For decades, GLOCK has been one of the dominant names in the handgun space. Renowned for their simplicity and overall reliability, GLOCK handguns have consistently been some of the most widely used pistols created, with them having been favored by world Militaries, Law Enforcement Agencies, and civilians alike, ever since their inception.
On the civilian side, the GLOCK 19 has long been one of the most carried EDC pistols ever created, but as enthusiasts continue to opt for smaller handguns for easier concealment, newer pistols like the GLOCK 43x have become the new go-to.
A smaller pistol, the G43x builds on the foundation of the ultra-compact G43, refreshing its design with GLOCK Gen 5 aesthetics and greater magazine capacity. Although the G43x is a solid pistol, with the right upgrades, you can easily take its capabilities to the max, enhancing nearly every aspect of this pistol to make it tailored to best suit your preferences.
What is the G43x?
Building on the foundation of their G43, the G43x is a utilitarian pistol designed for everyday carry. An impressively small pistol, the 43x retains the same overall length as the G43, albeit with a longer grip. With an overall length of 6.5 inches and a height of only 5.04 inches, it comes equipped with a 3.41-inch GLOCK Marksman Barrel (GMB) and has a standard magazine capacity of 10 rounds. Plus, with a width of only 1.1 inches, it’s .24-inches thinner than the G19, reducing the risk of printing.
As we alluded to in the intro of this article, many new to the platform often ask what generation the GLOCK 43x is. While sharing many similarities to GLOCK’s Gen 5 pistols, it’s officially a part of their Slimline series of pistols. Despite this, it comes standard with many upgraded components introduced with their Gen 5 design, such as the GLOCK Marksman Barrel (GMB), Safe Action® System trigger system, as well as other added features such as a dedicated accessory rail, their Modular Optics System (MOS), though this is only on select models. That said, it does lack an ambidextrous slide release, but overall, it blends the functionality of their Slimline pistols with the aesthetics and most of the upgrades of the Gen 5 design.
Currently, there are three base variants of the G43x: the standard G43x, the G43x MOS, and the G43x MOS8. The only difference between these pistols is their ability to mount optics, as G43x MOS models come with a factory milled slide to accept optics, while the standard G43x doesn’t have any optic mounting capabilities. New to the lineup is the G43x MOS8, which was made in collaboration between GLOCK and Aimpoint. MOS8 pistols have a slide milled specifically for Aimpoint COA pistol red dot sight, an optic that’s only available for select GLOCK pistols. Aside from these differences, they can come with an assortment of different iron sights as well.
We cover this in our guide, “How Much is a GLOCK?”, but depending on the model you look at, the G43x can vary in price. Base model pistols typically hover around $450, while MOS variants and MOS8 COA models can range from around $500 to $850+. Additionally, the G43x is included in the GLOCK Blue Label program, discounting them even further.
Essential GLOCK 43x Accessories and Upgrades
Just like with any other GLOCK pistol, the G43x can be tailored to fit your own needs and preferences. Thanks to its ever-growing parts aftermarket, you can do quite a lot with your pistol so long as you know How to take apart a GLOCK for cleaning or customization. As such, most enthusiasts typically upgrade the G43x’s trigger, magazine, slide, barrel, and grip. Plus, it can be enhanced even further with a good weapon light and optic.
G43x Trigger Upgrades
A pistol’s trigger plays a critical role in defining the overall feel of the handgun, while also serving as the only means of starting your pistol’s firing cycle. As such, having an upgraded trigger can dramatically enhance the feel of your pistol. While we do have a dedicated GLOCK trigger guide, we cover why an enhanced trigged is welcome upgrade for the G43x below:
The pull weight of an OEM G43x trigger is around 5.5 to 6 pounds, which, while not bad, isn’t the most conducive for making quick follow-up shots on target. Having a heavier trigger requires you to exert more force on it when firing, which can cause you to inadvertently strain your hand, potentially causing you to pull your shots. Granted, this issue can be overcome with dedicated training, but an upgraded trigger goes a long way in curbing it.
Brands like Overwatch Precision, Tyrant CNC, and Wheaton Arms all make a plethora of solid trigger options for the G43x. Overwatch Precision’s PolyDAT drop-in trigger kit replaces the curved trigger shoe for a flat design, and it reduces the trigger’s total travel by up to 20%, creating a more consistent trigger pull with less total movement. Additionally, it still comes with a built-in trigger safety. Similarly, Wheaton Arms’ drop-in trigger has many of the same features and has the added benefit of being made from 7075-T6 aluminum, ensuring there’s no unnecessary trigger bending when pulling it.
