Glock switch

{{Short description|Auto sear installable on a Glock}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2026}} thumb|upright=1.35|A switch attached to a Glock pistol thumb|upright=1.35|A Glock 18 for reference, denoted by the slide-mounted fire selector

A '''Glock switch'''<ref>{{Cite news |date=21 June 2022 |title=What is a Glock Switch? How a small device turns handguns into machine guns |url=https://www.fox2detroit.com/news/what-is-a-glock-switch-how-a-small-device-turns-handguns-into-machine-guns |access-date=7 November 2023 |publisher=WJBK |location=Detroit |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Peterson |first=Beatrice |date=7 November 2023 |title=Capitol police find gun with 'giggle switch' after armed men crash into barricade |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/2-armed-men-arrested-after-crashing-stolen-car/story?id=104667834 |access-date=7 November 2023 |publisher=ABC News |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |title=Giggle Switch Worthy of my Index Finger |date=2 September 2020 |publisher=Lena Miculek - Trigger Tribe |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyXoHXWTins |access-date=7 November 2023 |language=en |via=YouTube |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20231108034813/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyXoHXWTins|archive-date=8 November 2023}} Jerry Miculek - Pro Shooter.</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Jackman |first=Tom |title=Md., Baltimore sue Glock over device enabling machine-gun fire |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2025/02/12/glock-automatic-sear-lawsuit-maryland/ |access-date=19 June 2025 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=12 February 2025}}</ref> is a small device that can be attached to the rear of the slide of a Glock handgun, changing the semi-automatic pistol into a machine pistol capable of fully automatic fire. Glock does not manufacture switches to be attached to their firearms, nor do they design their firearms with the intent of having machine gun conversion devices installed. They are aftermarket parts manufactured and sold illegally through the black market or made at home using a 3D printer.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdin/pr/evansville-felon-sentenced-seven-years-federal-prison-3d-printing-ghost-gun-and-dozens|title=Evansville Felon Sentenced to Seven Years in Federal Prison for 3D Printing Ghost Gun and Dozens of “Glock Switches”|date=October 18, 2024|website=The United States Department of Justice}}</ref>

As a type of auto sear, it functions by applying force to the trigger bar to prevent it from limiting fire to one round of ammunition per trigger pull. This device by itself, regardless of whether it is installed on a slide or not, is classified by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) as a machine gun, making possession of the device illegal in the United States under most circumstances.<ref>{{cite web |title=27 CFR 179.11: Meaning of Terms |publisher=Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives |url=https://www.atf.gov/file/11236/download |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240801234017/https://www.atf.gov/file/11236/download |archive-date=1 August 2024 |url-status=live}}</ref>

For reference, Glock's law enforcement & military Model 18 machine pistol has a built-in select fire function. This allows the pistol to fire at approximately 1,200 rounds per minute, meaning it could empty a standard capacity 17 or extended 33 round magazine in 0.85 or 1.65 seconds respectively.<ref>{{cite web |title=G18 |url=https://eu.glock.com/en/products/pistols/g18 |publisher=Glock |access-date=10 April 2025}}</ref>

{{toc limit|2}} ==Operation== A Glock switch functions by applying force to a semi-automatic pistol's trigger bar (disconnector) to prevent it from limiting fire to one round of ammunition per trigger pull.<ref>Fire selector system, {{US patent|5705763A|U.S. Patent 5,705,763, to J.A. Leon, 1 June 1998}}</ref><ref name="Justice2"/> Normally, in a semi-automatic pistol, after firing, the trigger bar catches the firing pin until the trigger is released, but when depressed by the switch it does not catch. A Glock switch thus converts the weapon into a machine pistol capable of automatic fire.<ref name="Justice"/> The device is roughly the size of a United States quarter, and when installed on the rear of the slide on a Glock pistol (replacing the slide cover plate), adds a selective fire switch; flipping the switch sets the weapon to fully automatic mode, which is capable of firing as many rounds per minute as the short-recoil action allows.<ref name="Justice"/>

