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Glock 23 Gen 4 conversion to 9mm

16664 Views 24 Replies 16 Participants Last post by  1prdunson
I am fairly new to Glock and the flexibility of their products. I have a Glock 23 Gen 4 and a Glock 17 Gen 3. I am looking for conversion options for the 23. I am correct that all I need to convert it is to swap out the barrel of a G19, the Recoil spring. and will my G17 mags work in the 23. and visa versa can the G17 be converted to .40 cal with the G22 barrel and spring?

I am sure this questions has probably been asked a 1000 times.
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I am fairly new to Glock and the flexibility of their products. I have a Glock 23 Gen 4 and a Glock 17 Gen 3. I am looking for conversion options for the 23. I am correct that all I need to convert it is to swap out the barrel of a G19, the Recoil spring. and will my G17 mags work in the 23. and visa versa can the G17 be converted to .40 cal with the G22 barrel and spring?

I am sure this questions has probably been asked a 1000 times.
There was a thread earlier today, in fact!

Here's a link, let me know if you have more questions after looking at this thread:http://glock.pro/glock-conversions/8554-safe-use-gen-2-g19-barrel-my-gen-3-g23.html#post94810

Chris
You need a9 conversion barrel not a g19 barrel.

Sent from my LG-E980 using Tapatalk
+1 to above you need a Conversion barrel and 9mm magazines.
+1 to above you need a Conversion barrel and 9mm magazines.
As well as the correct Extractor, Spring Loaded Bearing, and Ejector for 9mm.
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As well as the correct Extractor, Spring Loaded Bearing, and Ejector for 9mm.
Most folks don't change any of those parts for the conversion.
One of my Glocks is a 27 gen4. Works great as such, never a hiccup. But the Lone Wolf conversion 9mm barrel is a nightmare. I've tried all sorts of 9mm ammo, different brands and grains. As advertised, I just changed out the barrel and nothing else. I get some FTE's and brass in my face. I am not willing to change anything else out in the pistol that might effect the operation for the 40 cal. To be honest, I bought this barrel a couple of years ago, so the new ones MAY be better. I bought a threaded Lone Wolf replacement barrel for my 30S and it works great! Go and figure.
When I contacted Lone Wolf about the conversion problem, I was told to use different ammo. Another words, "Take a pill and call me in the morning."
One of my Glocks is a 27 gen4. Works great as such, never a hiccup. But the Lone Wolf conversion 9mm barrel is a nightmare. I've tried all sorts of 9mm ammo, different brands and grains. As advertised, I just changed out the barrel and nothing else. I get some FTE's and brass in my face. ....
From the Lone Wolf Website, here is a link: https://www.lonewolfdist.com/Detail.aspx?PROD=983&CAT=241
..and here is selected text:


"PLEASE NOTE: Using this barrel in a Generation 4 Glock may cause malfunctions while using the standard Glock recoil spring assembly. For best results, install a 9mm Glock recoil spring found here: Glock OEM Recoil Assembly , or for even more versatility, use our Gen4 guide rod adapter with our Gen3 guide rods found here: Lone Wolf Adaptors and Guide Rods ."

Also:

"About 1% of our 9mm conversion barrels are affected by the poor performance of low powered 115 grain ammunition causing a Failure To Eject (FTE). A good example of ammunition that is "most likely to fail" is Winchester White Box (WWB). This rare failure is too low a percentage to make an issue, however it is one we are well aware of. The fix to resolve this issue is quite simple:

1 Clean and lube your slide and barrel.
2 Shoot 1 mag to 1 box of good quality +P or +P+ ammunition through the barrel.
3 Try the FTF ammunition again. If it runs... great! If you experience more failures you will have a couple choices to make:
Fix A Reduce the recoil spring weight to 11 lbs. Cost is about $25 for stainless steel guide rod and reduced power spring. See guiderods here.
Fix B Shoot 124 gr or a better quality 115 gr ammunition exclusively. The FTF 115 gr ammunition you are currently using is no longer a valid option.

What causes this problem? Several issues come into play.
1 The 40 slide and (40 conversion) barrel are thicker than standard 9mm slides and barrels. This extra thickness equates to more weight. The combined extra weight taps the energy of the "weak 115 gr ammunition" to its complete demise. It simply lacks in power and fails to reliably eject the spent round.
2 Every once in awhile a Failure To Feed/Failure To Eject (FTF/FTE) is caused by a fit issue. We resolve fit issues by pumping +P or +P+ ammunition through the gun. This hot ammunition provides extra pressure and the pressure will positively align any and all components. Once they are all aligned there is no longer a fit issue. The FTF/FTE is usually resolved.

FYI: Several manufactures are currently producing low powered 115 gr 9mm loads. This ammunition is also known to produce failures in all standard model Glock 9mm pistols."


...I am not willing to change anything else out in the pistol that might effect the operation for the 40 cal. ....
That's too bad, because as purkeypilot noted, you need the 9mm Extractor, Ejector, and Spring Loaded Bearing to make the gun function reliably as a 9mm.

