# New Glock G21 with bore defects



## n32763 (Nov 26, 2020)

I've already initiated a conversation with Glock Customer Service and they've forwarded my information onto Warranty Service.

That said, does anybody have any idea what would have caused these marks from the factory? I ran a few patches through to clean out the factory-fired residue and saw them. I wanted my first USA-made Glock purchase to be a positive experience but this has been a big let down. This is looking into the breech end of the barrel. The circles are barely able to be felt with a small plastic probe but they're there. They are perfectly circular and do not follow the rifling. There's another one or two of these closer to the muzzle end of the barrel as well.

I let them know that I don't want to replace just the barrel as I'm pretty particular about having all matching SNs across the parts -- especially on a factory new gun that I've never shot. 

We'll see what they say!


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## denner (Jun 3, 2011)

Where did you purchase the firearm from? Unlikely, but the store or retailer may have had a hand in this. Looks like someone used a dremel to clean the barrel. If it left the factory that way the quality control personal was sleeping on the job.


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## n32763 (Nov 26, 2020)

Purchased it from a reliable LGS that I've done some business with in the past. They received a few Glock pistols in from factory a mere day or two before I happened to call inquiring about a new 21. No reason to believe they would have had a hand in it. Very knowledgeable/respected small-ish shop/armorer. Barrel still had a bit of residue from the factory testing too(not seen in the photo since it's post patches). Looked to be in line with the # of test rounds normally put through it.

Again, this is a USA model and I'm hoping this is just a fluke. Very disappointing to think that this made it out of the factory as you said.


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## Shipwreck (Jan 26, 2006)

I do not know if they will take care of the serial # issue (matching #). To do that, they would have to replace the entire gun. I think it is more likely you will just get a new barre. But, ya never know...


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## nijuken (Nov 27, 2020)

they will blame you first but these lines are too neat to be a cleaning disaster. possibly a tooling malfunction while polishing the ID. 
did you test fire it? I am wondering how these scratches affect the projectile balance.


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## n32763 (Nov 26, 2020)

Customer service was polite earlier this week and immediately referred it to warranty support without question upon seeing the photos. 

I'm going to try and put some rounds through it today and see what's what. I showed it to a knowledgeable buddy and he thinks it happened during polishing of the ID as well. Said they don't inspect every barrel, only maybe every 5 to 10 just to make sure there aren't large-scale issues in production. That, and since every gun goes through test firing/accuracy check it should have been caught there *if* it was a major issue. Probably performed adequately and was shipped. TBH if it does shoot OK at 10 - 15 yards then I'll likely forego all the overhead involved of getting a full replacement to keep the matching SNs. Glock is shut until next week with the holiday so I won't hear back until then.


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## n32763 (Nov 26, 2020)

Took it out and put 100 rounds of Speer Lawman through it. More than accurate enough for my abilities and general use as it is. This is one target from a mix of 10 and 15 yards. This is the same sort of accuracy I get shooting my G17 G4 at that distance as well so there's plenty of consistency between the two. I'll clean them up when I get in the mood and see how things look in barrel. TBH this will probably be a non-issue. Thanks for all of yall looking at it though.


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## stokes (Jan 17, 2017)

I wouldnt give it a thought.When those scratches disappear you'll know the barrel is shot out.


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## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

n32763 said:


> Took it out and put 100 rounds of Speer Lawman through it. More than accurate enough for my abilities and general use as it is. This is one target from a mix of 10 and 15 yards. This is the same sort of accuracy I get shooting my G17 G4 at that distance as well so there's plenty of consistency between the two. I'll clean them up when I get in the mood and see how things look in barrel. TBH this will probably be a non-issue. Thanks for all of yall looking at it though.


I would follow through with the support ticket. IMO, looks like a tooling issue. See what they offer . Plus we need to keep the Glock Perfection on it's toes.


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## n32763 (Nov 26, 2020)

Right. Still definitely going to follow up with them next week for sure. I'll post back when I do.


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## n32763 (Nov 26, 2020)

OK, got an update.

I spoke first with an armorer at Glock earlier this week after he received the photo. He himself couldn't definitively say what caused it and asked me to send the entire firearm in for evaluation. They provided an overnight shipping label at no cost. 

