Glock developed the cartridge for two reasons:
First and foremost, Gaston hated the fact that Colt had its name on cartridges, and S&W had its name on cartridges, and SIG had its name on cartridges ... but not Glock. I've been told this many times by people with first hand knowledge Gaston wanted his name on a cartridge.
Second and much more reasonable, the development was pre-JCP so there was a dearth of big-caliber pistols on the market that were reasonably high capacity and small enough for small/female officers.
Unfortunately for Glock, a number of bad things happened:
- The original plan was to make the gun identical in size to the G17/G22. Concept: trade agencies out in favor of the new, bigger bullet without needing new holsters, etc. Problem: the gun wouldn't work without a wider, heavier slide. Result: the gun doesn't fit in those G17/G22 holsters.
- Ammo availability was (and is) limited. Prices are high.
- There were a number of folks, including a well known military unit, that tested the gun and found that it was unreliable.
- The gun has significantly more felt recoil than either a G22 or G21.
- JCP came along and suddenly the entire industry was devoting massive R&D money to create high-capacity .45 Auto pistols that were small, reliable, lightweight, and durable.
To date, every large agency that has adopted the .45 GAP Glocks got their guns for free. In the case of NYSD, state law wouldn't allow the department to trade its old guns so Glock
gave them, flat out, free of charge, nothing in return, all the guns, holsters, mag pouches, and two years worth of duty, transition, and training/qual ammo. That was the length Glock was willing to go in order to get a major agency in the win column for .45 GAP.
It shouldn't surprise anyone that the .45 GAP is effective in a terminal sense. It's a .45, after all, and matches .45 Auto velocities with mid-weight bullets reasonably well. But in a world with HK45s and M&P45s, you no longer have to rely on a shorter cartridge to get a 10rd .45 that will work in the hands of your smaller officers. And you don't need to rely on a nearly proprietary cartridge with a doubtful future.
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