This write up isn't to say one pistol is better than the other, or to create an argument for S&W and Glock fanboys. This if for those that may be trying to decide between the two or looking for a first handgun, so I'll adress each and every aspect of both pistols that I can..
1. Trigger. This has GOT to be the most argued thing about S&W and Glock owners alike, S&W owners always cling to the apex kit, Glock owners always cling to the connector. Here's my OPINION. I've owned and shot several glocks, but the two I put the most rounds through RECENTLY would be the 19 (sitting at 1700 rounds) and My g23 I just unloaded. Glock factory triggers have a very short pull and reset, making them very good combat pistols. My only gripe about the factory Glock triggers (basing this against my 19, my g23, and a gun store well broken in g19 gen 2 range pistol) is that after so many trigger pulls, it starts to feel REALLY gritty and almost starts stacking. The only thing I can think of is the metal to metal contact surfaces going on in the connector, while a polish helps, switching out the connector to a 3.5lb connector really smooths things out, but even then, the best solution I could find to this issue was to shoot a little bit of oil on the point where the sear engages the connector and it helps out alot. Again, just my opinion, but basing this off of personal experience. The M&p trigger (basing this off constant dryfiring of my m&p 40, my wifes 9c, and a gun store m&p 9 range rental) seems to have a little bit longer of a pull, not really noticeable, but feels like it breaks MUCH cleaner. This has been an opinion that many folks seem to disagree with, but based on the specimens, (m&p9 range rental vs glock gen 2 range rental) (M&p 40 vs Glock 23 & G19, as well as 9c vs Glock 23 and 9c) the m&p seems to have the better "break" when the shot goes off. I guess it could be due to the fulcrum of the trigger vs the angle of the glock trigger, but the m&p seems to break easier, even after 200 dryfires with not a single drop of oil. Over travel isn't noticed too much, but the m&p could definitley use work in the reset area. Honestly, I wouldn't get too bent out of shape about that. Reset is something that's starting to become debated, but even then, the RAM offered for smith and wesson is 20$, roughly the same price of a connector to put in a glock. If you still don't like the Pull, the apex is out there, but I haven't really seen any reason to drop in the apex, I like the break, but reset could definitley be improved.
2. Ergonomics. Again, a seriously debated topic, but for writeup's sake, I'll talk about it. The Glock offers 3 sizes, Full sized, such as the Glock 17, Compact (Glock 19 *love that gun*) and Subcompact G26, where as the M&p offers only a full size and a compact.
For a carry piece, the 17 is really big and akward, g26 owners typically put a pinky extension on the magazine bringing it right back up to g19 territory, and the G19 has been considered one of the best combat pistols. With the minimal recoil of the g19, grip size is barely a problem, but was noticed by me during the g23 shooting, but I was able to overcome the "fatness" of the grip. Many people's biggest gripe with glocks is the grip angle, not so much the size. Again, that's not really an issue with the firearm, through dryfire practice I as able to establish my natural point of aim with both the g19 and the g23. So the angle is easily compensated for after enough time with your gun. Also, one thing i did like about the glock is where the take down lever is, there are two indents in the frame. On the right side (this is all based off of a right handed shooter), the indent acts as a finger pad for your trigger finger, a place to rest your trigger finger outside of the trigger guard when you're not ready to shoot, and I really liked that about the glock because with muscle memory I knew where that spot was and my finger naturally goes to it when practicing draws until I'm ready to put my finger in the guard. On the opposite side, again the indent serves a great purpose for my grip. The left side indent is where my support hand thumb naturally rested on the gun, so everytime i built muscle memory and knew exactly how to position my hand.
