First Time Gun Buyer

[Popeyesmets]

Hello All - I am in the process of purchasing my first handgun for home protection and possible carry. Through all the research I have done, I am leaning toward purchasing the gen 3 Glock 19. My only concern is the lack of an external safety. Has anyone heard of or experienced accidental discharge as a result of no external safety? Also, if anyone has any suggestions or feedback regarding my choice (gen 3 Glock 19), please share.

Thanks!

[BimmerJon]

Welcome!!!

Every gun has an external safety. It's called your FINGER

Glocks have internal safety components which disallow the gun from firing unless the trigger is pulled.

If your concern is the trigger getting pulled "by accident", you should be investigating a better holster or training for yourself, not a particular type of gun

If you are relying on a safety to prevent a negligent discharge, it's going to bite you hard one day

[toml]

Glocks don't discharge unless the trigger is pulled. It's as simple as that. You can have an accidental/negligent discharge with any handgun, manual safety or not.

Like you, for while in the beginning I felt as if I needed a manual safety, but once I had one I was constantly checking it to make sure it hadn't been bumped off somehow. I am now totally comfortable with the Glock's safety systems, especially after having been through the armorer's class and really getting to know the guts of the design.

As far as choice of model, the G19 is a fine selection. If you're worried about the "teething" issues with 9mm gen 4s, my take on it is that they have been pretty well dealt with by now, but if you want to go with a Gen 3 "just in case" you still won't go wrong. (I like the Gen 4 features, so I carry a Gen 4 G23.)

[mrnyman]

I do not recommend Glocks for beginners, it is a very unforgiving gun, its not a gun for the casual gun owner, not that any gun should be treated casually, it can be as safe as any gun with the right owner/user, but no i would not recommend it for you.

[str8shooter]

My first pistol and current daily carry is a Glock 30. I'd been shooting revolvers for 30+ years, so when I decided to buy an auto-loader I looked mostly at Glocks because a hand gun with a manual safety seemed odd to me.

So far I haven't Plaxico'd myself.

[cake0110]

A weapon's safety is there to protect against an accident, not negligence. If you drop a glock, that's an accident, it won't go off. If you pull the trigger when you don't mean to fire the weapon, that's negligence, you're using an unsafe practice in the first place.

Bottom line is if you plan on regularly handling your handgun, you should at the very least be trained to a level where you feel comfortable you're not going to pull the trigger unless you mean to. If that's not the case, I would say get more training(formal or informal). If it is the case, then the external safety should not be an issue.

My first handgun was a Glock 19. I decided on it specifically because it didn't have an external safety. My duty weapon at the time was a Beretta M9 and I hated the safety on it, as well as the single and double action and just the entire weapon platform in general. The Glock seemed to me to solve all the issues I had with the Beretta(and 1911 and Hi-Power). I was very happy with my decision afterward.

[PA1936MN]

In doing your research have you actualy held and or fired this handgun? I ask because if you have done either your going to want to. Glocks are one of those guns that people HATE or LOVE. The ergonomics to some are just unforgiving and so on and so forth.

If you haven't at least held one I highly suggest doing so, to determine if you like the feel of the handgun before you purchase it.

Also you seem to not be comfortable without an external safety. If you don't feel comfortable, don't purchase it. Simple as that. They are just as safe as any gun with an external safety device. However the user needs to be aware of the IN's and OUT's of this particular type of firearm, otherwise you can and possibly will injure yourself or someone else.

[normanvin]

I do not recommend Glocks for beginners, it is a very unforgiving gun, its not a gun for the casual gun owner, not that any gun should be treated casually, it can be as safe as any gun with the right owner/user, but no i would not recommend it for you.

I was watching a show about Glocks that was put out by Midway i believe. They claim that one of th reasons that Glock became so popular so quick is the fact that it is so easy to teach how to use it.

[normanvin]

A weapon's safety is there to protect against an accident, not negligence. If you drop a glock, that's an accident, it won't go off. If you pull the trigger when you don't mean to fire the weapon, that's negligence, you're using an unsafe practice in the first place.

Bottom line is if you plan on regularly handling your handgun, you should at the very least be trained to a level where you feel comfortable you're not going to pull the trigger unless you mean to. If that's not the case, I would say get more training(formal or informal). If it is the case, then the external safety should not be an issue.

My first handgun was a Glock 19. I decided on it specifically because it didn't have an external safety. My duty weapon at the time was a Beretta M9 and I hated the safety on it, as well as the single and double action and just the entire weapon platform in general. The Glock seemed to me to solve all the issues I had with the Beretta(and 1911 and Hi-Power). I was very happy with my decision afterward.

I agree with this. Your finger should not be in the trigger guard unless you plan to pull the trigger.

On a gun with an external safety. Do you put your finger in the trigger guard then snap the safety off? Or do you snap the safety off then put your finger into the trigger guard?


But lets not turn this into another why Glocks suck thread.

[MicroMonkey]

spend some time shooting one first, then decide. Take a few guns for a test drive