Glock 34 V. 17/19

[Paul Sharp]

Flex et al,

Does anyone know of any reliability issues regarding the 34 versus 17.

In other words, is the 17 more reliable than the 34?

I've heard this several times but have never personally experienced any issues.

[SRT Driver]

The 34 is as reliable as any other Glock.

I have used two different 34's and have not had any issues at all that were not related to bunny fart loads (ie short stroking) which was an easy fix. A couple .10's more powder and the problem went away.

The newest G34 has 10k through it the first one was probably the same.

The new one has a Vanek trigger, the first one had one of the first R. Sotelo 2 lb triggers. Never had ignition problems.

I have a factory rebuilt 2nd gen G17 with 20k through it with no issues either.

Apparently, Glock simply streched the slide on the G34 and cut out the top to make it weigh the same as a G17 to eliminate feed/cycling issues.

Other than balance and sight radius, they are the same.

For me, the bottom line is change the sights, add some grip tape, but don't change anything that is not a proven package, like trigger mods, and any Glock should shoot trouble free for years.

[Clay1]

Yeah, what he said.

[dajarrel]

NO problems with my g34 at all. The reason I went to a 34 from a 17 is for the additional sight radius. It may just be voodoo but I percieved I could tell a differance.

FWIW

dj

[TRG65]

I actually went the opposite way as dj, but for slide feel, and balance.

The 34/17 boils down to which feel and balance you like. I've heard there are some that even prefer the 19 over the 17 or 34, because of "feel."

[Flexmoney]

No issues that I have seen, heard, or experienced.

I am trying to think of a way that the G34 could be less reliable...but, I am not coming up with anything. Basically, every part is the same...or, is easily changed to be the same. The difference is the extra slide/barrel length (what? 3/4in?)

Oh...the G34 does come stock with the extended slide lock/release. I take those off the guns first thing. Guys with a high grip tend to run into those in recoil.

[Nik Habicht]

One of my 34s is approaching the 30k mark and still running strong, the other is at about 15. My 17 is a first gen ---- but I've only got about 3000 rounds through it. For some reason, I really prefer the feel of the 34 and 19 to the 17.......

I don't clean 'em much either ---- the production gun went about 1.5 years w/o out being cleaned....

[driver8M3]

my 34 is more finicky than my 17 with my production load. through the 34, the 130pf load needs a 13 lb ISMI spring with 2 coils cut off. the same load makes only about 127pf trough the 17, but runs perfectly with the stock spring. other than that, the guns are nearly identical...a (very) slight difference in recoil is about the only thing i've noticed.

[Kevin Kline]

I havent measured my 34 against a 17 yet, but will be doing so this month. Ive had my 34 for about 3 months and I havent had any issues with it at all, regarding malfunctions, loads or triggers. It has been 1000% reliable since I had it and its got about 3000 round through it, maybe a few more.

Im getting a 17 this week and want to change the sights and add grip tape and then shoot the 17 side by side with the 34. Ive heard several shooters remark they like the 17 better and it seems to flip less, at least perceived, than the 34. Only way for me to know is to find out.

[Paul Sharp]

Thanks for your input guy's.

This will be an everyday carry type pistol. We had several instructors recently that talked about the advantages to carrying a long slide type pistol IWB, when discretion is imperative.

Basically, we were told that the 34 has more slide length so it anchors better. If that makes sense.

I shot the 34 side by side with an XD Tactical for a week. These were stock, shooting carry type loads. For me the 34 was the way to go. The XD has a serious rust issue.

Anyway, thanks for your help.

[Bugs Bunny]

Have a 17 a 34 and had an XD 9mm Tac for a short while. Initially the swing weight of the 34 bothered me but was purely psychological as got used to it fairly quickly. The XD is an exc. gun but blowing the $ to trick it out seemd a self-deminishing retun situation.

Just FWIW, the 34 slide differs more from the 17's than simply having the oval cut-out. {at least mine does?} It is quite extensively hogged out inside to remove even more weight. Really do like the extra sight radius and although could be easily challenged on it also like the 34's balance if only used to it after 1XK rounds and yrs. of fun with it. This makes me think should weigh the slides against ea. other just out of curiosity but then there is still the weight of the bbl. to consider....

