The GLOCK 17 was the first pistol designed and manufactured by the Austrian company GLOCK. It is a locked breach, 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.
Unlike other pistols the GLOCK 17 like all GLOCKs uses a "safe action" semi-double action trigger system along with a striker and its frame is made out of polymer, an advanced plastic. It also has no manual safeties, but rather built-in automatic safeties that make it safe to carry.
The Glock stirred up quite a scare when it was revealed to have a polymer frame. Some people thought the whole gun was plastic, and therefore undetectable by metal detectors. Because the slide and the barrel and many other internal parts are made out of metal, it does show up on metal detectors. The slide and barrel are QPQ Tenifer treated, a process that makes their steel as hard as diamond and more corrosion resitant than stainless steel.
The GLOCK 17 has become very popular because of its simple controls, high durability, and moderate price along with better than average accuracy. It is also highly reliable in extreme environments like desert, jungle, and arctic regions.
The GLOCK 17 has undergone three 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.
The GLOCK 17 is the most widespread pistol used in law enforcement, but is also a very popular military, sports, and self-defense pistol. More than 50 countries use it.
The gun is often referred to as a "Glock". According to GLOCK however, this is incorrect; GLOCK refers to its guns with all uppercase letters.
Caliber: 9x19mm Parabellum.
Barrel length: 114mm.
Weight, 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).