dmaxfireman
05-31-12, 16:23
I searched and found info spread all over but nothing all together regarding the trigger pull weights. So I am just posting this as a reference for people to search for in the future.
Guns Magazine, Nov, 2004 by Massad Ayoob
The real story Glock trigger pull weights: Glock critics say its trigger pull is too light. It may be that they've been weighing it wrong
My friend and fellow instructor Dave Maglio is a Glock fan. His department issues him something else to wear in uniform, but he almost always has a privately owned Glock for off-duty carry. When he became the 17th IDPA Four-Gun Master, he did it with a Glock 17 9mm in Stock Service Pistol and Enhanced Service Pistol class, and a .45 caliber Glock 21 in Custom Defense Pistol against the short trigger pull 1911 autos. "Hell," he said, "I would have used a Glock instead of a Ruger GP-100 for Stock Service Revolver if Glock made a wheel gun."
One of Dave's pet peeves is people who complain that the Glock trigger pull is too light. It comes out of the box with a nominal five-pound pull. This upsets some folks who think of that in terms of double action revolvers and autos with pull weights in the 12- and 14-pound range. "People are missing the reality," says Dave. "Think in terms of human engineering. The Glock trigger-pull weights are apparently taken at the tip of the trigger. It's a pivoting trigger design, so the leverage is greater there, and the pull-weight seems less."
He explains, "Look at how people actually shoot Glocks. Their index finger is on the middle of the trigger, where the safely lever is, not at the toe. The middle of the trigger is where we should be taking the measurement. It weighs out heavier there."
I proposed an experiment. Dave broke out his Glock armorer's kit and a trigger-pull gauge, and I unloaded the Black Hills 165-grain EXP .40 S&W ammo from the Glock 22 I was carrying. He then installed every reasonable combination we could think of, and weighed the triggers with each at the toe, and again at the center of the trigger.
Three Gets You Five
Glock sells the 3.5-pound connector only with the 6-inch barreled longslide target pistols and in the Tactical/Practical series with 5.3-inch barrels. These are respectively the Glock 17L and 34 in 9mm Luger and the G24 and G35 in .40 S&W. There is a long history of Glock factory literature adamantly stating that these trigger pulls are for competition, not duty or defensive carry. Every American police department that I know of which has adopted the G34 or G35 for issue has fielded it with a heavier trigger pull.
Measured at the toe of the trigger, the nominal 3.5-pound connector with standard trigger spring actually weighed three pounds, 3.7 ounces. Measured at the center of the trigger, however, it tripped at five pounds, 1.3 ounces.
Some Glock aficionados think the trick set-up is the 3.5-pound connector with the New York Trigger (NY-1) module replacing the standard S-shaped trigger spring. This gives a firm resistance from the beginning of the pull. The real, often unrecognized benefit of the NY Trigger is a smooth, easy pull that is generally estimated at a bit over five pounds. In fact, it measured six pounds 0.5 ounces at the toe of the trigger, and eight pounds even at the center. This system is reportedly standard with a Midwestern state police department that issues Glocks.
The Five-Pound Connection
The five-pound connector mated with the standard trigger spring is what comes out of the box when a private citizen buys most models of Glocks. It is said to have an average pull of 5.5 pounds. In measuring this combo on my G22, Dave got four pounds, 1.5 ounces when the gauge was hooked to the toe of the trigger, and six pounds on the nose when he attached it to the center of the trigger.
Then the threw in the NY-1 module, which is what I had in the gun to start with along with the nominally five-pound connector. It went six pounds, 1.1 ounces at the toe, seven pounds 1.5 ounces from the center. This combo is normally expected to bring pull weight up to eight pounds or so. However, I've shot this gnu a lot and worn it in well.
With the NY-2, or New York Plus module in place, which is said to deliver a pull of close to 12 pounds, we got eight pounds 1.1 ounces at the toe and 10 pounds even measuring from the center of the trigger. Finally, with the so-called "Miami trigger"--an eight-pound connector and the standard spring--the pull measured six pounds six ounces at the toe and 10 pounds even at the center.
The bottom line? As with all pistols, individual Glock pulls may weigh more or less than specified, or anywhere within the specified range. The pulls are indeed heavier at the center-where most of us actually put our finger-than at the tip. It was an interesting experiment, but I'll still keep the NY-1 module with five-pound connector in all the several Glocks I own for self-defense.
