The Story of the Remarkable Glock 22

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Glock stole a march on the inventors of the 40 S&W cartridge, getting the G22 out before S&W could get their new .40 onto the marketplace. And in those heady days of 1990, it was red-hot. Where the evolved 9mm-to-40 metal-framed pistols of that day held 10-11-12 rounds in a magazine the G22 held 15. Building on the hot new G17 and G19, the G22 used the same size frame and slide, and the same size magazines, but with internal dimensions altered to accommodate the .40 cartridge. Other than that, it was a Glock, like all the others. (Not that there were that many then., The G17 had arrived in the US in 1982, the G19 in 1988.) And yes, it was the first Glock big-bore, as the .45 and 10mm did not appear for a few more years.

Law Enforcement, already deep in the throes of changing from .38 Special revolvers to 9mm pistols, suddenly found their salvation: the .40 and the G22. With a capacity just shy of the 9mm, but with the stopping power approaching that of the .45, they (and all the rest of us as well) could finally have our cake and eat it too. Almost overnight departments and agencies across the country were swapping out their brand-new 9mm pistols for G22s.

And for competition shooters, the G22 was an inexpensive and appealing alternative. The USPSA soon after the G22 appeared changed the structure of practical competition. Originally there had been no equipment divisions, it was a “run what you brung” game. But now, with the new Limited Division (no optics, no compensators) the G22 in Limited became the hot gun for a lot of shooters. In part because you could buy a ready-to-go G22 and all the magazines you needed for it, for less than the pistolsmithing labor to have a similar 1911-based pistol built and tuned in Limited.

But the G22 was not without its problems. One was a result of the haste in getting it out first. The chamber of the G22 was in the early days (and if this has changed I haven’t heard about it) was a bit on the large size. This ensured absolute reliability in feeding but it was hard on brass. And since competition shooters then and now reload their brass until it doesn’t work anymore this means a much shorter brass life. There is even a special sizing dies to resize 40 brass that has been “Glocked”. Instead of going in and then back out, the brass is pressed all the way through the die and out the other end. This irons down the expanded brass at the base.

The Glock polygonal rifling contour and the surface of the bore tend to be unhappy with lead bullets. In the very early days there were a few Glock barrels that, shall we say, ballistically disassembled themselves. Since most shooters used jacketed-bullet ammunition, leading wasn’t a problem, but those who used lead bullets ended up creating a new branch of the pistol barrel Market: Glock barrels with Enfield rifling. 

The second one is not a new detail, it has happened to other pistols over the decades. The 9mm and 40 magazines will interchange in their frames. Unfortunately, they don’t feed. A .40 magazine, fed into a 9mm Glock means an instant stop the moment the 40 tries to enter the 9mm chamber. 1911s have the same problem, as do the Walther PPK line of pistols. I first saw this in action at a USPSA Nationals. A squad of all-Glock shooters was on a short stage, 8 or 10 rounds total. One of the shooters, on the beep, draw and fired, and we all heard a “pop”. In an amazing display of quick thinking, the shooter quickly racked the slide, fired again, and managed to rush through the entire stage, popping and racking, before the RO could realize the situation and catch up. Then, they dropped the mag, racked the slide and let the chambered round fly off onto the ground to Show Clear.

Not having stopped the shooter in time, and with no ammunition to show what had happened, the RO had to let the run stand. The shooter, using a .40, had inadvertently picked up a 9mm magazine from one of the other Glock shooters. Each round, held by the extractor, would fire, but it could not cycle the slide. If the RO had caught it, their stage score would have been zero. As soon as everyone realized the situation, the entire squad began checking magazines and ammunition, to ensure that they kept thing straight. Looking back, the shooter might not have been entirely within the spirit of the rules, but that was still in the era of “solve the problem” approach to practical competition.

As the Glock line progressed through the various generations, the G22 kept up, and it in turn received the same upgrades as the original, the G17. The G22 is now into the Gen5 series, and it also has the new Glock Marksman Barrel, the GMB. This uses a different rifling pattern, but still polygonal, and a tighter chamber to improve accuracy. Initial reports on the GMB indicated that the chambers were a tad short on the leade, and those rounds loaded the longest would sometimes touch the rifling, Glock made a change on the fly and made that problem one that only reloaders might encounter. 

The G22, like the G17, was also modified into other-sized models, so you have your choice of size and capacity in 40 as well. From the G35 down to the 23, 24 and 27, you can find a .40 Glock that fits your needs or size constraints. But the big question is this: wither the .40? In the 21st century is the 40 still relevant? 

In 2015 the FBI decided that they were going to go back to the 9mm Parabellum as the issue cartridge. There were several reasons given for this, one of which was: there’s no difference in performance between the 9mm and the 40. (That high-pitched whine you hear is Sir Isaac Newton spinning in his grave.) ostensibly the improvements in bullet technology made the 9mm just as good as the 40, even the .45. (The FBI was coy about it, saying that there was “no observable difference.”) The real reason? Monetary. .40 costs more than 9mm does. The .40 has more recoil, and that means a percentage of officers who might otherwise have shot a passing score on the qualification course with a 9mm, wouldn’t with the 40. That means extra training and more times on the range, which adds to a departments cost.

So should you consider a G22? Of course you should. First, the benefits. You get almost as much capacity as you would with a 9mm. You get more horsepower per shot with the 40. The parts, accessories, holsters, mag holders, any extras you might consider are the same as they would be for a 9mm G17, and that means they can be found everywhere. If you want trigger improvements, a replacement barrel, night sights, you are not out in the cold. As far as performance is concerned, one aspect the FBI deliberately overlooked was that bullet design improvements for the 9mm would be and have been used on the 40 as well. So whatever edge the 9mm might have with each improvement, it doesn’t keep it exclusively for very long.

And the downsides? Not a big deal. If you are worried that your brass might be worked harder in a G22 that in a G17, you can easily solve the “problem.” Load your ammo at the starting point, not up to the redline. A small decrease in pressure (but within standard 40 specs) will stave off the bulging problem. Do that and you brass, like mine, will last long enough that you’ll lose them over time, not bulge them. And if the leading problem worries you, use coated or plated bullets in your reloads. NBo need to invest in a new barrel.

And magazines? Ok, do you also own a 9mm Glock? No?” then, no problem. If you do, then a short session with a paint pen will mark your magazines. A dot on the baseplate, or a short stripe on the spine, and you can sort the 9mms from the 40s at a glance.

And here’s the best part: because the 9mm is the hot property right now, there are pistols in 40 to be found as bargains. Yes, you can buy one brand-new (And Glock will greatly appreciate it if you did) but there are 40s languishing in gun shop counters that you could snap up. Or, if there aren’t right now, ask the shop owner. Offer to buy a nice, clean G22 the next time someone brings on in on trade or for sale. Agree on a price or price range, and leave your number so they can call you when one shows up. You can score a G22 for a lot less than a 9mm might run you.

Oh, and since there were millions of 40 pistols manufactured from 1990 to 2015, and are still being made today, it will be a long time before the ammunition makers stop producing 40 S&W ammunition. It will probably be another lifetime before the ammo makers start scaling back 40 S&W production to one custom run a year. Until then, you don’t have to worry about not being able to find ammo. And even at that future time there will still be a sea of 40 brass available to be reloaded.  So don’t hesitate, if you see a G22 in the display case at your next stop at your local gun shop, get it. 

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