Glock Confusion

[Mtbkski]

I'm not a fan of Glocks. But I have some questions cause I try to keep up on whats going on gun wise.

What is with the Numbering System that Glock Uses to identify their pistols. Is there a trick to knowing what the caliber is, or, do you just have to learn them.

Example Glock 26, Glock 19, etc... Do the numbers have any kind of meaning?

Next is the Generation thing. 1st Gen, 2nd Gen, What does this mean? Is a 1st Generation any better or worse than a 2nd Generation of the same caliber. What about a 1st Generation of one caliber compared to a 2nd Generation of a different caliber?

Just trying to figure this Glock thing out and it really confuses me.

[sprrdhawk44]

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glock

[yeager484]

I'm not a fan of Glocks. But I have some questions cause I try to keep up on whats going on gun wise.

What is with the Numbering System that Glock Uses to identify their pistols. Is there a trick to knowing what the caliber is, or, do you just have to learn them.

Example Glock 26, Glock 19, etc... Do the numbers have any kind of meaning?

Next is the Generation thing. 1st Gen, 2nd Gen, What does this mean? Is a 1st Generation any better or worse than a 2nd Generation of the same caliber. What about a 1st Generation of one caliber compared to a 2nd Generation of a different caliber?

Just trying to figure this Glock thing out and it really confuses me.

I think the numbering system is simply just something you learn.

The generations have some subtle and some obvious differences. This could be useful to you: http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_2_312/2...Explained.html

[Mtbkski]

They couldn't even stay in order. They started to and I thought I saw a system. 17, 18, 19, then they jump to 26 while number 20 is another caliber all together. I think they are smoking some wacky weed or rolling dice to come up with number for their pistols.


9×19mm Parabellum (Glock 17, 18, 19, 26, 34)
10mm Auto (Glock 20, 29)
.45 ACP (Glock 21, 30, 36)
.40 S&W (Glock 22, 23, 24, 27, 35)
.380 ACP (Glock 25, 28)
.357 SIG (Glock 31, 32, 33)
.45 GAP (Glock 37, 38, 39)

[Solaran_X]

I believe the numbering is the order in which the patents were received by Gaston Glock. The Glock was his 17th patent, and so one and so forth.

But I could be wrong.

[xx AG xx]

I'm not a fan of Glocks. But I have some questions cause I try to keep up on whats going on gun wise.

What is with the Numbering System that Glock Uses to identify their pistols. Is there a trick to knowing what the caliber is, or, do you just have to learn them.

Example Glock 26, Glock 19, etc... Do the numbers have any kind of meaning?

The number refers to the particular model of Glock pistol. As far as the caliber, the barrel is marked with what caliber the gun actually is. The "model #" does not have anything to do with what caliber it is (at lesat from what I can tell).

Here is the chart from Glock itself:

http://us.glock.com/products/all

Next is the Generation thing. 1st Gen, 2nd Gen, What does this mean? Is a 1st Generation any better or worse than a 2nd Generation of the same caliber. What about a 1st Generation of one caliber compared to a 2nd Generation of a different caliber?

The "Generation thing" refers to changes made to the pistol. Each time they make changes to the line up, I guess it becomes the "next generations" of Glocks.

Here is a link that will better explain:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glock

Just trying to figure this Glock thing out and it really confuses me.

Between both of those links, you should get a good understanding of Glocks in general.

Right now, most Glocks are being made in the Gen 4 configuration, though the versions with Glock made beavertail adapters are now shipping, so I guess that would make them Gen 4.5's.


AG


EDIT: By the time I posted this, you got several replies in. Sorry of I just repeated what others have already stated.

[Mtbkski]

I think the numbering system is simply just something you learn.

The generations have some subtle and some obvious differences. This could be useful to you: http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_2_312/2...Explained.html

The Generations thing almost makes sense. That I can relate to anyway. But the numbering thing... just silly.

[smco]

Several samples of the 9×19mm Glock 17 (so named because it was the 17th set of technical drawings of the company[11]) were submitted for assessment trials in early 1982, and after passing all of the exhaustive endurance and abuse tests, Glock emerged as the winner with the Model 17.[12][13][14]

It is weird, but it is in the same line as why WD-40 is so named. Every model after that has been sequential I believe, so they kinda did stay in order.

[spartakis252]

I believe the numbering is the order in which the patents were received by Gaston Glock. The Glock was his 17th patent, and so one and so forth.

But I could be wrong.

Or you could be right....

What's the big issue with the way they decided to designate their models?

Sig models are just as bad P220, P224, P226, P227, P229, P239 and so on it makes no sense to me. Plus you can have a different caliber under each designation, such as a P229 in 9mm, .357 sig, or .40. Plus there are different "generations" of the P229 with no real designation.

When someone says Glock 23 or Glock 26, once you know the models, you know a 23 is a compact .40 and a 26 is subcompact 9mm. You just have to learn the different numbers, or look at a reference chart and figure it out.

Edit it might not make sense for the earlier models because they didn't invent the subcompacts yet, but when the .357 Sig round was introduced they went in order. Glock 31,32,33 are in order from full to sub in the same caliber because the models lines/sizes were all established at that time.

[PA Rifleman]

...

What is with the Numbering System that Glock Uses to identify their pistols. Is there a trick to knowing what the caliber is, or, do you just have to learn them.
...

I think of them being arranged in a spreadsheet (tabular data), this is a pretty good representation:

I would have arranged the columns by overall length, making the competition model column first.



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