If you don’t want to upgrade the entire trigger assembly, you can opt for an upgraded trigger shoe instead. Tyrant CNC’s Improved Tyrant Trigger System, better known as the I.T.T.S., uses a hybrid trigger shoe design that has both a flat facing and a gradual curve for optimal finger placement. It also comes with a 30% spring to increase its reset force, giving you a more immediate reset after firing.
Depending on which trigger package you look at, they can vary in price, ranging anywhere from around $60 for just an upgraded trigger shoe to upwards of $170 for a full drop-in kit. Overall, though, you can’t go wrong with either possibility.
Magazine Upgrades
On its own, the G43x has a standard magazine capacity of 10 rounds. While not necessarily a low amount by any means, many handguns of the same size can hold upwards of 12 or more rounds. This is because standard G43x magazines are made from polymer—so, to have the strength and rigidity needed to stack multiple rounds, the walls of the magazine need to be thicker. However, seeing an opportunity for improvement, Shield Arms created the S15 magazine to increase the G43x’s capacity while maintaining a flush mount magazine design.
Rather than making their magazines out of polymer, S15 magazines are made of steel, giving them much thinner walls and a wider inner diameter, making them capable of holding 15 rounds. Even further, they can also ship with extended base plates that can increase their total capacity to 17 or 20 rounds, respectively. Being made of metal, it’s highly recommended that before you start using these magazines, you replace the magazine catch with a Shield Arms upgraded one.
Stock GLOCK 43x mag releases are made from polymer, not metal, so if you were to use metal S15 magazines before upgrading it, it would wear down over time. Fortunately, Shield Arms offers complete S15 magazine upgrade kits that include the upgraded mag release. This upgrade kit effectively gives you the same capacity as the GLOCK 19 in a package that’s almost half as wide. Still, if you want to keep your GLOCK upgrades simple though, you can always opt for a magazine extension for your OEM 43x magazines too.
Upgraded Slides, Barrels, and Compensators
Upgraded slides have long been one of the go-to upgrades enthusiasts make to their pistols. And with GLOCK pistols having such a large parts aftermarket, there are a plethora of top-tier brands and slide options to consider, even for newer models like the G43x. In the same vein, there’s now a wide range of upgraded barrels to choose from too, and compensators as well.
Upgraded Slides
Enhanced slides, like those from ZEV Technologies, Maple Leaf Customs, Zaffiri Precision, and NORSSO are a solid upgrade for the G43x. They not only provide a solid aesthetic change to your pistol, but they can also come with extra serrations for better grip when racking the slide, vents for ported barrels, and they can also have optic shelves milled for specific mounting footprints.
This keeps you from having to use specific GLOCK 43x mounts, giving you a lower mount height that can more easily co-witness with standard height irons. As such, these are a solid upgrade for non-MOS G43x models, as they’ll allow you to run optics with ease.
Upgraded Barrels and Compensators
In addition to an upgraded slide, you can also add an enhanced barrel and compensator to your pistol. While there are some aftermarket slides, like those from NORSSO, that can come packaged with enhanced bull-barrels or ported ones, not all of them do. So, if you already have an MOS slide, you don’t need to upgrade it just to use a new barrel and compensator.
One of the most popular aftermarket GLOCK-compatible barrels is the Radian Weapons AFTERBURNER and RAMJET. Consisting of both an upgraded barrel (RAMJET) that’s fluted for better heat dissipation, it makes use of their specialized INTRA-LOK design to allow for seamless integration of their AFTERBURNER compensator, so there’s no need to worry about barrel thread tolerances. This combo effectively reduces the overall recoil of the G43x by as much as 43%, and it’s fully compatible with OEM G43x pistols.
Grip Enhancements
Upgrading your grip is a great way to ensure that you’re able to optimally retain control of your pistol when firing. And for GLOCK pistols, the main ways to enhance your handgun’s grip texture is to either send it off to a professional gunsmith to have it custom stippled or use grip tape.
Between the two, custom grip stippling is, by far, the most premium choice to consider. Grip stippling involves strategically cutting, melting, and contouring the pistol frame to give it a grippier surface and improved ergonomics. Depending on your preferences, you can opt for a more aggressive texture like a silicon carbide grip that feels almost like sandpaper, or you can opt for a more moderate grip texture for better comfort when concealed carrying.
Something important to note is that different gunsmiths will offer different customization packages, so you will need to do some research to find one who offers the services you’re looking for. That said, there are plenty to choose from, but it’s equally critical to understand that custom grip stippling can be expensive. Depending on you who you send your pistol frame to, as well as what services you have done to it, a custom frame job can cost upwards of $500+—more expensive than the base model pistol. Plus, if you decide to go this route, you won’t have access to your pistol until the work on it is finished. So, if you need a quick turnaround, it isn’t always the best option.