[SRT Driver]

G34 stripped slide with Dawson Adj Sights = 13.0 oz

G17 stripped slide with MMC Sights = 12.1 oz

Could the Dawson sights weigh .9 oz more?

[Flexmoney]

Paul,

I carried a G17 IWB in the desert for a while (about 15 years ago). No worries about rust.

I can't foresee any reliability issues with the G34 over the G17 (I would lose the extended slide release, for certain.) The G34 does have some extra blending of the nose of the slide, so that might be a slight plus.

Interesting idea about the longer slide providing a bit more "anchor".

[EricW]

This will be an everyday carry type pistol.

You must have better gun hygiene than me.....way better. I'd never carry a gun with an open top slide. I have enough problems keeping a regular gun clean.

I've done the dirt test on my G19 (as in chucking the gun in the mud and jumping up and down on it), and I really would hesitate to carry a gun with holes in the slide. The gunk won't mess up with the lockup too bad, but if it migrates back into the fire control mechanism, you're hosed.

Sorry for going tackticle, but I'd buy the 17 and buy a better holster. I'm not buying the holster "locking" argument on this one.

(And yes, I realize that jumping up and down on my gun in the mud is not a realistic scenario, but I wanted to see what actually happened in a worst-case scenario.)

[Garrett]

Oh...the G34 does come stock with the extended slide lock/release.  I take those off the guns first thing.  Guys with a high grip tend to run into those in recoil.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I guess it's a matter of personal preference. I like the factory extended slide stop. Enough so that I've put one on most of my other Glocks. Never had a problem bumping it while shooting.

The factory extended mag release is another story. It digs into my left hand while I'm shooting. I've never had it dump the mag from this, but it gets pretty uncomfortable. So that got switched out for a standard mag release.

Like I said, just a matter of personal preference.

[Rockclimbg]

This will be an everyday carry type pistol.  We had several instructors recently that talked about the advantages to carrying a long slide type pistol IWB, when discretion is imperative.

Basically, we were told that the 34 has more slide length so it anchors better.  If that makes sense.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'm not sure what "anchors better" means but.....my draw from concealment, a-la, IDPA is a little faster with my G22 than G35. In fact, I've gone back to the G22 as an IDPA gun because of the faster draw and the fact that the stages are usually so short and close. In the waist band carry with a fullsize can be even more of a bear to get out from concealment if your short in the torso.

YMMV

Rockclimbg

[oct_97]

I havent measured my 34 against a 17 yet, but will be doing so this month. Ive had my 34 for about 3 months and I havent had any issues with it at all, regarding malfunctions, loads or triggers. It has been 1000% reliable since I had it and its got about 3000 round through it, maybe a few more.

Im getting a 17 this week and want to change the sights and add grip tape and then shoot the 17 side by side with the 34. Ive heard several shooters remark they like the 17 better and it seems to flip less, at least perceived, than the 34. Only way for me to know is to find out.

Kevin,

Results please of your test between the two,

Thank You,

John

[Kevin Kline]

I havent been able to weigh them on actual scales yet, but in feel, they feel about the same. I shot my 34 w/ Vanek trigger for about 8 months (thru Nationals) and then thought Id try the 17.

I had heard from several people that the 17 flipped less (or peceived to flip less) than the 34. I always wanted a 17 and decided to try it out. I have been shooting my 17 w/ Sotelo trigger for about 2- 2 1/2 months. I think I have made some real progress while shooting the 17.

In my perception, the 17 flips A HAIR, and I mean A HAIR, less than the 34. I thought the 34, having longer sight radius and Barsto barrel, would be quite a bit more accurate than the 17 that is all stock (except trigger). Wrong! I picked up the 17 and began hitting plates at 35 yards and didnt miss a beat. I picked up the 34 (w/ Barsto and Vanek trigger) and missed a few.

One thing I have noticed, the 17 (FOR ME) seems to handle a little better and feel a little more balanced in my hand, not so much while shooting, but while presenting on draws, mag changes, target transitions, etc. More gun handling skills, the 17 feels a little more balanced where the 34 feels a little nose heavy now.

