Works
Not as pronounced as I probably thought but workable
Works great but...
as others have noted, this think has sharp edges!! Yes, it is an easy fix with a file or sandpaper, and a bluing pen, but the edges really should have been rounded a bit to begin with. Other than that, it works great. I checked "fitting required" as a Con as that seemed to be more applicable than poor quality.
SHARP Edges, STILL Recommended
Per the review by "Kelly" on 7/28/12, yes, this thing is dang near slice-your-thumb sharp, in the front and in the rear. I even went back to the OEM part because of this... but, while the OEM part isn't sharp (and thus, much less painful on the thumb), it still had the small purchase area that was the reason I bought the Vickers part. So... I got out my set of high-quality needle files and went to work on the Vickers slide stop. After a few minutes of appropriate filing, the new part is WAY better. I touched up the bare metal with some "gun bluing" stuff I have, and the result is perfect. I installed this part on my new G41 with no muss and no fuss. Because of the very UNPLEASANT sharp edges, I'm only rating this product with four stars -- but I definitely recommend it to anyone looking for a slide stop that offers more purchase area than the slender OEM part. Maybe the sharp edges won't bother you but, if they do, a file and some touch-up bluing will take care of things nicely. Installing this is fast and simple.
Sturdy, but not the Second Coming
This is a good, sturdy part. I have used some of the extended releases and had no problems with them, since I shoot thumbs down usually. On the other hand, I have carried my Glocks before with no slide stop lever at all. It is nice to have the slide lock back on an empty mag, but if you're in an actual gunfight and run the gun dry you will probably discover that by pulling on the trigger again, not by noticing the slide is locked. Shoot high thumbs on a Sig, and you have the same problem. And the slide stop lever doesn't hold the gun together like a 1911, so it's no great loss not have one. It is quicker to reload with a nice slide release, but if you are shooting with a high thumbs grip you're going to ride the lever and keep the slide from locking open anyway. So why not just eliminate that problem. I did discover on my latest trip to the range that a high thumbs grip kept this lever from doing its job. I did have to bend the spring a little to get more tension on it and make it disengage a little more rapidly. It is extremely easy to disengage and also angled in such a way that you can lock the slide open easily, just in case being able to show people that it's empty is important to you. At the moment, I have one of the small original levers back in there. It's really more of a range thing for me, because I only load a few rounds in my mags at the range to practice reloads as much as possible, and I might as well save the slide from slamming forward empty. (I don't think it's a huge deal on the Glock, though. It's not a 1911.) I'll probably just go back to not even using one. It's just something else to snag on things... There are no cons to this product that are not also shared by any slide stop lever that is easy to disengage. My philosophy when it comes to pistol controls is as follows: "Thumbs down, no problems. Thumbs up, problems." My primary concern with this part is accidentally locking the slide open when the gun is not yet empty. That is more of a concern to me than riding it and keeping it from locking open on an empty. People who shoot Sigs have been living with that problem forever now. On the other hand, if you're going to ride it and keep it from working, why even have it on there? Just because Larry Vickers has his name on it, that doesn't mean it is perfect. I tried his mag release and went back to the original one, as well.
A definite improvement over OEM
Subjectively, this replacement part is an improvement over both Glock options, improving shooter control while maintaining a compact lever to minimize interference issues and/or inadvertent activation. It is very similar to that of the Smith & Wesson M&P pistol; if you like the slide stop on your S&W M&P, you'll like this one on your Glock.
