Glock Ergonomics Explained

Much debate has been made over the ergonomics on the Glock pistols.  Often this debate is centered around the topic of grip angle.  However the ergonomic shortcomings of the Glock pistols are not so simply defined.

Proper pistol shooting technique requires the hand grip the pistol as high as possible.  This high grip gets the shooters hand as close to the bore axis as possible and engages the maximum amount of the grip to prevent the pistol from rocking upon recoil.  The Glock is designed to allow the shooters hand to get extremely high purchase on the pistol, however the trigger placement and trigger design along with the more aggressive grip angle require the shooter grip the pistol at an angle that is awkward for many shooters.

The photo above shows a Generation 3 Glock 17.  The green identify the relationship between appropriate high placement of the web  of the hand, and where the trigger finger exerts force on the trigger.  Because the trigger is designed with a sub trigger 'safety' the shooter's trigger finger must primarily engage the lower half of the trigger.  As the thumb and web placement move higher than the trigger finger placement, the angle between a natural pointing position and the sight plane increases.  This is further exacerbated by the rake of the grip.

Note how when the web and thumb are higher than the trigger finger it forces the natural pointing direction down.  While the above photos are exaggerated they make the point clearly.  Because the Glock forces the disparity between the height of the trigger finger and web of the hand, the Glock points high for most people. This means that the user generally has to compensate by turning the wrist into a downward pointing position. This position is outside the hand's natural rake, which is the hands strongest position.

The Stoeger Cougar is pictured above. Note how the web of the hand is to be placed at an even position to the trigger finger.  The grip angle is not as aggressive as well. This indicates that the natural pointing position for most people will be parallel to the barrel and sighting plane.  Firearms using this grip angle and hand arrangement paradigm  point more naturally for most people.

Why is this important?

A firearm that points naturally is a great advantage to the user.  The user spends less time making adjustments to the sight picture while shooting. The user can train to reinforce his own natural pointing ability.  The shooter does not have to fight his own natural instincts.  Most firearms use a more natural pointing grip interface than the Glock, users training with a naturally pointing firearm will have more compatibility with the grip interface of other brands, makes and models.

Also because the shooter is forced to hold the Glock at this odd angle, outside the position of optimal strength, recoil control is affected.  Any mechanical advantage against the recoil provided by the low barrel axis is negated by the fact that the hand is not in a position to deal with the recoil effectively.