Glock 23 with Glock 19 barrel?

[Patrick Henry]

I saw on another poster some of you have used the Glock 19 barrel in a Glock 23. I have asked 2 Glock armorers at the gun show today and they said Glock does not recommend this. When I asked why they said there is a potential for a problem due to the narrower barrel diameter of the 19 used in a 23. So my question is to those who have done this and fired at least 500 rounds have you had any problems?

[Garufa]

I wouldn't use a Glock 19 barrel in my 23. You need something like a Lone Wolf 9mm conversion barrel ($100) which is specifically designed for this. It has the same outer dimensions as the G23 barrel which naturally a factory Glock 19 barrel would not.

I use one and it works great...no problems whatsoever. Have even used the G23 .40 cal mags without a hitch but did pick up a G19 mag and use that too.

Edited February 21, 2010 by Garufa

[Smith]

Just get the conversion barrel. Using a 19 in a 23 is bound to have problems if nothing more than making you accuracy way off.

[TN-popo]

The 19 and 23 use different ejectors as well.

[Guest CK1]

Just get a 19.

After buying the conversion barrel, 9mm mag(s), and albeit $9, a 9mm ejector housing, you're only going to have a 9mm that's reliable enough for range-only use, and then you'll be practicing with a caliber you're not even carrying... and after the costs of conversion stuff it'll still be a few thousand rounds of 9mm 'till your shooting has gotten any more economical.

Then, if you decide to sell it or trade it at some point, good luck trying to get much extra out of it due to the conversion stuff since most guys will just want one caliber or the other...

JMHO.

Edited February 21, 2010 by CK1

[Guest gw2and4]

Just get a 19.

After buying the conversion barrel, 9mm mag(s), and albeit $9, a 9mm ejector housing, you're only going to have a 9mm that's reliable enough for range-only use, and then you'll be practicing with a caliber you're not even carrying... and after the costs of conversion stuff it'll still be a few thousand rounds of 9mm 'till your shooting has gotten any more economical.

Then, if you decide to sell it or trade it at some point, good luck trying to get much extra out of it due to the conversion stuff since most guys will just want one caliber or the other...

JMHO.

I agree with CK1 here: if you're after a Glock 9mm and plan to carry in 9mm, then get a 19 straight away. You'll probably be happier. However, if you want to mainly carry in .40SW and want options--I'll say that it's cool to have a 23 with the Lone Wolf conversion barrel. I ran my 23 with a 9mm conversion barrel at IDPA all day Saturday using the stock 23 ejector and 19 mags that I grabbed cheap online--not one failure of any kind in about 250 rounds. This way, you can shoot 9mm if you want for plinking/practice/whatever--and carry in .40SW. Just make sure you practice with what you carry. I practice more in .40 than anything else since that's what I carry. The main reason I got the conversion gear for my 23 was to keep the gun frame, trigger pull and sighting motions consistent with my carry gun and not throw off my rhythm by shooting my Sig 228 for 9mm. Will soon be reloading in both calibers, so may not be an issue much longer...

[Auburn]

A couple of years ago I bought a Storm Lake 9mm conversion barrel and some 9mm mags for my G22. Everything works fine, but one day I did the math and was really surprised how much 9 I had to shoot to break even on the $. I think it was about 1500 rounds or so. I'm not sure I'm there yet.