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Hello,
I have a glock 23 I bought a few months ago without ever shooting a glock before. I like the gun a lot and I dont want to sell it but it is proving to be very difficult for me to shoot because the recoil is pretty good. I have read about some aftermarket barrels that can be changed to make it a 9mm and I was thinking about doing this so I dont have to buy a Glock 19. My question is, is can I safely put an OEM glock 19 barrel in my 23, or would I have to buy an aftermarket conversion barrel? I am somewhat of a purist and I hate the idea of having aftermarket parts on my glock, just as I hate (and won't) put aftermarket parts on my car. Also I saw some OEM glock ported barrels. Can these be put on my gun, or are they for some special glock? What do you guys think of these barrels sold by lone wolf and others? Are they safe to use? I suppose I will buy a Glock 19 if I have to, but trying to avoid spending another $500 on yet another carry gun. I already have 4 and I bought them all since feb. Thanks.

There are aftermarket barrels that convert a .40S&W to a 9mm but I would never recommend one for "real" use (self defense, duty use, etc). I would bet that the outside diameter of the OEM barrels are different, would leave a bit of play with the 9mm barrel in the .40S&W slide.


For the cost of a barrel, I'd just sell it and get a Glock 19 if I really wanted the 9mm.


The ported barrels are for the "C" model (ported) Glocks (they have a hole in the slide that matches the ported barrel). You could use a non-ported barrel in a ported gun, but I'm sure a ported barrel in a non-ported slide would be very interesting



If you stick with the 23, you'd probably be ok with it. I've carried a 22 & 23 on duty and also owned a 27 & 24C (non-marked however) and while the recoil is different from a 9mm or .45ACP, it is nothing that can't be overcome by most shooters if you really want to.


Of course I'm happy with a 9mm, so what do I know?

E150GT wrote:Hello,
I have a glock 23 I bought a few months ago without ever shooting a glock before. I like the gun a lot and I dont want to sell it but it is proving to be very difficult for me to shoot because the recoil is pretty good. I have read about some aftermarket barrels that can be changed to make it a 9mm and I was thinking about doing this so I dont have to buy a Glock 19. My question is, is can I safely put an OEM glock 19 barrel in my 23, or would I have to buy an aftermarket conversion barrel? I am somewhat of a purist and I hate the idea of having aftermarket parts on my glock, just as I hate (and won't) put aftermarket parts on my car. Also I saw some OEM glock ported barrels. Can these be put on my gun, or are they for some special glock? What do you guys think of these barrels sold by lone wolf and others? Are they safe to use? I suppose I will buy a Glock 19 if I have to, but trying to avoid spending another $500 on yet another carry gun. I already have 4 and I bought them all since feb. Thanks.

edited to add: Grog beat me to the punch on some of this info ...

You want to start (and likely finish) your Glock after-market barrel search here ... http://www.lonewolfdist.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have not tried one of these, but I'm waiting for the G23 "40-9" conversion barrel to be in stock again so I can order one.

To answer your specific questions:

1. Put a G19 barrel into a G23 frame .. NO - absolutely not, will not fit properly
2. OEM Glock ported barrels are made specifically for the ported or "compensated" Glock frames like the Glock 23C model. Using the ported barrel with a non-ported slide will cause significant problems because the gas that is pushed out of top of barrel will have nowhere to go (being trapped under the non-ported slide).

With a new .40-cal Glock (or .357 cal), you actually have the ability to shoot four different calibers through the same gun.

• .357 Sig (can use OEM Glock or aftermarket barrel) .... just be careful of using .357 Sig barrels in older .40-cal Glocks, some of the older .40-cal frames won't support the xtra pressure of a .357 Sig round (I've been told this by three different certified Glock armorers who tell me that any Gen 1 or Gen 2 .40-cal is a no-no for .357 and some early Gen 3s might also have problems (best to check serial number unless the gun was made in last few years)
• .40 S&W (can use OEM Glock or aftermarket barrel)
• 9mm (must use a "conversion" barrel - plus at least use 9mm mags - use of 9mm extractor and ejector also recommended)
• .22 LR (must use a conversion kit with new slide, barrel, and special mags - like an Advantage Arms kit)

All that being said, if you plan to carry this for self-defense you might be better off with a G19. I've not tried the 9mm conversion barrel yet, but I've read and seen enough on internet to know that I'm going to change extractors AND ejectors (as well as mags) when I do the conversion. Even then it may not be 100% reliable. Plan to post a review/report once I get this all set up, but may be a while waiting on the G23 40-9 conversion barrel backorder.