The M&p series only offers 2 sizes, full size, and what they claim to be a "compact". The full size is considered "too big" by some, but doesn't feel to be much bigger than the 19, way less akward than the g17, and with its slim size, is very comfortable all the way around. The 9c on the other hand is a strange beast, like an anorexic g26, I really reccomend getting a pinky extended mag baseplate with the c models, as they allow for a full grip. The m&p has a very slim grip front to back, side to side and makes the pistol much more secure in your hands, as i felt as if I was stretching to fit the glock, where I could put the m&p in a chokehold easily. No memory pads unfortunately, but through dryfire you can learn where your fingers will naturally rest. The m&p also offers a little bet better of a beaver tail, so if you have really big and meaty paws, you can get high up on the grip without risking slidebite, although I never had an issue with either pistol. The m&p offers 3 sizes of backstraps to change the grip size, but the gen 4 glocks also have this feature. Overall, the m&p has the feel of a 1911 without the weight, it's slim enough to carry all day if needbe, but still big enough to get the job done. I will say that while the 9 or 40 full size isn't much bigger than the 19 or 23, you're still getting 2 more rounds (17 rounds in full size iirc, 15 rounds in the .40 vs the glock 19-15 rounds 9mm, glock 23-13 rounds 40 sw).
3. Factory sights. It's a no brainer that the glock factory sights are some of the best on the market. Only improvement glock could do is to offer metal sights as a regular option, and not a 20$ upgrade (but still, 20$ to upgrade to metal sights is cheap, and glock in smyrna will happily install them for you. Glock has a KISS approach to sights, White dot front, u notch rear. They're the ledge style sights incase you need to use the sights during something such as a one handed reload or malfunction clearance, and even though they're polymer, I've never broken them doing this. There's very little confusion when trying to get a sight picture, no distractions to worry about. Just remember equal heighth, equal light. Aside from night sights and metal sights, the best cheap upgrade I reccomend is to take orange paintmarker (flourescent orange) or nail polish to the front sight, helps get a sight picture MUCH faster. The M&p sights have a lot to be desired. While there are plenty of aftermarket sights, they're still not as plentiful as glock sights. M&p has the ramp up style sights and I honestly hate them. I also am not fond of the 3 dot system. Too much of a distraction, your eyes can not literally focus on the front sight and rear sight, much less a series of dots, as well as your target. Unfortunately I wasn't able to orange color fill the factory front sight on my wifes gun, just too much of an indent to accomplish this, and wasn't going to defeat the purpose of my night sights. In all honesty, I never worry about the 3 dots, just remember equal height, equal light. Maybe in a night time situation, i could see having 3 dot systems, but even then, if i can't see my sights, i probably can't see my target well enough to identify it.
4. Break down/disassembly. I'm gonna go ahead and say if the glock has the simplest design of any handgun. Breakdown is very simple. Clear the weapon, pull the slide back 1/8th or so, pull the levers down, pull the trigger and the slide comes off. For further disassembly, it's 3 pins on the frame, one pin requires you to wiggle the slide stop (do NOT take a hammer to this pin, just wiggle with the slidestop lever and it'll push through with ease. Pull the barrel and guide rod assembly outThen depress the collar on the striker on the slide, pull the slide cover up, pull the striker out, extractor spring, push the drop safety, lift the extractor out of the way, then pull the drop safety plunger and spring out, and your gun is nearly 100% broken down. On the M&p, clear the gun, lock the slide back, then flip the take down lever down, pull out the breakdown/frame tool, push the sear deactivation lever down, drop the slide, and it pulls out easily. Haven't messed with the tear down of the m&p except barrel and guide rod, but it's no where near as simple. Some jobs require removal of the rear sight.. Yeah, prepare to pay a gunsmith. Then with a hammer and pin punch, drive the roll pins (hey if it works for the m4 i guess it can work for pistols) out. Now I will say that if any glock armorer catches you with a hammer and pin punch while working on a glock, prepare or a serious ass chewing.
