An Alternative To The Glock 19?

Glocks. Some people love them. Other people hate them. Very few people in the firearms world, it seems, have no opinion about them, though.

And still others use Glock as a reference point when thinking about how to describe a pistol. Admittedly, that’s probably because Glocks are that common and well known.

The pistol that we’re talking about today isn’t exactly a Glock knock-off, but it is roughly the same size as a Glock 19 and has similarities to that pistol including parts compatibility (no, those aren’t contradictory statements, as you’ll see), so, if that interests you, then, read on.

To be clear, the pistol that we’re talking about is manufactured by a company that is probably better known for rifle parts. James Tarr writes,

Yes, this is the same Anderson Manufacturing known for AR-15 parts — and yes, they’ve come out with a new pistol based on the Glock pattern, the Kiger 9c.

This is a polymer-framed, striker-fired pistol chambered in 9mm, supplied with one 15-round magazine made by Magpul. The Kiger 9c is roughly the same size as the Glock 19, but in external dimensions it is not an exact copy. The Glock 19 has a 4.02-inch barrel, whereas the barrel in the Kiger is 3.91-inches as it is cut back to the front of the slide and the Glock’s tube sticks out a little bit. The Kiger’s barrel is aggressively crowned, and I like the look of it. Overall, the Kiger 9c is 7.35 inches long, 5.2-inches tall with a magazine inserted, and 1.22-inches wide. Anderson states the Kiger is fully compatible with Glock Gen 3 parts, which is smart — while Glock currently is up to their 5th generation of “Perfection,” more Gen 3 guns have been made than any other, and in fact are still in production for a number of reasons.

The Kiger 9c isn’t a clone of a Glock 19. You’ll need a different holster, for example. Still, Tarr seems to like the pistol quite well, commenting that “As for the non-standard geography of the Kiger’s frame, I never noticed it while shooting — and that is the highest praise you can give a pistol frame.” Tarr continues:

The Kiger 9c didn’t have any problems. After 350+ rounds (honestly, I lost count) this pistol still looks new, and had zero jams, hiccups, or malfunctions. Accuracy-wise it performed on par with most Glock 19s, factory or clone. It seems a solid alternative to the Glock 19, with an MSRP at least $150 less than the Glock 19, depending on what gen G19 you’re looking at.

And Tarr isn’t the only one saying good things about the Kiger 9c, as you can see below.

So, is the Anderson Manufacturing Kiger 9c a solid alternative to a Glock 19 (at least, Gen 3)? Obviously, that’s for you to decide, but if you’re in the market for that type of pistol (and would rather avoid the Glock pricing), then, the Kiger 9c may be one to seriously consider.