In early April, Glock announced a new model as part of an $85 million contract with US Customs and Border Protection (CBP). The Glock 47 is the same size as a Gen 5 G17, and not available to civilians. It does have some interesting features though, so it’s worth checking out. I first read about the G47 on a blog I used to respect (emphasis on used to).
Late to the dance and full of… nothing burgers
The post I read was written on May 18, but the gun was announced in early April. In spite of the time lapse, the author manages to write about the Glock 47 without saying ANYTHING about the G47.
Instead, he starts out by berating ‘all the “experts” posting about this new Glock 47 and all the conjecture and general “making shit up” going long(sic) with it.’
Next, he informs us he knows where they get their information and what they’re trying to do with it: ‘They are all surfing each others web postings, trying to be the first to post something significant.’
At least he’s a real expert… ‘I’m going to be issued one, and it will be the pistol riding in my holster until I retire. So when I’m getting hands on, while the rest are still reposting the same conjecture you’ll see it here first.’
Facts, not conjecture…
Well, I didn’t want to be mislead by all the “experts” the author is warning about, so I did a Google search for Glock 47. I didn’t find a lot of stuff, but what I did find was factual – no “made up stuff” and no “conjecture.”
The Truth About Glocks…
The truth about Glocks – including the new Glock 47 – is they’re really simple. You don’t need to be too much of an expert to understand them. A current production Glock only has 34 parts, and most parts are interchangeable across the entire line. So I really don’t understand why this particular blogger feels the need to grandstand on this issue. Especially since I’ve never seen him write anything on Glocks before.
What’s special about the Glock 47
So what’s so special about the G47? Not much. It has a full size (G17) frame and a G17 slide. The only thing special about it is the frame will take a G19 slide. That’s it. With the G19 slide, a G47 is the same size as the G19X/G45 (compact slide, full size grip frame).
Before the 19X, G17 slides fit G17 frames and G19 slides fit G19 frames. The 19X frame is basically a G19 frame with a G17 grip. Another way of looking at it would be to call it a G17 frame modified to accept a G19 slide. A G17 slide won’t fit a G19X/G45 frame, just like it won’t fit a G47 frame.
So how do they do it? The logical conclusion is the Glock 47 slide is a G17 slide modified to fit a Glock 19 (or G19X/G45) frame. That’s not “conjecture” or “making shit up.” It’s applying deductive reasoning to commonly known facts about existing Glock pistol models. I don’t see how one “riding in my holster” would make it more understandable.
Glock 47 – bottom line
The G47 is an interesting pistol. The ability to switch between short and long slides makes a lot of sense – especially if you’re a federal agency deploying thousands of pistols. For the average Backyardsman looking for a carry or trail gun? Still interesting, but that’s about it. Would I buy one if they were available to civilians? Probably not. For 9mm, my Glock 17 and Glock 19 suit me just fine.
Peace out,
porcupine