Guns Magazine, Nov, 2004 by Massad Ayoob
The real story Glock trigger pull weights: Glock critics say its trigger pull is too light. It may be that they've been weighing it wrong
My friend and fellow instructor Dave Maglio is a Glock fan. His department issues him something else to wear in uniform, but he almost always has a privately owned Glock for off-duty carry. When he became the 17th IDPA Four-Gun Master, he did it with a Glock 17 9mm in Stock Service Pistol and Enhanced Service Pistol class, and a .45 caliber Glock 21 in Custom Defense Pistol against the short trigger pull 1911 autos. "Hell," he said, "I would have used a Glock instead of a Ruger GP-100 for Stock Service Revolver if Glock made a wheel gun."
One of Dave's pet peeves is people who complain that the Glock trigger pull is too light. It comes out of the box with a nominal five-pound pull. This upsets some folks who think of that in terms of double action revolvers and autos with pull weights in the 12- and 14-pound range. "People are missing the reality," says Dave. "Think in terms of human engineering. The Glock trigger-pull weights are apparently taken at the tip of the trigger. It's a pivoting trigger design, so the leverage is greater there, and the pull-weight seems less."
He explains, "Look at how people actually shoot Glocks. Their index finger is on the middle of the trigger, where the safely lever is, not at the toe. The middle of the trigger is where we should be taking the measurement. It weighs out heavier there."
I proposed an experiment. Dave broke out his Glock armorer's kit and a trigger-pull gauge, and I unloaded the Black Hills 165-grain EXP .40 S&W ammo from the Glock 22 I was carrying. He then installed every reasonable combination we could think of, and weighed the triggers with each at the toe, and again at the center of the trigger.
Three Gets You Five
Glock sells the 3.5-pound connector only with the 6-inch barreled longslide target pistols and in the Tactical/Practical series with 5.3-inch barrels. These are respectively the Glock 17L and 34 in 9mm Luger and the G24 and G35 in .40 S&W. There is a long history of Glock factory literature adamantly stating that these trigger pulls are for competition, not duty or defensive carry. Every American police department that I know of which has adopted the G34 or G35 for issue has fielded it with a heavier trigger pull.
Measured at the toe of the trigger, the nominal 3.5-pound connector with standard trigger spring actually weighed three pounds, 3.7 ounces. Measured at the center of the trigger, however, it tripped at five pounds, 1.3 ounces.
Some Glock aficionados think the trick set-up is the 3.5-pound connector with the New York Trigger (NY-1) module replacing the standard S-shaped trigger spring. This gives a firm resistance from the beginning of the pull. The real, often unrecognized benefit of the NY Trigger is a smooth, easy pull that is generally estimated at a bit over five pounds. In fact, it measured six pounds 0.5 ounces at the toe of the trigger, and eight pounds even at the center. This system is reportedly standard with a Midwestern state police department that issues Glocks.
The Five-Pound Connection
The five-pound connector mated with the standard trigger spring is what comes out of the box when a private citizen buys most models of Glocks. It is said to have an average pull of 5.5 pounds. In measuring this combo on my G22, Dave got four pounds, 1.5 ounces when the gauge was hooked to the toe of the trigger, and six pounds on the nose when he attached it to the center of the trigger.
Then the threw in the NY-1 module, which is what I had in the gun to start with along with the nominally five-pound connector. It went six pounds, 1.1 ounces at the toe, seven pounds 1.5 ounces from the center. This combo is normally expected to bring pull weight up to eight pounds or so. However, I've shot this gnu a lot and worn it in well.
With the NY-2, or New York Plus module in place, which is said to deliver a pull of close to 12 pounds, we got eight pounds 1.1 ounces at the toe and 10 pounds even measuring from the center of the trigger. Finally, with the so-called "Miami trigger"--an eight-pound connector and the standard spring--the pull measured six pounds six ounces at the toe and 10 pounds even at the center.
The bottom line? As with all pistols, individual Glock pulls may weigh more or less than specified, or anywhere within the specified range. The pulls are indeed heavier at the center-where most of us actually put our finger-than at the tip. It was an interesting experiment, but I'll still keep the NY-1 module with five-pound connector in all the several Glocks I own for self-defense.