I did some searching and reading up on this cosmetic mod and I like it. Makes your Glock different from the rest giving it a "bi-tone" look and I think it looks pretty cool. I know I Love Glocks has the service as well. I found the following guy who posted a rail and barrel he did on YouTube and I contacted him. He provides this service to the public.  He immediately answered me. He appears to do really nice work and very fair cost. $50 for the barrel and includes return shipping.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-r5EgtO5RPA

 

Here are some questions and possible concerns I have doing this that maybe some of the fine folks on this forum can help with.

 

1. Will doing this void the Glock warranty?

 

2. Will polishing the barrel effect to any degree the performance of the pistol? It will work just the same as stock new?

 

3. I have read some owners that had this done that mentioned they lost their grip on the slide and made it difficult to grasp. Hands would slide off as they tried to pull the slide back. Is this a concern with the Glocks? Specifically if this is done on a Glock 21 Gen 4?

 

4. I would imagine the upkeep when taking the original finish off would be much harder as it will always require polishing so the metal does not dull? Comments on this? What's the best way to care for it? 

 

5. Will it scratch easier with normal use? Obviously dropping the glock after polishing would be really bad as for sure the rail would scratch.

 

6. Anyone here do this? Any regrets? Positive experience?

 

Let me know what you guys and gals think. I realize this is all personal preference. Some would say are you kidding(that is fugly) and others may like it. I don't want to turn this thread into a bashing thread. Just want to know positive or negatives of doing this and people experience with the process.

 

If there are any vendors or people that you can recommend (locally in Jersey even better) please feel free to suggest.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

***Update - Facebook Page - Cool Stuff. This guy is talented. https://www.facebook.com/ryanaburick

 

Check out this G21 Gen 4 he did - Damn !!!  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ra800VaWNpw

 

I think I'm sold! He just got back to me answering all my questions. Not cheap though to do slide and barrel. More like $150 for both.

I have a friend that polished his glock barrel, but damn. That's the whole freakin slide. Well atleast that's a glock I wouldn't mind having.

I guess.

If the tenifer treatment is polished off you're exposing the slide to rust and you'd lose its scratch resistance. But according to 

http://firearmshistory.blogspot.com/2010/08/metal-treatments-ferritic.html  the Tenifer penetrates into the slide beyond the matte black that you can see, so if you don't polish down 0.5mm (!!!) maybe it would still be protected.

 

 

You'd see every single fingerprint and every speck of dust and burned powder though. Seems impractical for a shooter gun.

by polishing, you smooth it out. IT will be less grippy and more slick. Especially if your hands are sweaty or there is any lube on it. 

 

If it penetrates the surface hardening created by the tenifer process, yes, it will scratch easily, and you will notice scratches much more because it is smooth and polished. 

 

If you just polish the outside of the barrel, no, it should not affect performance unless you are removing enough material form the barrel hood and the slide to affect lock up. 

 

In terms of affecting the function of the firearm, I would NOT want a gun like a glock with a broad flat slide top to have a highly polished slide. The glare off of it under the right lighting will negatively impact one's ability to get a decent sight picture. 

 

While I think the polished two tone look can be nice, I don't really like it on a glock, and I do not like it on anything from a practical point of view. 

You'd see every single fingerprint and every speck of dust and burned powder though. Seems impractical for a shooter gun.

 

My concern was the same and addressed this with Ryan. You will clearly see more dust, etc.. I asked if there would be more upkeep with it and he said there really isn't. Just a light coat of oil and some folks don't even do that. I am thinking a couple nice coats of car wax will really keep it nice and resist more scrtaching but issue Im concerned with is grip which I mentioned. The pistol will get the same build up with the stock finish while shooting. Needs to be cleaned just as you would afterward regardless of finish. Just need a different care approach. Ryan actually said the carbon build up is less with the polishing and I would probably agree with that. Less ability for the carbon and powder residue to stick on the new polished finish.

 

 

by polishing, you smooth it out. IT will be less grippy and more slick. Especially if your hands are sweaty or there is any lube on it. 

 

If it penetrates the surface hardening created by the tenifer process, yes, it will scratch easily, and you will notice scratches much more because it is smooth and polished. 

 

If you just polish the outside of the barrel, no, it should not affect performance unless you are removing enough material form the barrel hood and the slide to affect lock up. 

 

In terms of affecting the function of the firearm, I would NOT want a gun like a glock with a broad flat slide top to have a highly polished slide. The glare off of it under the right lighting will negatively impact one's ability to get a decent sight picture. 

 

While I think the polished two tone look can be nice, I don't really like it on a glock, and I do not like it on anything from a practical point of view. 

The ability to charge the pistol and grasp the slide is definitely a concern to me. I have read up on this and another guy posted a vid on YouTube how he regretted doing it becasue of this. Wasn't a glock though. I mentioned to Ryan. He suggested small pieces of grip tape on rear portion of slide if preferred but that I wouldn't want to do as will look shitty. He hasn't received much complaints on this matter from other folks he did this for and he has done several hundred guns.

 

The possible glare from top rail polishing was a concern too. Folks who had this done by him posted remarks on his Facebook page and said it was a non issue. Check out his Facebook page. Eveyone gives really good feedback on his work and the use of the pistol after they get it done. 

 

I am going to ask him for references for work he did and contact those folks for direct opinion.

Here you go. Gunmetal finish which he also does.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVk0m0D5ZeE

 

This is the way to go without overkill. Also your not going too deep into the original Glock finish this way and won't show as much grime, scratches, etc. Less costly at $80 and call it a day. I like the contrast of the black barrel and seperation of colors. Gives a mean "dark" look which appears more stock. The full polished finish looks more like a showpiece handgun.

You can polish a turd..... but it's still a turd

Why in the world would you want to modify a Glock?  They're so beautiful right out of the box.

It will void your warranty.

Being polished will deter the metal from rusting, just like a white bolt on a rifle.. If it is just left for a long period of time it may start to show signs of rust but should be easily polished off..

 

Most of those polish jobs are probably not being used in stress situation such as gun games...

Why would you want to Polish an Austrian gun?  Is it a dumb gun and you want it to look like a Polack?

You can polish a turd..... but it's still a turd

Not a Glock fan I would presume

 

Being polished will deter the metal from rusting, just like a white bolt on a rifle.. If it is just left for a long period of time it may start to show signs of rust but should be easily polished off..

 

Most of those polish jobs are probably not being used in stress situation such as gun games...

I agree which is why I like the gunmetal finish. Your not taking too much original finish off the gun. Also, if you carried everyday and took outdoors alot and subject to bad weather it would be more exposed to the outdoor elements and moisture. Still with care you should be alright. This gun of mine won't be used to this degree(once I get my PTP...uggh). We live in Jersey right?? It will be my indoor range gun and for home defense. Will I be using it?...absolutely but more or less always at the range. Im just getting into this interest. We will see where it goes for me but I like jazzing up my personal likes.

 

 

It will void your warranty.

 

Yeah...I figure on this much as well. Glock has a 1 year warranty on their guns but they cover for the lifetime should something go wrong and needs fixing granted all items on the gun are stock and not using aftermarket parts. I read others that ran into this issue.

 

Let's face it though. It's a Glock! How many people really need to use the warranty anyway? They are tanks. You see that Youtube vid where they buried a Glock in the backyard for 2 years, dug up, washed off, and shot 500 rounds through it?  Incredible! Internals were even all rusted out.