The Best Glock 43 Trigger Upgrades

The Glock 43 is a subcompact, single-stack, striker-fired 9mm pistol manufactured by Glock for the civilian and law-enforcement markets. It was unveiled on April 10, 2015, at the NRA Annual Meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, almost as a complete surprise to most shooters.

However, the concept behind the Glock 43 is something shooters had been asking for going back at least 20 years. So much so that it was a huge surprise when the slightly smaller Glock 42 came out the previous year, that people wondered why Glock went 380 ACP instead of 9mm.

It captures the basic lines of their other pistols but relies on a much thinner slide and frame. It lacks the distinctive finger grooves on the frame and has no accessory rail Most important is that it uses a single-stack magazine that holds 6-rounds.

It weighs a little bit over 16 ounces, unloaded and fully loaded tips the scales at 18 ounces. In a way it set the stage for other pistol manufacturers, including Glock, to look at a smaller package for offering a concealed carry pistol to the masses. The Glock 43 pistol is a bit more of an influencer than you might think at first glance. It inspired the Glock 43X and Glock 48 models and other firearms in this size such as the Springfield Hellcat or SIG Sauer P365 have been compared to it.

Common uses for the Glock 43

Due to its relatively small size and low magazine capacity, the Glock 43 is not well suited as a duty pistol for law-enforcement or military use. Likewise, it is not ideal for competitive pistol shooting and is probably not the best target pistol on the market.

No, the Glock 43 is intended as a self-defense pistol meant for concealed carry. Its small profile, slimline grip and built with the reliability and basic accuracy of all its bigger brothers in the Glock lineup make it an almost perfect fit in this role.

Why you’d want to Upgrade your Glock 43

There is a hesitancy among most shooters to leave their personal defense pistols in as close to the factory configuration as possible. This is based on gun shop hearsay and internet lore. These wild rumors would have you believe that any miniscule change to your firearm will result in you going to prison for modifying your carry gun.

It’s not a completely invalid argument and we have seen anecdotal evidence of this regarding overzealous prosecutors with a political agenda who have little knowledge of firearms attempt to pursue this route. However, the fear of prosecution by performing safe and sane upgrades to your personal protection pistol is mostly baseless.

You should want every legal advantage on your side whenever you decide to go armed in defense of your life and the lives of your loved ones. Whether that comes in the form of improved sights, a better trigger press, or making the pistol more reliable in general.

While some shooters find no issues with the factory Glock sights, most serious shooters upgrade them as soon as possible. The other parts to upgrade vary by each individual shooter, but here are some of the most common parts that you may want to upgrade.

Trigger Connector

A trigger connector is a component of a trigger system for the Glock pistol that regulates the amount of pressure in the trigger squeeze. These are often pre-set to a certain weight and an aftermarket trigger connector can make the weight of the trigger press lighter or heavier than the factory setting.

Overwatch Precision offers an NP3'ed OEM DOT connector which offers a short and crisp trigger break that has been compared to the breaking of a glass rod. It is coated in NP3 which offers high lubricity, corrosion resistance, micro hardness, and self-lubrication. This is key to building a long-lasting part that will oftentimes outlast the shooter.

Drop-in Trigger Kit

If the Glock pistol has one drawback, it may be the factory trigger. While the trigger has been specifically designed for safety reasons over anything else, it does not mean that the trigger for a Glock pistol cannot be improved.

A drop-in trigger kit for a Glock pistol contains a variety of parts, often including the previously mentioned connector. Overwatch Precision offers a remarkable aftermarket drop-in trigger kit called the PolyDAT. This kit combines many of Overwatch’s finely crafted in-house components to give an increase in performance and accuracy. This kit is affordable thanks to the use of the company’s hugely popular PolyDAT shoe. As a complete system it decreases trigger pre-travel, reduces the actual weight when the trigger breaks, and the flat-faced design of the shoe guarantees an extremely clean and crisp, linear rearward press.

Magwell

A magwell is a firearm accessory that came from the competitive shooting world. It was often a bolt-on accessory that allowed shooters to quickly load a fresh magazine quickly into their firearm while under stress and often while literally running to the next target. It only seemed natural that this would carry over to the realm of personal protection, law-enforcement, and concealed carry.

The problem is that most aftermarket magwells are too oversized to be applicable for installation on a daily concealed carry pistol.

Overwatch Precision has an answer for that if you intend to install an aftermarket magwell on your Glock pistol. Overwatch offers the HAVE BLUE Glock Magwell.

The HAVE BLUE Glock Magwell is a single-piece 7075 T6 aluminum magazine well designed to add control and decrease the shooter’s reloading split times. It incorporates an aggressively machined funnel at the heel to guide a fresh magazine into the firearm flawlessly and reliably. The unique front lip locks the shooter’s firing hand securely into the firearm's undercut to add support and control for a consistent and perfect grip. Its low profile heel makes it ideal on a personal defense weapon because it minimizes any visible printing when you carry it concealed.

Slide Cover Plate

Most striker-fired pistols, including all Glock models, rely on a slide cover plate to contain the firing pin, extractor, and other parts within the body of the slide. This is one of the most common upgrades to most Glock pistols as the factory slide cover plate can cause glare and its plastic construction can let it get beat up after a while.

Unfortunately, most shooters opt for bumper sticker type slogans and pictograms on their slide cover plates. While they may be amusing and, in some cases, pretty cool, this is the type of firearm upgrade that could get you some unwanted attention in a courtroom for what might otherwise be a legally justified shooting.

Overwatch Precision offers a robust aluminum slide cover plate that is made of Type III anodized 7075-T6 aluminum. The rear side of the plate is cleanly serrated (80 LPI) for an improvement in glare reduction. It is tasteful, built to last and makes the firearm look better from an aesthetic point of view.

The Best Upgrades for all Glock Models

The list of available aftermarket products for Glock pistols does not end there. Overwatch Precision offers a complete line of highly desirable aftermarket parts for the entire line of Glock pistols. Make sure you know the Generation of your Glock as well as the model designation to see what’s available for what pistol. Also note if you have a genuine Glock pistol or a clone using a non-Glock frame such as those manufactured from an 80% blank receiver. Not all parts may work on frames such as this.

One good example of an ideal upgrade is the 6lb Competition Trigger Springs designed for generations 1-4 Glock Pistols. This trigger spring is made to safely reduce the trigger’s pull weight by about a half a pound. It is designed and intended for competition use only and not recommended for daily carry.

Now a half a pound may not sound like much, but a striker-fired pistol like a Glock operates very differently than a traditional hammer-fired pistol like a M1911. There are more small moving parts than just a hammer and trigger. These parts represent forces that need to be overcome in order to have a clean and crisp trigger press. Every one of these small parts that shaves off a half a pound adds up when the trigger group is looked at as a whole. If you have a dedicated competition pistol, this is definitely worth looking at.

Similar to this is Overwatch Precision’s flat-faced polymer DAT trigger shoe. This does not actually change the trigger pull weight, but its design provides increased leverage as well as a reduction of pre-travel by as much as 20% without compromising the inherent safety features of the trigger for your Glock.

Although most Glock upgrades appear to be extremely simple and can be figured out quickly by reading an armorer’s manual or even watching a YouTube video; please always adhere to the manufacturer’s instructions. If installation is to be performed by a qualified gunsmith; seek one out and have them perform the work so as to not compromise the safety of the pistol or potentially void any warrantees