==History== A patent for the Glock auto-sear was filed in 1996 and approved in 1998, with its invention credited to Venezuelan Jorge A. Leon, who claims to have invented the device in 1987. In 2024, Leon stated that he regrets inventing the device.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/feel-terrified-inventor-glock-switch-technology-regrets-creation/story?id=111271476|title='I feel terrified': Inventor of 'Glock switch' technology says he regrets creation|author-first1=Bill|author-last=Hutchinson|date=24 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240821050821/https://abcnews.go.com/US/feel-terrified-inventor-glock-switch-technology-regrets-creation/story?id=111271476|archive-date=21 August 2024|url-status=live|publisher=ABC News}}</ref>

The first reported appearance of Glock switches in the United States occurred in 2002 when an Argentinian was arrested for sending Glock switches among other illegal firearms to the United States, with 16 later being recovered by the ATF in 2003.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.atf.gov/our-history/internet-arms-trafficking#:~:text=In%202002%2C%20confidential%20intelligence%20sources,United%20States%20and%20other%20countries|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240725220612/https://www.atf.gov/our-history/internet-arms-trafficking#:~:text=In%202002%2C%20confidential%20intelligence%20sources,United%20States%20and%20other%20countries|archive-date=25 July 2024|publisher=Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives|title=Internet Arms Trafficking}}</ref>

In 2019, the ATF recovered thousands of the devices which were imported from China.<ref name="CNN"/> Since 2021, people have been manufacturing the switch devices with 3D printers.<ref name="Smith"/><ref name="CNN"/> In March 2022, a Vice News investigation learned that the federal prosecutions which involved conversion devices have been rising since 2017. They determined that from 2017 to 2022, advances in low-cost 3D printers and global commerce on the internet have made the devices available for as little as US$20.<ref name="Stephens"/> In 2022, federal authorities documented a dramatic rise in the prevalence of the Glock switches.<ref name="Barned-Smith"/>

In response to proliferation of Glock switches, Glock plans to replace the discontinued models in December 2025 with "V" designations after the model numbers, which will feature redesigned trigger bars and rear plates designed to prevent the use of full-auto switches.<ref>{{Cite news |title=GLOCK Discontinues Dozens of Popular Handgun Models |date=21 October 2025 |url=https://www.shootingnewsweekly.com/business/glock-discontinues-dozens-of-popular-handgun-models/ }}</ref> However, Glock's attempt was foiled when reports show that new Glock switches are compatible with "V" series models.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Paulsen |first=Jacob |date=November 19, 2025 |title=Glock’s New V-Series Just Hit a Major Problem: Reports of New “Switch” Compatibility Surface |url=https://www.concealedcarry.com/gear/glocks-new-v-series-just-hit-a-major-problem-reports-of-new-switch-compatibility-surface/ |access-date= |website=ConcealedCarry.com |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Barton |first=Champe |date=November 24, 2025 |title=Facing Legal Pressure, Glock Revamps Pistols To Prevent Machine Gun Conversions |url=https://www.thetrace.org/2025/11/glock-switch-ban-new-pistol-machine-gun/ |access-date= |website=The Trace |language=en-us}}</ref>

Colloquially, an auto sear is sometimes referred to as a "giggle switch".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Peterson |first=Beatrice |date=7 November 2023 |title=Capitol police find gun with 'giggle switch' after armed men crash into barricade |url=https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/2-armed-men-arrested-after-crashing-stolen-car/story?id=104667834 |access-date=7 November 2023 |publisher=ABC News |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite AV media |title=Giggle Switch Worthy of my Index Finger |date=2 September 2020 |publisher=Lena Miculek - Trigger Tribe |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyXoHXWTins |access-date=7 November 2023 |language=en |via=YouTube |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20231108034813/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyXoHXWTins|archive-date=8 November 2023}} Jerry Miculek - Pro Shooter.</ref>

== Legality == {{Globalize|section|United States|reason=Does not discuss the legality of the switch in other countries.|discuss=Talk:Glock switch#Global view of legality|date=October 2025}}

=== United States === A handgun with a Glock switch attached fits the definition of a machine gun under United States federal law,<ref name="Smith" /> per the ATF: "A Glock Switch is a part which was designed and intended for use in converting a semi-automatic Glock pistol into a machine gun; therefore, it is a 'legal machine gun' as defined in 26 U.S.C. 5845(b)." These devices are therefore illegal for civilians to possess under federal law.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.atf.gov/firearms/faq/firearms-technology.html#glock-conversion |title=Firearms Technology FAQ |publisher=ATF |access-date=29 March 2011}}</ref>

