¶ Glock Details
Glocks come in many different shapes and sizes. Make enough of them and at some point you will ask yourself one simple question:
"Can I use these parts together?"
¶ Generations
 |
|---|
| Hemlines go up, Hemlines go down |
Glocks change over time, and while the lines between them are fuzzy (a pistol produced on the borders can wind up with features of both) people generally agree that there are five distinct generations for glocks.
Most of the visible differences are in the frame itself, such as the addition and then reduction, of finger grooves. Those differences don't matter as a 3d printed frame can do whatever it wants to there. But some differences do matter as parts that work with one generation might not work with another.
The general rule of thumb is to stick with Gen3 parts. But if that doesn't do it for you, the OTHER rule of thumb is Gens 2-4 are usually compatible and Gen5 usually isn't. There is no official resource that ties these all together but there are unofficial sources for some models.
¶ How Glock Defines It
(Official Glock model list--click to open)
Glock organizes things into models and sizes. A model (or variant) refers to a specific combination of slide, cartridge, and frame size. Glock sells pistols by model so that's what most people know them as and that's why you'll often hear things such as a "G17 Frame" instead of a more precise term.
A size doesn't refer to the frame per se but to the overall size of the pistol. Official Glock materials often split sizes in to five categories: "Standard (aka Full)", "Compact", "Sub-Compact", "Slimline", and "Competition". A semi-official sixth category, "Crossover", also exists for frames that combine slides that typically fit into one category with frames that typically go into another.
That's accurate enough for most usages as in most cases a standard glock SLIDE will be put on a standard glock FRAME, making a standard FRAME SIZE pistol. But even some of Glock's normal models blur those lines and 3d printing opens the door to blurring them a lot more.
¶ How It REALLY Goes Together
You have three distinct properties here, two of which must line up on the same frame for the parts to go together:
- The Slide size
- The Frame size
- The Frame type
The slide size limitation is obvious. A 17 standard slide is longer than a 19 or 26 slide. As such the standard slide will not work on frames designed for compact or sub-compact slides.
Slides come in five distinct lengths: "Standard", "Compact","Sub-Compact", "Competition", and "Long Slide". Standard, Competiton, and Long all fit on the same frame so they don't need to be considered separately. Cartridge doesn't matter, at least not directly.
The frame SIZE is, oversimplified, the size (vertically) of the grip, and that comes in three sizes: "Standard", "Compact", and "Sub-Compact". That affects magazine choice (and ultimately capacity) but there is nothing about the length of the grip that affects compatibility.
The frame TYPE is an unofficial category, and there are three: "Standard", "Slimline", and "Large". The standard type is, well, standard. The slimline is thinner (and thus incompatible with standard slides), and the large frame is specific to 10mm/45acp. As those cartridges are too long to fit in a standard frame the large frame magazine wells are made longer. That is enough to wreck compatibility.
¶ So what does it mean in practice
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All those G17/G19/G26 frames can be made to fire other cartridges provided the frame can physically handle the force. Model numbers are shorthand; they are not the only option.
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You can change your weapon's cartridge simply by changing the slide, magazine, and sometimes the ejector. But the slide size and frame types have to match. As a result you can't swap to 10mm or 45acp unless your starting pistol was already one of those.
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3d printers have made all sorts of crazy crossovers possible, like a 17L slide on a sub-compact frame or a 26 slide on a full sized frame. Remember, just because you can doesn't mean you should.
