Glock 17 In Israel

Readers are surprised that with all of the pistols available here in Israel, I chose the 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 Para semi-automatic pistol with a standard magazine capacity of 17 rounds of ammunition. It uses a modified Petter/Browning barrel locking system. The Glock 17 appeared 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. It is also used by the Norwegian Army and police. The designation 17 is derived from the gun’s being Gaston Glock’s 17th patent, rather than its magazine capacity. The Glock 17, like all Glock pistols, has a well known reputation for being extremely rugged and reliable.

The Glock stirred up quite a scare when it was revealed to have a polymer frame. Some people thought that, based on early reports, the whole gun was plastic and/or ceramic, and therefore undetectable by metal detectors. In fact, the slide, barrel and many other internal parts, comprising about 80 percent of the gun’s mass, are made out of metal. 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 become very popular because of its simple controls, high durability, and moderate price. It is also reported to be highly reliable in extreme environments like desert, jungle, and arctic regions. The pistol enjoys widespread use in law enforcement, but is also a very popular military, sports, and self-defense pistol. More than 50 countries use it for law enforcement or military service.

Description and Specifications

The Glock 17 and all others that Glock has since produced use the “Safe Action” fire control system, a single-action mechanism utilizing a striker instead of a hammer and firing pin. Like most other striker-fired pistols, the Glock pistol requires the trigger to pull the striker back the rest of the way, and to release it. In its ready-to-fire state, the pistol could be considered to be “half-cocked”. This arrangement translates to consistent trigger pulls which some claim makes training easier. Notably absent is any manual user safety, although a trigger safety and additional internal measures prevent accidental discharge. Its frame is made out of an advanced polymer. Glock barrels use polygonal rifling for increased accuracy which works best with jacketed ammunition, otherwise lead build-up in the barrel is likely to cause malfunctioning.

The Glock 17 (and only model 17) could be modified with “amphibious kit” that allows underwater firing (in very shallow depths, thought). Basically, the underwater shooting itself has very little effect in real combat, since the effective range is extremely short. The real purpose of that feature is to show the strength of the gun and to allow safe shooting in severe weather conditions, with possible water in the barrel (in many guns this may result in blown barrel).

• Caliber: 9 mm
• Cartridge: 9×19 mm
• Weight: 22.04 oz / 625 g empty
• Produced: 1980 - present

Because of their reliability Glocks are extremely popular here and Israel.
Both Mrs. DoubleTapper and I carry ours on a daily basis.