Sunday, November 7, 2010

Lone Wolf Glock Conversion Barrel Range Report And Review



I recently decided to try my luck with the Lone Wolf conversion barrel for my Glock 23.

(Note:  My Glock is a "Generation 3."  You may or may not get the same results with other generations of Glock handguns.)

The particular Lone Wolf barrel I purchased converts my stock G23 .40 S&W pistol, making it possible for me to utilize the less expensive 9mm round because I’m a cheap bastard and because the .40 caliber round is frightening to me and the recoil hurts my delicate hands.

Besides the barrel, all I had to do was procure a couple of G19 9mm magazines.

I purchased my factory Glock 9mm magazines from Beech Grove Firearms because they are cool and they deserve my business.

Lone Wolf states that their barrels are “drop-ins,” that no gunsmithing or farting around is necessary, and that even a dumb fuck like me could do it.


Fit and finish are beautiful, and Lone Wolf says their barrels are, "... manufactured from the highest grade mill select 416 stainless forgings. CNC machined and heat treated..."

Whatever THAT means...but I bet it means they are bad-ass gun barrels made out of a single billet of American-made, hard-as-fuck steel and they have a laser etched wolf on them so they are evil and forbidding and will scare the shit out of one's enemies.

Maybe.

(I heard that one can order the barrel without the awesome wolf laser etching if one wants to. I suggest contacting Lone Wolf for further information, though.)

Now…I read on the intardnets that converting my factory G23 would result in multiple horrors:

-Failures to feed (FTF).

-Failures to extract (FTE).

-Brass ejecting into the shooter’s face.

-General heinous damage to the firearm.

-Conversion barrels are good for plinking, but not good enough to stake your life on them in a carry situation.

I decided to find out for myself. I am the boss of me, and nobody tells me what to do.

So there...

Today, I fired approximately 300 rounds of 9mm, and 150 rounds of .40 through my G23, alternating between barrels/calibers after firing two magazines of each caliber.

I made no changes to my G23 other than the barrels and magazines.

Here are my findings and impressions.

-No FTFs or FTEs.

-Obviously, recoil was much less “snappy” with the Lone Wolf 9mm barrel.

-Accuracy with the Lone Wolf 9mm barrel was markedly better than the stock Glock .40 barrel.

-Brass ejection was noticeably weaker with the Lone Wolf barrel. The brass did not eject half way across the range, but nor did it eject directly back into my face. It ejected up and to the right of the shooter at a total distance of about four feet…perfectly acceptable in my book.

-I could find no noticeable damage to my G23 after shooting it today. Everything looks peachy to me.


-Based on today’s performance, I would not hesitate to carry my Lone Wolf conversion barrel equipped-G23 on a daily basis.

So…for the price of the barrel and two magazines, I effectively have two reliable guns now.

Groovy.

I heartily endorse this product.

_____



Here are some jaw-dropping photos so that you, the gentle reader, can compare and contrast stuff and maybe make your own judgments.

Click on the pictures for pants-wetting clarity!

 
Keep in mind that the photos were taken immediately following my shooting session, and that the firearm had not been properly cleaned.


If you look closely, you will see lubricant, dirt, brass residue, and other filth.

My G23 likes it like that because she is a nasty, stinking whore...just the way I like it!


Top View


Bottom View


Side View With Rounds In Chambers



_____


.40 Slide Side View



9mm Slide Side View


.40 Slide Top View



9mm Slide Top View



.40 Slide Bottom View



9mm Slide Bottom View



.40 Lower Receiver



9mm Lower Receiver


_____



.40


9mm

55 comments:

  1. Thanks for the review, i've wondered about those "drop in" conversions. The humorous right up give me quite a few laughs ...

    ReplyDelete
  2. You are quite welcome. I like to be helpful to my fellow gun-nutters! I think these conversion barrels are going to be quite useful during the upcoming zombie apocalypse when we may run out of one caliber and have to switch to another. It's all about utility, improvising, and adapting to changing conditions. Keep your powder dry, my brother.

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  3. Great Review I'm sold

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  4. I loved your review and your writing style rocks! I have the Glock 23 also and headed to Lone Wolf for my 9mm barrel promptly.
    Thank Walter Zombie
    Nevada Shooter

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks, and you're welcome, brother. It's a great product, and Lone Wolf ain't payin' me a nickel to say it either. I just returned from a range trip today and put over a hundred more 9mm rounds through my G23 conversion barrel. No problems...

