Brillianter.com

obviously you didn't read the specs. you can mount either left or right. also you are lucky not to have a progressive disese that makes it imposable to grip the slide. glocks have a history of slam firing and using the sight is quick way to injure yourself or others...in the business since 1972

d. seltzzer: “obviously you didn't read the specs. you can mount either left or right. “

Obviously, you didn't read the post or any of the comments. Left or right, it matters not, the criticisms still apply.

d. seltzzer: “also you are lucky not to have a progressive disese that makes it imposable to grip the slide. “

I do feel fortunate. I do not work with disabled shooters, and as has been mentioned ad nauseam, this is not a recreational shooting blog.

Someone who has no ability to grip the slide probably also lacks the strength to hold on to the weapon during recoil without causing a malfunction.

There will eventually come a time when, despite your best efforts, you are just not capable of fighting anymore.

d. seltzzer:“...glocks have a history of slam firing...”

Even if that was true, which it is not, I am not sure what that claim has to do with charging handles.

You might want to remove your finger from the trigger before you rack the slide. That might solve your “slam fire” problem.

d. seltzzer: “...and using the sight is quick way to injure yourself or others”

Amazingly, despite many iterations during practice, I have never been injured, nor has anyone else I know. Are you sure you are doing it correctly?

Also, the original purpose of the technique is to rack the slide in case you are already injured, e.g. shot in the other hand. The chance of injury is infinitesimally small and the severity of the potential injury is absurdly trivial, comparatively speaking.

d. seltzzer: “…in the business since 1972”

The business of selling charging handles, no doubt.

Idiot. It is intended for spoot shooters who have scopes on the pistol and can not rack the slide traditionally. It is also helpful for shooters with arthritis who cannot rack the slide normally. It is well worth the money if it suits your needs.

First, the sport shooting excuse has already been addressed. Second, as has been pointed out repeatedly, Brillianter is not a recreational shooting blog. The arthritis issue was addressed in my previous comments. You may also want to read Mostly Genius' post: Firearms for the physically disabled.

I love seeing people post things about things they know nothing about. This is mostly for open race glocks which you have no slide to grab due to a rail/optics in the way, or disabled people, also this is for cold chambered drawing I know how to charge a glock with the rear notch sight and it only works about 7 out of 10 times. The other times it slips off holster/belt/boot without charging pistol. Mako has never made anything useless for the Glock line of pistols these are combat proven devices, try clearing a misfeed on a glock while bleeding/missing an arm/fingers using the sights.

It sounds like you need more training and practice. Please provide a citation for your claim that these are “combat proven”. The unmodified Glock pistol has already been combat proven many times. I have never seen or heard of any combatants using charging handles on their handguns, probably because most combatants do not use raceguns or suffer from disabilities. Has the manufacturer done any tests with these devices to see how they impede reliability? Are the results publicly available?

one handed people have the right to own guns too. this little guy makes the task of charging my glock a quick and easy task. It is great.

I have one and it was worth every penny. The pin comes out if you want to carry it conventionally. If you have a stock on your glock the charging handle makes it a breeze to rack.

Sendarius: “The suggestion that the shooter could use the sights, hooked onto something, to cycle a Glock is more than a little ridiculous - have you seen how FLIMSY Glock sights are?”

So ridiculous that it is pretty much a universally taught technique in any serious shooting school. My “flimsy” Glock factory rear sight is still going strong after 14 years of use, to include regular practice of the technique described. The front sight was replaced with a steel one a long time ago. I may replace the rear one with a steel sight in the future, but right now there is no real need.

Sendarius: “As a competition shooter, I use a similar device on my scoped race gun.”

The charging handle may indeed have a sport application. I have said it before: Brillianter is not a recreational shooting blog.

For defensive use, it is an equipment solution to a training problem. The charging handle increases the potential for a malfunction. Anything that impairs reliability is a liability. The pistol works very well right out of the box. If you can't get the pistol to work right out of the box, it is almost certainly a problem with the shooter and not the gun. Similarly, condition three carry for self defense is another mechanical solution to a training problem.

Money is far better spent getting some quality training, ammo (if you can find any these days), spare magazines, and a decent holster/mag pouch. Tinkering with your defensive handgun is probably going to do more harm than good for most people.

Jurien S.:
I sure hope this isn't an Israeli invention. That would be creating a mechanical solution to a very stupid policy. While Israeli civilians might have to carry in condition three, I sure hope their police and security forces don't have to (I have no idea what the policy is on this.)

Sendarius:
While I agree that the factory glock sights are pretty crappy, actually having done one handed manipulations with them it's not ridiculous, and it does work.

If you have modified your gun in a way that you can't get a grip on your slide, then so be it. You have optimized your gun for playing a game. That is a big departure from pretending that this is a "tactical" accessory as pointed out by the manufacturers web site:

Excelent solution for stressful situations or when operator is injured

If you are injured in your IPSC match, somebody is doing something wrong.

