I took the Glock plunge about 6 months ago and purchased a Glock 22 RTF2 I found at a great price. Since then, I have been wanting one to carry concealed. I have carried the 22, but since it has the RTF, carrying against bare flesh is not an option, which limits my options for summertime carry.
I have pretty big hands, and I am a fairly big guy. I have held both at the local gun shop, and the 26 just feels a little akward. I’ve seen mag extensions for a 26 that allow the use of one more finger to grip with. The 19 fits good in my hand, but I don’t know how much more concealable it would be as compared to my 22. It just appears much closer to the full-size than the sub-compact. I am hoping for an IWB holster or a paddle holster under an un-tucked shirt as my concealed carry options during the summer.
I had both a 19 and 26 for awhile and thought they both were very easy to conceal. Not the biggest guy in the world but I am 6’2" with good size hands, the only way that I ever felt comfortable with the 26 was with the Glock +1 extensions. Those made a huge difference. I liked to carry the 19 with a X300 on it so a lot of time in the summer I would just take the 26. Never felt that I was under gunned at all with the little one.
I went thru the same issue a few years ago. The shorter grip of the 26 makes my summer time carry a bit easier and I use a IWB holster. The shorter back grip of the 26 “prints” less than a 19. A grip extension such as Pearce helps the grip feeling.
Just a thought: ask the shop to let you try both. Walk/move around the store and ask them which one conceals better.
Love my 3 gen G19 with about 1000 rds so far and zero issues. If I were you, I’d buy not only what fits my hand best but most accurate with.
As far as a CCW goes, I would try holsters from various makers with your normal street clothes on and see what works for you the best.
The 19 and 26 are remarkably similar in size. Adding a grip extension to the 26 makes the difference almost imperceptible. Remember that grip length is a lot harder to conceal than barrel length.
Do you want to carry what you shoot, or shoot what you carry?
The 26 (for me) is a heck of a lot harder to shoot than the 19. Not talking slow fire plinking, I mean shooting to train/practice in a realistic manner. It comes down to what you can use well. Recommend you borrow and shoot each of them to save the world from another “I only shot one box through it” used Glock.
The 19 with a 300 on it is not terribly difficult to conceal in all seasons FWIW.
Good luck!
I carry a g19 rtf with a belt clip and a M&PF 9 with a bladtech IWB holster, I carry the M&P 9 more and have no problem cocealing it in the summer with shorts and t shirt. I know the M&P is not the glock but my point is I would rather carry more ammo. And with the proper holster I don’t think you would have any problem carrying the larger handgun in the summer (unless you like to wear really tight shirts. Most people also don’t eye ball everyone for guns either. Even if you could see the profile most people will never notice the tell tale signs of you carrying a handgun. But to each his own.
I actually carry a 26, but some things you need to consider are it’s much easier to draw quickly and with more surety with a 19. It is also much easier to do a rapid reload with the longer framed gun than the short. Depending on whether or not you run a weapon light the 19 will be the clear winner there.
Overall you’re going to be facing more than just carrying it. In general it’s much easier to manipulate a 19 than a 26.
I had a G26 at one point and found I carried it very little. As F-Trooper suggested I haven’t found many situations where I could carry a G26 and not a G19. I find the 19 much easier to reload because the short grip of the 26 means mags can pinch the pad on my palm if I’m not careful. The 19 is also a little easier to shoot due to the longer sight radius. I’d say if you’re limited to one to get the Glock 19.
I own a G26 and it just seems to short grip wise. I carry my G19 and similar sized Sig almost always over the G26. I just like mid to full size pistols better.
I’m not sure how you guys dress, or what you look like but I am skinny, I wear light, thin, relatively close-fitting clothing and a Glock 19s grip is extremely more noticable and prints ridiculously compared to the G26.
At one time I had both. Sold off the 26 and replaced it with a G19. I now have 2 G19s. Personally, for an all around pistol, including CCW, I don’t think the G19 can be beat. MHO.
An option for you could be this, I wear a tshirt or under armour with an open or closed button down shirt. In the summer its the same but the button downs are really light cotton and sometimes no under shirt. I carry a 17 pretty easily this way. I f its just a baggy t shirt than its a 19. I am 6’ 240lbs.
My 26 is my constant off duty carry gun. I use the +2 extensions and it is a great little gun. I can shoot it nearly as well as my full size 17. It carries 12+1 and its very concealable in a inside the waistband rig.
Pat
Just like all the other prior threads on this very topic, except for BUG use in uniform, I’ll say that I have never found a situation where I could carry a G26, but not a G19. Also, if for some reason I needed the small grip of the G26, I’d rather use a G19 whose grip has been cut to take G26 mags, as it still allows me to use a light, has a full 4" barrel, and tends to carry a bit better IWB than a G26 due to the longer barrel.
The pinkie finger provides very little of your grip on a weapon, however many find the mental part of not having it on the firearm a hindrance that cannot be overcome. The statements above are very true regarding the length of the grip and concealment. If you have an extended magazine on the 26 you are not buying much if any concealability over the 19 which is very easy to conceal. Hickok45 has many reviews of both weapons on Youtube and discusses the advantages of both along with the pinkie finger issue.
Another consideration that should be accounted for is the potential for problems with the Gen4s. Not looking to start a war over this issue and I will only relay my experience, but I have had three Failure to Feeds and two stovepipes with my Gen4 glock 19. One was with the Hornady critical defense round and it may have simply been the friction from the polymer insert in the round, but the others were with FMJ rounds. The same ammo run through gen 3s did not create the problem. Not sure of it is the new design, nbut I am looking at a Glock 34 and will probably buy a Gen 3. Another thought would be to try to borrow/experiment with both in concealed holsters at an LGS if you have a good enough relationship with the store or a friend who already has one of these weapons. Your personal experience with these will count for more than any outside opinions. Good luck with your purchase.
Unless ankle carry is a requirement (and not seeking to turn this thread into a debate on the merits of ankle carry), I’d purchase the G19 prior to the G26. The G19 is the most versatile handgun in my inventory - it conceals remarkably well but performs like its larger cousins.
