I’ve been meaning to write this for a while, as I understand it’s traditional to post soon after the first trip to the range with a new firearm. I’ve taken my new Glock model 21 for 3 outings, all with very positive results.
Mrs. Reaper had asked me what I wanted for Christmas back in November; I told her I just wanted a couple of hundred bucks to spend. So, a week before Christmas, I visited my local gun shop (Smoky Mountain Trader) to pick up the cash for a Ruger Blackhawk 357/9mm I’d had them sell on consignment. The proceeds from that, plus my Xmas cash, put a brand new .45acp Glock model 21 in my hands. I went “old-school” on mine – all black (some might say “tactical black”). There’s nothing wrong with the olive drab ones, they just don’t appeal to me.
Make no mistake about it, this handgun is a hand-full. I have a medium-sized hand, with fingers that are probably just slightly longer than average (I wear a size 8 surgical glove, and can barely squeeze into a medium-sized non-sterile glove).
I was a little apprehensive about firing it, at first. I owned a Glock model 36 (also a .45acp) a few years ago. It was very comfortable to carry, and the grip (sized for the single-column magazine) fit the hand every bit as well as a Commander-sized 1911 does (which is to say, really, really well). However, the felt recoil from this lightweight, short-barreled monster was just short of brutal. It wasn’t just a harsh shove like I was expecting; it actually twisted in the hand with every shot. I sold it to a fellow grad-student for what it cost me, after firing only 100 rounds through it.
Unlike the model 36, the model 21 was a real pleasure to shoot. The extra weight (compared to the model 36) does an excellent job of absorbing the amount of recoil that is perceived by the shooter, and the longer slide keeps some of that weight down front, minimizing muzzle rise. Overall, felt recoil was comparable to that of a full-sized 1911. Very comfortable shooting.
Accuracy was what I’ve come to expect from Glock (this is my 6th): just fine for putting all your rounds into the center mass of a man-sized target at 7-10 yards, even with rapid fire. Accurate enough for us non-pro shooters, but not exactly what the gun-writers call “a tack-driver.” I haven’t posted any measured groups, since I wasn’t firing from a rest. All shooting was done off-hand (Weaver stance, with a few dozen rounds devoted to weak-hand-only).
(Below is the Glock 21 compared to the Kimber CDP II. Although the Glock is considered a full-sized weapon, and the Kimber is the more compact [Commander-sized] 1911 in that company’s product line, they are essentially the same length and height. The Kimber’s width [thickness] is noticeably smaller.)
Glocks are famous for their reliability, and this one was no exception. Over the course of 3 shooting trips, I’ve put between 350 and 450 rounds of Wolf FMJ, Winchester Silvertip HP, and Remington Golden Saber ammo through it. So far, there has not been a single malfunction of any kind. This is a welcome change from the performance my Kimber CDP-II gave. True, the Kimber was eerily accurate. However, you could count on a failure to feed or a failure to fully extract somewhere between the 6th and 8th magazine with the Kimber (and that was using Wilson Combat mags, not the cheap no-name ones). For reliability, you would be hard-pressed to beat a Glock.
While shooting with my brother-in-law at his rural property, we decided to test our ammunition’s performance against a junked 1956 Chevy that is quietly rusting in the woods about a half-mile from his home. 230 grain Wolf FMJ, I learned, will penetrate the rear quarter-panel, both walls of both wheel-wells, and dimple the quarter-panel on the far side of the trunk at a distance of about 8 or 9 yards. I deeply regret that I didn’t have my camera with me for that outing.
On my most-recent trip to the range, a departing rifleman joked that he was leaving his target at the 100 yard line, in case I wanted to give it a try. Now, I’ve never hunted with a handgun, and I’ve never attempted a shot greater than maybe 50 feet with a pistol. But, since I had the chance, and since the range was, for the moment, deserted (Monday afternoon), I decided to give it a shot. Firing a 230 grain pistol cartridge at a target that far away is as much an exercise in indirect fire as it is in marksmanship. Fortunately, the earth berm behind the target was quite dusty, and I was able to adjust my fire based on the puffs of dirt that showed my initial near-misses. For future reference, a 230 grain Wolf FMJ slug will hit center mass if you aim just over a foot high at 100 yards. I just wish there would have been a steel plate to shoot at. The “clang” that signifies a hit would have been superbly satisfying.
Summary: my experience with the Glock model 21 has been 100% positive. If you are in the market for a reliable sidearm that won’t break you financially, I’d encourage you to give one a try.
I picked up a pre-owned holster at ebay, so I’ll have to post what it feels like to carry it soon. -- Reaper
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