons? I am only seeing pros at this point (2 guns in one). I am thinking that I could use the .40 barrel at matches with heavy steal and the 9mm at matches that are mostly paper and light steel. I reload both calibers, so I could use that to my advantage with regard to recoil as well.

Help me see both sides!

Cheers,

Kyle

[Duane Thomas]

One thing to bear in mind, that might not be obvious until you actually get the gun and try your conversion barrel: when you pop in the conversion barrel, your POI is going to change. I have found that even swapping in an aftermarket barrel in the exact same caliber, i.e. a Glock 17 9mm barrel in a Glock 17, will change POI significantly, both for windage and elevation at any sort of real distance. So every time you change barrels you have to rezero the gun. Thank you, no. This is not quite the easy time saver that a lot of people who've never done it think it is, i.e. "I'll just run .40 when I want Major, then switch out for the 9mm barrel when I want Minor, so then I don't have to load .40 Minor."

If you want light recoil with factory ammo, or the least expensive handloads that will still make power factor, get a 34.

[DocMcG]

One thing to bear in mind, that might not be obvious until you actually get the gun and try your conversion barrel: when you pop in the conversion barrel, your POI is going to change. I have found that even swapping in an aftermarket barrel in the exact same caliber, i.e. a Glock 17 9mm barrel in a Glock 17, will change POI significantly, both for windage and elevation at any sort of real distance. So every time you change barrels you have to rezero the gun. Thank you, no. This is not quite the easy time saver that a lot of people who've never done it think it is, i.e. "I'll just run .40 when I want Major, then switch out for the 9mm barrel when I want Minor, so then I don't have to load .40 Minor."

If you want light recoil with factory ammo, or the least expensive handloads that will still make power factor, get a 34.

Thanks Duane,

I never thought about POI! You are very right about not wanting to make that constant adjustment. I might go ahead still with the 35 because of the price. - It's a pretty good deal and still kicking the tires.

Still looking for input if anyone has thoughts!

Kyle

[Duane Thomas]

Yer welcome.