Glock Open Pistol

[mmcnx2]

I'm looking for my first open pistol and have done a ton of research. It's obvious the 2011 style pistols are the most widely used. I personally see no need to follow the masses or shoot whatever so and so does. So the question is what are the pros/cons of the two (Glock/2011) platforms. I asked a similar question in the open section and got the expected '2011 only' response so I thought I would try it here.

[TimWarner]

Basic glock open guns are cheaper, accessories are cheaper

Drop in parts are widely available.

Where in MN are you?

I've been working on a new open glock as a pet project this winter.

[mmcnx2]

West of Maple Grove

[bountyhunter]

I'm looking for my first open pistol and have done a ton of research. It's obvious the 2011 style pistols are the most widely used. I personally see no need to follow the masses or shoot whatever so and so does. So the question is what are the pros/cons of the two (Glock/2011) platforms. I asked a similar question in the open section and got the expected '2011 only' response so I thought I would try it here.

Biggest "pro" for the 1911/2011 is the trigger. There is no other gun on earth that can give you the sharp breaking 1.5 pound trigger that a 1911 can.

[eric nielsen]

+1 on trigger.

You can get a Vanek Glock trigger to break at 22oz but it requires more travel, more attention, and more commitment to the shot. Like an extremely light revolver trigger, the Vanek can give you a tremendous surprise break but it doesn't so much allow the STI's option of backing off, "sitting on the sear" and then pulling thru later. By later I mean: after your foot has come down hard while moving, after a swinging no-shoot has cleared your aiming point on the shoot target, after you pull the dot back up from beneath a plate [oops] and put it back in the target center.

The other advantage of STI [now that I'm used to it] is weight. Very tough to make any Glock weigh more than 36oz, my STI is about 45oz and is noticeably more stable for awkward shooting positions, shooting on the move, around barricades, and 1-handed.

Pics of both my Open guns, Glock & STI. There are things I love about both guns but I'm pretty much staying with the STI. Don't know if anyone else's points as nice as mine because I've never seen one set up like mine. Stock triggerguard, Ice magwell, and Wedge mainspring housing. All contributes to a beautiful pointing gun.

Edited February 10, 2006 by eric nielsen

[rtr]

When I had my 2011 open gun built I considered an open glock, cost was about the same to have them built (right around $2K) so I went with the 2011 as I think it's a better platform.

Glock mags are cheaper than S_I mags though.

[lucky luke]

Eric

I agree on your comment on weight but had no big trouble to get my G 34 open up to +1250 gr or +/- 45 oz. I had some fun with an E.A.A. with +/- the same weight. Both were 9mm major. With a S/S magwell, an extende tungsten rod, some lead in the backstrap and a heavy compensator you can distribute the weight in different area's of the gun. Doing this you can select the feel of the gun from heavy front to all in the bottom.

Of course the single action trigger of 600 gr of the E.A.A. or the equivalent of the 2011 can never be found on a Glock. With the Glock your gain is in the restricted focus on commanding only the trigger and forget about switching on and off manual safeties or needed pressure on backstrap safeties.

Good luck in your search for your solution!

Edited February 9, 2006 by lucky luke

[Flexmoney]

I have never found the Glock trigger to be limiting.

[TimWarner]

I'm out in Oakdale, but I work in Rogers.

If you ever want to try out an open glock let me know, I usually shoot at Bills North, but I rumble around in Robbinsdale occassionally.

Right now I just shoot GSSF, but I want to get into USPSA this spring, so I'm not all that familiar with anyone else shooting open glocks around here.

[b8fish]

I'm looking for my first open pistol and have done a ton of research. It's obvious the 2011 style pistols are the most widely used. I personally see no need to follow the masses or shoot whatever so and so does. So the question is what are the pros/cons of the two (Glock/2011) platforms. I asked a similar question in the open section and got the expected '2011 only' response so I thought I would try it here.

You could take a look at the open Glocks built by John Nagel ('Mad Scientist' on the forum)- www.GlockJockey.com

[ryucasta]

John Nagel and Tom Novak are some of the gunsmiths out there that build Open Glocks.

http://www.novakshandgunneroutlet.com/

[Rocket35]

I, too, have been working on an Open Glock last winter. This is what I have come up with so far. This one cost me about $1000 to build so far. Not much to it. And it runs 100%. It is a great way of getting into Open division without spending a fortune.

