The .380 Glock 42

What do you like about it? Anything you don't?

I shot one a few years ago and was very impressed and am itching to buy one to keep my lonely G19 company.

I know it's a little big larger than most .380 pocket pistols like the P3AT and LCP, is this really pocketable in jeans and khakis?

My wife is a fan. She shot one and decided that was the pistol SHE wanted.

Full disclosure, I am a Glock fan. It really is easily a pocket pistol for me, but I am 6'2", 250lbs. and normally wear relaxed fit clothing. I normally carry it in Khaki shorts in the summer time. It is the softest shooting .380 that I experience with (compared to LCP and P232).

-Miller

Six feet, 190 lbs. here. Pocket a G42? Can, but prints and dies not fully enter top of jeans pocket. Had to go buy a CM380 for that.

I like the 42 (my second favorite Glock to shoot - after the 19), softest shooting .380 that I have ever fired. I have owned three of them and each was 100% reliable. The 42 fits my hands and just plain works for me. But...

I'm just not a fan of the .380 round - but I will most likely pick up another Glock 42 in the near future.

love Mine- did have to have a Glock armorer at a match replace some parts due to some functional issues but it has been 100% since then. It has become my pocket carry of choice

My Glock 43 does not fit in my jeans pockets. For 380 an LCP fits, for 9 a CM/PM9.

Wife has one. She prefers it as it is a very soft shooter compared to the other pistols she has tried.

Only Glocks I've kept is my 42 with a couple of mods and a Glock 20 with a few mods also.

I’ve never been a fan of the .380 caliber, until the Glock 42 came along. It’s proven to be both accurate and reliable even with the crapiest ammo. I’ve upgraded mine with the Vickers mods, mags with Pearce grip extensions and Trijicon NS. Disappears IWB and balances very well in a shoulder holster. What’s not to like?

Well, I had to neuter the slide release 'cause I was prematurely locking the pistol with my thumb. The pistol still locks open on empty but the pistol now functions as if it had an internal slide lock, such as in the SIG P230 or Walther PP.

I installed Trijicon sights, an Overwatch Falx trigger and applied Talon Grip granulate grip tape and I've shot the bejeesus out of this little popper. Works like a charm now.



The pic shows the pistol with Talon's rubber grip, but I had to switch it out to the granulate texture. I found that when my hands became very sweaty, I had trouble holding on to the pistol. With the sandpaper-like granulate texture, the pistol stays put in my hand.

I love my 42’s and have been carrying them front pocket in a sticky brand holster without issue for a couple years now. That being said it’s a big as I would want to go in the pocket. The shootability though is wonderful and it’s very accurate in my hands. I shoot one in GSSF and have done well with it. Get one you won’t be disappointed! All the updates have been done for a while now so all the bugs should be worked out.

I am not a Glock guy but, the 42 is my favorite. Great shooter and no issues with her. She is my off duty most of the time and my BUG everyday on duty.

OK - understand this is SigForum but I really like my G42. Mine is lightly modified with front HD nite sight, Vickers slide racker and Pearce +1 mag extesions. It's pretty big for a .380 but 100% reliable...

I originally bought it for my wife. The grip, weight,and recoil was a good fit for her.For me the grip is a little small for my hand even with the mag extension. Overall it's a reliable shooter.

I love my G42. I know folks aren't a fan of the .380, but mine is loaded with Underwood's loading of the Leighigh Extreme Defense bullet and I'm happy with the penetration it gets.

I find most pocket .380's like the LCP or Kahr P380 to be too small. I really have a hard time feeling comfortable that I could effectively defend myself if needed. I'm good with it being a belly gun, but if I have to do anything other than that, My Kahr just leaves me feeling less than comfortable.

The G42 just feels like I could "fight" with it. I certainly don't view myself as Rambo or Wild Bill Hickok, but if was forced to engage an active shooter with an LCP I'd have zero confidence. G42 is bigger and I can shoot it fast and accurate. I would feel like I at least had a fighting chance with the 42.

So the question comes up, why not just carry a G43, especially since I don't pocket carry. For me, one of the best parts of the G42 is weight. It's just so light. since the .380 is a lighter round, even carrying a spare mag is easier.

If I toss a G43 spare mage in my coat pocket, it makes my coat hang down on one side and it's obvious I have something heavy in my pocket. Not so with a G42 mag...even with 8 rounds in it (thank you Taran Tactical).

