By John Markwell | Contributing Editor
The first target shot with the Overstreet-modified Glock 19. To say we were pleased with the pistol’s performance is an understatement.
We have shot Glock pistols belonging to others over the years and must say we were underwhelmed by the experience. Bear in mind also that our hands have deteriorated over the years due to joint abuse from rock climbing and the subsequent arthritis; not to mention a ruptured tendon in our gun hand. This has led to a reduced range of motion in our trigger finger which precludes manipulating some handgun triggers, especially those of double action handguns like the Beretta 92 or Sig 226, and, yes, Glocks with their Safe Action trigger. Fortunately, the single action trigger of 1911 pistols remains manageable for us and, as this has been our handgun of choice for both competition and carry for nigh on 40 years; we are inexorably wedded to the platform.
During the Winter of ‘16/’17 this changed a bit with the acquisition of a 1991 vintage Gen 2 Glock 19.
The finished product. Note the over-sized slide catch and extended mag release as well as the “smoothed out” section of the stippling where the thumb rides behind the mag release. Also note that there is absolutely nothing attractive about this gun; it truly is just a tool.
Having discussed, on numerous occasions, the possibility of having a gun stolen from a vehicle or confiscated as evidence in the aftermath of a defensive shooting, the seed for the concept of the “disposable pistol” has been planted for quite a while. The idea of a pistol that could essentially be abused without remorse was appealing. Tossed on the dash or floorboard, stuffed under the car seat or down beside the console, or languishing uncared for in the glove box of the side-by-side or in some other forgotten place (until needed), this concept pistol’s role was not to be that of a safe queen.
Recently, when the chance to acquire a used Glock 19 at a fire sale price presented itself we could no longer resist. Here we had a handgun that we truly could say came to us with no pride of ownership, had no personality or esthetic appeal, and was pure butt ugly. The question then was, now what? Like our previous experiences with Glock pistols, shooting the old G19 was challenging to say the least. The grip was too big, the trigger was almost unmanageable and the sights, well, let’s just say they were less than perfect.
Understand that we have no particular animosity towards Glock pistols. We have, in fact, recommended them to many folks, especially new shooters and non-gun folks, in search of their first semi-auto pistol. The Glock line has proven itself in the field due to its extreme reliability, combat adequate accuracy and simple manual of arms. The Glock 19 in particular has found great favor with professionals in harm’s way around the globe. We were determined to give the old G19 a chance to fill some yet undefined place in our battery of handguns.
The Vickers Elite serrated rear sight from Wilson Combat allows for a fast sight picture and the tapered shape doesn’t obscure a lot of one’s target. It also has a forward ledge for one-handed slide racking.
Enter Patrick Overstreet, who is an old Army buddy of our son-in-law and a Glock guy through and through. We met Patrick several years ago when he came up to the West Virginia hills to help us run ASC. Knowledgeable in the extreme about many things firearms related, we refer to Patrick as the GlockMeister, as he not only shoots the Austrian creations competitively, but modifies them as well.
Now bear in mind that one goal of this project was to NOT end up with a $1000 or $1500 custom Glock 19. We wanted the final product to be efficient in our hands; that meant, at the least, having the trigger reworked so as to be usable with our screwed-up fingers, and the sights replaced with durable and quickly acquirable aftermarket steel units. It seemed pretty simple at the time. Patrick was up for the project and we secretly believe he thought he could bring us into the fold of the Glock worshipers.
Patrick brought a couple of G19s that he had reworked up to our place for us to look at. They were, admittedly, pretty nice pistols with their grip reductions, custom triggers, stippling and, good sights. Our old G19 went home with Patrick for him to work his mojo on it. The wait began and, having a pretty positive attitude about the whole project, we readied our self for the pistol’s return.
Every handgun needs a holster, so a call to our buddy Mike Barham at Galco (www.galcogunleather.com) got a couple of holsters on the way (Mike about fell out of his desk chair when I told him we wanted holsters for a Glock). Auto pistols need spare magazines so a 3-pack of Glock 19 magazines was ordered from Brownells (www.brownells.com). We got a 3-pack of genuine G19 mags on sale for less than $60. Even if we disliked this Glock, we figured we’d have a pretty nice outfit to pass on to some Glock lover.