5. Magazines and availability. Glocks have a polymer encased magazine and this is partially the reason behind the fat grip of glocks. You're not going to have to worry about corrosion, i've ran a course and put the gun through it's paces, dropping the magazines in mud/dirt, blowing/shaking them out and they're ready to go. Glock factory magazines are easy to come by, and for those looking for a budget option, buy used magazines, even reduced capacity magazines and take them to glock. More than likely, glock will swap them out for free with brand new hi cap magazines. Never had an issue of corrosion with the glock magazines. Drop free fast and easy. THe Smith and Wesson M&p magazines are listed as steel blue.. Anybody with a blued guns knows the drawback on blueing, they rust, they corrode. For something subjected to constant sweat/humidity, it's a bad idea to have a blued magazine. Be prepared to keep a coat of oil on them although I haven't had any issues with corrosion, you're going to need to pay more attention to the m&p mags. They're also about the same cost of glock mags, but availability isn't no where near as good.
6. Reliability/accuracy Both pistols have been tested, put into place by law enforcement, but Glocks have the longer track record. They're better designed combat pistols, accuracy has been recorded as better in the Glocks, although from typical self defense distance you're going to rarely notice the difference. I'm still working on testing the m&p in terms of reliability with different ammunitions, but the glock ate just about anything i put in it. Glock and other sources advise against using lead cast ammo and this has been a subject of controversy, so run lead at your own risk. In any case, barrel manufacturers are everywhere for both guns, although more options are available for the Glock.
7. Accessories and components. Glocks have been around for roughly 26 years, just about every part of the gun has an aftermarket part available for it. For a competition range gun, glock has tons of upgrades. for a carry/duty gun, not too many things I would really reccomend messing with, even the guiderod. Glock does install extended magazine release and slide STOP levers, but they're not exactly the best idea to install. To easy to accidentally actuate an extended magazine release, and the slide stop lever is just that, a slide stop. In a competition environment, I could see why you'd want to shave second by using it as a release, but in a defensive situation, it's not really a good idea as fine motor skills deteriorate under stress. There's not as many aftermarket accessories for the m&p, but the only one I could think of would be a RAM to improve reset.
I could go on and on about both pistols, but this write up has really gone on long enough. I will say that the controls of the m&p are a little more easily manipulated, but it's really not worth going into detail about.
For those that may be trying to decide between the two, I hope I gave both a fair review and can assist.
1. Trigger. This has GOT to be the most argued thing about S&W and Glock owners alike, S&W owners always cling to the apex kit, Glock owners always cling to the connector. Here's my OPINION. I've owned and shot several glocks, but the two I put the most rounds through RECENTLY would be the 19 (sitting at 1700 rounds) and My g23 I just unloaded. Glock factory triggers have a very short pull and reset, making them very good combat pistols. My only gripe about the factory Glock triggers (basing this against my 19, my g23, and a gun store well broken in g19 gen 2 range pistol) is that after so many trigger pulls, it starts to feel REALLY gritty and almost starts stacking. The only thing I can think of is the metal to metal contact surfaces going on in the connector, while a polish helps, switching out the connector to a 3.5lb connector really smooths things out, but even then, the best solution I could find to this issue was to shoot a little bit of oil on the point where the sear engages the connector and it helps out alot. Again, just my opinion, but basing this off of personal experience. The M&p trigger (basing this off constant dryfiring of my m&p 40, my wifes 9c, and a gun store m&p 9 range rental) seems to have a little bit longer of a pull, not really noticeable, but feels like it breaks MUCH cleaner. This has been an opinion that many folks seem to disagree with, but based on the specimens, (m&p9 range rental vs glock gen 2 range rental) (M&p 40 vs Glock 23 & G19, as well as 9c vs Glock 23 and 9c) the m&p seems to have the better "break" when the shot goes off. I guess it could be due to the fulcrum of the trigger vs the angle of the glock trigger, but the m&p seems to break easier, even after 200 dryfires with not a single drop of oil. Over travel isn't noticed too much, but the m&p could definitley use work in the reset area. Honestly, I wouldn't get too bent out of shape about that. Reset is something that's starting to become debated, but even then, the RAM offered for smith and wesson is 20$, roughly the same price of a connector to put in a glock. If you still don't like the Pull, the apex is out there, but I haven't really seen any reason to drop in the apex, I like the break, but reset could definitley be improved.
