The Glock 19X, a pistol that almost clinched the title of the new standard-issue sidearm for the U.S. Military, remains a subject of much debate and interest among firearm aficionados, law enforcement, and the military community.

Despite its broad adoption by law enforcement agencies and its civilian market success, the Glock 19X never made it to the battlefield as a standard-issue firearm for the U.S. troops.

The story of the Glock 19X began with the XM17 Modular Handgun System competition, which aimed to find a replacement for the aging Beretta M9.

Glock was a top contender with its model 19X, which combined features from two of its renowned pistols—the full-size frame of the Glock 17 and the compact slide of the Glock 19.

It was a unique offering that Glock was confident in, going so far as to file a complaint when it lost the competition to SIG Sauer’s P320, also known as the M17 and M18 in its military variants.

The 19X was highly praised for its reliability, ambidextrous controls, and the GLOCK Marksman Barrel that promised superior accuracy.

Its corrosion-resistant nPVD slide coating and the ability to accept multiple magazine capacities further added to its appeal.

However, despite its superior ergonomics and solid performance in reliability, the Glock 19X was marked down in the competition for its “marginal” rating in ammunition licensing—a critical aspect that SIG Sauer had astutely covered with its partnership with Winchester.

Price was another pivotal factor in the decision, with SIG’s offer coming in significantly lower than Glock’s.

Additionally, some military personnel believed that the Glock 19X’s lack of a thumb safety—a feature the military favors—was a considerable oversight.

The military favors thumb safeties and tends to choose handguns that have them.

In the end, while Glock’s bid and the 19X’s capabilities were solid, they were simply not enough to outperform SIG Sauer’s lower bid and strategic partnerships.

Despite losing the U.S. Military contract, the Glock 19X found a home with many law enforcement agencies, with estimates stating that about 65 percent of U.S. agencies have adopted some variant of the Glock pistol.

The Glock 19X remains popular among civilians despite losing the XM Modular Handgun System bid.

Upon its 2018 release to the public, it quickly sold 100,000 pistols in under six months.

Relevant articles:
– Glock 19X: The Gun Built for the U.S. Military But Never ‘Served’, The National Interest
– Glock 19X: The Gun Built for the U.S. Military But Never ‘Served’, nationalinterest.org
– Glock 19x :Why Us Army Had To Say No To This Gun, Glock Talk
– Sidearms & Scatterguns – Army REJECTS Glock 19X, “It’s a shitty pistol that is not worth the Army’s time and money.” – General James C. McConville, Army Chief of Staff, Snipers Hide