How to Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol – Dave's Gun Maintenance, Gear Reviews, Training

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Glock 4 Main Parts — Glock 4 Main Parts

Glock 17 or Glock 19 Cleaning Instructions. Glock Field Strip (disassembly), Lubrication and Reassembly

I am going to show you step-by-step how to disassemble (field strip) and how to clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm pistol. In fact, all Glock pistols come apart the same way, so these instructions will work on any Glock!

From the field stripping to complete reassembly, these Glock cleaning instructions will show you how to quickly and confidently perform this task in 15-20 minutes.

If you have never tried to take down (field strip) your Glock 17 or Glock 19, you will soon see how easy it is to accomplish without even using any tools. The design is excellent so anyone can easily maintain their firearm.

All Glock pistols disassemble the same way

These Glock disassembly instructions will work to field strip the Glock 17, G19, G26, G34, G43, G45 and G48 (all 9mm models).

You can also field strip the Glock 22, G23, G24, G27 and G35 (All .40 caliber models).

As well, you can field strip Glock 21, G30, G36 and G41 (.45 caliber models).

There are many different models of the Glock pistol. The differences are in the physical size, caliber, features, etc.

Despite these differences, all Glock pistols disassemble (field strip) the same way as shown in this article.

Different gun manufacturers have different ways to field strip their handguns, especially when it comes to removing the slide, and you should always find a tutorial before attempting to remove the slide from an unfamiliar gun for the first time.

Note of Caution When Pressing the Trigger

All Glocks do require the trigger to be pressed during disassembly, which has resulted in negligent or unintentional discharges in the past. If you properly unload your gun and double check it before attempting to disassemble and/or clean it, you will not have any issues.

However, pressing the trigger at any time other than when you are on the range, sighted in, is a violation of the second rule of firearm safety. The rule is, “Never put your finger on the trigger until the gun is sighted in on a target and you are ready to shoot.”

If you have never tried to take down (field strip) a semiautomatic gun, rest easy as it is not hard or complicated. At least not the Glock 17 or Glock 19 or any other Glock model.

How to clean a Glock 17: Cleaning Supplies

Here are the supplies you will need to complete the disassembly and cleaning of most semi-automatic pistols. There are lots of different cleaning products, so I will list the ones I have used for years of trouble free results.

These are affiliate links so kydexowbholsters.com will receive a small commission at no cost to you if you shop through them. It is greatly appreciated!

Original Gun Oil (Veteran Owned. Use Discount code SAVEWITHDAVE for 10% off)
Hoppes Boresnake or equivalent (this will save you time and effort)
Real Avid Bore Boss (New Style Bore Snake)
Gun Brush
Micro fiber cloth or Cut-up cotton T-shirt
Cotton swabs or lint-free swabs
Otis Gun Cleaning Pipe cleaners

See this article on setting up a DIY Gun Cleaning Station.

Clean, Lube, Protect

Original Gun Oil C.L.P. — **Original Gun Oil** **CLP**

Buy Original Gun Oil

Non-Toxic

Polymer Safe

Veteran-Owned

Save 10% Use Code: “SAVEWITHDAVE“

How to clean a Glock 17: Field Stripping (disassembling) the pistol

I am going to list the steps, then show detailed pictures of each step so you can follow along.

Step 1. Unload the gun

This is the most important step. Eject any magazine that is in the gun by pressing the magazine release button, and then remove the round in the chamber. Be sure to do it in that order! Magazine first, then empty the chamber! Remove any and all ammo from the area.

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Unload the gun by first removing the magazine — Unload the gun by first removing the magazine

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Verify there is no round in the chamber — Verify there is no round in the chamber

Step 2. Verify the gun is completely unloaded

This step is critical because we need to press the trigger in order to field strip a Glock pistol!!