OR you could try changing your load in the G23 ... look for lighter 135-grain .40-cal bullets and see if the felt recoil is lessened enough to make shooting the gun easier on you. Federal Hydra Shok used to come in a 135-grain variety (not sure if it still does). Even the 165-grain bullets might be less recoil if you're shooting the 180-grain now. With FMJ, I've noticed a significant difference in felt recoil between ammo manufacturers - for instance, the $13.47 per box Federal 180-grain FMJ at Wal Mart has more felt recoil than Remington UMC 180-grain. WWB is about middle of the road.

I can't add much to the great comments above but to say that I fairly often see posts on the forums and txguntrader for trades on 23s for 19s, 27s for 26s, and vice versa. You may want to try that route before spending additional money on a G19.

austinrealtor wrote:

E150GT wrote:Hello,
I have a glock 23 I bought a few months ago without ever shooting a glock before. I like the gun a lot and I dont want to sell it but it is proving to be very difficult for me to shoot because the recoil is pretty good. I have read about some aftermarket barrels that can be changed to make it a 9mm and I was thinking about doing this so I dont have to buy a Glock 19. My question is, is can I safely put an OEM glock 19 barrel in my 23, or would I have to buy an aftermarket conversion barrel? I am somewhat of a purist and I hate the idea of having aftermarket parts on my glock, just as I hate (and won't) put aftermarket parts on my car. Also I saw some OEM glock ported barrels. Can these be put on my gun, or are they for some special glock? What do you guys think of these barrels sold by lone wolf and others? Are they safe to use? I suppose I will buy a Glock 19 if I have to, but trying to avoid spending another $500 on yet another carry gun. I already have 4 and I bought them all since feb. Thanks.

edited to add: Grog beat me to the punch on some of this info ...

You want to start (and likely finish) your Glock after-market barrel search here ... http://www.lonewolfdist.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have not tried one of these, but I'm waiting for the G23 "40-9" conversion barrel to be in stock again so I can order one.

To answer your specific questions:

1. Put a G19 barrel into a G23 frame .. NO - absolutely not, will not fit properly
2. OEM Glock ported barrels are made specifically for the ported or "compensated" Glock frames like the Glock 23C model. Using the ported barrel with a non-ported slide will cause significant problems because the gas that is pushed out of top of barrel will have nowhere to go (being trapped under the non-ported slide).

With a new .40-cal Glock (or .357 cal), you actually have the ability to shoot four different calibers through the same gun.

• .357 Sig (can use OEM Glock or aftermarket barrel) .... just be careful of using .357 Sig barrels in older .40-cal Glocks, some of the older .40-cal frames won't support the xtra pressure of a .357 Sig round (I've been told this by three different certified Glock armorers who tell me that any Gen 1 or Gen 2 .40-cal is a no-no for .357 and some early Gen 3s might also have problems (best to check serial number unless the gun was made in last few years)
• .40 S&W (can use OEM Glock or aftermarket barrel)
• 9mm (must use a "conversion" barrel - plus at least use 9mm mags - use of 9mm extractor and ejector also recommended)
• .22 LR (must use a conversion kit with new slide, barrel, and special mags - like an Advantage Arms kit)

All that being said, if you plan to carry this for self-defense you might be better off with a G19. I've not tried the 9mm conversion barrel yet, but I've read and seen enough on internet to know that I'm going to change extractors AND ejectors (as well as mags) when I do the conversion. Even then it may not be 100% reliable. Plan to post a review/report once I get this all set up, but may be a while waiting on the G23 40-9 conversion barrel backorder.

OR you could try changing your load in the G23 ... look for lighter 135-grain .40-cal bullets and see if the felt recoil is lessened enough to make shooting the gun easier on you. Federal Hydra Shok used to come in a 135-grain variety (not sure if it still does). Even the 165-grain bullets might be less recoil if you're shooting the 180-grain now. With FMJ, I've noticed a significant difference in felt recoil between ammo manufacturers - for instance, the $13.47 per box Federal 180-grain FMJ at Wal Mart has more felt recoil than Remington UMC 180-grain. WWB is about middle of the road.

I will look into some lighter loads for now until I can get a handle on this badboy. I need to just take my time and not let this pistola defeat me. Thanks for all the replies.