Armed American Radio - Glock vs M&P

[Guest Packaged Chaos]

So I'm catching up on my AAR podcasts and I hear them talking about Glocks new interchangeable backstrap. Mark and the Mad Ogre are talking about how glock is losing market share to S&W because the LEOs are trading in Glocks for M&P's. Does anyone know why? I'm sure there is more than one reason but I almost bought an M&P, just decided on the Glock because the better aftermarket and quantity already sold.

[Links2k]

Lower bids maybe?

[Smith]

Lower bids, American made, better and varied safety options, more configurations (ie mag safety, external safety, ect.), and ergo's I would imagine.

[kwe45919]

Glocks have had their run in the market and it's now slowed down because everyone else has "caught up" in the ploymer game in one sense or another. Isn't Glock now "catching up" to others whom have interchangeable backstraps?? The public are wanting more saftey features they can see vs internal. Besides,things get old after a while and Glocks, which haven't changed in years until recently, are old. Hence the reason people/police are switchin' over to XD's or S&W's or 1911's again......

Edited February 5, 2010 by kwe45919

[Guest m&pc9]

Isn't Glock now "catching up" to others whom have interchangeable backstraps??

[kwe45919]

Hey....I love my Glocks but still can intelligently tell the truth about the firearms. They are what they are. They had a niche in the market and now they are old news....people just want different things.....different is good right??

[Guest CK1]

I got rid of my M&P yesterday and I've gone back to the Glock... M&P's are nice shooting guns, but mine broke down twice, that's two times too many IMO and I lost my confidence in the platform. Once you've detail stripped them both you see that there's a lot more chances for the M&P to mess up than with a Glock.

If I want to shoot a real nice shooting gun that F's up now and then I'll just shoot my 1911 more!

[Guest Xd9]

+1 ON LOW BID

[GLOCKMEISTER]

all I know is we have sent several M&P's back to Smith, even had 2 go back this year already... Never sent a Glock back... so IMHO that should tell you something.

I brought this up to our Smith Rep that just happened to stop by this week while I was dealing with a customer on a warranty issue with a M&P... he admitted they had slacked off in quality to produce quantity. Sad aint it?

[DaveTN]

So I'm catching up on my AAR podcasts and I hear them talking about Glocks new interchangeable backstrap. Mark and the Mad Ogre are talking about how glock is losing market share to S&W because the LEOs are trading in Glocks for M&P's. Does anyone know why?

For years cops (and many of the rest of us) have wanted American Made Tupperware, but they weren’t willing to accept second best to get them. Now they don’t have to. The M&P is an exceptionally well made firearm. I was surprised they could make everything here and still keep the price low.

Glock has owned the Tupperware market for over 20 years. They have had a good following not only because they made a good service quality pistol, but also because they were giving large Police departments a hell of a price to get that market; which in turn would get them the civilian market.

Smith & Wesson owns the total handgun market period. I hope they are successful in taking back the Police market.

As far as problems go; everyone will have them. I’ve owned four M&P’s and the only problem I’ve had was with a magazine release. I called them, they told me they would either send me a prepaid shipping label to send it in or they would send me the part. I took the part, and that fixed the problem.

[eapking]

I got rid of my M&P yesterday and I've gone back to the Glock... M&P's are nice shooting guns, but mine broke down twice, that's two times too many IMO and I lost my confidence in the platform. Once you've detail stripped them both you see that there's a lot more chances for the M&P to mess up than with a Glock.

If I want to shoot a real nice shooting gun that F's up now and then I'll just shoot my 1911 more!

I would tend to agree with CK1 here. If you're looking for total reliability you cannot beat a Glock. That being said, I still like my M&P's trigger better and the fact that it shoots a lot better. Since getting a little work done on my M&P it's been flawless and I have not hesitated to carry it. Alternate between the two. Now...when my VM2 holster comes in, I'll be carrying my 1911 a lot more than the other two.

I like the fact that S&W has started putting thumb safeties on the newer M&P's. Mine's an original so it behaves just like the Glock. I might be wrong, but I'm wondering if the LEO's are liking the thumb safety, which you ain't gonna see on a Glock anytime soon. Plus S&W is made in the good-old USA!!!

[Guest tbone]

I think that there are a lot of reasons M&P is gaining market share. Foremost, S&W did a lot of market research to come up with a product that would meet the needs of law enforcement and military units, as well as quirky civilian gun laws (10 lb trigger, 10 rnd mag). Second, they offer so many options that you can literally "have it your way". Thumb safety, mag safety, no safety. Night sights, laser sights, fiber optic. Excellent ergonomics, variety of calibers and innovative styling. If you think about it, Glock really has not changed their product very much since it was introduced. I would take nothing away from Glock's reliability, but when the competition is coming out with new designs (M&P, XDM) it is hard to keep interest. Besides, I really think that quality between Glock, M&P and XD, XDM is pretty close. You can always find an example in a fourm like this, of somone's brand of gun breaking under some sort of circumstance. If you think about the volumes of guns each one of these companies produces (or imports), there has got to be a least a few "lemons" every once and a while. We are living in a golden age of firearms design and manufacture. Never before have the options and quality been available like this at the $500 price point. I bet you could take any one of the guns I mentioned in this post and do a 50K torture test, your odds of getting a gun that passes the test are greater than one that doesn't.

[Krull]

Glock or M&P who cares they are both excellent guns and will be around for a while.

[deerslayer]

now they are old news....people just want different things.....different is good right??

+1

Just look at how many people on here start a thread that goes something like "Sold the HK and got an XDm..."

People get bored.

[Guest CK1]

+1

Just look at how many people on here start a thread that goes something like "Sold the HK and got an XDm..."

People get bored.