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Lock the slide to the rear — Lock the slide to the rear

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Verify there is no magazine in the gun — Verify there is no magazine in the gun

Step 3. Remove the slide, the barrel, the recoil spring/guide rod assembly

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Point the muzzle in a safe direction and press the trigger — Point the muzzle in a safe direction and press the trigger

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Grip the gun with right hand as pictured — Grip the gun with right hand as pictured

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Move the slide slightly to the rear about a quarter of an inch — Move the slide slightly to the rear about a quarter of an inch

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Locate the Take-Down levers on BOTH sides of the gun — Locate the Take-Down levers on BOTH sides of the gun

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: While pulling the Take-down levers down on both sides, move the slide forward and off the front of the frame — While pulling the Take-Down levers down on both sides, start moving the slide forward on the frame

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Continue moving the slide forward until it comes completely off the frame — Continue moving the slide forward until it comes completely off the frame

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Turn the slide upside down and press on the recoil spring as shown — Turn the slide upside down and press on the recoil spring as shown

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Lift and remove the recoil spring assembly — Lift and remove the recoil spring assembly

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Lift and remove the barrel — Lift and remove the barrel

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Glock 17 Field Stripped for cleaning — Glock 17 Field Stripped for cleaning

That’s it for the field strip/disassembly procedure of the Glock 17 or Glock 19 9mm. This is as far as you need to go to give the gun a good cleaning, or to replace the recoil spring. Let’s move on to the Glock cleaning instructions.

How to clean a Glock 17

I will start with the barrel. It does not matter which part you do first. Basically we are going to apply some gun cleaner to each part and let it sit for 5 minutes or so. Then we will clean it off with a cotton cloth. In this case I am using Original Gun Oil (my preferred CLP. This stuff is odor free, non-toxic and non-staining).

Here are the steps:

Step 1. Clean the Glock barrel and recoil spring assembly

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Apply some Original Gun Oil or cleaner to the barrel — Apply some Original Gun Oil or cleaner to the barrel

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Spread it to all surfaces — Spread it to all surfaces

I am not using gloves because Original Gun Oil is non-toxic. If you are using any other solvent, please use rubber or nitrile gloves!

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Apply a few drops into the bore of the barrel and allow it to coat the inside — Apply a few drops into the bore of the barrel and allow it to coat the inside

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Wait 5 minutes and wipe outside of the barrel clean with a cotton cloth — Wait 5 minutes and wipe outside of the barrel clean with a cotton cloth

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Run a Boresnake through the barrel several times — Run a Boresnake through the barrel several times

The Boresnake has copper brushes integrated into the weave so it will do a good job cleaning any lead or carbon deposits from the inside of the barrel.

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Make sure the feed ramp is clean and smooth — Make sure the feed ramp is clean and smooth

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Look through the barrel and verify that it is clean — Look through the barrel and verify that it is clean

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Wipe down the recoil assembly with a cotton cloth. Use some Original Gun Oil if necessary — Wipe down the recoil assembly with a cotton cloth. Use some Original Gun Oil if necessary

Step 2. Clean the Glock Frame

We will now move on to clean the frame of the gun. Apply some cleaner to all the metal parts inside the frame. Use a cloth or brush to spread it around so all the dirty areas are coated with the cleaner.

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Apply some Original Gun Oil to all metal parts of the frame — Apply a small amount of Original Gun Oil to all metal parts of the frame

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Use a gun brush to spread the cleaner to all surfaces — Use a gun brush to spread the cleaner to all surfaces

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Use the brush to scrub any particularly dirty areas — Use the brush to scrub any particularly dirty areas

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Wait 5 minutes or longer to let the cleaner loosen the dirt, then wipe off with a cotton cloth — Wait 5 minutes or longer to let the cleaner loosen the dirt, then wipe off with a cotton cloth

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Use the gun brush to force the cloth into the tight spots — Use the gun brush to force the cloth into the tight spots

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Wipe until the frame is pretty clean — Wipe until all parts of the frame are pretty clean

Step 3. Clean the Glock Slide

The slide is where most of the action happens so we want to spend some time cleaning this part.

AHow to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: pply Original Gun Oil to all surfaces of the underside of the slide — Apply several drops of Original Gun Oil to all surfaces of the underside of the slide

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Use a gun brush to spread the cleaner to all surfaces, including the rail cut outs along both sides — Use a gun brush to spread the cleaner to all surfaces, including the rail cut outs along both sides

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Be sure to get some cleaner on the Breech Face — Be sure to get some cleaner on the Breech Face

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Here is what my slide looks like after I apply the Original Gun Oil — Here is what my slide looks like after I apply the Original Gun Oil

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: After letting the gun oil work for at lease 5 minutes, wipe it clean using a cotton cloth — After letting the gun oil work for at lease 5 minutes, wipe it clean using a cotton cloth

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Use the gun brush to force the cloth into the slide notch and other tight places — Use the gun brush to force the cloth into the slide notch and other tight places

Since we are using a CLP product (Cleaner, Lubricant and Protectant) is is not necessary to remove 100% of the oil from every little nook and cranny. This is because any residue left over will also lubricate and protect the gun from rust and corrosion.