Grip tape is a far more budget friendly and quicker alternative that provides a similar result. Brands like HandleItGrips and TALON Grips both offer specialized grip packages specifically for the GLOCK 43x, ranging from moderate rubberized textures to more aggressive ones. Regardless, as mentioned above, these grips are exceptionally budget-friendly, with them typically being priced around $20. You will, however, be responsible for applying the grip to the pistol yourself, so it’s imperative that you take time to prep the grip surface and apply it properly. So long as you do, you can easily take your pistol’s feel to a new level.
Lights and Optics
Arguably some of the most important GLOCK 43x accessories, weapon lights and optics go a long way in enhancing your pistol’s capabilities across all scenarios
Weapon Lights
Weapon lights are the ideal upgrade for proper target identification in low light. In the case of the G43x, you are slightly limited in terms of weapon light options. All G43x pistols produced nowadays come standard with a dedicated light rail, allowing you to mount popular lights like the Streamlight TLR-7 X Sub and SureFire XSC-A. However, if you have one of the older pre-MOS G43x pistol’s, you won’t have an accessory rail to mount lights to. In such instances, you’re really limited to just a few options, with the Streamlight TLR-6 light and laser combo being one of the most popular. Of the three, all are solid weapon lights, but they offer various levels of performance.
For railed G43x pistols, the TLR-7 X Sub is a solid budget-friendly possibility that costs around $160 and is seriously powerful for a light of its size, boasting a 500-lumen projection with peak beam intensity of 5,000 Candela. The SureFire XSC-A is a more premium choice costing around $330—it projects a 350-lumen beam of white light with a peak intensity of 2,000 candela. Lastly, the TLR-6 is available in two configurations, one that mounts to accessory rails and another that mounts to the trigger guard. Both cost around $135 and project a 100-lumen beam with a peak intensity of 2,000 candela. Plus, it has a built-in laser too.
Optics
No pistol build is truly complete without an optic to go alongside it, and if you have a GLOCK 43x MOS, or one with an aftermarket slide, you have an abundance of models from brands like Primary Arms Optics, Holosun, and Trijicon to choose from.
Budget friendly optics like the PAO Classic Series 21mm Micro Reflex Sight Gen II are an excellent choice that won’t break the bank. Hovering around the $160 price point, they make use of the RMSc mounting footprint and come equipped with a 3-MOA dot reticle and AutoLive® motion sensing illumination. Alternatively, you can opt for HS407K-X2. Another budget-friendly optic, it’s usually priced around $225 and comes with many of Holosun’s top features, such as ShakeAwake™ motion activation. These optics come standard with either a red or green 6-MOA dot reticle.
A step up in price, the Holosun SCS carry is an enclosed pistol red dot sight designed for slim-frame pistols like the G43x. Being enclosed, the emitter diode is always protected, making it safer against water, dirt, and other environmental debris. Coming with all the same features as the 407K, it has the distinct advantage of having a built-in Solar Charging unit, giving it an incredibly long battery lifespan, plus, they can come with either a red or green circle dot reticle instead of just a dot. Being one of the more mid-tier optics though, they are a bit more expensive, with them being priced around $400.
Lastly, if you’re in the market for a premium pistol optic, there are few that do it like the Trijicon RMRcc. These optics are available with either a 3.25- or a 6-MOA dot reticle, and they are incredibly resilient. Built specifically for concealed carry use, they’re refined to be as low profile as possible while maximizing durability. They have a slim design but support a wide FOV for fast target acquisition. However, they are the most expensive of the optics listed, with them typically being priced around $550. Still, for the price, you get a top-tier EDC optic.
Conclusion
Of all the concealed carry pistols on the market, the GLOCK G43x is easily one of the top models to consider. Building on the reliable simplicity proven on earlier GLOCK handguns, the G43x is one of the most capable EDC pistols around, and with its ever-growing parts aftermarket, it’s one of the most customizable too.
From upgraded triggers, slides, barrels, and custom grip enhancements to optics and weapon lights weapon lights, just about every part of the G43x can be upgraded or swapped out for an enhanced one. This level of personalization allows you to easily lock in and build out a pistol that’s perfectly suited for your own individual needs.
So, if you’re looking to make a serious upgrade to your next EDC pistol, the G43x is one of the best candidates for your next build. However, if you’re on the fence about whether the G43x is a good fit for you, we recommend checking out our other article on what models are part of the GLOCK blue label program. Even if you aren’t a Law Enforcement Officer, it has a ton of insight on some of GLOCK’s most popular pistol models.
