SHOT Show: Shooting the GLOCK G43X and G48

One of the first stops at today’s SHOT Show range day was the GLOCK bay, where everyone wanted to get their hands on the latest Slimline pistols, the G43X and the G48. Just to refresh your memory, the recently announced G43X is basically a G43 single-stack 9mm with a longer grip, allowing 10+1 round capacity. The slide length is the same as the G43.

The G48 is takes the G43X frame size and adds a longer G19-length slide. Like the 43X, the G48 is a single stack 9mm with 10+1 capacity.

Some had strong opinions about the two new pistols. For some reason just about every GLOCK new product announcement provokes lots of hot takes, whether or not the opinion’s based on actually shooting the gun.

I only got to put a few round through each pistol, but both handguns make sense in the GLOCK lineup. For those who knock the G43 for its 6+1 standard capacity (I carry a G43 most days), the 43X gives you four more round and a full-handed grip on the gun.

If you’re the kind who couldn’t figure out the 19x (you thought a G19 slide on a G17 frame was bass-ackwards) you probably won’t be a fan of the 43X. However, from shooting and handling the gun it’s a slim, concealable 10+1 round pistol that’s only marginally more difficult to conceal than the G43.

If you were one of the 19X skeptics, the G48 should make more sense to you. Putting a G19-length slide on the 43X-size frame gives you .6 inch more sight radius and, as a result, is easier to get on target (given the few rounds I was able to shoot).

The two new pistols give gun buyers more choices, and that’s always a good thing. Single stack fans can pick from a variety of sizes, capacities and slide lengths to fit their hand size, and how they like to carry.

We look forward to getting both guns in for full reviews. But until then, don’t expect GLOCK to have any trouble moving pallet-loads of these two new silver-slided single stack nines. They both have a lot going for them.