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Be sure to get the Breech Face clean — Be sure to get the Breech Face clean

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Here is the slide after cleaning — Here is the slide after cleaning

Step 4. Lubricate the Glock 17 or Glock 19 9mm Pistol

Once all the parts are clean, we need to lubricate the moving parts as shown with Original Gun Oil or other quality gun lubricant. The steps below follow the Glock user manual lubrication procedures.

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Apply a drop or two of Original Gun Oil to a cotton cloth — Apply a drop or two of Original Gun Oil to a cotton cloth

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Wipe down all surfaces on the outside of the barrel with the oil, leaving a light film — Wipe down all surfaces on the outside of the barrel with the oil, leaving a light film

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Wipe down the inside top of the slide in front of the Ejection Port — Wipe down the inside top of the slide in front of the Ejection Port

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Wipe down the opening that the barrel slides through in the front of the slide — Wipe down the opening that the barrel slides through in the front of the slide

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Apply ONE drop of Oil to the slide cut on each side — Apply ONE drop of Oil to the slide cut on each side

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Use a gun brush to spread the oil the length of the slide cut on both sides — Use a gun brush to spread the oil the length of the slide cut on both sides

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Wipe down the outside of the slide as well — Wipe down the outside of the slide as well

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Apply ONE drop of oil in the frame where the trigger bar touches the connector as shown — Apply ONE drop of oil in the frame where the trigger bar touches the connector as shown

User Level Inspection

At this point you should perform a User Level inspection of the gun before you reassemble. I will have an article for that in the next week or so. In the meantime there is a video below that contains these checks.

Reassembly of the Glock 17, Glock 19 9mm Pistol

This part is very simple with the Glock pistols. Probably the easies of all guns I have reassembled.

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Place the barrel into the slide — Place the barrel into the slide

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: It should look like this — It should look like this

Place the recoil spring assembly into the slide with the larger plastic end facing the front

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Seat the front end, press the other end to compress the spring slightly and place it into the notch in the barrel — Seat the front end, press the other end to compress the spring slightly and place it into the notch in the barrel

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: The recoil spring assembly should look like this — The recoil spring assembly should look like this

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Flip the slide over and line it up with the rails on the frame as shown — Flip the slide over and line it up with the rails on the frame as shown

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Move the slide straight back slowly being careful not to let the Extractor scratch the rear of the slide — Move the slide straight back slowly being careful not to let the Extractor scratch the rear of the slide

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Move the slide all the way to the rear and it will click into place — Move the slide all the way to the rear and it will click into place

How to Field Strip & Clean a Glock 17 9mm or Glock 19 9mm Pistol: Allow the slide to come forward to the home position and you are done! — Allow the slide to come forward to the home position and you are done!

Final Steps to complete the reassembly of the Glock 17, Glock 19 or any other Glock pistol.

Work the slide back and forth several times to be sure it operates properly, and to allow the lube to spread into all the areas that move.

Perform the Glock User Level inspection before you fire the gun. These checks are integrated into the video below.

Video: How to Field Strip, Clean, Lubricate and Reassemble a Glock 17 or Glock 19

Video: (Short Version) How to Clean a Glock 17:

Ok, you are all done! That was a lot of steps but they are easy and you will fly through next time!

Lastly, you should test the functionality of the gun by taking some dummy rounds and loading the gun with them. Now make sure a round is ejected every time to rack the slide to the rear.

The gun is now fully assembled and ready for another day at the range!

Thanks for letting me walk you through the field strip, cleaning, lubrication and reassembly of your Glock 17 or Glock 19 (or any other Glock) pistol. Keeping your Glock clean and ready for use is an important part of gun ownership.

See article: How to Disassemble & Clean an AR-15 rifle

If you have any suggestions, recommendations or other comments, please leave it in the comment section below and I will usually reply within 24 hours.