    ReplyDelete
  6. Have a 27 so I'll have to figure out what barrel length to get.
    Thanks & enjoyed.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Glad you like the story. This link might help you decide what to do with your G27:

    http://www.lonewolfdist.com/Products.aspx?CAT=241

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thanks for the review Walter, if you need anymore parts from us please contact me at Zack@LoneWolfDist.com

    I also featured this blog post on our own company blog, www.lonewolfdist.com/blog

    ReplyDelete
  9. I've had the same combination for well over a year now and have never encountered nor heard of the "problems" identified by naysayers with stock ammo.

    My barrel is actually one of the threaded ones for use with another goodie. The only hiccups have been when testing my personal reloads, which I can't fault either Glock or LoneWolf. Excellent review!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Damn. I am humbled by your kind words, by the communication from the cat from LoneWolf, and their inclusion of my review on their wwebsite!

    I will not be accepting any freebies from anybody, 'cuz I'm just a nobody blogger who appreciates an American company that produces a quality product which performs as advertised.

    Sorry about the potty mouth LW (not really), but that's kinda just the way I am...raised by wolves and a little rough around the edges.

    Semper Fi.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Damn! That's the best review about any product that I've ever read.

    Seriously.

    ReplyDelete
  12. If thats the best language you can use it tells me you're a little lazy and ignorant.I will take no advice from you when you talk like a punk.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Shut the fuck up candy panties, take your ass to Harvard business school with that homo response. This is the best review I have ever came across lol

      Delete
    2. Way to say that anonymously, pussy.

      Delete
  13. As if I give two shits what an anonymous cunt like you thinks.

    Leaving a message such as this without signing your name to it tells me you are a gutless pussy.

    I don't know why you would read this piece to begin with, as you are obviously too much of a coward to own or use a firearm to defend yourself, and you are obviously too fucking stupid to understand satire or the repeated warnings you were given about foul language.

    Go fuck yourself with a rusty chainsaw.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Entertaining, brief and to the point. Not considering LWD for a conversion, but a longer, threaded, barrel for my G17. It was nice to read an actual review of this company's product instead of some forumfags talking crap because it's not ultra-elite-operator status.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for your kind words. You get it, obviously. And yes...I'm just an everyday Joe who likes guns...not an elite SEAL/Recon/Sniper/Green Beret. Nor am I a firearms expert by any stretch of the imagination...

      I own Lone Wolf's Glock conversion barrel and recoil spring (purchased at full price with my own money), so I can only speak to the quality of them...but it's good stuff. Never had a problem with either one. I would assume the threaded barrel is of good quality also.

      Thanks for visiting.

      Delete
  15. I am wondering why the barrels are a left hand twist and the factory barrels are a right hand twist. Any logic behing this?

    ReplyDelete
  16. I am not an expert...although I play one on the intardnets...but it may have something to do with Glock being all proud of their shit and saying you shouldn't fire hand-loads or lead-jacketed ammo from their factory barrels because they have some kinda funky-assed high-tech Austrian rifling that is not understandable by the common man.

    I think maybe Lone Wolf said, "Fuck you, Glock," and made their barrels cool so we ignorant Americans could shoot whatever the fuck we wanted through them and not worry about shit.

    All I know for certain is that the Lone Wolf barrel is accurate as fuck, and I don't fret about nuthin' when I use it.

    I would suggest consulting Lone Wolf directly for the straight gouge, however.

    Thanks for visiting.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Dude,

      You are hilarious!! Thanks for the review.

      Delete
  17. I ordered the 9mm conversion and the .357sig. I too and a cheap fucker and I never know when one of my buddies will leave a box of .357 out in the open. I figure if I can borrow 5 boxes, the damn barrel will pay for itself.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think you will be pleased. Utility is the name of the game, my brother. We cheap bastards need to stick together and keep an eye out for gear that is adrift, for gear adrift is a gift from God himself.

      Delete
  18. Awesome review. I just got the 40-9 conversion barrel for my Glock 22 and it shot very well, super accurate, many shots through one ragged hole. Ejection was weaker than with the .40 barrel and I got hit in the face by a few shells, but lets face it there is no need to be a pussy about brassl in the face, suck it up and keep shooting.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. PF:

      You and I are in obvious agreement.
      No big deal about getting hot brass in the face.
      In fact, having a hot piece of brass fall in between your eyeglasses and your face is quite exhilarating.
      Happy shooting.

      Delete
  19. Walter:

    Great review. Appreciate your effort.

    As of now, how many rounds have you put through the conversion barrel?

    Any problem?

    Do you use the original Glock's spring assembly or after-the-market one?

