Glock 21 Torture Test
November 20, 2010 10:21 PM   Subscribe

How much abuse can a Glock 21 take? A lot.
posted by Joe Beese (59 comments total) 16 users marked this as a favorite
 
"ever wonder what the magwell looks like after inserting hundreds of muddy magazines, and forcing mags into a muddy frame?"

My good man, need you even ask?
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 10:33 PM on November 20, 2010 [5 favorites]


It's an amazing torture test, and a very compelling advertisement for Glock. That's great design.
posted by Forktine at 10:36 PM on November 20, 2010


Thanks. Now I want a Glock.
posted by 2N2222 at 10:46 PM on November 20, 2010 [2 favorites]


You can fire a bullet with any tube and hammer/pin. It's not hard to make some sort of tube and pin/hammer combo that can resist the elements. I'm not really impressed. Then again, until the zombie apocalypse, I can't see the need for firearms this resilient in the first place.

The quest for a bigger and better gun isn't necessarily a noble pursuit. Just you wait. Within your lifetime they'll make a gun that'll, like, kill a bunch of people with like radiation or something. Then you'll be sorry, I tell you.
posted by inedible at 10:46 PM on November 20, 2010 [2 favorites]


Now I'm imagining the folks on Mad Men discussing how to pitch a gun that you'd only need to buy once.
posted by bwg at 10:50 PM on November 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


Got a catchy name, too. Glock. Glock. You just wanna say it, y'know?
posted by flapjax at midnite at 10:52 PM on November 20, 2010 [3 favorites]


All I could think about was Fallout.
posted by planet at 10:54 PM on November 20, 2010 [6 favorites]


Now I want a glockenspiel. So I can play beautiful music.

And I'd like a special hidden compartment in it so I can hide a Glock in my spiel.
posted by oneswellfoop at 10:57 PM on November 20, 2010 [12 favorites]


Wow, he actually did get around to dropping it out of the plane! Last time I happened upon the site, he hadn't yet done it.
posted by wierdo at 11:02 PM on November 20, 2010


Wait, did he pull a loaded pistol behind his truck, down the road?

Round in the chamber or no, that seems really uncool.
posted by paisley henosis at 11:03 PM on November 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


If I ever get a gun, it will be a Glock.
posted by sophist at 11:05 PM on November 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


Wait, did he pull a loaded pistol behind his truck, down the road?

Welcome to the United States of America.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 11:07 PM on November 20, 2010 [13 favorites]


Blazecock Pileon: Welcome to the United States of America.

Buncha savages in this town country.
posted by paisley henosis at 11:15 PM on November 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


Re: The World Famous at 10:59 PM on November 20

I was sorta joking, but okay. At any rate, this particular peak in pistol technology occurred almost 30 years ago. My sarcastic points are moot anyway.
posted by inedible at 11:24 PM on November 20, 2010


I'm looking for examples of insanely overbuilt, reasonably-priced consumer goods with which I can kill lots of people.
posted by pracowity at 11:36 PM on November 20, 2010 [3 favorites]


And I'd like a special hidden compartment in it so I can hide a Glock in my spiel.

Yo dawg, I herd you like Glocks and spiels ...
posted by zippy at 11:41 PM on November 20, 2010 [11 favorites]


The Glock can take more punishment than the second link.

A few knocks with the Metafilter traffic hammer and the firing pin went 404.
posted by three blind mice at 11:45 PM on November 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


From my naive perspective, mixing explosive stuff in tubes with stuff that blocks the exit seems like a really bad idea.

Was there a decent chance that this testing could have resulted in an injured shooter?
posted by zippy at 11:45 PM on November 20, 2010 [1 favorite]


SAND!

This article needs additional citations for verification.

posted by clavdivs at 11:47 PM on November 20, 2010


The AK47 boasts a similar level of resilience, but has the advantage of being a gas-driven fully automatic assault rifle. They are shit-cheap to produce, and quite capable of being buried for decades and still being in firing condition when your sleeper squad finds themselves needing to dig them up. Really the weapon of choice for either your standard low-capital totalitarian regime or motley crew of insurgents.
posted by kaibutsu at 11:49 PM on November 20, 2010 [7 favorites]


A few knocks with the Metafilter traffic hammer and the firing pin went 404.

Yeah. I even got this double no-strike from the second link:

Forbidden
You don't have permission to access /index.php on this server.
Additionally, a 404 Not Found error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle the request.

posted by aqsakal at 12:14 AM on November 21, 2010


But what about a weapon in a dessert? Have Glocks been field tested in Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory?
posted by kmz at 12:56 AM on November 21, 2010 [2 favorites]


You know, I bet Kenny G's saxophone wouldn't take anywhere near this amount of abuse without being rendered absolutely unplayable.