Carrying a G43 isn't hard at all, but it is noticeable heavier and just a smidge larger than the 42. I thought the G43 and/or shield (now 365) was the pinnacle of carrying. I bought a G42 on a whim and realized how much I really like the light weight of the gun. I was shocked considering I was one of those guys who said "I can carry a G43 just fine, there's no reason to carry a 380. I surprised myself once I bought one.

For me, the 42 is the perfect balance between weight/size and actually being a gun I'd fight with.

I only recently bought one as I assumed the smaller Kahr I had was what I wanted. Once I shot the 42 and realized how much more shootable it was for not much more size, I came to the conclusion that guns like the P380 and LCP are too small for what I want in a gun. YMMV.

As an aside, I keep a Seecamp for 380 for when all I can carry is a belly gun.

The G42 is the 380 to beat IMO if you can deal with the increase in size over an LCP.

The LCP is great but it's a deep concealment or BUG only IMO. Mine has been flawless but it's a close range, <7 yard gun with no friendlies near the target.

The G42 shoots like a Glock, is accurate and soft recoiling. Sight options and other aftermarket stuff is readily available. I can pocket carry a 42 in Khakis or shorts - I don't wear jeans often and don't pocket carry anything in them usually. Because if I'm in Khakis or jeans I usually just IWB a G43 or G19.

I’ve had mine for a while and have about a 1000 rounds through it. It’s got the Overwatch trigger, Talon grips, Vickers mag baseplates with Mag-Guts springs/followers. It’s 7 +1 with those and I’ve never had a malfunction. Sweet little shooter.

My story:

Don't have one...yet. I've shot it on two occasions now after I told myself that I wouldn't, if only to keep my brain from being tempted by the gun. Well so much for that.

First time was an extended session to "debug" the known issue with stoppages early on that affects some examples of the G42. The friend who owned the gun insisted that it was a real issue and she blamed me for recommending a lemon to her. Feeling a little guilty--amazing how women can so easily do that--I agreed to break-in the gun for her. About 150 rounds in plus whatever she previous shot, the stoppages cleared up and the gun ran without any further histrionics, even after I thoroughly cleaned it, dabbed replacement Loctite C5a anti-seize to finish the 'honing' process, lubed with a little Mobil 1 and returned to the firing line for another 100 rounds. No further hiccups.

I admit that I wasn't particularly impressed by the gun at the time; operational failures can do a job on one's mind and possibly forever taint an opinion. I couldn't help thinking that this is supposed to be a Glock, and any Glock no matter the caliber or country of origin should ever NEED a break-in period, period. However she's apparently now quite happy with the gun as she has not complained any further to or about me on my purported nefarious tendencies of selling citrus fruit for firearms. As sweet on the eyes as she is, she also can be a real effing bitch sometimes. No, make that more that sometimes. How her husband puts up with that shi...

The second time with a G42 was more recent. Another friend (more like an acquaintance met through the shop), brought his modified G42 with him to a range session organized by one of my coworkers. By this time I had developed a roundabout interest in the gun because of LWD's 9x18 conversion barrel for the G42. The shop 'friend' didn't have that barrel, but I thought I'd try his gun with a more open mind than I had from the previous time with one. Despite all of his mods, I found that it behaved more like a Glock should. He reported that his gun has never had any reliability issues, but initially the factory trigger was "so bad" that he had to do something to rectify the problem. Whatever...

Hence the install of some aftermarket thingy that I've since forgotten (Tyr? Agency?) and a lightened connector, and probably a bunch of different spring modifications as well. His gun did have a very decent (for a Glock) trigger action, but more remarkable was how soft shooting the gun was. I had felt that with the first balky G42 session but it was hard to commend Glock on that aspect when the gun was also busy stovepiping and failing to eject. This time around with little to distract me I found that I really liked this little bugger.

So now I have myself thinking about actually buying one, primarily so I can covert it to Makarov, but also because it really IS a Glock, even if it sometimes requires a break-in session. I don't think this will be the one to break my no-buy-gun streak (now at 6 months and counting), but it's more likely down the road.

I love my 42. esdunbar pretty much sums up my feelings on it being just the right size to still feel like a fighting gun. It shoots very soft and works every time. I never thought I would own another .380 until I shot the G42.