Glock 26 - Review

I guess, if I'm going to have any credibility with concealed carry people all around the globe, I'm gonna need to review the Glock 26.

This seems to be, kind of, the gold standard for concealed carry by a lot of people.

There is no more reliable firearm on the planet. It is flawlessly designed and impeccably executed. It shoots like a champ as well.

Here's the low down on this tank of a pistol.



Design: It's a no nonsense, utilitarian design. There's no extraneous parts or gadgets. There are no external safety levers. The grip on the G26 is short due to it being a sub-compact. It's basically a 2 finger grip. You can get an extension for the magazine which adds 2 rounds of capacity and a little more room on the grip. All in all a good feeling pistol in hand.

Function: This is a striker fired, semi-automatic, single action pistol. You must chamber a round by actuating the slide in order to "prime" the striker. After that, you pull the trigger... it goes bang.

Reliability: The single most reliable handgun on the planet, period. There are examples of G26s out there with 100,000 round through it and it's still going strong. Yeah, I wouldn't hesitate to say that this gun will last, literally, forever.

Shooting impressions: This is a shooter's gun. If you enjoy trigger time, you'll like this gun. It's accurate, has almost no appreciable recoil, and will eat any ammo you put in it, period.

So, on paper this is a great gun, heck, in reality it's a great gun.

I however, contrary to all the good things it has going for it, would probably not carry it.

Simply put this thing is a solid brick of steel. It isn't necessarily heavy, but it is bulky. Unless you're willing to shell out some serious money on a serious holster and carry system this thing may be a wee uncomfortable, or at least unconcealable.

Now, there are guys out there that carry them religiously, but they change their entire manner of dress to accomodate the pistol. I'm all for a little bit of adaptation, but I'm not going to wear a shooting vest at all times just so I can carry a weapon.

All of that being said, if you had the money (although they aren't terribly expensive) you could do a heck of a lot worse than picking up this or it's middle sibling the Glock 19. It's a lot of gun for a very reasonable price and you won't be disappointed in the value it gives you.

Just consider how you're going to carry it before you lay down the cash.