As the frame is considered the “firearm” by the ATF, the company could only bring in the slide and substituted a standard model 17 frame with the upper half being a P80. Import laws make it difficult to bring guns in to the US so even the display model Glock loaned doesn’t have the true P80 frame. There’s not much of a difference between a G17 and a P80–just the markings on the slide. To our knowledge, there are no P80s in US collector hands but the company has one on loan at the Cody Firearms Museum in Cody, WY (pictured below). Glock produced 30,000 pistols for the army who gave it the designation P80. The 17 design was a true underdog entry in the competition but took everyone by surprise winning the contract by a mile. The impetus behind the design was the Austrian army’s search for a replacement to the Walther P38–then in continuous service since WWII. Even the carrying case was more intricate: individual bullet holders and molded to hold the mags, loader, and cleaning rod and brush. These gen 1s are a thing of beauty–smooth clean lines and an iconic design. The foundation of the glock line started with the model 17.
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