2. Ergonomics. Again, a seriously debated topic, but for writeup's sake, I'll talk about it. The Glock offers 3 sizes, Full sized, such as the Glock 17, Compact (Glock 19 *love that gun*) and Subcompact G26, where as the M&p offers only a full size and a compact.
For a carry piece, the 17 is really big and akward, g26 owners typically put a pinky extension on the magazine bringing it right back up to g19 territory, and the G19 has been considered one of the best combat pistols. With the minimal recoil of the g19, grip size is barely a problem, but was noticed by me during the g23 shooting, but I was able to overcome the "fatness" of the grip. Many people's biggest gripe with glocks is the grip angle, not so much the size. Again, that's not really an issue with the firearm, through dryfire practice I as able to establish my natural point of aim with both the g19 and the g23. So the angle is easily compensated for after enough time with your gun. Also, one thing i did like about the glock is where the take down lever is, there are two indents in the frame. On the right side (this is all based off of a right handed shooter), the indent acts as a finger pad for your trigger finger, a place to rest your trigger finger outside of the trigger guard when you're not ready to shoot, and I really liked that about the glock because with muscle memory I knew where that spot was and my finger naturally goes to it when practicing draws until I'm ready to put my finger in the guard. On the opposite side, again the indent serves a great purpose for my grip. The left side indent is where my support hand thumb naturally rested on the gun, so everytime i built muscle memory and knew exactly how to position my hand.
The M&p series only offers 2 sizes, full size, and what they claim to be a "compact". The full size is considered "too big" by some, but doesn't feel to be much bigger than the 19, way less akward than the g17, and with its slim size, is very comfortable all the way around. The 9c on the other hand is a strange beast, like an anorexic g26, I really reccomend getting a pinky extended mag baseplate with the c models, as they allow for a full grip. The m&p has a very slim grip front to back, side to side and makes the pistol much more secure in your hands, as i felt as if I was stretching to fit the glock, where I could put the m&p in a chokehold easily. No memory pads unfortunately, but through dryfire you can learn where your fingers will naturally rest. The m&p also offers a little bet better of a beaver tail, so if you have really big and meaty paws, you can get high up on the grip without risking slidebite, although I never had an issue with either pistol. The m&p offers 3 sizes of backstraps to change the grip size, but the gen 4 glocks also have this feature. Overall, the m&p has the feel of a 1911 without the weight, it's slim enough to carry all day if needbe, but still big enough to get the job done. I will say that while the 9 or 40 full size isn't much bigger than the 19 or 23, you're still getting 2 more rounds (17 rounds in full size iirc, 15 rounds in the .40 vs the glock 19-15 rounds 9mm, glock 23-13 rounds 40 sw).
3. Factory sights. It's a no brainer that the glock factory sights are some of the best on the market. Only improvement glock could do is to offer metal sights as a regular option, and not a 20$ upgrade (but still, 20$ to upgrade to metal sights is cheap, and glock in smyrna will happily install them for you. Glock has a KISS approach to sights, White dot front, u notch rear. They're the ledge style sights incase you need to use the sights during something such as a one handed reload or malfunction clearance, and even though they're polymer, I've never broken them doing this. There's very little confusion when trying to get a sight picture, no distractions to worry about. Just remember equal heighth, equal light. Aside from night sights and metal sights, the best cheap upgrade I reccomend is to take orange paintmarker (flourescent orange) or nail polish to the front sight, helps get a sight picture MUCH faster. The M&p sights have a lot to be desired. While there are plenty of aftermarket sights, they're still not as plentiful as glock sights. M&p has the ramp up style sights and I honestly hate them. I also am not fond of the 3 dot system. Too much of a distraction, your eyes can not literally focus on the front sight and rear sight, much less a series of dots, as well as your target. Unfortunately I wasn't able to orange color fill the factory front sight on my wifes gun, just too much of an indent to accomplish this, and wasn't going to defeat the purpose of my night sights. In all honesty, I never worry about the 3 dots, just remember equal height, equal light. Maybe in a night time situation, i could see having 3 dot systems, but even then, if i can't see my sights, i probably can't see my target well enough to identify it.
