Knowledge Bomb: Practical Pistol Upgrades

Hey Guys, Let’s talk about practical pistol upgrades. When you look on social media, you see a lot of customized guns, with aftermarket slides, muzzle devices, optics, lights/lasers, magwells, extended controls and crazy paintjobs not to mention the myriad of internal upgrades that you can’t even see. We understand that it can be a daunting challenge to figure out what upgrades are practical. This guide isn’t doctrine. It isn’t a rule that can’t be broken, but after a long time owning, handling, and carrying pistols in both personal and professional capacities we can say that these types of upgrades, in this order, are a great place to start if you want to enhance your pistols capabilities.

1. Weapon mounted light. 

The vast majority of modern manufactured handguns have the capability to mount a variety of weapon lights or have a corresponding weaponlight model that has been engineered to fit that pistol. It goes without saying that shooting at something or someone without a positive ID isn’t only bad practice from a safety standpoint, but it can also land you in a world of legal trouble. Most modern pistols have some sort of rail interface to mount lights on such as the Glock Universal Rail or a M1913 pattern rail system to fit the light to the frame of the firearm.

Pictured Here: Surefire X300

2. Optics.

Pistol mounted optics started in the competition world decades ago, USPA and IPSC competitors found novel ways to mount rifle red dots to pistols for the enhanced ability to see their targets, and have a faster target acquisition speed. Their size, bulk, and expense meant that these were rarely used in defense or duty. Nowadays though many modern handgun designs come set up to interface with optics. Companies such as Glock, Sig Sauer, Springfield and many others now offer pistols that are Optics ready right out of the package. Optics such as the Trijicon RMR and the Holosun 5087/508s are extremely popular options for their durability and overall quality.

Pictured Here: Holosun HE508T

3. Internal Upgrades

Many modern pistols hit the market with an aftermarket community ready to go with aftermarket triggers and upgraded internals that help clean up trigger pull weight and feel. While upgrades like this are a little more labor-intensive than mounting a light or an optic to a pistol, many users find that aftermarket triggers allow for a greater degree of trigger control and leads to better shot placement.

Some aftermarket internals chase the bleeding edge of performance where reliability may be affected. Make sure to do research to ensure that the upgrades that you choose will work for you. There are plenty of other upgrades to pistols such as threaded barrels for pistol compensators, suppressors, enhanced magazine wells for faster reloading or extended slide stops, and things of that nature. These all can help make your platform a more efficient set up but those will be discussed in more detail in a future Knowledge Bomb Post titled Practical Pistol Upgrades Pt. 2. However you decide to upgrade your pistol for your use, make sure to do your due diligence and research it to make sure it’s something that will benefit you. As always feel free to Email/DM/Call us with any questions and we can make sure we set you up for success on and off the range.

Picture Here: Timney Alpha Trigger

Stay Safe, Stay Focused

-The Musa Team