CCW experience G19 vs G48

wemoodydc

wemoodydc

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For those who have concealed carried both a Glock 19 and a Glock 48, is there any real difference in the experience? My first thought is that the G48 would surely disappear being so thin, but it still has barrel and grip length that have to be dressed around. Does that end up giving it have the same footprint as the G19?

Admittedly, I like to carry OWB and it would be easier to conceal either model by just moving to IWB carry. I don't want to get bigger pants and belts for the occasional times that I CCW.
 
Being they are almost identical except width and weight, there is no appreciable difference for me between the two but I am a wide body, so that may be why.
 
For me the G19 felt massive, though nobody ever noticed it. I liked that gun a lot.

The G48 was easier to conceal for me, even with the longer magazine....but I have extra me, and most guns seem to sink into my "extra" pretty well, even the RIA 1911 I carried for several weeks in t-shirt weather! lol.

I hope to own another G48 one day....I loved it!
 
IWB you'll love the G48. The slimmer profile makes for comfortable carry. I can wear my normal size jeans. When I carried my G19, I had to go up a waist size in pants to allow comfortable IWB carry. And that made my butt look big, so...
 
Honestly depends on where, how you carry. I have carried appendix for a long time....my previous holster did pretty well..the new sidecar holster makes it invisible, both my G26 and my G17.
 
The G48 and G19 are only incrementally different in width, and otherwise the same.
Like somewhere between an eighth and a fifth of an inch difference in width.
That said, and being a large fellow, I was still a huge advocate for the G48, until I discovered I couldn’t shoot it any better than my G17, or coveted G43 EDC.
 
I keep going back and forth between the 19 and 48. Most recently carried an all black G48, previously owned a silver slide model that had been two tone cerakoted OD green frame and cerakoted slide black. I loved both of them, but kept going back to the 19 just cause it’s been my go to for so long. Granted the 48 carried, for me at least, just as well or better than the 43X but didn’t disappear as well as my 43.

Haven’t tried any of the Shield magazines yet, but the 10 round capacity without mag interchangeability kinda killed it for me. I could carry a 26 but with a back up 17 magazine.

I’ll probably buy another G48 or mag try out the P365 (think they have all the kinks worked out), but for now my G19 RTF2 is my go to
 
FWIW I think that the G19 is super easy to conceal. If I could shoot it as naturally as I shoot my VP9 (not necessarily shot "better" when slow fired but VP9 points very well when I am not using the sights), it would be there very frequently.
 
I have had many years with the G19 and I shoot it really well. I'm sure it is all mental. When I'm trying to conceal it, it just seems huge; but I've seen videos of it on my hip during competitions and it looks tiny. I hadn't considered that a thinner pistol might be what it takes to switch to IWB. I'm not built to carry appendix, but I have briefly carried a Kahr 3 o'clock IWB and I did have good success with that.
 
wemoodydc said:
I have had many years with the G19 and I shoot it really well. I'm sure it is all mental. When I'm trying to conceal it, it just seems huge; but I've seen videos of it on my hip during competitions and it looks tiny. I hadn't considered that a thinner pistol might be what it takes to switch to IWB. I'm not built to carry appendix, but I have briefly carried a Kahr 3 o'clock IWB and I did have good success with that.
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General rule of concealed carry...nobody is looking at your bulge! and more importantly nobody cares about your bulge!

Also, kind of like other things in life...Your bulge isn't anywhere close to being as big a you think it is!

Carry EVERY day EVERYwhere you can and you will get used to it, but that takes months for most folks to deal with their own psyche
 
i think im one of those people whose hands are slightly too small for the 19 to fit comfortably. I can shoot it fairly well just from practicing, but when i held that 48, it was love at first... feel.. i guess. I can totally tell a difference carrying it in my pocket (something my 19 cant do) and the 10 rounds doesn't bother me. I would agree with ikarus though, fellow co worker just got a 43x and a sig 365 at the same time and we played with both. the 365 is smaller and feels better in my hand and it holds more. Oooooh yea, the trigger feels waaaay better on the 365 out of the box than the glock imo. For even money, give or take a few bucks, id take the sig if i had it to do over again. Good luck with your choice. All of them are solid performers so pick what feels best for you and tell us all about it:D
 
