Private Military Contractor International April 2014 | Page 20

They might look similar but there are some significant
differences between these two popular pistols
The old saying “Practice makes perfect” is
still as true today as it ever was but let’s face
it, unless you are a member of ST6, you’re unlikely ever to get the opportunity to put 1,000
rounds down the range just for practice but
your ability to handle a pistol is just as important to you, as theirs is to them.
Chances are that when you get in country you
will be issued a long and a short and with their
popularity and availability, the short is quite
likely to be a Glock. Nine times out of ten
you won’t get a choice, you’ll just be handed
a bag containing your pistol and it’s down to
you to be up to speed and able to crack on
straight away. Normally you’ll be straight onto
the ranges for a test and, believe me when I
say I’ve had to send some cracking lads home
after they repeatedly failed their pistol test. So
it’s important you understand them before you
find yourself in the embarrassing position of
having to phone the missus to try and explain
why you’re coming home early!
Bottom line is, like every other bit of your kit,
you have to get to know it and know it well - it
might just save your life one day.
Right, the Glock…
There are a bunch of different Glocks but the
two I have come across most often in Afghan

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and Iraq are the 17 and 19. You may also
come across the 20 and often a single contract might have all three types if they rock the
Glock as a short.
The Glock 17 is classified as a “Service” sized
pistol while the 19 is classified as a “Compact”, being both smaller in length and height
and with a two-round smaller standard mag
of only 15 rounds of 9x19, as opposed to the
17 rounds of its bigger brother (I wonder why
they didn’t call it a “15”?).
The most immediate and noticeable difference
though is in the size of the pistol grip and I
have seen large lads with monster hands be
given a 19 and struggle like mad with it on the
range, simply because they are not used to
handling the smaller grip. However, and more
importantly, I have also seen guys not used
to the mag count lose track of rounds left
in a shoot. Personally, having shot both and
though I am not a big bloke at 5’ 7”, I prefer
the 17 for its greater mag capacity and how
it fits in my right hand. I know that I can pick
up a 17 and be 100% comfortable with it but
next time I head off, before I go I will make
sure I make time to practice with both - coz as
Mr Gump said, “you never know what you’re
gonna get”.