[skeeter]

I have never found the Glock trigger to be limiting.

i'm with flex on this one. jerry m. can shoot a revolver faster than most can shot an auto. and you know he doesn't have a 3 pound trigger on his smith's. good friend of mine has a super lite trigger on his STI and he has to have it worked on about once a year ot so.

[SAJ]

I have a S&J Customs Glock 17 Open gun (www.glockjockey.com) that I have been shooting for the last couple of months. I have really been surprised at my ability to shoot the gun. The trigger is like no other Glock I had shot until this one. The gun is light and handles and points great. My draws have been quicker than with my STI. The gun is accurate and recoil is mild. John has put his creative side to work on the grip and made it feel great in your hand. With the big S&J mag well, it funnels my hand to the correct position. As a test, I didn't clean the gun for the first 2700 rounds, and only had two cases that didn't clear the gun. Not bad for a new gun. I haven't picked up my STI since I got the Glock, and not sure that I will. I plan on shooting the Glock at the Steel Challenge in August. It seems like a great buy at $2000 complete.

[DougCarden]

One thing I like about the Glocks is that if you leave them close to stock they will run all day long. I ROed a major match this last weekend and saw close to a dozen Open Glocks built by several different smiths.........Only two functioned 100%, and that was confirmed by talking to the other ROs....... I really felt for the shooters......

I say this only to stress that it appears to take a little more TLC to get them running 100% and keep them that way. As this is NOT a dig at open glocks, It may not be the best Open platform to start out with........My .02$

DougC

[driver8M3]

I ROed a major match this last weekend and saw close to a dozen Open Glocks built by several different smiths.........Only two functioned 100%, and that was confirmed by talking to the other ROs.......

i guess one of them was mine! mine has a vanek trigger, a docter slide-mounted sight, a lighter recoil spring and a magwell. with my production loads it works fine. i only use it for occasional steel matches, or for fun in uspsa open, so minor is fine for me. a friend has a heavily modified open major glock...that has never worked consistently. there are few things worse than trying to shoot a match with a gun that doesnt work 100%.

[DougCarden]

driver8M3, I really felt for all you guys! My last stage/last reload/doing really well mag spring crapped the bed causing a death jam and I lost about 10 places as well! DougC

Edited April 25, 2006 by DougC

[ctgun]

Unfortunatly I know what you have gone through. I built a open Glock 17 and had a b*tch of a time getting it right. For me most of the problem was getting the right combination of springs. But since then as long as I have good ammo the gun runs flawless and I have a blast shooting it. Also it is nice to have something a bit different than everybody else. The cool factor is not to be underestimated.

[geezer-lock]

I'm looking for my first open pistol and have done a ton of research. It's obvious the 2011 style pistols are the most widely used. I personally see no need to follow the masses or shoot whatever so and so does. So the question is what are the pros/cons of the two (Glock/2011) platforms. I asked a similar question in the open section and got the expected '2011 only' response so I thought I would try it here.

My open gun is a John Nagle pattern; Major 9 gunsmith fit KKM barrel with his major 9 compensator. It runs flawlessly with factory ammo (he set it up for minor to start). According to John, the Glock is significantly more sensitive to added weight than the 1911 pattern guns. That is why he uses aluminum for the compensator.

I spent some time in load development for major and had to experiment with springs to get 100% functionality. Getting a spring to work with the Glock is not any more difficult than it is with the 1911. Getting magazines to run in the Glock is trivial compared to the high zoot 2011 guns with “tuned” magazines. My 140mm and 170mm magazines worked without any additional effort after adding the magazine extensions.

There is no “best” pistol out there. Folks tend to make choices based on religion (Saint John Browning comes to mind), impulse (the wow factor) or hype (it’s what the world champion shoots, ergo…). Before you start throwing money at any particular gun you need to handle quite a few, shoot as many as you can and read, read, read the threads in this forum.

David C

[Keith]

I'm out in Oakdale, but I work in Rogers.