The Vickers Elite gold bead front sight is easy to see and quick to acquire.
Patrick ordered and installed the new guts for the Glock 19. A ZEV trigger kit consisting of a striker, spring kit, plunger safety, and trigger group brought the trigger pull down to 3lb. 3oz. More importantly, the trigger break point was moved forward and it now broke after just a mere 3/16” of take up with no perceptible over travel. A 1911-ish trigger? Pretty close! A new OEM extractor was installed as the original was pretty tired, and, to help with manipulation, the slide catch was upgraded to an extended one. We ordered up a set of Wilson Combat’s Vickers Elite Battlesights for the Glock 19 (www.wilsoncombat.com); plain black serrated rear and a .230” high Snag Free front blade with a gold bead. Actually, we obtained two gold bead front sights; the first launched the gold bead insert into the grass after 7 or 8 shots. As luck would have it, when we finally got to shooting, the G19 shot right to the top of the .230” tall front sight at 15 yards.
Three options for the carrying the Glock 19 from Galco. Left to right; The Scout 2 IWB in horsehide, the Avenger, and the Corvus Belt/IWB convertible in Kydex. Mag pouch is the Concealable.
We’ve been shooting 1911 pistols for so long that any other grip frame feels totally foreign to us. We admit to an extreme prejudice on this. Patrick performed his version of the now ubiquitous grip reduction on the grip of our G19 and we have to admit that the fit is now pretty good; still somewhat fat, but more usable than we expected. Along with the grip reduction, Patrick totally stippled the grip frame; this Glock will not shift around in the hand upon firing.
The beauty of stippled plastic for grip enhancement is that if you don’t need it somewhere on your pistol you can just grind it off; within reason of course. We found our trigger finger was dragging on the stippled surface of the frame above and slightly behind the trigger on the right side. This caused us to push our shots off to the left. We took our handy Dremel tool and a fine sanding drum to the offending area and eliminated the stippling thus solving the problem. The same treatment was given to the left side of the grip where our thumb rode when hitting the magazine release. The smoothed out areas are not at all pretty. The stippling process, by the way, is incredibly labor intensive and we can’t thank Patrick enough for doing it. It is obviously a major PITA to do.
The G19 was really pretty simply modified; the ZEV trigger kit, extended magazine release and slide catch (as well as new sights) were the main parts required to revamp the old pistol. The amount of labor that Patrick Overstreet put into the gun was another matter entirely.
Our re-worked Glock 19 was returned to us in mid- August and we were anxious to see how it performed in our hands. With the newly modified pistol sheathed in the Galco Avenger holster we rambled down to the range for our first session with the “plastic pistol.” After dry firing a few times we loaded up with some Federal 115-gr. ball ammo and proceeded to shoot a group on ½ of a business card at 10 yards followed by a magazine of Federal 147-gr. Hydra Shocks to the head of the IPSC target at 7 yards. Of the latter 16 shots, 10 formed a satisfying 1.17-inch group in the center of the head box; not too bad when you consider these were the first few shots fired with the new trigger system in the re-worked 26-year-old pistol. Certainly, the gun’s accuracy is more than adequate for defensive use.
The Overstreet modified Glock 19 has now digested around 350 rounds of assorted ammunition without a bobble. We have accumulated a total of seven 15-round magazines for the G19 as well as three different Galco holsters and one of the Galco Concealable Magazine pouches. We are shooting it somewhat regularly and are adjusting to it quite well. Are we totally sold on the Glock pistol yet? Not quite, but it’s growing on us and we’ve decided the pistol is a keeper. Compared to the stock Glocks we’ve tried to shoot over the years, this G19, as modified by Patrick Overstreet, is, in our opinion, about as user friendly as a Glock can be made to be. Like all Glock pistols, this one more than lives up to the platform’s reputation for reliability and, as modified, we can, for the very first time, safely and efficiently manipulate a Glock. Would we bet our life on this pistol? Not quite yet. But, it will not be long until we feel confident enough in our competence with the Glock 19 to carry it. The pistol may in fact find a home in our “Get Home” bag. Along with several loaded magazines, the Glock 19 would be a relatively maintenance free, yet reliable addition to that emergency kit. Regardless of its eventual niche, we are pleased with the Overstreet G19 and it is here to stay. Good shooting.