The suggestion that the shooter could use the sights, hooked onto something, to cycle a Glock is more than a little ridiculous - have you seen how FLIMSY Glock sights are?

As a competition shooter, I use a similar device on my scoped race gun. It allows me to easily rack the slide by hooking the handle with my left index finger.

Much faster AND safer than trying to grab the slide with the sight and mount in the way.

I believe this device is an Israeli invention, and it was developed because certain security forces personnel felt the need to be able to cycle the slide one-handed because their other hand was otherwise occupied (e.g. operating a car, or guiding a protected person). The idea behind it is that you can hook the handle onto a corner of a wall, or car dashboard, or a tree, or whatnot, and work the slide that way. Bear in mind the Israelis may still tend to carry in "condition three," so you're not operating from slide lock, and if you're operating a vehicle or moving a principal, your feet will be otherwise engaged, and your holster may not be convenient.

I'd say it's not a stupid invention as such, but whether you need it if you aren't an Israeli cop or Shin Beit officer is very much open to question.

Alex:
While I addressed the disabled issue in a separate post, my main point here is that I am not convinced that this device is going to help the disabled, despite a lot of speculation to the contrary. Before I believe that argument I want to see the conditions where this works and the normal one handed techniques don't.

The race gun argument is valid, but the picture is clearly not of a scoped pistol. I am aware that you might need a charging handle (or front cocking serrations) in that case.

MG says: “I would Kubotan you (if I knew how to use it) for that post.”

It's easy, just make sure you use a modular Kubotan with a charging handle bolted to it.

Mostly Genius: I personally am not disabled, nor is anyone I know. I've run across some self defense forums which suggest this device as something a disabled person could use.

Words: I would Kubotan you (if I knew how to use it) for that post.

If you thought the charging handle was an answer in search of a question, wait 'til you see this.

Alex: Can I assume from your comment that you or someone you know is disabled and actually has one of these?

Tony: A scoped race gun is the only excuse.

My father has arthritis and bought this for that reason. I bought it for him upon recomendation from a glock competive shooter who uses a scope on his glock. A 6 year old girl could rack the dlide of a glock with this device.

Your arthritic father shoots IPSC matches? If not, then why are you heeding the advice of a competition shooter? There are world class competition shooters who do give sound advice, but they usually stick strictly to marksmanship technique, not tactics and gadgets. The charging handle may indeed be useful for those that have impaired use of the hands, but I doubt it is really worth the resulting trade off in decreased reliability, concealability and interference with the draw. I happen to know a disabled veteran with hand injuries and he does not need any exotic modifications to his pistols. Despite his handicap, and without utilizing charging handles, he is more skilled than a large number of regular people. How is this possible? Perseverance and training. It really is that simple.

By mounting this gadget on the pistol, you have actually increased the possibility of a malfunction. This is just a mechanical fact. Ironically, you now have created an increased likelihood for an emergency requirement to manipulate the slide because you wanted to make it easier to manipulate the slide. Making something easier does not always make it better.

If the pistol is for defensive use, and this device is mounted on it, then you really owe it to your father to ensure that he practice malfunction drills above and beyond what would normally be required. Or you could get rid of the handle and train him to overcome his disability. Either way he is going to need to train with the handgun. You could also suggest he try a firearm that is not as difficult for him to manipulate. You may also want to read Mostly Genius' post: Firearms for the physically disabled.

Finally, 6 year olds should not be operating pistols (or any other firearm) without adult supervision. I am not sure I want to make it EASIER for children to manipulate handguns.

This thing would allow my wife, who has cerebral palsy and therefore limited use of her left hand, to be able to chamber a round on an otherwise unloaded (i.e., useless) pistol.

You might indeed be Mostly Genius. Too bad the rest is pure stupid.

Thanks for pointing that out Alex. The author is not as smart as he thinks he is.

Umm... That's a handy gadget for a race gun - think IPSC Modified or Open Division. Having the optic sight on top of the gun gets in the way of a traditional slide rack. So, not stupid at all, merely misunderstood.

As for the way the handle is in that picture, two possibilities come to mind: either it is long enough to poke the shooter when carried even in a race gun holster - or the guy who mounted it is simply left-handed. :)

Actually the charging handle is for people with arthritis who may have trouble grasping the slide. It allows disabled people to defend themselves.

The website says it's reversible, so you can put it on the left side if you want. Of course, then a right-handed shooter can't CARRY it, because the handle would stick into his side.

The only purpose I could conceive for this was with one of those rail systems that attaches to the light rail, wraps around the gun, and gives you an optics mount on top. Of course, if you're doing that I can still make fun of you for trying to turn a Glock into a heavily-modified competition/target pistol, anyway...

There's one born every minute.