Mr. Bggs said:
i think im one of those people whose hands are slightly too small for the 19 to fit comfortably. I can shoot it fairly well just from practicing, but when i held that 48, it was love at first... feel.. i guess. I can totally tell a difference carrying it in my pocket (something my 19 cant do) and the 10 rounds doesn't bother me. I would agree with ikarus though, fellow co worker just got a 43x and a sig 365 at the same time and we played with both. the 365 is smaller and feels better in my hand and it holds more. Oooooh yea, the trigger feels waaaay better on the 365 out of the box than the glock imo. For even money, give or take a few bucks, id take the sig if i had it to do over again. Good luck with your choice. All of them are solid performers so pick what feels best for you and tell us all about it:D
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You don’t have to be limited to 10 rounds. They have flush fitting 15rnd mags for the 48/43x now
 
thats right Derek, your correct. shield arms i believe... they have good reviews but they do say you need a metal mag catch(20-40$) and then your good to go.. well after you find them in stock somewhere and pay $44.95 for them. Also I think glockstore has the plus 4 extension for $39.99 but that hangs out quite a bit from the oem mag. I might play around with them at some point, but for now i feel fine with 10 rounds on me. best of luck
 
Mr. Bggs said:
i think im one of those people whose hands are slightly too small for the 19 to fit comfortably. I can shoot it fairly well just from practicing, but when i held that 48, it was love at first... feel.. i guess. I can totally tell a difference
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That is me, too. I can shoot the 19 really well, but it is a hair too thick in the grip. I've held a few 48s and they feel really good in my hand. I'm a slave to the Glock grip angle by now and I've had a hard time getting used to any other manufacturer at this point.
 
wemoodydc said:
That is me, too. I can shoot the 19 really well, but it is a hair too thick in the grip. I've held a few 48s and they feel really good in my hand. I'm a slave to the Glock grip angle by now and I've had a hard time getting used to any other manufacturer at this point.
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In that case id def buy the 48... you will not regret it. Of course after all the dust settles, you should immediately go out and buy a 365 and then just sit at home holding both debating which one to carry today, I think thats where im headed only its with the 365 xl thats been calling my name. good luck buddy, im sure you'll enjoy the 48 though, slightly thinner and lighter goes a long way if your hands are medium to small in size
 
vp9c said:
Carry EVERY day EVERYwhere you can and you will get used to it, but that takes months for most folks to deal with their own psyche
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It does take a while to get used to. But I did, and now it feels weird not to have it on me.....lol.
 
I have both, ive carried both. I also have the shield arms mags and metal catch for my 48. I carried my 19 for years. Love it. Boight the 48 after i bought my wife a 43x and shot it. I like the 48 and oddly shoot it better than the 19. I now prefer the 48 over the 43x and the 19.with all of that said....often times i carry a 17 as i shoot it best. At the end of the day i can shoot them all well enough and have relegated the 19 to the safe and carry the 48 when i want something lighter. I will say the 48 is slimmer and weighs less...albeit not much is oddly very different than the 19...carries much easier in my opinion. I wouldnt think a little size would matter in a carry gun but i do think it carries better.
 
vp9c said:
Your pants a WAY too tight if you can really tell the difference in width...
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I carry a 43 in my pocket, or OWB for the 48 and larger. It’s not about pants size for many of us, it’s can we fit in a chair or doorway with what we got on the hip. I rattle through doorways when I carry on my hip enough as it is.
 
vp9c said:
I just found this site and it is pretty interesting for size comparisons.

https://www.handgunhero.com/compare/glock-g19-vs-glock-g48

Based on the specs, I can't really imagine why anyone would choose the G48 over the G19.

Your pants a WAY too tight if you can really tell the difference in width...
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This site is great!

9d545cf3d7b25ed8d2c1113ecad45c8b.jpg


Sent from my SM-G973U using Tapatalk
 
vp9c said:
Also, kind of like other things in life...Your bulge isn't anywhere close to being as big a you think it is!
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No doubt.

I’ve worked a part time job (2nd shift, twice a week) for ~4.5 years. For the last three years or so I’ve carried a G21 OWB on the job, and a spare mag carrier. Shorts and t-shirt every day. Not a single person has ever noticed.

In reality, the squeaking of all the leather is much more noticeable than the bulges.
 
It's amazing how much difference a little bit of width and weight makes carrying IWB. I've been a single stack convert for 6-7 years now. I use a DeSantis pocket mag holster in my left rear pocket for the requisite extra mag, hardly notice it's there.

Truthfully I think much of the difference is simply in the weight, you just notice the gun much less (if at all) throughout the day. Of course this could be achieved by downloading a double stack, lol, but even the small width difference is surprisingly noticeable too.
 
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Personally I would recommend which ever one fits your hand best. Or which ever one you think you will shoot best.

If you care about high cap mags you can get into a g19 with multiple mags for a fair bit less then a g48 with multiple shield mags. I have a 43x and I like carrying it a lot more then the g23 that I had. It is a lot more comfortable for me to carry iwb.

The 19 and 48 are both awesome guns. Buy which ever one you like the most.
 
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