A few years ago, in a classic case of government bureaucracy covering their ass, the Portuguese Police decided that one requirement of their future pistol is that it must have a manual external safety. They, of course, then choose the one gun which is the epitome of manual safety-less pistols, the Glock. Glock shipped them 42,000 Glock 19s with external thumb safeties, similar to the Glock 17 safety I blogged about recently, worth 13 million Euros.

Portuguese Police Glock 19. Photo from Portal das Curiosidades forum.

The police upper management then proceeded to tell the public how wonderful their new pistols were. The cops on the street must have been given a different gun because their pistols were having all sorts of problems. They had magazines randomly falling out of the guns, magazines refusing to drop out when the mag release was pressed, brass being ejected into the shooters face and just plain failing to cycle. The Portuguese IPSC community, where I believe Glocks are popular, were not at all surprised.

FORÇA DE SEGURANÇA translates to Security Force (Police force)

A few weeks ago the Portuguese media discovered that the police have signed a contract with Glock to retrofit all their pistols with normal, safety-less, Glock 19 frames. No doubt at a significant cost to the tax payer.

The government fears that the other pistol manufacturers such as HK, Beretta, Walther and Mannlicher, who were passed over in the search for the new pistol, will sue them for choosing a faulty pistol and for stipulating that a safety was a requirement, only to drop the requirement a few years later.

Many thanks to my anonymous Portuguese source for the links and translations he sent me.

AR-15 owners will soon have another "point five-oh" option for their rifles: the .50 GI. Before now only 1911 and Glock conversion kits were available for the cartridge.

The .50 GI was born out of the idea that if .40 was better than 9mm, and .45 was better than .40, then .50 must be better then .45. It should not be compared to the .500 S&W, .50 Beowulf or the .50 Action Express as it has much less power. The cartridge is comparable to the .45 ACP +P cartridge, but with a larger diameter bullet.

8" SBR with .50 GI magazine.

Carbine with AR-15 magazines converted to take .50 GI

The .50 GI magazine holds 14 rounds and the AR-15 magazine holds 9 rounds.

The 16" upper will sell for $750 and with one magazine. You can see the contact details of the manufacturer, RMW Xtreme Inc., at the beginning of the below video.

Thanks to Giesler for the link.

Hat Tip: Photos from 475AR @ .50 GI Forum

This Glock 17 pistol, with thumb safety, was designed by Glock for use by the British Army. It was on display at DSEi '09.

Safety in the on position (the safety is the button above the magazine release)

This is not the first Glock designed with a manual safety. Glock has previously designed a Glock 17 for the Tasmanian Police force that featured a standard 1911-style thumb safety.

This safety works differently. In order to engage the safety, it is pushed through the frame with the thumb, much like the magazine release. Disengaging the safety is done with the trigger finger.

At first I thought what a ridiculous mechanism this was until it was explained to me that the SA-80, the British Army service rifle, has a very similar safety which is manipulated in the same way. Glock designed this safety so that it would be familiar to British troops. Very clever!

The SA-80

One problem I do see is an operator going for the magazine release and accidentally engaging the safety. At best it would make the magazine change take longer, at worst the operator could forget to disengage the safety and pull the trigger at a bad guy only to find nothing happens.

I do not know if the British Army are considering replacing their current service pistols or if Glock is just making sure they have a model ready if they do in the future.

Big thank you to Lusaka for the information and photos.

Caleb spotted a fellow IDPA competitor using .45 GAP cartridges in a revolver! I had never heard of such a thing before.

The .45 GAP (Glock Auto Pistol) was designed to duplicate the .45 ACP ballistics but in a shorter cartridge more suited to high capacity semi automatics. It is the last thing I would have thought of using in a revolver, but the owner of the wheelgun had some good reasons.

.40 S&W (left) and .45 GAP

Business Week has published an article about the intrigue behind one of the most iconic handgun manufacturers of recent history. It is only a matter of time before the story of Glock hits the silver screen.

