Connecticut’s new Glock ban has taken effect, and I want Texas gun owners to understand it too, because the tactic behind it travels. I’m Lance Rankin, and I run Western Sport, an FFL here in Roanoke, Texas. I sell Glocks every week, so yes, I have a dog in this fight. The video above covers the story; here’s my read on it.
What the law actually says
The bill was sold to the public as a crackdown on “Glock switches,” the little devices that convert a pistol to full auto. Here’s the problem with that framing: switches are already illegal under federal law. Machine guns made after 1986 can’t be lawfully owned by regular civilians, period. Criminals get switches from overseas shipments or 3D printers, not from a dealer’s counter.
What Connecticut actually banned is the sale of semi-automatic handguns with a “cruciform trigger bar” that can be readily converted to fire automatically with common tools. Violating it is a felony. A cruciform trigger bar isn’t an accessory or a modification. It’s a small cross-shaped internal part that’s simply how Glock and Glock-pattern pistols are built. Write the law around that part, and you haven’t banned a switch. You’ve banned the gun.
Connecticut isn’t first
California and Maryland got there earlier with similar language, and Maryland’s version is already facing a court challenge. The argument from gun rights groups is straightforward: the Second Amendment protects handguns in common use, and it’s hard to name a handgun in more common use than a Glock. Maryland’s Governor Moore said the law exists to “protect families, support law enforcement, and keep dangerous weapons off our streets.” The pistol being banned is the standard sidearm of most of that law enforcement. Make of that what you will.
Why the wording game matters
We’ve watched this pattern for decades. “Assault weapon” was a label invented to make common rifles sound like military hardware. Now the label is “machine gun convertible pistol.” Attach a scary technical term to a firearm millions of people already own, and you can pass a ban before most voters figure out what was actually prohibited. If a cruciform trigger bar can redefine a Glock out of legal existence, some other internal part can do the same for whatever pistol or rifle you prefer. That’s the part that should bother you even if you’ve never owned a Glock and never will.
And the practical effect lands where these laws usually land: on the person who walks into a licensed shop, fills out a 4473, and passes a background check. The guy running an illegal auto sear was never going to be slowed down by a sales restriction at retail.
Where things stand
As of this writing, the Connecticut law is in effect and the Maryland challenge is working through the courts. If a court knocks down the redefinition tactic there, the California and Connecticut versions get shakier. If it survives, expect more states to copy the language. Either way, check the current status before you rely on anything in this post, because this area moves quickly and I’m a gunsmith, not your lawyer.
Down here, Glocks remain perfectly legal to buy and carry. If you’re shopping, my Glock 19 vs Glock 17 and Glock 43 vs 43X comparisons are a good place to start, and here’s how buying a gun in Texas works if you’re new to the process. Questions, I’m at 817-393-4000.
Lance Rankin is the owner and Chief Gunsmith of Western Sport, a family-run Type 07 FFL and Class 3/SOT dealer in Roanoke, Texas, serving shooters since 2007. Born and raised in Texas with over 50 years of experience handling firearms, Lance purchased Western Sport in 2017 and turned his lifelong passion into his profession. He specializes in AR-15 and AR-10 platform rifles, manufactures Western Sport’s own AR-15 line under the Rankin Industries brand, and runs the shop’s in-house Cerakote coating operation. When he’s not behind the counter or the workbench, you’ll find him on his ranch deep into the night, hunting coyotes with an AR-15 and thermal optics. Lance holds an MBA and personally shoots and tests the products Western Sport sells.