Oh by the way, I just put the Vanek trigger in my 17 and we'll see where we get now.

[driver8M3]

Oh by the way, I just put the Vanek trigger in my 17 and we'll see where we get now.

2 questions.

1. did you simply transfer the vanek setup from the 34 to the 17? or did you buy another vanek setup? my first vanek trigger was in my 17. when i got a 34 i took the vanek setup out of the 17 and put it in the 34...worked just fine (and still does). later i got a 2nd vanek for a different 34 (for open use). it worked fine. but later i wanted to put the 2nd vanek setup in my 17 so that i could compare side-by-side the 34 and the 17 (both with vanek setups). but when i moved the 2nd vanek setup from the 34 to the 17 i could not get it to work properly. the trigger would not reset unless i pushed the slide forward with my hand. i tried fiddling around with it for a while and could never get it going. i put it back in 34, and it worked fine again. any ideas?

2. how does the sotelo trigger compare with charlie's?

[Kevin Kline]

I have one Vanek trigger that I put into the 17. I simply changed the components from the 34 to the 17 and initially, it didnt want to release the striker. I let out a little overtravel and it worked fine.

I talked with Charlie about this and he advised that it is a 50/50 chance whether his trigger will work in another Glock. He hand fits the trigger you buy into that Glock and all Glock triggers and components/frames are a little different.

As far as Vanek vs Sotelo (R/S), they're both good, but different and it all depends on what you like to FEEL. Vanek is SUPER SMOOTH from beginning to end. The release or break is just as smooth as the take up and it is undisturbed at the point of release. The RS trigger has light take up, but definite resistance when it gets to the point of releasing. Not heavy resistance, but it goes from light take up to a little stacking/resistance. Then the break, and the break is not bad, just different than Charlie's.

The RS trigger is like a 3.5- 4.0 lb 1911 trigger with longer take up. It is light, easy take up and when you get right before the break, there is resistance. But then again, Ralph's trigger is a lot cheaper and you dont have to ship the gun. It literally takes 5 minutes to swap out parts.

[vincent]

For dedicated IWB I wouldn't want an open slide gun. Also the extra length may not be good depending on your body size and holster choice. If the combo isn't correct the longer slide will hit the seat when you sit down and push up on the rig. This can be annoying or worse.

With full power loads there shouldn't be any difference in reliability vs. the G17. The G17 is my favorite all around Glock and the G19 is my favorite carry Glock. The G34 is nice for competition but I don't use mine for anything else. That's one of the great things about Glocks - they are available in all sizes from G26 to G24 and you can choose which ever one fits your purpose.

[Sean Gaines]

glocks are probably the most reliable guns that you can buy whether it be a 17, 34 etc IMHO. In fact its the only gun that I use for concealed carry.The only problems I have had, is when I started tinkering with my 35 and putting different #recoil springs to tweak it for competition. But a stock glock out of the box will not let you down.

[Kevin Kline]

Paper Killer,

Since I have switched to a Wolff steel guide rod and Wolff springs, I have had no issues. I really didn't have any before with other springs, but the ISMI springs (when lighter weight) allow the slide to come out of battery easier (in my testing) than the Wolff. The Wolff seem to keep the slide closed a little better, but still give that light spring feel in recoil.

[Sean Gaines]

Paper Killer,

Since I have switched to a Wolff steel guide rod and Wolff springs, I have had no issues. I really didn't have any before with other springs, but the ISMI springs (when lighter weight) allow the slide to come out of battery easier (in my testing) than the Wolff. The Wolff seem to keep the slide closed a little better, but still give that light spring feel in recoil.

Kevin

i currently use a ISMI captured guide rod with a 15# spring in g35 which works without a hickup. I have tried as low as 12 and as high as 22lbs. But you are right about the ISMI springs, 12 and 13 wouldn't go into battery completly. what # wolf spring are you using? I have seen one other shooter using a non captured setup for thier 35, but didn't ask the # spring that he was using. with my g34 I can use 13lb ismi without any problems(non captured)