After having it for about one day I received a call from someone who I can only assume was involved more intimately in the operations/manufacturing process because he sounded very knowledgeable and quite sure of what he was saying. He stated that the circular marks occurred during the process of finishing the barrel(assuming exterior). He said that prior to a ceramic coating(his exact words) being applied, the barrel is plugged at both ends and sandblasted(he mentioned a material other than sand but I don't recall what it was). He said sometimes the plugs "move" a bit during this process and create these marks. He said it's not very common so I guess I just didn't win the luck of the draw. But, he said there is no way you'd ever feel them because they're purely cosmetic and something like 1/10,000th of an inch deep. He also said that within about 1000-1500 rounds they will be pretty much gone. He said the lines will start to break as the round count goes up and gradually disappear. I even asked again to be certain that this isn't something that would persist or ever become a problem and he said he was totally confident it wouldn't and that they'd disappear.

My .02... I don't know what these plugs are made from or how they fit in the barrel but I'm guessing that they are inserted freely and somehow expanded to fit the bore once they're inside. They don't just slip in because that would have seemed to have left far more scaring along the longitude of the barrel as well. But it does beg the question as to why they're made out of something -- or had debris on them -- that could leave any mark at all on the bore. I won't speculate any further because I'm far, far, from an expert on any of this but feel free to chime in!

The firearm is going to get a once-over by an armorer to ensure everything is to spec and then sent back. I'll try and maybe follow up in a couple months after I get some more range time in.

Anyway, just wanted to close the loop on this. Thanks again for the input!


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## stokes (Jan 17, 2017)

Kind of what I was getting at in my last reply.Except I was wrong about the barrel being shot out.


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## rickclark28 (Apr 14, 2019)

Good update here and kudos to Glock for the effort! My experience with Glock has been limited but I am very impressed with them. Thanks for the update!
All you guys have a great day!


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## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

n32763 said:


> OK, got an update.
> 
> I spoke first with an armorer at Glock earlier this week after he received the photo. He himself couldn't definitively say what caused it and asked me to send the entire firearm in for evaluation. They provided an overnight shipping label at no cost.
> 
> ...


Did Glock mention anything about replacing the barrel, etc. compensation. 
Tell them to send you 1000 rounds and you'll eliminate the scratches yourself. ,lol.


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## Usafammo3 (Jun 8, 2020)

n32763 said:


> I've already initiated a conversation with Glock Customer Service and they've forwarded my information onto Warranty Service.
> 
> That said, does anybody have any idea what would have caused these marks from the factory? I ran a few patches through to clean out the factory-fired residue and saw them. I wanted my first USA-made Glock purchase to be a positive experience but this has been a big let down. This is looking into the breech end of the barrel. The circles are barely able to be felt with a small plastic probe but they're there. They are perfectly circular and do not follow the rifling. There's another one or two of these closer to the muzzle end of the barrel as well.
> 
> ...


Buy a new barrel. Send that one to glock in Georgia. When your replacement arrives, you'll have 2. 2 is 1 and 1 is none.


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## n32763 (Nov 26, 2020)

pic said:


> Did Glock mention anything about replacing the barrel, etc. compensation.
> Tell them to send you 1000 rounds and you'll eliminate the scratches yourself. ,lol.


In all seriousness, I almost pressed him harder on this exact point. But, since there's no issue whatsoever with accuracy in the meantime, shooting those 1000 rounds which will get rid of those marks aren't really throwaway or useless IMO.

To be honest, one of my other observations on the USA models is something that *won't* ever go away and that's the roll marks. But again, no real issue with performance clearly -- just cosmetic. Compared to the Austrian models though, they look almost like they were printed on an old dot matrix printer. More of a ragged etching with a rotary tool/laser vs a hot stamp that leaves a bit of relief like on the Austrian models. Maybe both plants are switching over to this approach though? IMO it's definitely not as nice.

Personally, I can say that I'd probably avoid buying a USA model Glock again. But I'll still enjoy shooting this one.