    Thanks, again.

    Eric

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Eric:

      Thanks for visiting, and thanks for your kind words.

      I haven't kept a running tab of rounds expended...I just ain't THAT anal, but it is enough to be confident in reliability.

      Regarding springs...good point.

      I replaced the factory Glock recoil spring and plastic guide rod with a Lone Wolf spring and stainless steel rod...and since you brought it up...I don't think I've used the LW 9mm barrel since the spring/rod swap-out. (It works fine with .40 though)

      It's prolly sumpthin' I should do, and it gives me an excuse to go the range and blast shit up.

      Take care.

      Delete
  20. I bought a LW conversion barrel for a Gen2 G22 for my wife. She didn't like the .40 round, so I figured 9mm would be easier for her to shoot. She did have a few FTF with the pistol in the first few magazines. I immediately took it from her, ran 2 mags without any problem, and handed it back to her. She had another FTF. I told her it must be her grip/limpwristing that was causing it. I've ran serveral hundred myself with the barrel without any problems at all. I blame it on the shooter, and not the barrel

    ReplyDelete
  21. I read on Lonewolf web site that when you go from 40/357 to 9mm Gen 4 you may need to change recoil spring. Hotter rounds still work, but lighter loads can give some problems w/FTE. It's because of the new recoil spring in the Gen 4s.

    ReplyDelete
  22. I have just got a Gen4 Glock 22. I read a lot of shit about needing to change extractors, and recoil spring assemblies, and then it wouldnt just be a drop in unit then. Well in light of people finding out the Gen4 G22 is sprung too stiff for the mighty 9mm round to power the slide fully back and forward, and thatll cause failure to feed and failure to eject.

    HEY ZACK FROM LONEWOLF, why dont you guys get your PR people on this growing cancer online about your conversion barrels sucking ass and not working/feeding properly? Obviously these people must be more ignorant than we are, so you should dummyproof things a little for everyone. Sell your 40-9 conversion barrels with a recoil spring assembly for the Glock 17/9mm INCLUDED WITH IT.

    Now thats not a einstein idea to come up with, but that would solve all the shit talk online about LoneWolf having horrible quality, or questionable batches of barrels. I think if the sherlocks online would do some research, maybe they got problems starting when the Gen4 was birthed and the spring changed. As everything was Jim Dandy with the Gen 3's I believe before that. Now youve gone and done it. Made a great barrel for all us to shoot lead and reloads and enjoy, but why come up short? Its like taking a million step race, and quitting before the last step. Follow up son. Follow through. They call it Glock Perfection for a reason, they can fuck up on Gen4's, well mainly 9mm ones and the RSA, but they keep trying til they get it right. Thats perfection.

    So smarten up Zack. And follow suit. You want your gear at the top of the list, and highly spoken about for everything. You dont want an army of pissed off cheap trolls who are angry their new LWD 40-9 isnt working as planned for them. Just do yourselves a favour, buy the god damn things in bulk if you need to, hell, charge more for it to include it WITH the barrel. But just fucking do it god damnit. Youll save people time, the irritation and the piss off of needing to hunt down other doo wads and knick knacks before they get their LWD running up and proper. If you wanna call it drop in and fire, then make it so, Zack, make it so. Just drop in that part thats needed into the plastic virgin 40-9 case, itll fit nicely im sure you wont have to change anything in packaging. Your customers would appreciate you for it.

    Who would sell Ikea furniture for you to build yourself and not even include the needed screws and bolts and hardware? Well thats how we feel dude, screwed. Cause our sets didnt come with everything we needed. Buying a 40-9, then having to do and buy a matching spring, ejector, extractor, etc does not constitute drop in barrel, it means extra steps that lazy ignorant customers with piles of money want to throw at you, may head to others like KKM or Storm Lake for their conversion barrels.

    Smarten up. Not every day someone like Walter Zombie drops pure unadulterated knowledge for you to lap up. And you didnt even need to take a survey or pay for a focus group. You get it all here.

    Thanks Wally, happy zombie blastin!

    ReplyDelete
  23. And I just bought a 40-9 I hope itll work with the Gen4 G22, but I am expecting it not to, which is a piss off. Now i need to hunt down a spring. Include it well pay for it charge more whatever. Or just add it in and make things right. This will happen if you do: $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ (to LWD)

    ReplyDelete
  24. I was gonna delete these anonymous comments because they initially struck me as being kinda cunty. But as a read them again, I think you folks have a point, and I have decided you are not being cunty, and I will leave your posts as they are.