¶ Official Models
| Type | Caliber | Frame Type | Frame Size | Slide Size | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glock 17 (G17) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Standard | Standard | Standard | |
| Glock 17 Long (G17L) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Standard | Standard | Long Slide | |
| Glock 18 (G18) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Standard | Standard | Standard | select fire |
| Glock 19 (G19) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Standard | Compact | Compact | |
| Glock 19X (G19X) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Standard | Standard | Compact | Crossover |
| Glock 20 (G20) | 10mm Auto | Large | Standard | Standard | |
| Glock 21 (G21) | .45 ACP | Large | Standard | Standard | |
| Glock 22 (G22) | .40 S&W | Standard | Standard | Standard | |
| Glock 23 (G23) | .40 S&W | Standard | Compact | Compact | |
| Glock 24 (G24) | .40 S&W | Standard | Standard | Long Slide | |
| Glock 25 (G25) | .380 ACP | Standard | Compact | Compact | Not sold in USA |
| Glock 26 (G26) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Standard | Sub-Compact | Sub-Compact | |
| Glock 27 (G27) | .40 S&W | Standard | Sub-Compact | Sub-Compact | |
| Glock 28 (G28) | .380 ACP | Standard | Sub-Compact | Sub-Compact | Not sold in USA |
| Glock 29 (G29) | 10mm Auto | Large | Compact | Compact | |
| Glock 30 (G30) | .45 ACP | Large | Compact | Compact | |
| Glock 31 (G31) | .357 SIG | Standard | Standard | Standard | |
| Glock 32 (G32) | .357 SIG | Standard | Compact | Compact | |
| Glock 33 (G33) | .357 SIG | Standard | Sub-Compact | Sub-Compact | |
| Glock 34 (G34) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Standard | Standard | Competition | |
| Glock 35 (G35) | .40 S&W | Standard | Standard | Competition | |
| Glock 36 (G36) | .357 SIG | Large + Slimline | Sub-Compact | Competition | ??? |
| Glock 37 (G37) | .45 GAP | Standard | Standard | Standard | |
| Glock 38 (G38) | .45 GAP | Standard | Compact | Compact | |
| Glock 39 (G39) | .45 GAP | Standard | Sub-Compact | Sub-Compact | |
| Glock 40 (G40) | 10mm Auto | Large | Standard | Long Slide | |
| Glock 41 (G41) | .45 ACP | Large | Standard | Competition | |
| Glock 42 (G42) | .380 ACP | Slimline | Sub-Compact | Sub-Compact | |
| Glock 43 (G43) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Slimline | Sub-Compact | Sub-Compact | |
| Glock 43X (G43X) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Slimline | Compact | Sub-Compact | Crossover |
| Glock 44 (G44) | .22 Long Rifle | Standard | Compact | Compact | Odd man out design-wise |
| Glock 45 (G45) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Standard | Standard | Compact | Crossover |
| Glock 46 (G46) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Standard | Compact | Compact | Custom innards made to German service requirements |
| Glock 47 (G47) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Standard | Standard | Custom | Custom pistol for US CBP, basically has a standard slide designed to fit as if it were a compact slide |
| Glock 48 (G48) | 9×19mm Parabellum | Slimline | Compact | Compact |
¶ Frames
Official Glock materials often split frames up in to "Standard (aka Full)", "Compact", "Sub-Compact", "Slimline", and "Competition".
That's accurate enough for most usages as in most cases a standard glock SLIDE will be put on a standard glock FRAME. But models can blur those lines; frames which don't fit into the above categories are called crossovers and 3d printing opens the door to a lot of those.
¶ Slide Size
Slides come in multiple lengths but are fitted for one of the four main frame sizes ("Standard", "Compact", "Sub-Compact", "Slimline").
Competition and Long Slides fit on a Standard frame. Slides must be paired with a compatible frame or they won't work but all frames within a given category are cross compatible. The cartridge does not matter, with one set of exceptions based on frame type.
¶ Frame Type
The 10mm and 45acp cartridges cannot fit in a standard Glock frame; they are too long. As a result there is an unofficial frame type known as a Large Frame that supports those cartridges. It is the same as the other standard frame sizes except the magazine well is longer. This detail makes slides between normal frames and large frames incompatible.
Slimline can perhaps be considered another type as the frame is noticeably slimmer, as is the slide that goes on it. Naturally slimline anything is incompatible with its bigger brothers.
¶ Pistol Size
The overall size of the pistol frame, ie how long is the grip. A standard grip fits a standard magazine which can hold 17 rounds of 9mm ammo. A compact gets 15 and a subcompact 10. Slimlines also can be taller or shorter.
¶ Parts
If you want to be sure you'll have to look it up, and as there is no official guide you'll have to make do with this unofficial guide created by a user at GlockTalk: https://www.glocktalk.com/threads/glock-parts-compatibility-chart.1822566/#post-30731909
Those frames