If Lone Wolf made you believe the just installing a barrel and getting a caliber conversion was going to result in a reliable pistol, that's unfortunate. Now that you have been given correct, complete, useful information on the topic, the path to reliability should be clear.

Chris
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Chris did you get my reply?
Not if it was a PM.

Chris
Ugh, it must have disappeared. I just wanted to thank you for taking the time to research this and add to this thread.
When I bought the conversion barrel a couple of years or so ago, they didn't have this information on their site. Had I had known what I know now, I just would have bought a 19. I believe that is what i'll do now. I may sell my Glock 27 Gen4 anyway with a bunch of Glock mags I have for it in favor of that Glock 19 Gen4 as I'm not crazy about 40 cal. anyway.
Fyi, to shoot my g23 with a 9 conversion barrel, I bought a new trigger bar with the 19 ejector, an extractor, and a 19 spring loaded bearing and replaced them when using the barrel. It gets confusing, though! :)


Hays
...When I bought the conversion barrel a couple of years or so ago, they didn't have this information on their site.
I thought that was probably the case, I don't remember seeing all that a couple of years ago.

Had I had known what I know now, I just would have bought a 19. I believe that is what i'll do now. I may sell my Glock 27 Gen4 anyway with a bunch of Glock mags I have for it in favor of that Glock 19 Gen4 as I'm not crazy about 40 cal. anyway.
That sounds like a good plan. There are people who just love the .40, and those who can take it or leave it, and I fall into the latter category, apparently with you. I can pretty much guarantee that you'll be very happy with the G19!

Chris
Thanks you all and to the op, my apologies, I didn't mean to hijack the thread.
I just swapped out the LW conv/barrel and no malfunctions with a little over 800rds. I have heard people say you have to buy different parts but so far no problems with just a barrel swap and hundreds of other owners have done a barrel swap only with no problems as well.
Most folks don't change any of those parts for the conversion.
Agreed, I use them on a 23 gen 3 and a 27 gen 4. Both lone wolf conversion with no problems.
The whole purpose of a conversion barrel is that you're converting from 40-9, not just shooting 9mm through a frame made for that purpose. It isn't just another 9mm barrel. The Lone Wolf barrel offsets the feed ramp to address the extraction problems people have by running a smaller round through, which is supposed to eliminate the need for a new extractor, etc. If you simply place a G19 barrel into a G23 frame you would need those extra steps.
...The Lone Wolf barrel offsets the feed ramp to address the extraction problems people have by running a smaller round through, which is supposed to eliminate the need for a new extractor, etc.....
I did not know that the feed ramp was offset on the LWD conversion barrel, and it makes a lot of sense, so thanks for passing that along. I'm not doubting you, but it sure would be nice if Lone Wolf made that point very clear on their website.

I can only guess that by just stating that the gun will work with the barrel and not explaining how

("LWD 9mm conversion barrels will allow you to shoot 9mm ammunition from your Glock 40 S&W or 357 Sig handgun. These conversion barrels are easy to use and install the same as any other barrel, simply drop it in, no gunsmithing or other modifications are required.")

they are making the claim that you don't need to swap out the extractor, and they aren't revealing how they did it.

But your post makes sense, so thanks again. I learned something already today!

Chris

I am fairly new to Glock and the flexibility of their products. I have a Glock 23 Gen 4 and a Glock 17 Gen 3. I am looking for conversion options for the 23. I am correct that all I need to convert it is to swap out the barrel of a G19, the Recoil spring. and will my G17 mags work in the 23. and visa versa can the G17 be converted to .40 cal with the G22 barrel and spring?

I am sure this questions has probably been asked a 1000 times.
====

If I may... when converting the G23 to shoot 9mm Glock told me the safest way is to buy a glock 19. SECONDLY: if you wish to deal with just one receiver the best thing to do is buy a G19 upper. Then all you need to is take down the slide upper, slide on the G19 upper, change the mags and you are up and running in just a few seconds without going third party anything... NOW having said that if you notice on the trigger housing, the extractor is straight on the 9mm and has a little curve on the .40 (I don't like the .40 caliber by the way). This bend on the extractor will send the spent cartridges in a different directions. A purist told me that if you switch uppers you also need to swap out the trigger housing assembly to match the caliber. This takes a little longer as you can tell but certainly do-able. My question is why have a .40 at all? I know some say it is a more potent caliber and has a greater coefficient of energy dump. What they miss however is that it is not the caliber but the bullet sitting on top of the cartridge. Bullet technology has been improving a lot and there are manufacturers that have increased the lethality of the 9mm to surpass that of the .45. How? Check out LEHIGH DEFENSE. These are solid copper bullets CNC machined to be quite nasty. I am waiting for Socialist-Fascists to sound the call to ban them. There is another cartridge technology which also has solid copper tips but each bullet divides into three parts tethered and makes a heck of a mess as it impacts the target in three connected impact points.

Guess I can't post a link yet.. New Ammo Technology For Self Defense, ATF Approved ! weaponseducation on youtube
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This is great info ...I'll assume it's the same for 23 gen 4 also?
This forum is the Best!!
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