==See also== *Heckler & Koch VP70, polymer-framed pistol with a similar device (auto stock) ===In general=== *Bump stock *Hell-fire trigger *Gun politics in the United States *2022 Memphis shootings *September 2024 Birmingham shooting *Tuskegee University shooting

==References== {{Reflist|refs= <ref name="Justice">{{cite web |title=Jacksonville Man Sentenced To Five Years In Federal Prison For Selling Machinegun-Conversion Device To Undercover Agent |url=https://www.justice.gov/usao-mdfl/pr/jacksonville-man-sentenced-five-years-federal-prison-selling-machinegun-conversion |date=2 December 2022 |publisher=U.S. Department of Justice |access-date=29 December 2022|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20221207204439/https://www.justice.gov/usao-mdfl/pr/jacksonville-man-sentenced-five-years-federal-prison-selling-machinegun-conversion|archive-date=7 December 2022}}</ref> <ref name="Justice2">{{cite web |title=Indictment: So-called 'Glock switches' Would have Turned Pistols into Machine Guns |url=https://www.justice.gov/usao-ks/pr/indictment-so-called-glock-switches-would-have-turned-pistols-machine-guns |date=30 May 2019 |publisher=U.S. Department of Justice |access-date=29 December 2022|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20230411184932/https://www.justice.gov/usao-ks/pr/indictment-so-called-glock-switches-would-have-turned-pistols-machine-guns|archive-date= 11 April 2023}}</ref> <ref name="Smith">{{cite news |last=Smith |first=Kelli |title=Devices that turn pistols into illegal machine guns on the rise in Texas, chief says |url=https://www.news-journal.com/news/devices-that-turn-pistols-into-illegal-machine-guns-on-the-rise-in-texas-chief-says/article_34433f96-7a53-11ed-98c4-37bd7f02dd6a.html |access-date=29 December 2022 |newspaper=The Dallas Morning News |date=13 December 2022|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20230330222522/https://www.news-journal.com/news/devices-that-turn-pistols-into-illegal-machine-guns-on-the-rise-in-texas-chief-says/article_34433f96-7a53-11ed-98c4-37bd7f02dd6a.html|archive-date= 30 March 2023}}</ref> <ref name="CNN">{{cite news |last1=Glover |first1=Scott |last2=Devine |first2=Curt |title=A device that can turn a semi-automatic weapon into a machine gun in moments is wreaking havoc on American streets |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/30/us/automatic-machine-gun-fire-invs/index.html |access-date=29 December 2022 |publisher=CNN |date=30 August 2022|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20230416034511/https://www.cnn.com/2022/08/30/us/automatic-machine-gun-fire-invs/index.html|archive-date= 16 April 2023}}</ref>  <ref name="Barned-Smith">{{cite news |last=Barned-Smith |first=St. John |title=More Houston shootings are involving 'Glock switches,' which turn pistols into machine guns |url=https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/crime/article/More-Houston-shootings-involve-Glock-16945519.php |access-date=29 December 2022 |newspaper=Houston Chronicle |date=25 February 2022|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20221229201857/https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/crime/article/More-Houston-shootings-involve-Glock-16945519.php|archive-date= 29 December 2022}}</ref> <ref name="Stephens">{{cite news |last=Stephens |first=Alain |title=Tiny 'Glock Switches' Have Quietly Flooded the US With Deadly Machine Guns |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/glock-switches-auto-sears/ |access-date=29 December 2022 |website=Vice |date=24 March 2022|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230515105427/https://www.vice.com/en/article/pkp8p8/glock-switches-auto-sears|archive-date= 15 May 2023}}</ref> }}

==External links== *[https://web.archive.org/web/20230330052736/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pOtiIUOmns8&t=153s Video More 'Glock Switches' confiscated in Tennessee] *[https://web.archive.org/web/20230325030427/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kc5mvAAPraI Video Penny-sized 'Glock switch' turns handgun into automatic weapon]

Category:Firearm actions Category:Gun politics in the United States Category:Firearm components Category:Glock Category:Venezuelan inventions