FOG HORN

2015
Twobirds Flying Publication

GLOCK-43

Copyright 2015, Towbirds Flying Publication. All Rights Reserved.

GLOCK-43 - Last to market is not always in last place.

2015

GLOCK-43 - Late to market is not always last place.

By: Sal Palma
newest offering the enthusiastically awaited
Glock 43 in a single stack 9mm form factor. My
review will include talking points and range
time observations but before jumping into that I
want to pass along some of my views to reveal
my thought process.

A business strategy that works itself into

Business School curricula is that being last to
market is not always a bad thing. This is
especially true when your company is a global
leader in the manufacture and sale of high
performance firearms, Glock Inc.
Nationally, the increasing number of conceal
carry gun owners is being served by a veritable
cornucopia of sub compact single stack pistol
offerings, first in .380 ACP then followed by the
more potent 9mm caliber, from a number of
manufacturers. Glock, Inc. has the distinction
of being last to market with its Glock 42
chambered in .380 ACP and more recently its
9mm counterpart, the Glock 43. The business
challenge, as an executive, is how do you place
a new offering in a space thats inundated with
competing product? If youre Glock, you wait
until the dust settles then show the world what
theyve been missing. Hence, the wildly
successful Glock 42, which by the way was
available in the EU long before entering the U.S.
market. So, what awaits the Glock 43?
To answer that question, I jumped at the
opportunity to get a close up look at Glocks

First, lets keep in mind that a firearm, like a

hand tool, is designed with a specific
philosophy of use1. For example, you
wouldnt use a sledge hammer to drive a
finishing nail. So, consistent with that idea, I
continue by saying that both the Glock 42 and
Glock 43 are niche guns. They were specifically
designed for conceal carry, and by necessity
offer a smaller frame size and magazine
capacity.
My position on conceal carry and magazine
capacity is simply this
Individuals, when confronted by an assailant,
have only one objective and that is to BREAK
CONTACT. This is accomplished by neutralizing
the threat through incapacitation, or causing
the threat to retreat and exit. Visions of
firefights while chasing a bad guy down the
street are pie in the sky and will get you in
trouble. Therefore, a conceal carry defensive
scenario does not require a 13 round magazine
capacity so why carry the extra size and weight.
Whats important is that youre able to deploy
and engage reliably consistently, both of which
are accomplished through simplicity of use,
weapon reliability and user training. So, it
follows that my principal consideration when
1

Borrowed from NUTNFANCY

Copyright 2015, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved

GLOCK-43 - Last to market is not always in last place.

qualifying the suitability of a conceal carry pistol

is simplicity of use and reliability. A negative in
any of the two categories translates to a NO-GO
decision for this guy!

2015

is in some cases, gives the 43 a large frame

feel.

Before moving on, I want it to be clear that I do

not support limits on magazine capacities;
however, Im a firm believer in using the right
tool for the job and the Glock-43 in my opinion
is the perfect conceal carry pistol even with its
six round magazine.

Out of the box, I fired a total of 50 rounds

consisting of 115 gr FMJ ball, 124 gr FMJ ball,
124 gr Federal Hydra-Shok and 147gr subsonic
with zero failures to eject, zero failures to feed,
zero light strikes and zero stove pipes. Glocks
global reputation for reliability is evident in the
Glock 43 as it is in all of the companys
outstanding pistols.

Like all Glock pistols the 43 has no exterior

hindrances. Edges are rounded, and you wont
find safety levers and slide locks that could get
caught during a weapon draw; even the
magazine release is rounded making draws very
smooth from a credible holster.

Shooting this subcompact 9mm was enjoyable

and surprising. I was expecting a snappy gun but
it was not much heavier than a .380 ACP; I
attribute its mild manner to the larger and
heavier slide along with its dual recoil spring
assembly.

Glock uses hexagonal rifling in its barrels

accounting for the pistols accuracy. The Glock
43 is no different and features a 1:9.84 twist.
During the firing session, I experienced no
stability issues with everything from 115 gr to
147 gr bullets, the 43 performed flawlessly. No
key holes at any range.
One departure from the typical Glock persona
is the aggressive beaver tail which is in feel and
looks akin to the venerable 1911. This feature,
along with its slide length of 5.96 inches gives
the Glock 43 an excellent purchase. The strong
hand sits high on the pistol so correspondingly
the pistol points very well. When compared to
competing single stack 9mm offerings, the
Glock 43s slightly longer slide, as marginal as it

The Glock 43 trigger is a little heavy at around 7

lbs. with a small amount of slack and a short
reset. Glock steered away from the gimmicky
SA/DA designs pioneered by Taurus. The
concept behind the SA/DA is centered on a
single action striker fired pistol, but if you
happen to encounter a hard primer, you can
squeeze the trigger again rather than clearing
the chamber.

Copyright 2015, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved

GLOCK-43 - Last to market is not always in last place.

The Glock 43 is not a target pistol by any stretch

and its relatively short sight radius of 5.20
inches is a limiting factor. If you pick one up, I
strongly suggest that you consider installing a
Meprolight or Trijicon night sight and discard
the factory plastic set. The standard sights are
adequate but the 43 deserves and benefits from
better sights.

And yes, you need to pull the

taking the pistol down for
maintenance. All of these are
discipline issues that must be
theyre engrained in your trainee.

2015

trigger when
cleaning or
training and
taught until

One slightly annoying issue for me was that the

fleshy part of my hand interfered with the
magazine dropping freely on a release. Not a
big problem that was resolved by a slight hand
adjustment.
Once you get past the minor Glock-isms what
you get in return is a light weight, accurate,
durable and highly reliable personal defense
weapon.

I weighed the Glock 43 empty and loaded with

6+1 of 115 gr ball. Empty, the pistol came in at
16.39 ounces and 19.01 ounces loaded. So, its a
comfortable pistol to carry for extended
periods; of course, youll want to a quality IWB
holster for the 43.

The Glock 43 is Glock Perfection personified and

once they start shipping in quantity, I have no
doubts it will become Americas most popular
single stack subcompact 9mm. Its ready for
your favorite defensive load!
-SP
Manufacturer Specifications

All of standard Glock critiques apply to the 43.

Yes, if you carry it with one in the pipe and draw
the pistol with your finger on the trigger it can
accidentally discharge, but its 7 lb. trigger helps
to mitigate that risk.

9x19 / Safe Action

LENGTH: 159 mm / 6.26 in.
WIDTH: 26 mm / 1.02 in.
LENGTH BETWEEN SIGHTS: 132 mm /
5.20 in
HEIGHT: 108 mm / 4.25 in
UNLOADED: 509 g / 17.95 oz.
LOADED: 634 g / 22.36 oz.
TRIGGER PULL: ~2.5 kg / ~5.5 lbs.
TRIGGER TRAVEL: ~12.5 mm / ~0.49 in
BARREL RIFLING: right hand, hexagonal
LENGTH OF TWIST: 250 mm / 9.84 in.
CAPACITY: 6 +1

Copyright 2015, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved