These descriptors were just a few of the words used to describe the G-Force Jawbone during a recent trip to the range.
If you are not familiar, the G-force Jawbone is a 5-pound AR-style pistol, chambered in 9mm, equipped with a 5-inch barrel and an Ace of Brace paddle-style pistol brace. Oh yes. It is also American-made and ships with a 33-round magazine.
Upon hearing the name, Jawbone, and handling the firearm, I instantly made the connection between this gun and the biblical book of Judges (15:16), where Samson used the jawbone of a donkey to defeat a large army of Philistines.
The 9mm Jawbone Pistol from G-force Arms
The combination of features and performance was nothing short of amazing for this little pistol. The first thing you notice is the overall design. The two-part receiver, featuring an aluminum upper and a polymer lower joined with fore and aft captured pins take a page directly from the AR-15. Still, it is clear this gun was designed from the ground up as a 9mm. The 9mm mag well accommodates Glock-style magazines and, because it is narrower than a 5.56 mag well, the trigger guard is bigger, giving more room for gloved hands.
The Jawbone large trigger guard makes it easy to shoot with gloves or large hands
Looking down into the lower receiver, everything looks very familiar to those who own and operate other AR-platforms. The trigger, safety and hammer are all right where one would expect them to be and anyone familiar with the AR platform will be able to easily conduct a detailed strip and clean of this lower. There is a large, stout ejector rising up on the left side of the lower. This thing should withstand any ammo you choose to run through the gun.
Controls on the lower are all ambidextrous, even the bolt lock/release lever. On the left side, the bolt release is the standard AR-style paddle that operates just as experienced AR shooters remember. It is nicely checkered top and bottom. On the other side of the gun, the bolt release is a straight pin protruding through a small rectangular channel that spans the line between the upper and the lower receivers. To operate the bolt lock from the right side, simply retract the bolt and push the pin up. Press it down and the bolt goes into battery.
Breakdown Image of the Jawbone with 9mm Bolt Carrier Group and Glock Style Magazine
The magazine release, being ambidextrous, and in order to work properly with Glock-style magazine, is not the oval button found on standard AR-pattern gun. Instead, each side has an aggressively checkered rectangle. Press either rectangle and the magazine drops free. But here is a word of warning. Shooters who make a habit of using the heel of their left hand to slap the bolt release button on the left side of the receiver after a reload may run into trouble. The rectangular pad for the magazine release is directly below the standard bolt catch lever on the left side. One shooter at the range routinely dropped his freshly loaded magazine when he slapped the bolt release after each reload. Those of us who simply used our left thumb to hit the bolt release never had a problem. Arguments about fine versus gross motor skills not withstanding, I see this as a training and practice issue rather than a design problem. Shooters can also release the bolt with the pin on the right side of the receiver by merely reaching forward with the right-hand trigger finger. Or you can simple retract and release the charging handle on the left side of the barrel shroud. Again, this is a training and practice issue. I never had any trouble because I always dropped the magazine with my trigger finger and closed the bolt with my off-hand thumb.
The safety operates like any other AR-style safety, though it is not a full 90-degree throw. It seems more like about 70 degrees and was easy to use and positive in operation. As with other AR-pattern guns, the safety will not move if the weapon is not cocked. You can operate the safety lever with the bolt locked open; meaning you could shoot to slide lock and engage the safety as part of your reloading sequence, thus having the safety on when you run the bolt forward putting the gun back into battery.
The non reciprocating charging handle is on the upper left side of the barrel shroud, similar in placement, if not operation, to an MP-5. Spring tension keeps the charging handle forward during the cycling of the bolt.
The entire top of the Jawbone is covered with a pic rail. The rail on the upper receiver is integral to that part as is the rail on the top of the barrel shroud/handguard. The two elements meet with a nifty little inlet that keeps everything aligned. A few M-lock style slots on the front of the guard allow for the placement of short rail pieces for other accessories, but, in truth, there is not a lot of space there for anything other than a nice light/laser combo and maybe a sling mount. The barrel is threaded 1/2×28 and includes a muzzle device that is basically just a flash hider. There are no holes to direct muzzle gasses, so one can’t really call it a muzzle brake.
We mounted a Vortex Crossfire green dot with the tall mount for testing and that proved fast and accurate. Shooting from a rest at a 10-yard target, the combination produced one ragged hole as long as the shooter did his part.
The paddle-style brace is adjustable for length and includes the standard slots for either a sling or arm wraps. The brace surrounds what appears to be a standard AR-style buffer tube with six different locking positions. And in an absolutely clever use of space, the pistol grip can be used to store a spare magazine. It even has a standard, thumb-operated magazine release. I tried, 15-, 17-, and 22-round Glock-style magazines from various makers and all rested perfectly in the pistol grip and dropped free when I activated the spare magazine release button on the left side of the pistol grip.
Under side view of the additional Glock magazine holder in the base of the grip. This is a very nice added feature.
All, good-quality Glock-style magazines ran very well in the Jawbone. Whether you choose 15-round, 33-round or something in between you can count on excellent reliability. Something to consider: while the longer 33-round magazine gives increased round count, something smaller, like a 15- or 20-round magazine makes the Jawbone more maneuverable in tight spaces and easier to carry in a backpack. To my way of thinking, that’s exactly what the gun appears to be designed for.
This compact little braced pistol will make an excellent personal-defense weapon, being especially useful when carried in that aforementioned small backpack or in a vehicle. It would also make a great home-defense gun allowing just about any shooter to put multiple rounds on target quickly at room distances.
The simple design, ease of maintenance, traditional manual of arms and perfect size for close-range defense make this a great choice. The fact that it’s American-made, carries an MSRP of less than $500 and uses the most common magazines in the world are just icing on the cake.
If you think you might face an army of Philistines, or even just one really dangerous criminal, you might want to reach for a Jawbone.
