Glock’s newest, and likely to be most talked about firearm for 2018, is the model 19X. The Glock 19X is meant to be a crossover that will hopefully allow consumers to do so with confidence. The Glock 19X is a step into a new direction and quite possibly a new iteration of future pistols. This aberration of a Gen5  combines a G17 frame with a G19 slide assembly. This unique combination allows for the capacity of their full size G17 magazines, more dexterity and positive handling, and accuracy in a smaller package.

TFB REVIEW: Glock 19X

Another first for Glock with the 19X is this is the 1st factory-colored pistol they have ever made. You may have seen all kinds of colored iterations, two-tone, reverse-tone and cerakoted models floating around in public, but those are produced as “Limited Edition” runs by distributors and custom shops; not Glock themselves.

The Glock 19X also marks only the 2nd time in their company’s history that they have made a colored box in which the pistol ships in. On the 25th Anniversary of their company they made gray boxes (if you remember those) and now with possibly the dawning of a new era of Glock pistols they have decided to run Coyote colored boxes to match their Coyote colored pistols.

The truly unique birth of the 19X for the US Army’s MHS competition which is now over was driven by Gaston Glock himself. Understanding the requirements that were being asked by all those competing, Glock is the only company that submitted one firearm for the competition. The Glock 19X uniquely fit all the dimensional parameters and standards with one pistol. Most other competing companies needed to submit two firearms; a full-size model and a more compact version. This speaks to the truly unique design and utility of the Glock 19X.

We at TFB were blessed with the opportunity from Glock to handle, shoot and review one of these pistols ahead of their public announcement date. To start off, let’s take a look at the specifications for this new pistol:

• nDLC Finish on Glock Marksman Barrel (GMB)
• nPVD Finish on the Slide
• Ambidextrous Slide Stop Levers
• Reversible Magazine Release
• G17 Frame paired with a G19 Slide Assembly
• Lanyard Loop
• No Finger Grooves (consistent w/ Gen5 Models)
• Coyote Brown pistol featuring a Coyote Brown pistol case
• 1st Factory Manufactured Colored Slide of any Glock pistol
• Includes one 17 Round Magazine & two 17+2 Round Magazines

The Coyote colored G19X is achieved by applying an nPVD finish to the slide and an nDLC finish to the barrel in that soft brown color scheme.

The lanyard loop is actually a removable insert from the backside of the frame. Similar to how some people will buy aftermarket pieces to plug that area free from debris, Glock simply added in a lanyard loop in a similar fashion. In the future, those same aftermarket companies may begin making lanyard loops or Glock themselves might sell them to the public, but this is still an unknown at this time.

The Glock 19X has been test-fired from a Ransom Rest (by Glock HQ) and proven to hold 3″ groups at a distance of 50 yards; twice the typical standard of 25 yards for most industry pistols. Myself being from the balmy tundra of MN tested this pistol merely by resting the pistol on my range bag at 25 yards (max distance) at an indoor range. My coffee-fueled shooting abilities allowed me to shoot roughly 2″ groups from that improvised position so I am a believer of that 3″ grouping Glock purports from a Ransom Rest at 50 yards.

While shooting this pistol, I thought it was very pleasant to shoot and very easy to control. A G19 or G17 alone are easy to shoot so giving a G19 slide assembly a longer handle to control it makes it very easy to shoot. To further explain, with the longer G17 frame and handle, I more quickly returned on target while shooting quick, successive shots. The 17+2 magazines when loaded gave it a strong balance and a stabilizing effect of weight when shooting as well.

As far as the functioning and controls of this firearm… it is a Glock. If you have ever shot a Glock before, there is no learning curve to this pistol. The mag release, slide stop, and trigger can all be easily reached and manipulated without odd torquing of your hands.

I am personally right-handed so I did not reverse the magazine release or attempt to use the slide stop from a left-handed person’s perspective while actively shooting. I did play with the slide stop in my non-dominant hand while the firearm was unloaded and I could easily release the slide forward. The ambidextrous slide stop levers showed no “flex” or any reason for me to question its ability to work as intended for a left-handed individual.

This pistol ships with 3 magazines like all Glocks typically do, but it comes with even more capacity than a typical G17. You receive one 17-round magazine and two 17+2 magazines. To attempt to objectively judge myself, I have hands that are an average male size so I found it fine to use the standard 17 round magazine. The 17+2 is a nice option and could definitely help out those with larger hands for a better grip, but for me personally, the 17 round magazines balanced and shot perfectly. I do not know that I would use the 17+2 magazines that often at the range. An even lower likelihood for concealed carry.

I essential do not have anything negative to say about this pistol. This is a good iteration of tooling and parts they have available to produce something new for consumers. One thing I would potentially like to see is a different type of 19X or crossover pistol. Maybe a G17 slide assembly with a G19 frame. For me, that would be something I would be more inclined to conceal carry. The shorter heal or grip would make it that much easier to hide and conceal as an everyday carry.

I do understand that many states are open carry or law enforcement could easily carry the 19X (open carry) as is. With Minnesota’s inclement and frigid weather, I could carry the 19X potentially 6 months out of the year under a coat no problem. Then again, I like to use the same pistol year round so the inverse model I proposed (G19 frame/G17 slide) would be nice to see.

The host of technological advances built into this pistol will likely lead to future models. Maybe a Glock 23X?! A combination of a G22 frame with a G23 slide assembly perhaps?… That is purely speculation by myself and not any actual hints from Glock.

The Glock 19X 9mm should be available at your favorite Glock retailers beginning on January 22nd, 2017 at an MSRP of $749.