It isn’t common to walk into a gun store and come across a brand you’ve never heard of. A couple of years back, Arex might have been one of those brands—though the pistols are gaining traction. If you haven’t checked out the Arex Delta line, you should.
Who Makes the Arex Delta?
The Arex brand is Slovenian. Global Ordnance imports them into the states. Slovenia isn’t as well known for its firearm production, but it is in the neighborhood of Italy and Croatia, and shares a border with Austria, which is where the other gun we’re talking about here originated.
As brands go, Arex is still in what I’d consider to be the early stages here in the States, but it isn’t a new name in Europe. The company makes the Delta line, which is inspired by the Glock pistols. It also makes the Alpha and Zero lines, both of which are decidedly not Glock-like guns. The Arex Delta, though, has found a home here in the States as solid guns at reasonable prices often do.
How Does the Arex Delta Compare to the Glock?
It depends on which Glock we’re talking about. I began with a Gen 3 Glock 19. In this respect, the AREX line has some significant points in its favor. The ergonomics are better, and the whole gun feels more modern. The Gen 5 Glocks, though, would be a closer comparison.
The Glocks of this most recent generation have more optics adaptations, and some even have more slide serrations. In that respect, they’re more closely comparable. Both are striker-fired guns with no external safeties.
What about Reliability?
Let’s address what’s inevitably one of the many elephants in the room. The Arex pistols don’t have a four-decade track record of performance. Glock is Glock because the guns don’t fail.
I’m not throwing shade on Arex. They may prove just as reliable. But ask Beretta, FN, HK, Colt, or even Sig about Glock’s reputation for reliability, and you’ll see eyes roll. Glocks work, and their reputation for performance is legendary.
When I bought my Glock 19 more than a decade ago, I made it my go-to for reviews, training classes, and hunts… It quickly became the gun I trusted for just about anything that could be done with a pistol. I’ve never cleaned it. If I had to guess, I’d say I am north of 27,000 rounds through it now, and the trigger is finally gunked up enough that I can feel how dirty it is—but it has never hiccupped.
I don’t carry it anymore, as Glock released the G45, which is, in my hands, just about the most perfectly balanced handgun available. And it has more capacity.
I’m running north of 1,000 rounds now through a couple of Arex Delta pistols and have yet to have an issue. There aren’t enough of them in the wild yet to put together a solid read on their performance, but that data set will build.
Controls
The Glock 19 has evolved over five generations to include more control surfaces, but Arex started with those lessons already ingrained and has built a slide and frame that is easily manipulated. In this comparison, Arex comes out on top. These guns have angled lines, but the texture of the polymer and the steel of the frame allow for very easy manipulation and control.
This is one of those elements on the Glock that people used to change. Then, so many aftermarket makers began building the Glock 19 replacement frames, so stippling lost some of its momentum. But Glock still makes a boxy slide and a grip that I’d describe as functional, at best.
Arex doesn’t have the lineage of design aesthetics to deal with, so it went for functionality and succeeded.
Accessories
The Arex Delta fits in some Glock holsters, which is a safe place to begin. It even fits in some duty holsters, which is a real win for anyone who might consider carrying one as an LEO.
The rest of the accessories, though, may be harder to come by. Arex makes magazines. But every one of the aftermarket mag makers, like Magpul or KCI or ETS, makes Glock mags. And that magazine design is bomb-proof. Arex has 17 and 19-round mags, though–so there’s that.
As both have Picatinny rails, finding lights is easy. Guns in this size work well with the TLR-7-sized small lights or the X300-sized large lights.
Sights? I’ve yet to change out the sights on an Arex Delta, but rumor has it that anything that would fit the P320 will fit. The rest of the extras–like magazine release buttons, slide stop levers, and the like… all of those will be available as the popularity increases.
One element of the Arex design that has proven popular is its factory-threaded barrel. For those who want to shoot suppressed, the Glock requires a new barrel. There are many out there, like those from Lone Wolf.
As for the optics mounting, some of the Arex guns are cut for optics, and others are not. The ones that come with adapter plates are not my favorite. That’s my biggest complaint about my G45, actually.
Down Range Results?
I’m a good shot. I have handguns (a Springfield Armory TRP and a Browning Buckmark) that I shoot exceptionally well. But you’ll never catch me relying on GLOCK when I need gnat’s-ass accuracy. These are duty pistols. They’re meant to be accurate enough, and that’s how I tend to treat them.
I’ve run defensive drills with the Arex guns and find that they produce excellent results. I’m as fast with the Arex from the holster (and with split-times, too) as I am with the Glock. I can shoot both flat and reliably.
Glock makes polygonal barrels rather than relying on traditional lands and grooves. Arex has more traditional rifling. I can’t tell if that makes a difference one way or the other. I have never been able to see a wild difference out of a Glock barrel.
Cost
Ah yes. The Glock name alone allows the company to set the price for its guns wherever it wants. The Glock, especially at the time of a new release or during times of scarcity, sells close to its MSRP (or over). Right now, a Gen 5 Glock 19 will run you more than $500. The G45 may be a bit more. The Arex Delta line begins somewhere above $350, but the Gen 2 X Tactical pictured here lists at $545.
If money’s tight, consider the changes you might want to make. A Glock may need some mods. A threaded barrel, suppressor-height sights, a flared mag well, updated controls… these are all things you may choose to address over time, but the prices will add up.
If you know what you want, though, the Arex Delta may allow you to defray some of that expense early by getting some of these features in the gun’s stock configuration.
