Home >> Collecting >> Gun Collecting

How a Glock 18 Works

The Glock 18 pistol is a select-fire version of the popular Glock 17 9-mm pistol. Select fire means that the weapon can be fired on full automatic, like a machine gun, or as a single shot. The Glock 18 pistol was designed for special operations among military and law enforcement personnel. The Glock 18 is considered a machine gun by the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms (BATF).

Loading
- To load the Glock 18, place the bullets in the magazine, insert the magazine into the bottom of the pistol's grip so that it locks into position, pull the slide completely back and release. The forward motion of the slide will load a live round into the chamber.
Firing
- To fire the weapon in the semi-automatic mode, you must turn the circular dial -- located on the left-hand side of the slide assembly -- to the single-dot position. The single dot indicates that the weapon will fire semi-automatically, meaning one trigger pull per bullet. For full-automatic fire, you must turn the circular dial to the two-dot position. The weapon will now fire fully automatically, meaning that the gun will continue to fire as long as you hold the trigger down.
Operation
- Hold the pistol securely in your dominant hand, aim at your target (the Glock features an open sight system, which functions by lining up your front sight with your target and centering the front sight within the notch of the rear sight) and place your index finger on the trigger. Squeeze the trigger until the weapon fires; for full-automatic firing, hold down the trigger until the magazine is empty or you wish to stop (whichever comes first).

Gun Collecting