    My Glockenspiel is a Gen. 3, and I haven't had any problems with it and the LW barrel.

    That said, I understand why you Gen. 4 owners are a bit pissed off.

    I would hope that you have contacted Lone Wolf directly about your issues and problems, 'cuz bitchin' about it here really ain't gonna do much, I expect.

    I get the impression that Lone Wolf is fairly responsive to customer concerns.

    Get a hold of them and vent, my brothers.

    Can't hurt nuthin.'

    ReplyDelete
  25. I can't speak for anyone else, but I bought a Lone Wolf 9mm barrel (threaded) conversion for use in my Gen 4 G22, along with some 9mm mags from CDNN Investments (great prices). It worked perfectly, no FTFs, FTEs, or any issues whatsoever. Stock recoil spring/guid rod, etc.

    I wonder if the folks writing about problems with the Gen 4 have actually tried it themselves or are just parroting crap they've read on the Web? Or maybe they need to strengthen their wrists a little (besides "spanking the monkey", that is ;-)

    I also bought a threaded barrel for my G30 and it works fine, as well. Not that I expected anything else from a Lone Wolf product.

    I'm not a fan of the 9mm (although I was forced to carry it on duty with a small department I worked for years ago), but knowing I might (at some time in the future) acquire a large amount of 9 mm ammo from some DHS employees who no longer had any use for it, I thought having an extra firearm that can chamber it could be useful. Just in case I ever find myself running low on .45 and .40.

    ReplyDelete
  26. You have written a great review. Good Job

    ReplyDelete
  27. LMFAO.. Awesome post brother.... I have a Gen 3 GLOCK 23, and am getting this, also have a Kahr PM9 , can pocket it, and currently shopping for a KIMBER Pro Carry II 45ACP ... You're writing style ROCKS.. I might like dick, but can rebuild the carb in your classic car.. lol... Let me blow you away at the range, or better yet, in the cab of your truck.. ... JK... You're da Bomb.....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for your kind words, however, I have no interest in getting freaky with another guy. It's not my bag, baby.

      Even though I am a heartless conservative hetero gun-mongering hating hater who hates and has no interest in "trying dick"...even with ketchup, I got no problem with gays.

      I think everyone has the right to arm themselves in any way they see fit...especially gays 'cuz of the bashers who lurk out there.

      Live and let live I say, as long as it doesn't break my arm or pick my pocket or harm me or mine...I don't give a fuck.

      I have a dear family member who is gay. He is conservative, overly generous, and I would take a bullet for him.

      Good luck with the conversion barrel. I think you will like it. As you might have surmised, I am happy with mine.

      Happy shooting.

      Delete
  28. Hell of a review brother! Will be getting me one of these. Keep an itchy trigger finger.

    ReplyDelete
  29. LWD gets a bad rap, my Glock 22 has a LWD .357Sig Barrel and a .357 Storm Lake threaded barrel. I can't say it's first hand knowledge, but I've had many friends online and offline who love LWD barrels..except for the threaded ones, however, take that with a grain of salt, it is secondhand.

    ReplyDelete
  30. I feel a lot more people need to read this, very good info! . . . . . . Glock Barrel

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. G'day from down under (Australia) well i grew up with an old man who was a gun dealer wow lots of guns in the house from Irish 38's to Lugers, S&W 38 special,bolt action shotguns,you name it. and now %%&K no the govt makes it so hard you cannot have any thing, got to have ammo in separate lockable safe guns in separate safe.
      So if some low life breaks into your house you say "please wait while i load my gun" yeah sure he's going to wait.
      And if you injure him/her they can sue you for damages.
      No I am not kidding if you injure some lowlife that comes into you house they can sue you?
      %%%K just kill the lowlife and drag it out into the street then go back to bed.
      I envy you guys i was in USA went to Stugiss 2010 for rally and went to fireing range and fired a 50 cal revolver shit it felt so good.

      Delete
  31. Just so you guys know it's not a full conversion to 9mm unless you change the extractor, ejector and spring loaded bearing to 9mm. These are easily changed parts and after you do that the only difference between a 23 & 19 is the breech face size on the slide. But changing those 3 parts along with the barrel & mags essentially make it a 19 and those ejection issues will be clear up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. just so you know you should read up on the extractor and LW conversion barrel, or look at one. The Chamber is offset.

      Delete
  32. I write this because (in my limited experience) I think LWD gets a bad rap for their barrels.

    A few weeks ago, I opted to buy a drop in barrel for my G30SF. Not because I want it to look cooler, but because I want to shoot lead reloads.

