Police Trade-In Guns

October 31 2015 Washington Post releases news story; FBI switching back to 9x19mm ammunition from .40 S&W

November 1 2015 Witness the beginning of a nationwide switch to the 9x19mm cartridge by law enforcement agencies throughout the United States of America.

January 2016 Police Trade-in Glock 22 and 23 pistols start piling up in depots and warehouses. Online firearms retailers marketing “LEO Trade-In” pistols at attractive prices.

If you make no other changes, replace the recoil spring and trigger spring

Spring Time:

The .40 S&W cartridge is tough on pistol parts, it always has been and the item that wears out the fastest in a .40 caliber pistol is the recoil spring. This is also where opinions will vary. If you ask three gun makers for the recommend round number to replace a recoil spring, you will get three different answers. Many have told me 2,000, 5,000 and even 10,000 rounds is the limit for a recoil spring. The official round count from my good friend at Glock is 3000-5000 rounds.

When purchasing a Police Trade-In Glock 22 or Glock 23 pistol, you have no idea how many rounds were put through that gun or if the recoil spring was ever replaced. It is true that many police guns are carried a lot and shot a little. However, you might have the pistol of that one cop who loved to shoot.

If you do nothing else with your newly purchased trade-in G22, replace the recoil spring. Lone Wolf Distributors has numerous styles from which to choose. Of course, you should figure out which generation you have, there are slight variances. Most likely your trade-in pistol will be a Gen 2 or 3. Stumped? Contact Glock, Inc. directly.

The trigger spring is the next place I would focus. A Glock trigger spring is ridiculously easy to replace and costs next to nothing. My personal G23 had a broken trigger spring about ten years after I started carrying it. As I put this piece together, Brownells has Glock triggers springs listed at $1.99. Don’t be a cheap ass, replace that spring.

G22 locking block and pins

Additional Parts:

If the recoil spring on your trade-in G22 was swapped out regularly by the department’s armorer, then the internal components should be alright. However, there may be stress fractures already forming in certain parts that absorb the shock from each round fired. Yes, the parts might look fine to the naked eye. Unless you can x-ray them, I would just replace the pieces.

The locking block and the associated pins are the prime culprits for stress fractures and broken parts in a .40S&W Glock pistol. This is not a Glock issue, this a .40S&W issue. The Smith&Wesson 4006 pistols had innumerable problems during their lifetime. A replacement locking block for a G22 should be around $30 or less and is good insurance for a pistol refurb project. Naturally, the associated pins should be replaced for good measure. Again, they are less than $5. The slide lock is another part that can be replaced easily and inexpensively.

If your trade-in pistol did not come with a manual, you can find Glock manuals and schematics online. Brownells has a Glock pistol schematic on their website. If you have trouble with any of the parts you purchase from Brownells, you can always contact one of their onsite gunsmiths for assistance.

Also, before I let you go, stripping down your police trade-in gun to swap/inspect parts is a great time to clean out the five to ten years of carbon, dirt, and funk that has built up inside. Bust out the Froglube solvent and “Extreme” CLP and that used gun will be running like a champ in no time.

Professor Paul Markel

Founder & CEO at Student of the Gun

Paul G. Markel has worn many hats during his lifetime. He has been a U.S. Marine, Police Officer, Professional Bodyguard, and Small Arms and Tactics Instructor. Mr. Markel has been writing professionally for law enforcement and firearms periodicals for nearly twenty years with hundreds and hundreds of articles in print. Paul is a regular guest on nationally syndicated radio talk shows and subject matter expert in firearms training and use of force. Mr. Markel has been teaching safe and effective firearms handling to students young and old for decades and has worked actively with the 4-H Shooting Sports program. Paul holds numerous instructor certifications in multiple disciplines and a Bachelor’s degree in conflict resolution; nonetheless, he is and will remain a dedicated Student of the Gun.

Latest posts by Professor Paul Markel (see all)

Springfield 1911: Back from the Dead - February 18th, 2021
Muzzleloading Basics – Everything You Need to Know - February 4th, 2021
Organizing Ammo Box Swaps with Ammo Swap Saturdays - January 26th, 2021
Crisis Preparedness: An Absolute Minimum Checklist - January 12th, 2021
Blackhawk Holsters T-Series L2D [Review] - December 8th, 2020

5 Comments

James Sellers on August 17th, 2017 at 3:17 pm

Great article for trade-ins. I have not spent much time with Glocks so your article was very helpful. I did not know the locking block was so easy to replace. I thought you might say something about conversions from 40 S&W to 9×19. A quick check of Brownells has drop in barrels for conversion. I like this article because with the parts replacement described and a mag and barrel you can give a Glock a new lease on life.
Thomas Russell on August 24th, 2017 at 7:43 pm

A full set of springs cost about 15-17 $ no excuse to not sh*t can them all and start fresh. By all I mean recoil, trigger, and striker springs. Extractor spring lasted me about 3-4 seasons of comp shooting so that’s maybe about 9-10,000 rnds but hey if in doubt and you actually shoot a lot 20 dollars a year is cheap insurance that you get a bang instead of a click
Kevin Gibson on August 24th, 2017 at 7:58 pm

I would add a striker spring. Otherwise, that’s a great article! Well done sir!
Hydguy on August 25th, 2017 at 10:11 pm

Best bet: skip buying a LE Glock.