Should I choose the Glock 26 or Glock 43X?

The Glock 26 is the OG Concealed carry glock. However, since releasing in 1994, the Glock 43X has quickly become the concealed carry pistol of choice for many glock owners. In this video, I give 5 reasons why the Glock 26 may still be the better choice for many people over the Glock 43X that most gun owners haven’t thought of. The goal of this video is to help responsible gun owners make a decision about which concealed carry pistol is right for them, whether to choose the Glock 26 Gen 5 over the Glock 43 / Glock 43X / Glock 43X MOS.

In this video there are pros and cons of both, and we’ll outline all of the details to help law abiding concealed or constitutional carry gun owners make a wise choice into which concealed carry pistol, sub compact, compact, or micro 9 is right for them.

Glock 26 feels like a smaller version of my Competition Glock 34

5 Reasons to Choose the Glock 26 over the Glock 43X

Where to Buy the Glock 26?

FEATURED

Get it from Cabelas

Glock 26 Gen 5

As seen in this blogpost, I prefer the Glock 26 Gen 5 to the Glock 43X.

Pros

Highly Concealable
Takes doublestack Glock magazines like 17 / 19 / 34
Huge Aftermarket
Easy to Operate

Reason 1: I Shoot Best with the Glock 26

From the feedback I’ve received when I initially posted this review video, it seems this is true of about half the people who watch my video also. Some people just shoot double stack guns better. Some people shoot single stacks better. I think this point comes down to user preference, and I’d highly recommend that someone rent both guns at the local range before determining which pistol is right for them.

This is the most important consideration when deciding which pistol to choose. I would say go with whichever option you’re able to perform at your best with.

I just shoot better with the Glock 26 over the Glock 43x

Reason 2: All of My Pistols that I primarily shoot have the same feel

I’m pretty well dedicated to the Glock ecosystem. I want all of my pistols to point and feel the same. By choosing the Glock 26, it has the same feel as the Glock 19, Glock 17, and Glock 34. These comprise most of the serious training that I do at the range, so I want my conceal carry pistol to have.

I want my concealed carry pistol to feel just like my competitive shooting pistols, so since I shoot primarily my Glock 34 the most for competition, that muscle memory translates over directly to the Glock 26 naturally.

Glock 26 has the same feel as my other handguns

By far, these are the two pistols that I shoot the most, and my trigger time built between the two are largely interchangeable.

Reason 3: Dryfire Tools that I use are used to be only Available for the Glock 26

As a part of building out Project MARS, our new Dry Fire training simulator, compatibility with dry fire tools is a very important consideration for me. The Glock 26 being compatible with double stack glock magazines supports the Dryfire Mag product, which can be used with a sound activated laser lyte laser. This is an incredibly important consideration for me as I dryfire regularly to maintain my skills for competitive shooting, while I’m off the flat range.

~~If you go with a Glock 43x, currently at the writing of this blog post, the gun is not dryfire mag compatible.~~

UPDATE : This is no longer true, DryFireMag now a single stack Glock 43X / Glock 48 Dryfire Mag

The Glock 26 is compatible with Dryfire tools like the Dryfire Mag, which can be used for Laser Dryfire Training

FEATURED

Get It from Dryfiremag.com

Glock Double Stack Dryfire Mag

I use this product all the time for dryfire training. It’s a really great product at it’ll allow you to train with whatever trigger you currently have installed in your double stack glock

Training with Project MARS — Training for USPSA Steel Challenge with Project MARS

Glock 26 training for USPSA's Steel Challenge — Glock 26 training for USPSA’s Steel Challenge

Reason 4: Glock 26 Conceals best for my body type

For my body type, the double stack grip really doesn’t print very much. The short grip conceals better. A longer grip that comes with the 43X actually would conceal less well for me personally.

The biggest difference vs the Glock 43x is the short grip on the Glock 26 for Concealability — The biggest difference vs the Glock 43x is the short grip on the Glock 26 for Concealed Carry, especially for the 3′ O-Clock Position

Reason 5: The Glock 26 magazines are cross compatible with other double stack glock models

I own several glock and / or glock handguns including the Glock 34, Glock 17, Glock 19, and clones like the PSA dagger or hand built from the ground up “not a glock” built on third party compatible frames like the SCT Glock 19 clone frame.

The Glock 26 is compatible with all these other handguns magazines, and thus, it makes for a great deal of convenience when hitting the flat range.

Glock 26 uses same Magazines as my Glock 34 — Glock 26 uses the same Magazines as my Glock 34, Glock 17, Glock 19

Conclusion

I love my glock 26, it is my go to concealed carry handgun. I don’t regret the choice for even a moment. I will probably pick up a 43X model one day to round out the collection, but I still think that the OG Glock 26 is the king of subcompact, concealed carry pistols.