This is everything to know about the Glock 44.
In early 2020 Glock firearms made their first foray from the world of centerfire into the world of rimfire pistols with the polymer, semi-auto Glock 44 chambered in .22 long rifle. It was big news since the new G44 had many of the same features of their standard striker-fired handguns, but in a much more affordable to shoot package because of the type of ammo.
The idea was to make a gun that would be perfect for introducing new shooters and a trainer gun for serious concealed carry enthusiasts who daily carry larger guns like the ever-popular Glock 19.
However, it is safe to say the gun had a somewhat tumultuous launch. More so than any other Glock pistols to hit the market. There were some issues reported with the first models off the line that made some dedicated plinkers a little leery of this new offering to the semi-automatic rimfire market. Today we will look at the new Glock 44 a little more in depth to answer some of people's most burning questions on this interesting new firearm.
What is the Glock 44?
If you are at all familiar with Glock firearms, you will likely notice the similarities between the G44 and their popular Gen 5, 9mm caliber pistol in the Glock 19. Both guns have a 7.28-inch overall length, a slide width of one inch. The overall width of the G44 is slightly slimmer at 1.26 inches compared to the 19's 1.34 inches. The height for both firearms is 5.04 inches.
Both firearms have Glock Marksman barrels (GMB), and both have a barrel length of 4.02 inches. In an interesting twist for this firearm, Glock sells a threaded barrel for this firearm. Glock also gave this gun adjustable rear sights that can be tuned for windage and elevation easily. The magazine capacity for the 44 is only 10 rounds, which did take a lot of people by surprise when it first debuted. Many were expecting a larger capacity for a firearm chambered for such a small round. As of this writing, the Glock G44 has not gotten larger official magazines from Glock yet.
One interesting difference between this gun and previous Glocks is the fact that they gave the gun a hybrid steel and polymer slide. This helps cut down the weight of the firearm significantly. The G44 weighs just 12.63 ounces without a magazine and 16.40 ounces with a fully loaded one. That means the gun is roughly half the weight of a Glock 19.
Most of the other features of the firearm are standard for Glocks. It has the same safe action trigger system, it has front and rear slide serrations like the other Gen 5 models, and it features multiple interchangeable backstraps to adjust the feel to your hand size.
How does a Glock 44 feel?
If you have handled a Glock 19 before, the G44 will feel familiar to you. In fact, most people believe that the only major difference in feel is that weight that we talked about earlier. It is no coincidence that the two firearms feel the same either. Glock intended for the 44 to not just be something for plinking fun at the range. It is a way for G19 owners to practice serious firearms skills without the pain that comes with blowing through boxes of 9mm ammo. You can safely and cheaply work on your draws, your form, and target acquisition for much cheaper than a box of self-defense hollow points. Think of it as a less expensive way to build muscle memory.
Most users say that despite the rimfire configuration, Glock somehow even managed to get the trigger pull to feel similar. Most Glocks have a trigger that feels a hair mushy and the G44 is no exception. If you really want to fine-tune your trigger skills and discipline on the cheap, this is a viable option for that. Keep in mind however, that there is no comparison between .22 and 9mm in terms of power, speed, and recoil, so the overall feel and trigger are the best things it can replicate.
Has the Glock 44 been fixed?
It is no secret that in the immediate wake of this firearm's release, many people started reporting problems. There were some serious feed issues with the magazines. YouTube plinking guru .22plinkster goes into some of those early problems in the video above. One of the main issues was that the rounds would not stay in the proper canted position at the top of the magazine. This caused many failure to feed issues for some people. It is worth noting that Glock has since put a video on their site explaining how to load the magazines.
Apparently, one must be extremely careful when loading a G44 mag. The magazines come with load assist levers on either side. It seems many of the failure to feed issues came from users who pulled the lever too far down when loading. Glock recommends pulling the lever down just enough for there to be space to insert one round at a time on the follower. The company also recommends doing this on a flat surface like a table to get the rounds to seat better within the magazine. So, expect a quirky magazine.
Another issue that came up shortly after the release were problems with light primer strikes. It is less clear what caused this issue, however most users reported that it seemed to happen more often with bulk ammo like you might buy from Remington or Winchester. In .22plinkster's video, he found the gun would cycle everything except 36 grain Federal bulk ammo. In fact, it seemed the firearm preferred hotter, high velocity premium rounds of at least 40 grains.
Knowing this, it does kind of defeat the point of using the Glock 44 as a trainer if you must spend more money to buy more expensive ammo for the gun. However, it is worth noting that more recent reviews of the gun have been more positive in nature. More people are reporting their guns can handle bulk factory ammo now. There is some speculation on the Internet that the Glock 44 needs four to five hundred rounds to be broken in properly, which could explain a few of the early reports.
From what we have been able to find online, it appears that Glock has not made any adjustments or fixes to the 44 since it came out. Perhaps the first ones off the line had some minor manufacturing defects. The world may never know. It does seem likely that the gun is likely to be finicky about ammo, but that is something to be expected with almost any .22 firearm. If Glock did adjust the 44 to make it run better, it seems they did not make a big public declaration of any improvements.
Is the Glock 44 a good choice for concealed carry?
This is going to depend on your stance and comfort with using .22 lr as a defensive round. Some people are very comfortable with using a rimfire as a defensive round. Others feel that it is not enough stopping power. There are a couple of factors that probably will make it a solid choice for defense though. For one, the size is nearly identical to the highly concealable compact Glock 19. This firearm will fit into all the same holsters as the Glock, but with only half the weight. That is going to make it much more comfortable for every day carry.
Secondly, while the firearm may have issues with cheaper bulk ammo, most agree that the Glock 44 handles hotter loads extremely well, which is exactly what you want for a self-defense round anyway. This means that you should have no trouble cycling something like Federal Premium's 29-grain Personal Defense .22 ammo which pushes 1,650 fps out of shorter snub-nosed barrels.
Just keep in mind that rimfire can be unpredictable. If reliability issues make you nervous, which is an issue often cited by experts on .22 as a defensive round, you might be better off with one of Glock's many centerfire pistol choices.
How much does the Glock 44 cost, and is it worth the money?
Most retailers carry the Glock 44 for about $400. This makes it one of the cheapest Glock pistols you can own, and that price slightly undercuts the cost of a new Ruger Mark IV, although the Ruger has an arguably better reputation. It does make the gun much more expensive than something like the Taurus TX22 though. That gun is also striker-fired and offers a much greater 16-round magazine capacity standard.
However, it seems that most recent G44 owners do not regret their purchase. Keep in mind that the G44 is still relatively new. We expect to see Glock coming out with some enhancements to the design in the next few years, and hopefully some larger magazines too. Also keep in mind that a rimfire, regardless of brand, is never going to cycle as reliably as a centerfire. Anyone expecting this thing to cycle just like the 19 is already setting themselves up for disappointment. If you are a Glock fan already, and you own and use the G19 for personal safety, the G44 is a solid buy for training purposes and for those days where you just do not want to use a lot more expensive ammo.
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