On the afternoon of a meeting scheduled at Ewert's office near the tony Rue Royale in central Luxembourg, Glock was attacked in an underground garage. The hit man, a former professional wrestler and French Legionnaire named Jacques Pecheur, bashed the businessman on the head with a rubber mallet, a technique apparently aimed at making it look like the victim had fallen down and fatally injured himself. Glock, physically fit from daily swimming—often in the frigid lake abutting his home near Klagenfurt, Austria—fought back. When police arrived, they found Glock bleeding from gashes to his skull. Pecheur, 67, was unconscious.

The assassination attempt on Mr. Glock is well documented, but it remains to be seen how much of the tax evasion, extreme right wing connection and money laundering is fact and what is fiction.

I was interested to learn the estimated profit margin on the manufacture of Glock pistols.

the Glock costs relatively little to make. In a 1994 patent lawsuit in the U.S., Glock estimated its profit margin per pistol at 68%. The guns typically sell for $450 to $600 in U.S. retail gun stores.

The Glock 17 RTF: The Latest in the Glock line.

Glock is like the Apple Computers of the gun world. They have a less is more philosophy towards their product design and yet maintain high profit margins and market share.

The author of the above article actually spent from time behind a Glock pistol, as part of his research, with blogger Massad Ayoob (Hat Tip: SayUncle). I wish more journalists would try that.

Many thanks to Daniel Watters and LeisureGuy for the link.

UPDATE:

Forbes wrote two articles about the Glock saga back in 2003:

• Top Gun
• Follow-Through

Thanks to Daniel Watters for the link.

One box of Glock 22 Ammo
- Federal American Eagle .40s&w
- 155 Grain
- Full Metal Jacket
- 50 Round Box

Two Pre-Owned Factory Glock G-22 Magazines
- Pre-Owned
- Law Enforcement Trade-Ins
- .40s&w
- 15 Round Capacity

Price: $34.99

For more info on these Glock 22 magazines and ammo, visit SmokeWagonGear.

- Greg

The Magpul® Folding Machine Gun (FMG9™) is a rapidly-deployable, ultra-concealable personal defense weapon currently in development for military, law-enforcement and private security operators. It is designed to offer maximum firepower and control in a compact and discreet package.

The non-firing prototype was unveiled during the 2008 SHOT Show in Las Vegas, NV and features a streamlined polymer casing, ready-to-fire push-button deployment, Glock® 17 slide assembly, capability to accept up to 31-round Glock® 18 magazines (in the folded position), top Picatinny (MIL-STD-1913A) rail and a detachable carrying handle with light shield. An Insight Technologies tactical light was mounted on the prototype. Additional space allows for an auto-sear to be installed for qualified users.

The FMG9™ is currently a conceptual prototype. No determination of production of the system has been finalized. If the weapon were to be produced it would be regulated by the National Firearms Act of 1934. The semi-automatic version would most likely be classified as a Short-Barreled Rifle (SBR) or Any-Other Weapon (AOW) depending on an evaluation from the ATF Firearms Technology Branch. This would require a registered transfer only to qualified individuals. Fully-automatic versions would be classified as a post ’86 Machine-Gun (MG) and would not be available to individuals other than Class 3 dealers, military and law enforcement personnel.

Videos of the non-firing prototype can be viewed on YouTube.

More information about the FMG9, including features and specs can be found on Magpul's website(PDF).

To purchase other Magpul products, please visit GunAccessories.com

Colt Government model

tainless Steel Colt Government model with two mags and an Uncle Mikes waistband holster.
FTF $500 in Northern IL
All trades considered, but specifically looking for Glock 19 or 26 or Ruger stainless target model 10/22.

Colt, Series 80 blued 1911 - ruger p 89 than two boxes through this p85 ruger. Safe Queen waiting for a project.

mspasfeh017

-

Oxygen Tank

Oxygen Tank Conserving Device The PD1000 is a breakthru in oxygen conserving devices. It is a very small conservor - lightweight (just 16 oz) and compact (just 3.4″ x 2.8″ x 4.75″). Simple, easy to use design has a single control knob, and provides 8 settings from 1-6 lpm. Quiet operation. Uses a standard single-lumen cannula, same as on your oxygen concentrator. Impact-resistant materials used in the outer casing make the unit both very durable and also attractive. Continuous flow setting @ 2 lpm. It offers true 3:1 conservation, meaning any tank will last 3 times longer than with a continuous flow regulator.

mspmwg32