4. Break down/disassembly. I'm gonna go ahead and say if the glock has the simplest design of any handgun. Breakdown is very simple. Clear the weapon, pull the slide back 1/8th or so, pull the levers down, pull the trigger and the slide comes off. For further disassembly, it's 3 pins on the frame, one pin requires you to wiggle the slide stop (do NOT take a hammer to this pin, just wiggle with the slidestop lever and it'll push through with ease. Pull the barrel and guide rod assembly outThen depress the collar on the striker on the slide, pull the slide cover up, pull the striker out, extractor spring, push the drop safety, lift the extractor out of the way, then pull the drop safety plunger and spring out, and your gun is nearly 100% broken down. On the M&p, clear the gun, lock the slide back, then flip the take down lever down, pull out the breakdown/frame tool, push the sear deactivation lever down, drop the slide, and it pulls out easily. Haven't messed with the tear down of the m&p except barrel and guide rod, but it's no where near as simple. Some jobs require removal of the rear sight.. Yeah, prepare to pay a gunsmith. Then with a hammer and pin punch, drive the roll pins (hey if it works for the m4 i guess it can work for pistols) out. Now I will say that if any glock armorer catches you with a hammer and pin punch while working on a glock, prepare or a serious ass chewing.
5. Magazines and availability. Glocks have a polymer encased magazine and this is partially the reason behind the fat grip of glocks. You're not going to have to worry about corrosion, i've ran a course and put the gun through it's paces, dropping the magazines in mud/dirt, blowing/shaking them out and they're ready to go. Glock factory magazines are easy to come by, and for those looking for a budget option, buy used magazines, even reduced capacity magazines and take them to glock. More than likely, glock will swap them out for free with brand new hi cap magazines. Never had an issue of corrosion with the glock magazines. Drop free fast and easy. THe Smith and Wesson M&p magazines are listed as steel blue.. Anybody with a blued guns knows the drawback on blueing, they rust, they corrode. For something subjected to constant sweat/humidity, it's a bad idea to have a blued magazine. Be prepared to keep a coat of oil on them although I haven't had any issues with corrosion, you're going to need to pay more attention to the m&p mags. They're also about the same cost of glock mags, but availability isn't no where near as good.
6. Reliability/accuracy Both pistols have been tested, put into place by law enforcement, but Glocks have the longer track record. They're better designed combat pistols, accuracy has been recorded as better in the Glocks, although from typical self defense distance you're going to rarely notice the difference. I'm still working on testing the m&p in terms of reliability with different ammunitions, but the glock ate just about anything i put in it. Glock and other sources advise against using lead cast ammo and this has been a subject of controversy, so run lead at your own risk. In any case, barrel manufacturers are everywhere for both guns, although more options are available for the Glock.
7. Accessories and components. Glocks have been around for roughly 26 years, just about every part of the gun has an aftermarket part available for it. For a competition range gun, glock has tons of upgrades. for a carry/duty gun, not too many things I would really reccomend messing with, even the guiderod. Glock does install extended magazine release and slide STOP levers, but they're not exactly the best idea to install. To easy to accidentally actuate an extended magazine release, and the slide stop lever is just that, a slide stop. In a competition environment, I could see why you'd want to shave second by using it as a release, but in a defensive situation, it's not really a good idea as fine motor skills deteriorate under stress. There's not as many aftermarket accessories for the m&p, but the only one I could think of would be a RAM to improve reset.
I could go on and on about both pistols, but this write up has really gone on long enough. I will say that the controls of the m&p are a little more easily manipulated, but it's really not worth going into detail about.
For those that may be trying to decide between the two, I hope I gave both a fair review and can assist.
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