It was a very cold and rainy morning in December when a group of media contributors gathered at Glock’s headquarters in Smyrna, Ga. We had all been invited to see the new pistols that Glock is launching for 2018. As is the usual case, we all had to sign non-disclosure agreements and, as we met, the speculation was rampant as to what was in the mystery boxes at the front of the room. The answer was not one, not two, but THREE new Glock pistols: The Glock 19X, the Glock 26 Gen5 Subcompact and the Glock 34 Gen5 MOS.
Glock 19X
Up first is perhaps the pistol that will stir the most excitement from Glock enthusiasts. The Glock 19X is described as the company’s first “Crossover” pistol in that it combines the full-size Glock 17 frame with the shorter slide of the Glock 19; both of those pistols made Ballistic’s list of the “best Glock pistols of all-time.”
The Glock 19X is basically a commercial version of Glock’s Modular Handgun System submission to the U.S. Army. The only difference being the military version was equipped with a manual safety.
Glock’s 19X is a coyote color and is the manufacturer’s first factory colored frame. The internal makeup of the pistol is Gen5 and features the improved fire control system, ambidextrous slide stop levers, and the Marksman barrel.
The Glock 17 size frame is void of any finger grooves and also features a flared magazine well, lanyard loop and an extended toe. This extension prevents the Glock 19X from using Gen5 magazines.
The slide is finished in a durable nPVD finish that matches the coyote color of the slide.
Glock representatives pointed out that the Glock 19X met all of the requirements from the MHS solicitation in one pistol.
Glock 26 Gen5 Subcompact
The second new pistol is the Gen5 version of the Glock 26 subcompact. Glock’s Glock 26 is a small pistol with very large performance.
The pistol incorporates most of the Gen5 improvements that were introduced in the Glock 17 and Glock 19 in 2017. These include the Glock Marksman barrel for improved accuracy, no finger groves on the front strap, and an ambidextrous slide stop. New nDLC coating also covers the slide for enhanced durability and resistance to corrosion.
The Glock 26 Gen5 also incorporates the improved fire control design for improved trigger pull and reset. Due to the compact size of the frame, the Glock 26 Gen5 does not have the flared magazine well found on the larger Gen5 models.
Glock 34 Gen5 MOS
The final pistol that I was able to examine and shoot was a Glock 34 Gen5 MOS. The Glock 34, long slide, is very popular with competitive shooters and the Gen5 features will be a welcome improvement. Glock also decided that the Gen5 Glock 34 would include the MOS feature.
As with the other Gen5 guns, the Glock 34 has the improved nDLC finish, Glock marksman barrel, flared magazine well, ambidextrous slide stop and no finger grooves.
I had a chance to visit with Shane Coley, captain of Team Glock. Coley said he was especially excited to upgrade his competition gun to the Gen5 Glock 34.
We had a chance to spend some time on the range with Chris Edwards and the Glock training staff. To a shooter, we were all impressed with the new products. Also, we quickly completed the order forms to get samples sent to us. For even more info, please visit US.Glock.com.
Look for a complete review and range testing in a future issue of Combat Handguns magazine. Also, to subscribe, please visit OutdoorGroupStore.com.
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