I’m sure plenty of you already have done this, but I’ll ask anyway. Have any of y’all basically done a “DIY” Glock 49 by putting the “Compact X” long slide on a compact Dagger frame? If so, how well did it work out in terms of balance, concealability, sight radius, etc? Most importantly, how’d it shoot?
I find myself at a crossroads. In April I’ll be getting a new pistol, preferably something full sized like the Springfield Echelon, the Shadow Systems DR920 Combat (Shadow Systems, to ME, is everything a Glock only WISHES it could be), a Glock 47 with their beavertail extension OR the full size Dagger with the Compact X long slide. That being said, I also REALLY like the Shadow Systems MR920/MR920L (I don’t have the biggest hands so the grip fits me PERFECTLY), the Glock 49 (G19 frame with a G19 spring & G17 slide) also with their beavertail extension, OR the compact Dagger with the Compact X long slide.
I like the feeling & balance of having a 4.5 inch barrel/slide on a compact frame. And while I’m willing to spend $1000-$1100 for a Shadow Systems War Poet version of either the DR or MR920 because, while expensive, they come with a Holosun 507c (Bud’s gun shop has them that cheap). But the Shadow Systems MR920L (their long slide compact/their version of the Glock 49) STARTS at $1000 pretty much everywhere I’ve looked. To then add an optic to it is putting me FAR over the $900-$1100 I’m willing to spend (yes, $200 is a lot to me).
But I can accomplish the end goal of having a compact frame with a 4.5 inch barrel & slide by going the Dagger route. And hell, I could even get a standard size Dagger slide IN ADDITION to the long 1, throw in a quality optic for my EDC configuration & a “good enough” (Cylee) optic on the standard slide for use as a range toy.
SO, opinions, thoughts or feedback? Especially from those of you who have, as I stated earlier, basically gone the “Glock 49 @ Home” route with the compact Dagger & the long slide?
I’ve ran a shadow systems mr920 for the last three years as my edc. Hands down one of the best pistols I’ve ever shot. Definitely worth the money vs buying a pistol then changing parts.
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I’d just call it a G19L, since people were making those well before Glock ever made the 49. If they had the Compact X when I got mine I would have done that. Also if they offered it with rear sight forward of optic.
Piece together a Shadow Systems gun. Get a Foundation series for cheaper, throw a Holosun407C on it since those are cheaper too. Same thing but only dot reticle. Don’t need the circle ones with practice. The one downside is I don’t think they make a longslide Foundation pistol, and it may not come with a threaded barrel. But those can be found inexpensively as well and you’d still end up spending less.
Granted I know just the threaded barrel sticking out doesn’t have the same effect as the longer slide. Most places also mark up Shadow System’s quite a bit.
I’m pretty sure, as you said, that the Foundation MRs don’t have threaded barrels OR a long slide. My only hesitancy with that series is that I’ve now heard 2 guys (both of whom I know & trust) at 2 different gun shops mention to me that the Foundation series had feed ramp issues. Considering I know that I’m already gonna have to put 200-300 rounds through WHICHEVER SS model I get just to break it in, I’d rather also not have to be concerned about feed ramp issues on top of breaking the weapon in.
Besides, the Secretary of the Treasury, aka “Da Boss” kinda messed up when she said she wanted me to get what I “REALLY” wanted so that I’ll eventually stop boring her to death with gun talk (
). Therefore, since Bud’s Gun Shop has the War Poet MR 920 for $1016 & the DR model for $1106, & both already come WITH a 507c, that’s why I’m leaning that way. OR, if I wanted to NOT get a Holosun, I’d get an MR or DR Combat series & put an either a C&H Precision Comp or Eotech EFLX on it.
All that being said, since I’ve had the opportunity to shoot both SS models but NOT the Dagger, I can’t help but wonder how it (the Dagger) shoots. I obviously know that it AIN’T a Shadow Systems, but I HAVE heard nothing but good things about it & it being just a good,solid gun. Plus, with the ease of interchangeability between large & compact fames & slides, I could end up with 2 guns for what I’d pay for War Poet. Besides, just because the wife SAID “get what you REALLY want” doesn’t mean shee won’t endlessy bust my balls if I were to spend OVER what either 1 of those 2 War Poets would cost.
1 last thing though. I COULD always wait until PSA’s new Sabre Daggers come out & get 1 of THOSE. From the footage of them I saw at SHOT Show a week or 2 ago, they look like they’re gonna be pretty sweet.
Not heard good things about the EFLX(issues holding 0), and the CH optics are rebranded and marked way up.
Having shot OEM Glocks and a Dagger, I think I prefer the Dagger, when price point comes in as well. I’m not picky on gun grips unless they are rubberized since they snag on everything, or finger grooves don’t line up with me. The single groove on the Dagger works and if it doesn’t it’s a single one to file down. Recoil impulse and muzzle flip for me are equal to a Glock’s, but the grip does feel a lot better. Parts are interchangeable while the Dagger actually has an “improved” Gen 4 style trigger bar nub.
Trigger is on par with a Glock at worst, way better at it’s best. While a Dagger IS customizable, people just throw random bits in and expect it to work right. That doesn’t always happen. The trigger is absolutely fine as my anecdotal 100yd shots on a 10in plate show. The hinged design is NOT M&P style, it’s FN styled, no flex. Heavy-ish pull, but a solid wall and break on my examples. One has a factory Dagger connector the other is using an OEM Glock one. Dagger honestly feels crisper.
As for reliability, I had one single issue with each gun. One bad connector but I had a spare to swap in. PSA would have fixed it though. The other was a stuck ejector, only noticed cause I wanted to swap for a Gen5. Not a huge deal honestly, the factory one works.
Have occasional issues on my tan Dagger with weak range ammo, heavy optic and plate on it. 124gr range ammo or just hotter, consistent loads and they both run flawlessly.
I also have a lot of rounds through handguns so most don’t bother me anymore. Unless it has an egregiously bad ergo issue like the Ruger American hitting my thumb knuckle, I can pick it up and shoot it well. I don’t even mind Hi-Points.
Oh, I would put an extended mag release on it. The curve that the spring rides on it shaped differently than OEM, makes it harder to press in. Also has no texturing. Extended release like a Vicker’s makes the mag release feel like an OEM one, much easier to drop mags out. You can also use a weaker spring but I wouldn’t trust it. Doing both also seems like a bad idea.
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