Seems every time I get "bored" it costs me a $100 by trading away a gun with $100 in holsters and stuff, only to re-buy the same $100 in holsters and stuff that I used to have for the Glock before I originally switched when I go back to one after the new gun breaks and being "bored" wears off...

Getting "bored" can be annoying and expensive.

Edited February 6, 2010 by CK1

[Guest Ae-35]

Ew.... glad I'm not easily "bored", that could get expensive.

[DMark]

.... all I know is we have sent several M&P's back to Smith, even had 2 go back this year already....

Dang, that isn't good. What were the problems?

[Kevo]

Having owned a Glock for 14 years, I have no plans to change brands in a 9mm non-pocket pistol. However, even though all of my various shooting buddies admire my Glock's performance. Only a few have switched. The most common response after shooting my 2nd Generation G19 is that the grip and trigger feel funny. Even after I put on the Hogue Slip-on they smile and just say the trigger feels funny. Different strokes for different folks... I can't wait to try a fourth generation!

[mwhuffman]

As a recent purchaser of an M&P9c, the deciding factor for me was the ergonomics of the pistol as it related to my hand. It simply fit my hand better. The funny thing is, I had fully intended to purchase a G26 when I went into the toy store. I never really considered purchasing another polymer pistol. I'd shot a G26 and was satisfied with the accuracy. I knew the legendary reliability of the weapon and I wanted to make myself like the Glock, even though it didn't really feel good in my hand. As luck would have it, G&L didn't have a G26 at the time. Daniel suggested I handle the M&P compact and I knew I'd found the right pistol for my hand. I only have a couple hundred rounds through it, but it's been flawless so far and is a real pleasure to shoot. The fact that it's American-made is icing on the cake.

[Guest m&pc9]

The fact that it's American-made is icing on the cake.

Nobody think about that ,till they are laid off.

[Guest CK1]

As a recent purchaser of an M&P9c, the deciding factor for me was the ergonomics of the pistol as it related to my hand. It simply fit my hand better. The funny thing is, I had fully intended to purchase a G26 when I went into the toy store. I never really considered purchasing another polymer pistol. I'd shot a G26 and was satisfied with the accuracy. I knew the legendary reliability of the weapon and I wanted to make myself like the Glock, even though it didn't really feel good in my hand. As luck would have it, G&L didn't have a G26 at the time. Daniel suggested I handle the M&P compact and I knew I'd found the right pistol for my hand. I only have a couple hundred rounds through it, but it's been flawless so far and is a real pleasure to shoot. The fact that it's American-made is icing on the cake.

I respect what you said and feel that right there is the M&P's appeal: feels better in the hand - and you're right, they sure do.

Thing is, you've only shot a couple hundred rounds so far, it's far and away more likely that as your round count climbs so will the likelihood of something failing as compared to a Glock... If it doesn't happen, good for you, if it does, you'll wish you got that G26.

IMO, the M&P's popularity is directly related to what it has to offer against perceived weaknesses in the Glock design: ergos, grip angle, metal guiderod, beavertail, etc. - I went back to Glocks after experiencing the M&P's real, not just perceived, weakness: reliability.

I want a sidearm that's going to have the best chance of being there when I need it, and while the M&P may be the most reliable gun available next to a Glock, until it beats it there, the other stuff I can live without.

Don't get me wrong either, I think M&P's are great performers, I just don't want to or have the ability to go back and forth, I want to be able to use one gun for shooting the hell out of at matches and at the range, use as a carry piece, and defend my home too, who knows, if my examples had held up better maybe I'd be saying that's the M&P... But as someone who's just gone through the M&P v. Glock thing and going back to a Glock even after taking a hit in the wallet to do it, I honestly feel releaved to know how unlikly it is I'll be having anything break on me.

Edited February 7, 2010 by CK1

[Guest Ae-35]

American made,That boat won't float, what about the glock assy. plant in Smyrna, Ga. Now I know those folks in Ga. aren't union an don't make the big bucks the yankees do at the smith plant in Mass. , but they need jobs too. And you can tell they do a good job from the lack of problems with the pistols.

Edited February 7, 2010 by Ae-35

[tnhawk]

I've yet to have a problem with any of the pistols I've owned other than AMT. I like my glock but would prefer to carry a pistol with more safety features.

[DaveTN]

American made,That boat won't float, what about the glock assy. plant in Smyrna, Ga. Now I know those folks in Ga. aren't union an don't make the big bucks the yankees do at the smith plant in Mass. , but they need jobs too. And you can tell they do a good job from the lack of problems with the pistols.

Glock is following the Japanese car company model of putting an assembly plant in this country. Then the Americans that are feeling guilty about turning their backs on their own economy can claim “But it is assembled in …fill in some U.S. location hereâ€.

Sorry, but that “Boat won’t float†for the educated buyer. If you want to buy a Glock because you believe it is a better weapon, then do so. If you couldn’t care less where a product is made, that’s fine for you, buy a Glock or an XD or whatever. But some of us do care, we want to spend our money where it will impact our economy and help keep jobs here, not some other country. Don’t try to say that because they have an assembly plant in GA; they are American Made or help our economy; that is ridiculous.

There are many things that I have to buy that are foreign made because either they aren’t made here at all anymore, or I can’t afford the product that is made here. But guns isn’t one of them. The best guns in the world are still made here.

[Guest Ae-35]

So it's all foreigners work'n in Ga.? I don't care where a company is from, even the moon, if there putting Americans to work, right now it really don't matter! As far as car companies? Jap cars wouldn't be made or sold here if there weren't a market. The US car companies lost sight of the fact that Americans wanted reliable cars, of good quality, I've got alot of family who worked at GM and Ford, and even they admit that the US car companies screwed themselves.