Glock 19 Gen 3 vs. Gen 4 for feel

[Tom C]

So, as I usually do, I come late to this dance but I do now have some "shop handling" observations regarding the Glock 19 gen 3 vs. Glock 19 gen 4.

I took my gen 3 19 with me into my friendly neighborhood store and they were quite willing to let me do some side by side feel comparisons.

The Stippling seems sharper on the gen 4 (but I had to balance that with how much I've used my gen 3 over the years).

The mag release on the gen 4 is crisper than on the gen 3 (my gen 3 has a new oem mag release and I borrowed one of the shops new mags for Glock 19).

What surprised me was the feel of the slide pull. The double spring of the gen 4 feels lighter, to my uncalibrated hands, than the single spring of the gen 3.

I like that the guide rod is metal in the gen 4 although I've no complaints about my gen 3.

Trigger is on par with a factory gen 3 trigger. Either 5k - 10k rounds of firing or a little careful stoning of the striker and trigger bar faces Should net you about a 4.5-5lb trigger that feels good.

So what I'm really trying to say is that if you or someone you know is considering a gen 4 glock 19, it feels great in all respects. Once you replace the crappy Glock sights you should have a fine working weapon. I'll just bet ya the accuracy is there too. Saturday I'm gonna see if I can get my hands on one to run some shooting tests at 10 and 15 yds as I think these are realistic self defense ranges. At 25yds self defense MIGHT get iffy.

[Black&TAN]

A big plus is that removing the adjustable back strap allows best fit to my average-sized hand. Gen 4 texture is not quite as sharp as an RTF variant, more aggressive than the Gen 3, however won't rub you raw when carrying concealed.

The new RSA is also a benefit, longer service life, although you won't notice much difference in recoil reduction short of a 40 S&W.

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[Southpaw]

I also really like the improvements made to the Gen 4 grip, both the more aggressive texture and the smaller grip with no backstrap added. The slide is noticeably easier to rack with the dual recoil spring. My 34 Gen 4's trigger is 3/8lb. heavier than my Gen 3 17L, 5 7/8lbs. vs. 5 1/2lbs, both with the OEM 4.5# connectors. IMO, the grip improvements are definitely worth the slightly heavier trigger.

[Tom C]

Yes, I know the site isn't supposed to be for "ongoing conversations" but I do feel I'd be remiss to NOT include a little more info.

After I posted, I went on-line and read some of the shooters reviews. I was a little disappointed that mag's seem to be 14 rounders (15th doesn't seem to want to fit) and there have been some malfunction issues. In fairness, these reviews are a little aged (circa 2011) so my hope is to find these issues corrected. Also, in the interest of being fair, when gen 4's were sent back to Ga., they were returned in virtually perfect running condition. Makes me more determined than ever to go test fire a Glock 19 Gen 4 (my idea of Glocks best personal defense weapon) but I'm in no way planning to replace my Glock 19 gen 3 as it works all the time (within the reasonable margin for error). Nothing a slap rack re-engage type drill or a mag drop, reinsert, rack and roll can't correct. And that's only maybe 1 outta thousands of rounds down range both in practice and in IDPA. Thank goodness it's not had to be called on for the "final" solution as that is not what anyone really wants (but needs to be ready to do).

Edited December 4, 2013 by Tom C

[blopez50]

I prefer the gen 4 hands down. Like others have mentioned, the grip texture is a huge improvement as my gen 3s always feel slippery to me. I actually use the large beaver tail backstrap to get my perfect feel!

As for the trigger pull, I've swapped all my gen 4 trigger bars for the gen 3s and can't tell much of a difference in pull between the generations.

[Black&TAN]

...there have been some malfunction issues. In fairness, these reviews are a little aged (circa 2011) so my hope is to find these issues corrected. Also, in the interest of being fair, when gen 4's were sent back to Ga., they were returned in virtually perfect running condition.

Will spare you the details, but yes, some earlier models of Gen 4 pistols have had issues. Since then, issues have been resolved. Keep in mind that there is, through any brand/make, product that slips through quality control... and the web is one of the best places to hear about the less than 1% defect rate factory has claimed.

The sheer volume of Glocks in the wild that compose that 1% could be all the more concerning. However, know that if you were to be of the unfortunate few with problems (and it shouldn't take long to figure it out), the factory will do all they can to make things right, up to and including a new pistol, if necessary.

FWIW, I have recently sold a Gen 2 and a Gen 3, both are being replaced with new Gen 4s. Buy with confidence.

