Dear Mr. Glock,
I just reviewed your new model 43 Slimline 9x19 pistol and loved it (and bought it). As a 37-year veteran police firearms trainer, I have seen my profession move from 99 percent revolvers to 99.9+ percent semi-auto pistols.
Throughout those years one common denominator has troubled me: cops with small hands struggle with duty-sized handguns. The revolvers often came with big, wood target-style grips and we had to either whittle them down or choose the too-small “magna” style grips. As the semi-auto movement took off, most agencies chose the high-capacity 9mm or .40 caliber models with double-stack magazines and wide grip frames. The .45 semi-auto variations’ grip frames were even bigger. The most common single-stack semi-auto, the 1911 series, had to be carried cocked & locked, which gave uninformed administrators a bad case of the nerves.
Almost anyone can, with enough practice and determination, handle a Glock 9mm or .40 S&W duty pistol. But, for many “small statured” officers, their performance is marginal and a smaller grip frame would be a Godsend.
Please Mr. Glock, bring us a single-stack Slimline version of your models 17 and 22 full-size duty pistols (and the 21, too, for that matter). Then we will see officers with below-average-sized hands improve their marksmanship, gun-handling skills and, most importantly, their confidence.
Sincerely,
Dick Fairburn