Hmm...
posted by flapjax at midnite at 12:57 AM on November 21, 2010 [2 favorites]


Lesson: When the skydiving sand people rise up, don't let them get their hands on any Glocks.
posted by Menthol at 1:04 AM on November 21, 2010 [2 favorites]


Well, my Zip gun is just a piece of car aerial, a block of wood, a rubber band and a nail for a firing pin, and I keep it buried in a trash can in the alley behind Doc's drug store, but it still worked well enough to see off those Sharks that time when they stabbed Rick.

(So what if I get my firearm fantasies from Broadway musicals rather than John Wayne or Clint Eastwood movies? That's allowed, right?)
posted by PeterMcDermott at 2:02 AM on November 21, 2010 [9 favorites]


They seem to be the choice of white supremacists, also - a little googling ended up at a very informative article about the Glock company on StormFront.

Worse than walking in dog shit.
posted by a non e mouse at 2:09 AM on November 21, 2010


This might be interesting, but like several others I just get the
Forbidden
You don't have permission to access /index.php on this server.

posted by Dumsnill at 2:31 AM on November 21, 2010


I'm really running out of ideas, so decided to drop it off the roof with a primed case in the chamber to see if it would go off.

I'm no gun expert, but I can't think of many places where it would be a good idea to try that...
posted by Iax at 3:00 AM on November 21, 2010


Primed case means no bullet.
posted by sfts2 at 3:19 AM on November 21, 2010


I'm from the UK where you cannot walk out to a supermarket and pick up a Glock. You can, however walk out, bring home and torture an SM58.
posted by 6am at 3:51 AM on November 21, 2010 [4 favorites]


A friend of mine bought a Glock 9mm last year, we went to the range, I shot it side by side with a Smith & Wesson 9mm I've had for long while. First time I've shot a Glock, I thought I was prepared -- hey, no big deal, another good pistol, right?

But I was not prepared, really, I was quite surprised by the fact that Glocks stay right on target when you shoot them; despite its considerably heavier weight, the S&W jumps all over compared to the Glock, you get off a shot with the S&W and then you've got to get back on target, not near so much with the Glock. Fun to shoot, a really well engineered pistol, super easy to clean, and as seen in that site, you can jump up and down on them and they come up shooting -- that S&W wouldn't go through half what that Glock did and even live through it, much less come out shooting.

On top of all else, they're inexpensive. From what I can see, they pretty much set the standard now, others are as good -- maybe -- but cost lots more.
posted by dancestoblue at 5:12 AM on November 21, 2010 [2 favorites]


My friend used to say, you only misfire a Glock once. That is, you mis-handle it and end up with the flesh of your inner thumb or some other exposed piece of hand sitting right up at the top of the handle. So you line up that shot...

Great stuff. It's a heck of a gun.
posted by cavalier at 5:35 AM on November 21, 2010


Men, and the guns that love them. Today on Maury Povich!
posted by clvrmnky at 5:54 AM on November 21, 2010


But the question remains: Will it blend?
posted by briank at 6:45 AM on November 21, 2010 [5 favorites]


I thought i read this as a link from metafilter before. ( i found it at least back to 2005 here on glocktalk )
It was impressive then but i wonder how updated it has been.
posted by stuartmm at 6:49 AM on November 21, 2010


But what about a weapon in a dessert? Have Glocks been field tested in Willy Wonka's Chocolate Factory?

Though little talked about, the Oompa Loompa uprising of aught six provided ample testing opportunities for Mr. Wonka and his trusty Glock.
posted by Ghidorah at 6:49 AM on November 21, 2010 [3 favorites]


I thought not cleaning mine was bad. That's an amazing test.
posted by acheekymonkey at 7:08 AM on November 21, 2010


I have, in fact, been with a weapon in a desert on a horse with no name.
posted by Halloween Jack at 7:34 AM on November 21, 2010


Halloween Jack: "I have, in fact, been with a weapon in a desert on a horse with no name"

and there weren't no one to give you no pain. you know, because you had that weapon.
posted by namewithoutwords at 7:50 AM on November 21, 2010 [1 favorite]


a non e mouse: They seem to be the choice of white supremacists, also - a little googling ended up at a very informative article about the Glock company on StormFront.

Worse than walking in dog shit


Unless the company is actually catering to those nutjobs, it really isn't a fair complaint that some of their customers are shit heads. I mean, they make really well made guns: it makes sense that some people in the market for that might not be your cup of tea, but that doesn't really mean that they aren't doing an awesome job, right?
posted by paisley henosis at 8:17 AM on November 21, 2010 [3 favorites]


Is there a point at which this thing is just going to explode in his hand instead of firing when he pulls the trigger? Or is that just movie bullshit?
posted by jacquilynne at 9:17 AM on November 21, 2010


"Is there a point at which this thing is just going to explode in his hand instead of firing when he pulls the trigger? Or is that just movie bullshit?"

Nearly everything you see in the movies about firearms is bullshit.
posted by ancguy at 9:40 AM on November 21, 2010


Curious: Anyone know of a similar torture test with a revolver? E.g., what does it take to stop an S&W 686 (or similar) from firing?
posted by slab_lizard at 10:08 AM on November 21, 2010


The guy seems to be pretty familiar with his firearms and does a pretty thorough once over of the gun before firing, so I doubt he will have any catastrophic failures. Still seems like a stupid idea. But I'm a big fan of my own stupid ideas. He can have his.

I think I might be the only gun enthusiast I know who hates Glocks.
Never enjoyed shooting one (and never had any pinched web flesh, neither).
posted by Seamus at 10:14 AM on November 21, 2010


Is there a point at which this thing is just going to explode in his hand

The technical term is kaBoom!
posted by ryanrs at 10:52 AM on November 21, 2010


"Is there a point at which this thing is just going to explode in his hand instead of firing when he pulls the trigger? Or is that just movie bullshit?"

Well, it does happen

But yeah, everyone should go to a gun range at least once in their life just to see what it's all about. Especially the part where you have to reload. It'll demystify a lot of BS in your head that you got from watching movies.

I should show this to my friend who keeps going on and on and on about his damn Makarov.
posted by P.o.B. at 11:07 AM on November 21, 2010


Now I'm imagining the folks on Mad Men discussing how to pitch a gun that you'd only need to buy once.

By pitching all the other models and accessories!
posted by clarknova at 11:25 AM on November 21, 2010


flapjax at midnite: "Got a catchy name, too. Glock. Glock. You just wanna say it, y'know"

Very woody. Not tinny at all.
posted by Splunge at 12:10 PM on November 21, 2010 [1 favorite]


Metafilter: "You don't have permission to access /index.php on this server. Additionally, a 404 Not Found error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle the request."
posted by Namlit at 12:23 PM on November 21, 2010


also: what
[I guess]
posted by Namlit at 12:23 PM on November 21, 2010


I have had my glock 17 since the mid 80's and this guy puts his through more in an hour than I have in twenty five years. His resale value is shot. My LP08 is way classier but has a bunch of it's mechanism exposed and with it's tight tolerances is not too dust friendly.
posted by Iron Rat at 12:55 PM on November 21, 2010


[AK47s are] "...quite capable of being buried for decades and still being in firing condition when your sleeper squad anchor babies find themselves needing to dig them up."

ftfy.
posted by sneebler at 1:05 PM on November 21, 2010


I think I might be the only gun enthusiast I know who hates Glocks.

Nope. I think they're incredibly ugly, and I don't shoot well with them.

I'm an HK guy for handguns.
posted by Netzapper at 1:28 PM on November 21, 2010


His resale value is shot.

No pun intended. Actually I'm going to guess that this particular Glock has a significantly raised value. It's famous. I first read about it a while back, and have been linked to it several times since, and I'm not a gun person at all. Someone would go well above the, what, $500? that a plain old used Glock would run.

(pulled the $500 out of the air - no idea what the actual price might be)
posted by dirtdirt at 1:32 PM on November 21, 2010


Structurally, that article was exactly like an ad for laundry detergent, except with a Glock instead of a white shirt.
posted by moss at 1:40 PM on November 21, 2010


I think I might be the only gun enthusiast I know who hates Glocks.

Plenty of people dislike them, or at least prefer other guns. They're ugly, have wide grips that aren't great for smaller hands (why I sold mine), and too lightweight for some (more recoil). Some people don't like the grip angle either.

His resale value is shot.

Obviously. He probably doesn't intend to sell it.

Actually I'm going to guess that this particular Glock has a significantly raised value.

No. Glocks are the Honda Civics of pistols... inexpensive and reliable, plenty of aftermarket options, and strictly utilitarian. Mall cops carry them. You buy them because of their function, nothing more, unless there's some sentimental value due to some historically famous usage (not dumping it in dirt).

One thing he should have tested was the ability to fire damaged rounds. Put a round in vise, and (carefully) deform the bullet and casing with a hammer and metal punch. One guy at my range swore his Glock could handle it (I wouldn't be surprised).
posted by mnemonic at 2:51 PM on November 21, 2010


I don't understand Glock love. The 1.5 action weirdness (goes to half-cocked, then cocks and fires on each trigger pull) really annoys me and is particular to Glocks.

My H&K USP is my favorite handgun, although Sigs aren't bad either.

Although I do admit Glocks aren't bad for the price.
posted by wildcrdj at 2:55 PM on November 21, 2010


Slide bite.
posted by bwg at 5:19 PM on November 21, 2010


That is, you mis-handle it and end up with the flesh of your inner thumb or some other exposed piece of hand sitting right up at the top of the handle.

After a mis-addressed email revealed that he was a gun nut too, my (former) boss and I went shooting with my gear the next time he was in town. The AR15 went fine; we put both 22LR (with an adapter kit) and 5.56 through it and he had fun. I ran a mag through my Glock 17, and then he went to fire off a few rounds.

Unfortunately he'd only been firing revolvers lately, and was used to the grip he used with that type of handgun. Ended up with a pretty nasty slide bite that almost needed stitches.
posted by mrbill at 11:35 AM on November 22, 2010


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