    I ordered from LWD. THEN I started to read posts from "experts" who said the chambers were cut too tight for lead reloads. There were HORRIBLE stories about LWD barrels and reloads. I about shit my pants, thinking I had spent about $100 for a paperweight.

    Got it in the mail 3 days later, as promised. Took my lead reloads and "plunk" tested a couple of rounds at random (which I had already loaded for my 1911 guns) while I clinched my ass cheeks and squinted. They "plunked" with the best of them, and I would up shooting about 400 rounds in a few hours of all types of .45ACP ammo without one hiccup, No special OAL length reloads for the LWD barrel. Just the same old shit loads I can shoot with my 1911 guns too.

    It would seem to me that the "experts" who are whining incessantly about the LWD barrels should probably focus more on their reloading skills (making sure their rounds are in spec) and less time trolling the interwebs looking to feed someone a shit sandwich.

    I would gladly buy another of LWD's barrels should I feel the need.

    Just $.02 worth of my thoughts, since a whole dollar's worth is worthless!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cool. That's some good gouge.

      I don't reload, nor am I an expert on anything, but from what I understand the LWD barrels were designed to handle just about any kind of round...unlike the stock Glock barrel.

      Thanks for commenting.

      Delete
  33. I've had similar results with the L.W. barrel I purchased for my G23 as well. The only issues I could find were that upon freshly dropping the barrel in for the first time (and using a Glock 17 mag/ my back up carry mag), the slide, when cycled by hand, would travel approximately 2" or so the rear and then freeze. It took all the strength I could muster to eject the round from that point, even after clearing the mag from the mag well. This kept up until I fired the configuration and doesn't seem to malfunction in this manner anymore, regardless of G19 or G17 mag.

    The other issue is that if the slide is cycled SLOWLY by hand, after approximately 1/2" to 1", the extractor looses contact with the case rim no longer pulls it free of chamber. I'm considering purchasing a Glock 9mm extractor to see if it helps.

    Otherwise, both the G19 mags and G17 back up mags functioned fine and slide lock engaged upon empty for both magazines. Very happy with my 95$ + 30$ (barrel/mag) investment. Hope this helped.

    ReplyDelete
  34. Hey guys quick question any recommendations on what rounds to use to break in a new G23

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm no expert, but I'd say if you used plain old Winchester white box ball rounds you'd be good to go. That's what I used with no problems.

      Delete
    2. Appreciate quick response, any advice on the best wat to lighten trigger pull to 3.5 lbs

      Delete
  35. With so many aftermarket parts how do I narrow down which company and parts are best to use, new to the Glock most of my guns are Sigs.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I don't know anything about altering a Glock's trigger pull, so I personally wouldn't mess with it. All I can say is do your research. Stock Glocks are pretty good in my opinion, but if your heart is set on mods, try Glock Talk or some of the other fan forums.

      http://glocktalk.com/forums/index.php

      Delete
  36. Lone Wolf carries trigger parts from several manufacturers:

    http://www.lonewolfdist.com/Products.aspx?CAT=15

    I can't vouch for these parts personally, but if you do some digging you'll probably find some folks who used the parts and their opinions.

    ReplyDelete
  37. Thanks Walter appreciate your time

    ReplyDelete
  38. Just be aware that any aftermarket parts you put on a Glock (barrel, spring, trigger, etc) need to be removed before you send the gun back to Glock if you ever need to. They will take all aftermarket parts off your gun, replace with stock parts and charge you for them. They will not send your aftermarket parts back. You will get it back factory stock. I'm guessing it's to please the legal beagles!

    ReplyDelete
  39. Good review I was just saying today how I was gonna get one for my g22

    ReplyDelete
  40. Nice review on the LW barrels. I discovered your blog while researching drop ins -Looking to get a 40-9 for my G27. I reload and have switched over to copper plated. They shoot fine and a little cleaner. No leading in the stock Glock barrels either with the copper plated.

    Not got around to buying the drop in replacement yet but I will. Waiting on the X-mas money.

    Keep up the good work here sir It's the shit!

    ReplyDelete

Feel free to comment away with your bad-ass selves.

Cursing and foul language is fine...even encouraged here. In fact, I think cussing is fucking wonderful.

Just remember...this is MY house, and I will not be insulted or maliciously messed with here.

Good-natured ribbing is cool, but if you and I don't have some kind of previous relationship, you had best mind your fucking manners or I will relegate you to the intardnets dustbin for being a cunt.

To know me is to love me.

Or something.

Maybe.