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[MrVvrroomm]

I'm all-in for the Gen4's

[G17]

I like them both but i think the Gen 4 win's in my opinion. Mainly because of the more textured grip and back strap. I'm not a fan of the dual recoil assembly so i usually replace that with an adapater. Also, i filed off the trigger bar bump that the gen 4's have. Contrary to what some people say, that little bump does make the trigger pull heavier. I shot a few 1000 rounds out of the gun, then one night decided to take the bump off. The difference was noticed immediately. The only reason i would buy a Gen 3 is to be able to get an aftermarket slide for it. I'v been itching to get a 17L but they're hard to find so i was thinking about just getting a used 17 and buying the long slide for it. I doubt you'll have any issues with the gun but if you do i don't think there is anything one couldn't fix themself.

[Southpaw]

I was a little disappointed that mag's seem to be 14 rounders (15th doesn't seem to want to fit) and there have been some malfunction issues.

I have a ton of G19 mags and am able to get 15 rounds in all of them. The only difference with the newer mags is the additional cut out for the reversible mag release on the Gen 4. Your mags for your Gen 3 G19 will work in a Gen 4 as long as you don't reverse the mag release. It seems any reliability issues with the early Gen 4s have been worked out. My Gen 4 G34 runs great.

[Tom C]

...there have been some malfunction issues. In fairness, these reviews are a little aged (circa 2011) so my hope is to find these issues corrected. Also, in the interest of being fair, when gen 4's were sent back to Ga., they were returned in virtually perfect running condition.

Will spare you the details, but yes, some earlier models of Gen 4 pistols have had issues. Since then, issues have been resolved. Keep in mind that there is, through any brand/make, product that slips through quality control... and the web is one of the best places to hear about the less than 1% defect rate factory has claimed.

The sheer volume of Glocks in the wild that compose that 1% could be all the more concerning. However, know that if you were to be of the unfortunate few with problems (and it shouldn't take long to figure it out), the factory will do all they can to make things right, up to and including a new pistol, if necessary.

FWIW, I have recently sold a Gen 2 and a Gen 3, both are being replaced with new Gen 4s. Buy with confidence.

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Kinda runs along the "normal" new production run issues most all new things have.

Regarding the Mag issue, I did buy 3 new Gen 4 (ambi cuts) mags and I will try them out by Saturday.

I'll need to do a closer inspection of the trigger bar bump to see if I can make sense of why it's even there.

What I'm getting from all this is that the changes seem to not be change for the sake of change and that's a good thing.

I'm in no hurry to replace my old friend (Glock 19 Gen 3) as it has no bad habits, never talks back, always wants to play when I'm ready to play and it hits what I aim at out to the better part of 50 yds. Oh yes, and it's the mistress my wife never complains about. hahahahaha.

Edited December 5, 2013 by Tom C

[JLeeCZ]

I have the 19g4 and like everything about it except the replacement backstraps. While functional, if wish they were fully replaceable like the XDM rather than just overlays. Probably a cost issue but cosmetically unpleasing.

[hornetx40]

I like the whole grip better on the gen 4's than the 3's. But I thought I was in a minority when I bought mine. I don't use the grip pieces as I have small hands and the naked gen 4 fits me just fine...better than the 3. A lot of this is just shooter preference and even that will change with experience.

[polymerfeelsweirdman]

Yes, I know the site isn't supposed to be for "ongoing conversations" but I do feel I'd be remiss to NOT include a little more info.

After I posted, I went on-line and read some of the shooters reviews. I was a little disappointed that mag's seem to be 14 rounders (15th doesn't seem to want to fit) and there have been some malfunction issues. In fairness, these reviews are a little aged (circa 2011) so my hope is to find these issues corrected. Also, in the interest of being fair, when gen 4's were sent back to Ga., they were returned in virtually perfect running condition. Makes me more determined than ever to go test fire a Glock 19 Gen 4 (my idea of Glocks best personal defense weapon) but I'm in no way planning to replace my Glock 19 gen 3 as it works all the time (within the reasonable margin for error). Nothing a slap rack re-engage type drill or a mag drop, reinsert, rack and roll can't correct. And that's only maybe 1 outta thousands of rounds down range both in practice and in IDPA. Thank goodness it's not had to be called on for the "final" solution as that is not what anyone really wants (but needs to be ready to do).

I've seen that the 9mm glock mags have very strong springs so it is hard to load them to capacity early on. One solution is just breaking them in a bit, another is to use something like an uplula.

As for the grip, I prefer RTF2 over the gen 4 grip and the gen 4 grip over the gen 3 regular grip. Unfortunately they don't make RTF2 anymore... a real shame because I would love if they made an RTF2 glock 34 with fish gill slide cuts.

Edited December 6, 2013 by polymerfeelsweirdman

[msp1jpp]

Try the Vickers Mag Release on the Gen 4 - It is money!!