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## Usafammo3 (Jun 8, 2020)

n32763 said:


> In all seriousness, I almost pressed him harder on this exact point. But, since there's no issue whatsoever with accuracy in the meantime, shooting those 1000 rounds which will get rid of those marks aren't really throwaway or useless IMO.
> 
> To be honest, one of my other observations on the USA models is something that *won't* ever go away and that's the roll marks. But again, no real issue with performance clearly -- just cosmetic. Compared to the Austrian models though, they look almost like they were printed on an old dot matrix printer. More of a ragged etching with a rotary tool/laser vs a hot stamp that leaves a bit of relief like on the Austrian models. Maybe both plants are switching over to this approach though? IMO it's definitely not as nice.
> 
> Personally, I can say that I'd probably avoid buying a USA model Glock again. But I'll still enjoy shooting this one.


Seems like that is a common thing when manufacturers decide to move production to America. Sig is a fine example. Glock has far less problems. Let's hope HK doesnt get sold and someone by the name of Cohen doesn't get the bright idea to turn them into garbage too...


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## pic (Nov 14, 2009)

n32763 said:


> In all seriousness, I almost pressed him harder on this exact point. But, since there's no issue whatsoever with accuracy in the meantime, shooting those 1000 rounds which will get rid of those marks aren't really throwaway or useless IMO.
> 
> To be honest, one of my other observations on the USA models is something that *won't* ever go away and that's the roll marks. But again, no real issue with performance clearly -- just cosmetic. Compared to the Austrian models though, they look almost like they were printed on an old dot matrix printer. More of a ragged etching with a rotary tool/laser vs a hot stamp that leaves a bit of relief like on the Austrian models. Maybe both plants are switching over to this approach though? IMO it's definitely not as nice.
> 
> Personally, I can say that I'd probably avoid buying a USA model Glock again. But I'll still enjoy shooting this one.


Glock did a tremendous job in duplicating their European or Austrian plant to be identical.
I absolutely agree with you, The level of quality drops off , even if it's only the slightest. We know the quality will not get better, keeping the quality level equal would be quite an accomplishment
I did an apprenticeship machinist / builder, out of high school.
It was a regular job, but many of the machinists were German born east and west ( some world war 2 vets, pows ).
Their pride in their workmanship was outstanding.


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## n32763 (Nov 26, 2020)

Prior to my experience I had read mostly good things about USA model Glocks. While I do believe that they replicated the tooling/fabrication mechanics in the US to a high degree, as long as there's still a human hands-on element involved there will always be margin for error. That's where the pride-in-work comes in for sure. In this case with the barrel, maybe someone didn't tighten something completely, clean something thoroughly, or was simply rushing. We'll never know.


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## Mowgli Terry (Sep 19, 2019)

How much of a US Glock is actually made in the USA. Frame says otherwise. I don't know.


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## stokes (Jan 17, 2017)

I wouldnt have given those scratches a second thought,nor would I think any less of Glock USA's manufacturing abilities because of it.To me, that is the least troublesome "defect" I've seen.


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## Mowgli Terry (Sep 19, 2019)

I could not find what is actually made in America with Glock. Got all sorts on answers on the net.


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## n32763 (Nov 26, 2020)

Mowgli Terry said:


> How much of a US Glock is actually made in the USA. Frame says otherwise. I don't know.


Glock says the USA models incorporate a frame, barrel, and slide that are made in the USA. Every other component is imported from Austria. USA frames have an extra line with "Made in USA" on them as well -- at least the latest models do. There's also a proof mark on the side of the frame that's the state of Georgia. The same proof mark also appears on the barrel hood.


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## Mowgli Terry (Sep 19, 2019)

The most recent Glock here is my G23.4. I has "Made In Austria: and the Selma Address. No Austrian proof. Trying to figure this out is crazy making. The real benefit is that small parts are easily replaced. I had sent in a used G21.3 that was sent in inspection and removing aftermarket parts. Almost all internal parts were replaced. Glock's, for the most part, do not have much snob appeal.


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## berettatoter (Sep 1, 2011)

Welp, at least Glock took care of you...unlike some other manufacturers.


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## n32763 (Nov 26, 2020)

Quick update yall... Got the firearm back. Slide and frame were clean but prior to doing that they clearly put a few rounds through it to actually check it out. Bore with just a quick dry wipe still had some grunge and there was some new fouling that I hadn't seen before. Good to know that they performed more than just a visual examination. I also noticed a good drop of some type of thick lubricant on the trigger mechanism at the back of the frame(the one point Glock recommends lubricating) so they clearly spent some time on it. Solid customer service.


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