TAMPA - Of course it was a Glock 19. Of course it had an extended magazine.
The semiautomatic handgun that Jared Loughner allegedly used in Tucson, Ariz., to shoot Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and 18 others can fire 33bullets without
reloading.
In 15 seconds. About
the time it takes to sing
Happy Birthday.
"I don't think anyone was surprised it was a Glock 19," said Scott Patrick, owner of Shoot Straight gun shop in Tampa. "That's our most popular gun. We sell about 30a month."
Glock 19s are light, weighing about as much as a glass of water. They're affordable: about $500. Small enough to slide inside your belt or drop into a purse. Easy to load. Durable. Without that pesky safety found on many handguns to slow you down.
For many owners, the biggest draw is the extended magazine. The standard Glock 19 clip can hold 15 bullets. For $60 more, you can add an 8-inch extension.
And double the ammunition.
As gun enthusiasts learned that a Glock 19 had been used in the Arizona attack, some started worrying about another ban. In 1994, Congress limited handgun magazines to 10 rounds. A decade later, lawmakers let the legislation expire.
Since then, magazines have been growing.
"I know it's early in the investigation, but apparently he used one of our most beloved firearms," someone wrote on glock.pro shortly after the Jan. 8 attack.
Afraid that their favorite firearm might be taken away or forced to fire fewer rounds at a time, some people have rushed to stock up on arms and ammo. The number of people across the country who sought background checks to buy a gun Monday ticked up about 5percent compared with a year earlier. In Arizona alone, the checks jumped 60 percent.
Patrick said he hasn't seen a rush on Glock 19s or ammo clips; he has sold five of the guns since Monday, about average.
But he has noticed that assault rifles and extended magazines are getting harder to find. Last week, he said, he could buy 200 at a time. Now, he can find only 30.
"Glock magazines have been scarce the last few months anyway," he said. "But this week, there has been a big drop in what's available for assault rifles. Other retailers are sucking up all the extended magazines, in case something happens."
