Glock G44 – .22LR Perfection

If you ask a Glock hater what some of their biggest imagined issues with the Glock firearm is, they will likely say that there is a lack of originality and innovation with Glock. That the differences between generations are boring and not many times not needed. The new G44 may just shut them up.

But probably not.

On Dec 10th. 2019, Glock announced their newest pistol. The Glock G44, chambered in .22LR.

At first glance, the G44 may just look like another “ho-hum” compact offering from Glock. But aside from Glock releasing their first .22LR pistol, this firearm is also different in other ways.

While the general size of it is comparable to the popular G19, the weight and some of the components of the G44 is where some of the big differences come in.

The slide features a “hybrid steel” slide (with front serrations) made of five pieces combining steel and polymer, making the slide light enough to reliably cycle rimfire ammunition. And a threaded barrel for suppressors is already available for it.

The weight of the G44 may be of some interest as well, as it weighs in at just about half of a loaded G19.

It does appear that Glock may have dropped the ball in one area, at least in this writer’s opinion. The mag capacity seems a bit lacking at 10 rounds. It seems that if Glock can manage to fit 15 rounds of 9mm in the same grip, then something over 10 rounds of .22LR shouldn’t be all that difficult. But you know I’m still going to buy one.

This brings us to price. How much is this puppy going to set you back? The word is that it will have an MSRP of $439, with a street price of around $350.

Overall, I believe this to be a good move on the part of Glock and a much-needed break in the never-ending barrage of 9mm handguns that we have seen over the past few years.