Best 40 Cal Handgun: Glock 23

The 40 cal round (.40 S&W) round is an absolutely fantastic round. It is a great balance between the power of the .45 ACP and the size of the 9mm. The .40 is a decently wide and heavy round, so it has very good stopping power, while still being able to be double stacked in a magazine for maximum capacity when you really need it. But what gun manufacturer makes the Best 40 Cal Handgun? Some of the favorites are the Glock pistols, Springfield XDm’s, Walther P99, and the Smith and Wesson M&P’s. But what one can claim the top as the top 40 caliber handgun?

With four categories in mind; reliability, reputation, price, and size, we have chosen the Glock 23 as the best 40-cal handgun available today. Some may disagree with this choice, but none can deny Glock’s reliable track record.

Reliability
Ask almost anyone and they’ll admit that Glock pistols are some of the most reliable guns out there. They have been designed to be very simple and extremely rugged, so naturally, they are very reliable guns. Some people have done torture tests on them to extreme levels, such as 150 thousand through them, with up to 15 thousand rounds with no cleaning or maintenance. They have buried them in sand, dirt, mud, water, paste, snow, and about everything else you can imagine. People have even run over them and dropped them out of planes, and in the end, they still end up functioning just fine. Their design is made to be extremely reliable and durable. The Glock 23 is a great example of this. Others may be reliable also, but the Glock wins at this.

Reputation
Glock pistols have always had a pretty good reputation. They are known for their modern, blocky design that some call “ugly as sin”. But I’m looking for a gun that will shoot when I want it to, every single time, not just look pretty in my hand as if someone is attacking me or my loved ones. They will also fire every time you pull the trigger because of the safety built into the trigger, so no worrying about flipping the safety, or if the gun is ready to shoot. If there are bullets in the gun, it’s ready to shoot.

Price
For the price, the Glocks are also amazing guns. They are a great quality and reliable gun, for a reasonable price, usually a little over $500. When you compare them to many 1911 models, even though they are not as pretty, they are at least a few hundred dollars cheaper, and usually more reliable than their “prettier counterparts”. There are some other great guns out there, like the SIGs, Kimbers, and H&K’s, but for the price, the Glock is a better choice.

Size
The Glock 23 is of the compact size category, or a medium-sized semi-auto pistol. I think this is a great overall size for a gun. It’s big enough to be comfortable to shoot repeatedly, feels great in the hand, and handles the snappy recoil of the 40-cal round very well. It is big enough to strap to your hip and take in place of the full-sized gun. Yet, it is small enough to potentially concealed carry. It’s not overly huge, so it can be concealed in a holster somewhere on the body. Many people consider this an amazing concealed-carry gun. In my opinion, it is a little large to conceal carry daily unless you are a very big guy (I’m 6’3” and 230lbs, and I think it’s a little big) or have a good way to conceal it.

The bottom line is that the Glock 23 is all around the Best 40 Cal Handgun available today. Even though it isn’t the prettiest gun, it will fire every single time, no matter what you put it through. The polymer frame makes it lightweight and durable, and for the average price of around $500, you really can’t go wrong with this gun. It’s a great size compromise as being enough to shoot comfortably, yet small enough to carry concealed. I grew up shooting one and it is still my all-time favorite gun.