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My son-in-law surprised me at the range this weekend when he showed up with a new pistol. Both of us have tried Glocks in the past - Gen 1 and 2 in .45 ACP - rental guns at an indoor range... and were not impressed. So we have stayed away from purchasing any. He got a really good deal on this G17, 9 mm pistol at our favorite LGS. We ran 250 rounds of Federal FMJ thru it. To our surprise, we both liked the gun. The Gen 4 grips are long enough on this 4" barrel gun to give full purchase for the pinky finger and not overly aggressive as reported with Gen 3 texturing. John shot it very well freehand.. accuracy was good, recoil very manageable and only 1 fte - which we attributed to new gun break-in.

So, although we are unlikely to become Glock snobs any time soon, we must admit that this pistol has won us over at least to acceptance and would endorse the G17 Gen 4 if asked.

The gun shop made an offer he couldn't refuse? Sorry...

Glad to here you and your son-in-law have a new type of pistol to gain experience with.

I consider Glocks to be very high value for the money they cost. They have a proven track record that can't be denied.

I'm going to agree on the for the gen 4 glocks... we recently upgraded our older glocks at my dept to the gen 4 and I went from hating the gen 3 glock 22c that I had (couldn't stand the grip) to loving the gen4 glock 22 (so far at least) the grip is way better and the guns feel crisper as a whole than any other glock I've handled so far (there has been a couple).

bgreenea, seeing as you have extensive experience with the gen 3 Glocks, and now you have used a gen 4, do you mind sharing your opinion on the new compound recoil spring in the full size Glock gen 4 pistols?

Glock claims that the gen 4 recoil system reduces felt recoil and muzzle rise by 15% when compared to the gen 3 system. Just wondering if anyone with extensive experience with the gen 3, that has since switched to the gen 4, agrees with said claim.

recoil feels less than with a ported gen 3 22c or a non ported 23. might be the grip and recoil spring together that did the trick

I haven't shot a Gen4 Glock yet..
But I do have a 2nd Gen G17L & a 3rd Gen G26 that are my favorite centerfire guns that I carry & use for home protection..

I like the look of that longslide....and the pile of ammo

bgreenea, thanks for sharing. Nice to know Glock just didn't make an empty claim.

Nice picture, headknocker. Other than at IDPA competitions, you don't hardly see any long slide Glocks.

Thanks Guys!!
The Glock 17L is 1/2" too long for IDPA & most Glock guys use the Glock 34 which just fits inside the size regulation box..
The longslide is very accurate..
I'll get some measured distance targets next time I'm at the range..

My 17L was made in 1990 & the 26 was made in 1999 = 21 & 12 years old..

My favorite XDM - 9 (3.8 inch brl) shares a few design points with the Gen 4 G17. Including multiple backstraps, and the center trigger safety lever (not sure of the correct technical term) and the compound recoil spring. Felt recoil was equivalent (IMO). The SA of course includes a grip safety. I have not found this combination a problem as both are passive systems - grab the gun, engage the trigger and the safeties clear - ready to go bang. So, I like the G17 as noted earlier... but it will not win any beauty contests... again IMO.

Gen 3 to Gen 4 recoil. I shot a Gen 3 G17 mainly in USPSA and steel shoots. I had about 2500 rounds through the gun before I traded it for a Gen 4 G17. So far I have 300 rounds through my Gen 4. I don’t know if there is less recoil but it is different. I would say the Gen 4 recoil is more of a push then a snap. Where the Gen 3 was more of a snap. Kind of like when I started reloading 147g bullets instead of 115g bullets for my Gen 3. With the Gen 4 I feel my follow up shots are quicker. Only time will tell. I am going to load up some 115g bullets to see how that feels compared to what my Gen 3 felt like.
Granted I am not an expert when it comes to firearms and shooting, but there is my two cents.

I notice my Glock 26 which also has the dual type recoil rod assembly like the Gen4 is much nicer to shoot than a standard Glock 19 but I have never shot a nicer feeling Glock than my Longslide G17L..
It the cat's pajamas as far as Glocks goes..

What about a G34?

finally got a chance to put some more(100 or so) rounds downrange with the new gen 4 glock 22. recoil is less snappy than the older glocks (my bet is the redesigned recoil spring helped that) accuracy is far better 1.5" 15 round groups at 10 yards (one big hole) the trigger is much crisper than the older glocks I have shot. and the grip is very nice, it has great traction but it doesn't chew up your hand.

my rating is

and this comes from some one who didn't care too much for the previous generations of glock.