By R.K. Campbell | Contributing Editor
Smallbore rimfire handguns have been popular for target practice, training, and small game hunting since the .22-caliber rimfire cartridge was invented.
Conversion units for 1911 handguns and the Smith and Wesson K 22 revolver have been important to my shooting life. Glocks are very popular handguns, but until now there was no .22-caliber Glock. There have been various conversion units offered, some more popular than others.
Conversions are okay as far as it goes but it is preferable to own two firearms in my opinion, and usually no more expensive. The .22 Long Rifle is a useful cartridge, accurate, powerful enough for target practice and small game hunting, and affordable.
Glock shooters now have a quality doppelganger of the Glock 19 available in the Glock Model 44 .22. The Glock 44 was met with some controversy. Some felt Glock did not need to get into this market and others would have preferred another type of handgun. Glock made the move and they did so with plenty of research behind the pistol.
The Glock 44 is well suited for rimfire practice for those that own Glock handguns. The pistol is equally well suited to beginning shooters and those that enjoy informal target shooting and small game hunting. You need not own a Glock to appreciate the Model 44. It is equally well suited to anyone looking for a .22 caliber pistol for practice, training, and small game hunting. Small game hunting? Sure, the pistol is accurate enough. I can recall my uncle hunting raccoons with a K 22 in one hand and a flashlight in the other. The Glock with a light mounted on the frame rail answers the need for hunting at night where legal. The Glock 44 is a Glock 19 size handgun, identical in every dimension.
The most radical departure from the Glock 19 9mm is a lightweight slide. It is a hybrid mix of polymer with metal reinforcement. Steel slides simply are too heavy to allow functioning with the light momentum of the .22 Long Rifle cartridge. The new slide material allows function with the .22 cartridge.
The structure seems similar to the Benelli shotgun, which uses a stainless steel frame covered in polymer. Iron sight makers tell us they would prefer not to sell steel sight units for the Glock 44 fearing the sight dovetails may be damaged driving out the original sight and driving in a steel sight- which doesn’t occur with the steel slide Glock pistols. The Glock 44 sights are standard Glock sights white outlines. The rear sight is fully adjustable. A tool is supplied with the Glock 44 for sight adjustment.
The slide and barrel will not fit on a Glock 19 slide, the locking block differs. The trigger action is a standard Glock and trigger compression is standard at 5.8 pounds. A lever set in the trigger must be depressed in order to fire the handgun. Take down is Glock typical. Lock the slide to the rear, depress two levers in the frame, and run the slide and barrel off of the frame.
The pistol measures out the same as the Glock 19 at 7.28 inches long, and barrel length is 4.02 inches. The dimensions are such that the Glock 44 fits all Glock 19 holsters. There are grip inserts to aid hand fit if needed. The slide lock, magazine release and take down are all standard Glock but the big difference in handling is weight. The Glock 44 weighs just over 14.5 ounces, nine ounces less than the Glock 19.
The Glock 44 uses a single column style ten shot magazine. Glock tells us that a high capacity magazine is difficult to feed with the rimmed .22 Long Rifle cartridge. The ten shot magazine features a nicely located tab on the follower that makes loading easy. Depress the tab and load one round at a time to properly stack the cartridges. The proper sequence ensures feed reliability. The barrel is separate from the frame, not fixed like most .22 rimfire barrels. The frame is a Generation 4 type with finger grooves. The white outline sights are familiar to generations of Glock users.
When it comes to .22 caliber pistol reliability the problems revolve around the cartridge itself. There isn’t a lot of impulse to operate the slide, compress a recoil spring, and provide enough energy to transfer to the spring to allow it to snap the slide forward. Only .22 Long Rifle High Velocity loads are suited to such use. The .22 uses a heel based bullet which sometimes takes a bump and moves out of the case, impeding feeding. That said, some .22 caliber handguns are pretty reliable and some are not. Even the good ones are generally reliable only with a narrow range of velocity. Glock tells us they tested the pistol with dozens of loads to ensure reliability. They claim the pistol functions even with standard pressure loads. Well- yes and no. All standard velocity loads are not created equal. Standard velocity loads are usually more expensive than bulk high velocity loads and in the average pistol, they are no more accurate. Some .22 Long Rifle HV loads are very accurate. After firing more than 3,500 rounds in the Glock 44 I have to report this is the first Glock pistol that isn’t one hundred per cent reliable with most ammunition.
In general, the pistol functions well with good quality .22 caliber high velocity ammunition. After three hundred rounds or so the pistol becomes less reliable, in common with many .22 caliber handguns, due to powder fouling and built up powder ash.
On the other hand in one test I fired 500 rounds of Winchester M22 as quickly as possible, given the need to load magazines, and the pistol never stuttered. There have been no light primer strikes. With standard velocity loads the pistol sometimes fails to lock open on the last shot. In some instances the spent case is caught between the slide and chamber. Unlike some problematical introductions the Glock 44 is reliable with CCI Mini Mag, Fiocchi HV, Remington Thunderbolt, and Winchester Super X. Some will continue to run longer than others without cleaning.
When you consider the target duty of the pistol- training for personal defense with a Glock like handgun- the Glock 44 excels. As a trainer the pistol is a great new introduction. As a pistol for informal target practice or plinking it is a joy to fire and use. For sporting use there are more accurate handguns. The Glock 44 will group five shots into 2.0 inches at 25 yards with practically any load including the Winchester Super X hollowpoint, CCI Mini Mag, and Fiocchi HV. Some groups have been as small as 1.45 inch. Some have been as large as 3.0 inches. The pistol clearly does what it was designed to do. It is a fun gun and a must have for Glock fans.
