The Glock pistol series stands as a testament to innovative design and reliability, having reshaped the landscape of service pistols since their debut in the early 1980s.

With unparalleled popularity among civilian, law enforcement, and military circles, Glock has become a gold standard for polymer-framed, striker-fired handguns, influencing contemporaries like the SIG Sauer’s M17/M18 Modular Handgun System.

Despite the U.S. military’s standardization on the M17/M18, elite units such as the Special Operations Command have gravitated toward the Glock 19.

This compact yet capable variant has earned its stripes as the preferred choice across various SOCOM branches, including the Navy SEALs, Army Green Berets, and Army Rangers, who refer to it by different monikers such as the Mk27, L131A1, and M007, while most simply know it as the Glock 19.

The Glock 19’s journey into the hands of these elite warriors wasn’t straightforward.

In the mid-2000s, the need for a concealable sidearm was apparent, prompting Army Special Forces to craft requirements tailored specifically to the Glock 19.

The compact pistol’s adoption was a testament to the clever maneuvering of requirements to equip operators with the Glock – a move that culminated in SOCOM’s 2016 broad adoption of the Glock 19, alongside the Trijicon RMR red-dot sight.

While the Glock 19 became popular with SOCOM, another Glock model has remained elusive to the public.

The Glock 18 was initially introduced as a 9mm sidearm for military and police use in 1986.

It was created to combat terrorism in Austria. The main difference from its predecessor is the addition of a control switch that functions as a lever.

Indented dots on the switch indicate the firing mode: a single dot for semi-automatic and a pair of dots for automatic.

This rare variant features a selective fire switch for transitioning between semi-automatic and fully automatic modes.

The allure and effectiveness of the Glock 18 are evident, but so are the reasons for its stringent restrictions in the United States.

As a result, the Glock 18 is a fully automatic weapon and is incredibly easy to control. It is easy to see why the Glock 18 is an effective sidearm.

It is also easy to see how the Glock 18 can do a tremendous amount of damage with a single pull of the trigger, prompting the United States to make it illegal.