Welcome to the world of concealed carry weapons, as we review the Glock 26 generation IV pistol.

Coming from a brand such as Glock which is synonymous with reliable firearms, the Glock 26 is also high on safety and comfort.

A generation 4 pistol from Glock means that you get only the best and the advanced technology that the brand has to offer.

This sub-compact handgun is the smallest you will find in the category and yet is super capable.

The Glock 26 is a 9mm luger caliber pistol that comes with an extremely powerful grip and passive safety features to let you focus on only firing and nothing else.

It has been field tested to give you a no-miss shot every single time. A dual recoil spring assembly ensures that you feel less kickback. Read on to see if this handgun has everything that you would look for in a sub-compact handgun.

Best features

The Glock 26 is chock full of capabilities that you can get in a compact gun, but we list below some of its best features.

• The standard magazine capacity of 10 can be increased by using 10, 13, 15, 17, 19, 31 and 33 round magazines.
• Easy and quick to field strip
• Passive safety system with firing pin and drop safeties
• Start shooting straight out-of-the box
• Enlarged magazine button for ease of use
• Reversible magazine button to allow for use by both left-handed and right-handed shooters
• Alternate backstraps for users with large or long hands

Dual recoil spring

The generation 4 Glock 26 comes with a dual recoil spring assembly which means that the life of the pistol is increased substantially. So your pistol might just last more than a lifetime.

The dual recoil also makes the recoil effect or the kickback effect much softer. This will allow you to quickly gain control for your next shot. A softer kickback is also great for those who are sensitive to the recoil effect.

A hard kickback will cause pain and fatigue with continued use too, but with the Glock 26 you can virtually hold the gun and shoot all day without feeling any pain. 

Capacity

The standard magazine capacity of the Glock 26 is 10 rounds plus one in the chamber. But the beauty of this sub-compact model is that you can increase it to 33 rounds as it is compatible with magazines of higher capacity.

You can either use a 2+ round magazine extension or choose from G15, G17, G19 or G33 round extended magazines.

Reversible magazine catch

The position of the magazine release can be a big factor if you are a left-handed shooter. The magazine release on the Glock 26 is reversible and enlarged.

The default location is right-handed but the magazine catch can be changed in a matter of seconds to accommodate for left-handed users.

Backstraps

The grip of the pistol in your hands determines how well you are able to fire it. All generation 4 handguns of Glock have adjustable backstraps, so it becomes easy for users with different hand sizes to easily grip the hand gun.

This is a great feature especially for those with large hands or long fingers who may have trouble with holding compact guns.

Frame

When steel pistols were all the rage back in the olden days, Glock was the first brand to introduce polymer guns that were much lighter but equally strong.

The Glock 26 has a polymer frame with a cold hammer forged barrel. The overall frame has a rough textured design to enable a better grip even under challenging conditions. So you will never lose your grip on the pistol even if your hands were wet. In fact, the Glock 26 feels extremely comfortable even when continuously used.

Sights

The sights on the Glock 26 are fixed polymer sights. It has a single dot in the front and a U in the rear which can be aligned quickly to get an accurate shot.

Kickback

Most sub-compact guns will give you a lot of kickback, but the Glock 26 though a sub-compact 9mm gun, with its dual recoil system gives you very minimal kickback. This means that there is no delay of your follow up shot. 

Field-testing

Coming from a brand such as Glock, this fourth generation sub-compact pistol is the best when it comes to reliability as it has been rigorously field tested for performance.

Safety

The Glock 26 is designed with a Safe Action technology which is a fully automatic system. The safety system has three different components that work independent of each other. The firing pin and the drop safety are internal and automatic while the trigger safety is external.

So all the safeties in the Glock 26 are passive in nature and let you shoot immediately without much thinking.

• Trigger – A safety lever in the trigger prevents its backward movement and accidental firing. If you want to fire, you will have to depress both the safety lever and the trigger at the same time.
• Firing Pin – The firing pin is blocked by means of a safety block that projects into the firing pin channel. When the trigger is depressed, it pushes the firing pin safety upwards.
• Drop – The trigger bar is prevented from accidental discharge by a drop safety shelf.

Reliability

Glock brand of pistols are probably the best handguns that are known for their reliability. You can use any type of ammo with the Glock 26 and it will still work well without a problem.

Maintenance

Cleaning and maintaining your Glock 26 is a breeze as it is extremely easy to disassemble and build up. What’s even better is that it can be done without the use of any tools.

You can use the pistol for thousands of shots and it still won’t require cleaning in between. This is the one of the few handguns that has a very low maintenance.

Concealed carry

If you are looking for a firearm with concealed carry option, then the Glock 26 will fit your bill the best. You have the best little gun that can be trusted with your every mission and does not compromise on capacity or power.

It is even great for appendix carry or you can simply put it in your pocket and walk away. It’s that compact. 

Accessories

The Glock pistols in general have the most number of aftermarket options from holsters to magazines to tactical lights and much more. You can choose from an almost endless number of Glock 26 accessories and it is an added bonus that you can field strip the entire gun in no time and rebuild it.

Price

One of the many reasons why you will love the Glock 26 is due to the Glock 26 price point. It retails at $500 dollars which is less than the average price tag of 9 mm luger pistols. It also comes with three magazines and a magazine loader which is practically everything you will need.

Cons of the Glock 26

• No night sights – The pistol comes with only black combat sights which are great but may not be for those who love night sights better
• Looks – The Glock 26 is designed to be more utilitarian and so does not fare well in terms of good looks with its boxy design.
• Grip – With only two grooves, there is not much room for your pinky. But you can always get a cheap base plate replacement to deal with the issue. 

Glock 26 Gen 4 versus FNS-9 compact

Both the Glock 26 and FNS-9 are both virtually the same size when you look at them but the Glock 26 is actually more compact than the FNS-9. The two finger grooves on the Glock 26 ensures a better hold of the gun than the FNS-9 that does not have any grooves.

As the Glock is a much older brand than the FNS-9 you will have plenty of aftermarket options to choose for the Glock 26. Whether it is holsters or magazine extensions or trigger kits, you will be spoiled for choice with the Glock 26.

Glock 26 Gen4 versus Smith & Wesson M&P Shield

When compared to the Smith &Wesson M & P Shield, the Glock 26 is better in terms of capacity with a 10 round capacity as opposed to only 7 in the former. The trigger and grip texture of the Glock 26 also fares better. Glock also has far more accessories options than the Shield. 

Conclusion

People require handguns for various reasons from personal defense to law enforcement to recreational shooting. Whatever the reason might be, a reliable firearm is what becomes the priority in each of these different scenarios.

Glock is a brand that is known for its years of experience in producing firearms that are popular with the law enforcement agencies. With such a track record, reliability is something that becomes a default feature.

This Glock 26 pistol is for those who love a utilitarian handgun that is compact enough for concealed carry but big enough to shoot with ease. We don’t want you to take our word for it as it is always better to also read other Glock 26 reviews to get a fair idea of what the pistol has to offer. But we are sure that you will love the Glock 26 and it might very well go on to becoming your everyday gun.