If you ever want to try out an open glock let me know, I usually shoot at Bills North, but I rumble around in Robbinsdale occassionally.

Right now I just shoot GSSF, but I want to get into USPSA this spring, so I'm not all that familiar with anyone else shooting open glocks around here.

The only one local I know that I have seen shoot an Open Glock, other than in GSSF matches, is John from JP enterprises. But, I only saw him do it once and it was at a steel match so I don't think he was shooting major loads. It was cool though.

We have a USPSA match at SCAPSA in St. Cloud on May 7th if you want to try it out. I'm kinda interested in seeing it myself.

[tightloop]

One factor which may be limiting is the grip angle..the Glock angle as it comes from the box isn't conducive for me to get a good sight pic...I see 3 inches of slide over irons and it may be hard to get acclamated to that as you search for the dot...

[coltgov]

One factor which may be limiting is the grip angle..the Glock angle as it comes from the box isn't conducive for me to get a good sight pic...I see 3 inches of slide over irons and it may be hard to get acclamated to that as you search for the dot...

I shoot a 17c in open using a JPoint mounted in the dovetail.

Point the weak hand thumb at the target and your dot will be there. To get good at finding the dot, go to a compleley dark room, and see if you can find it. Make sure you are not looking at the target and not your sights. It has to be natural.

[coltgov]

My open gun is a John Nagle pattern; Major 9 gunsmith fit KKM barrel with his major 9 compensator. It runs flawlessly with factory ammo (he set it up for minor to start). According to John, the Glock is significantly more sensitive to added weight than the 1911 pattern guns. That is why he uses aluminum for the compensator.

I spent some time in load development for major and had to experiment with springs to get 100% functionality. Getting a spring to work with the Glock is not any more difficult than it is with the 1911. Getting magazines to run in the Glock is trivial compared to the high zoot 2011 guns with “tuned” magazines. My 140mm and 170mm magazines worked without any additional effort after adding the magazine extensions.

There is no “best” pistol out there. Folks tend to make choices based on religion (Saint John Browning comes to mind), impulse (the wow factor) or hype (it’s what the world champion shoots, ergo…). Before you start throwing money at any particular gun you need to handle quite a few, shoot as many as you can and read, read, read the threads in this forum.

David C

I have shoot 2011 open guns and the dot doesn't even move. How is your dot behaving?

My dot still jumps up a little with my 17c, but in my last few matches I was able to put most all in the A zone. Overall my scores were in among the B open shooters. I'm thinking I don't even need to go major it's so accurate.

I'm using a 13lb spring shooting 5.0 grains of 231 pushing a Montana Gold 115cmj. I got 1 Taylor Freelance big stick, and 3 Arreando base pads. 28 rds and 23 rds in the magazine. Most of the time I don't even have to reload unless there is a classifier.

I use this gun also in the Bianchi matches and have managed to clean all the Bianchi plates with this gun so it's very accurate. 48/48 and I get pissed when I get 47/48 now!

[P.E. Kelley]

John Nagel and Tom Novak are some of the gunsmiths out there that build Open Glocks.

http://www.novakshandgunneroutlet.com/

These two lads have consented to have me test and evaluate some of their work. Look for the article in the Front Sight before years end.

PK

[nphd2000]

I spent some time thinking about an open gun. Since I shoot glocks in production, lim-10, and limited (USPSA) I thought "what the heck, build an open Glock". I spent a month working up a mid range steel load to shoot steel and try it out (why shoot major PF at a steel match). I took it to my first major steel match last weekend (PSA Shootout) I shot it well when it ran, it mal-functioned most of the match (wouldn't eject, rounds nose diving into the ramp, blah, blah) My friends were giving me the business about real guns and such. I was so frustrated, on the last stage I changed the recoil spring and loaded up some mags with some major power factor ammo. The gun ran like a raped ape and I blazed the stage (well for me anyway, and I beat some A and B open shooters on my squad that I am good friends with and respect). After that stage and 2 test sessions since then I learned that I will be shooting major ammo out of the gun and I will not change a thing on it. (at least for now ) I can't wait to shoot another match with this gun and I like that it's not the same old run of the mill open gun.

Just wanted to share my story.

Nick

(Hopefully a picture is attached)