GLOCK 17
The
GLOCK 17 was the first
pistol designed and manufactured by the
Austrian company
GLOCK. It is a locked breech, short recoil
9 mm Luger semi-automatic pistol with a standard
magazine capacity of 17
rounds of
ammunition. It uses a modified Peter/Browning barrel locking system. The G17 showed up in the early 1980s for the Austrian Army weapons trials. It entered service under the designation
P80. In
1988, it entered service in the
Swedish Army under the designation
Pistol 88. The designation 17 is derived from the gun's being Gaston Glock's 17th patent, rather than (as sometimes erroneously stated) its unusually large magazine capacity. The GLOCK 17, like all GLOCK pistols, has a well known reputation for being extremely rugged and reliable.
Unlike other pistols, the GLOCK 17 and all others that GLOCK has since produced use a "
safe action" semi-double action trigger system along with a
striker instead of a hammer and
firing pin. Its
frame is made out of an advanced polymer. GLOCK pistols operate similarly to a conventional revolver in that there is no manual safety. The double-action-only firing mode results in consistent trigger pull which some claim makes training easier.
Early reports about the GLOCK incorrectly suggested that it was a wholly plastic gun, and so would not show up on metal detectors. In fact, the
slide and the
barrel and many other internal parts, comprising about 80% of the gun's mass, are made out of
metal. Recently, CCF RaceFrames, LLC
announced that they will be offering alloy frames compatible with most GLOCK OEM parts. The slide and barrel are
QPQ Tenifer treated, a process that makes their steel more durable to wear and tear as well as to corrosion.
The GLOCK 17 has undergone two major revisions since its introduction, so the current model is called the 3rd generation GLOCK 17.
GLOCK has produced several variants on the 17:
*The GLOCK 17C (for "compensated") has a
ported barrel and slide to reduce
muzzle climb while shooting the pistol.
*The
GLOCK 17L is a competition version with a longer barrel and slide.
*The
GLOCK 18 and
18C are capable of
fully-automatic fire.
Caliber: 9x19 mm Parabellum.
Barrel length: 114 mm.
Mass, empty: 625g
Ammo capacity: standard is 17+1 rounds, but can be anywhere from 10+1 to 33+1 rounds (
the "+1" refers to an additional round in the pistol's chamber).
Two other GLOCK models are very similar to the 17. Both use the same frame, but have different barrels and slides because they are chambered for different
cartridges:
*The
GLOCK 22, chambered for
.40 S&W.
*The
GLOCK 31, chambered for
.357 SIG.
The GLOCK 17 was not accepted to take part in the trials because of its lack of visible hammer and manual
safety. The GLOCK 17's high
strategic materials content was also viewed as problematic in times of war. Also, its creator (Gaston Glock) was unwilling to make his patents for the pistol available for open bidding per DOD regulations.
The GLOCK 17, and GLOCK pistols in general, are a very common sight in:
films,
TV series,
video games and
comics, due to their popularity in the real world. See
list of firearms in video games and
List of firearms in films for separate entries.
Like most GLOCK guns, the name is often referred to as a "Glock" and not as "GLOCK". According to GLOCK—the company that manufactures the gun—this is incorrect. GLOCK refers to all its guns with all uppercase letters.
*
Caliber: 9 mm Luger Parabellum (9x19 mm)
*
Action: Safe Action (constant
double action mode)
*
Dimensions:**
Length: 186 mm / 7.32 in
**
Height, w/magazine: 138 mm / 5.43 in
**
Width: 30.0 mm / 1.18 in
**
Barrel length: 114 mm / 4.49 in
**
Sight radius: 165 mm / 6.49 in
*
Rifling: Hexagonal profile with right-hand twist of one turn in 250 mm / 9.84 in
*
Weight, w/o magazine: 625 g / 22.04 oz
*
Empty magazine weight: 78 g / 2.75 oz
*
Full magazine weight: ~280 g / ~9.87 oz
*
Magazine capacity: 17 rounds
*
Standard trigger pull: ~2.5 kg / ~5.5 lb
*
Trigger pull length: 12.5 mm / 0.5 in
*
GLOCK's page on the GLOCK 17*
GLOCK's page on the GLOCK 17L*
The Pistol 88 at SoldF.com (
Swedish)
