The .45 ACP Glock 21 Gen 4 Defender Scott_PP_Article_2-13-15 Scott W. Wagner | February 13, 2015 | 25 Comments inShare Recently, a Lieutenant at my police department was interested in downsizing from the Gen 4 Glock 21 he had been carrying on duty for several months, having supersized previously from his smaller .40 caliber Glock 23. While he liked the fact that the Gen 4 Glock 21 held 13 rounds of potent .45 ACP ammo in each magazine, he missed the somewhat lighter weight, controllability, and more compact dimensions of his old G23. I happened to have a Glock 32 in .357 SIG caliber that I’d carried on the SWAT team available. Having less recoil but more power than the .40 in terms of kinetic energy, he decided to trade after giving it a test drive. I ended up with the like-new “hardly ever been driven” G21 as a result. The G21 is a large handgun. The Gen 4 model comes with a somewhat smaller frame than the original version and includes two backstraps that can be added onto the existing frame to increase the grip girth to medium and large sizes. For my medium-sized hands, the out-of-the-box small size worked well enough, but it required the addition of an extended slide release to really make it fully functional for me. My G21 came equipped with factory three-dot night sights, which makes for a precise sight picture under daylight conditions, and of course assists with finding the sights for the first shot fired in a string in dark conditions. The G21 weighs in heavier than other full-sized Glocks at 29.3 ounces, but is still relatively lightweight for a .45. By way of comparison, the average full-sized 1911 weights in at 36 ounces, which gives the 1911 nearly a half pound more recoil-absorbing weight. I had in my possession some Winchester T-Series standard velocity JHP load. Even though this is a standard pressure round, it is still quite stout, with a distinctly higher muzzle velocity than standard .45 ACP ball ammo. Using a 230-grain JHP bullet, the published ballistics claim a muzzle velocity of 935 fps, with a muzzle energy of 446 foot-pounds. After my experience shooting the G21, I would advise new shooters to avoid +P ammo (or other loads in this power range). I began the test at a distance of 30 feet using a standard handgun qualification silhouette target. The Winchester T-Series ammo was attention getting, but not painful to shoot by any stretch. However, the larger-than-standard Glock grip circumference made the G21 harder for me to hold onto. I needed a firmer than standard grip (at least for me) for control and tight groups. My first six-shot group strung out a bit to the left, following the torque of the pistol. By tightening my grip, I was able to shrink my second six-shot string at 30 feet down considerably, keeping those six rounds within the 8-inch center circle. I moved back to 100 yards. Taking what I thought was a firm enough two-handed grip, I launched six rounds downrange from a standing position. I had five in the left side of the target, all within the silhouette, and one entirely off the paper. Not bad, but I wanted to see if more concentration would center the groups up. I tightened up and launched seven rounds downrange. I was rewarded by finding all seven rounds in the silhouette, with two in the aforementioned center ring, four centered in the body cavity, and one round at the lower left inside corner of the silhouette. I was much more pleased with the second string. Utilizing my new Glock as a carry or home-defense gun would require one little adjustment—different carry ammo. The Sig Elite 200-grain JHP .45 launches that lighter weight bullet at a more sedate 918 fps with a muzzle energy of 374 foot pounds. The Sig Elite ammo gave excellent performance in modeling clay, but with more controllability. The Glock 21 turned in great performance at the range. Just hold it firmly and watch what you feed it. Next week I will talk about carrying it concealed. Sources: Glock: us.glock.com Winchester Ammunition: www.winchester.com Sig Elite Ammunition: www.sigsauer.com