California’s New Glock Ban Bill: What You Need to Know

California gun owners just got another curveball from Sacramento. Assembly Bill 1127, better known as the “Glock ban bill,” has passed the legislature and is heading to the governor’s desk.

Don Hammond, attorney and firearms instructor, broke it down in the latest California Gun Law episode—and the details aren’t pretty.

So what does this bill actually do? Starting July 1, 2026, California will prohibit the sale of “machine gun convertible pistols.”

Translation: if your pistol can take a Glock switch or similar backplate device to run full-auto, it’s off the table. Lawmakers basically wrote the definition to describe how Glock switches function, and yes, that includes Glock Gen 3 handguns still on the state roster.

The irony? Hammond says most lawful shooters will never even see one of these switches in the wild. He calls it a “solution without a problem.” But Sacramento has a habit of turning rare edge cases into sweeping bans.

There are a few wrinkles and exemptions baked into the law.

• If a firearm is delivered to an FFL before January 1, 2026, it can still be sold after the ban kicks in.
• Private party transfers through an FFL remain legal, meaning used Glocks may spike in value once the cutoff hits.
• Law enforcement, as always, gets an exemption.

Hammond points out that the legislature may really be trying to force Glock’s hand. If Glock redesigns its trigger system so switches no longer work, California carved out an exemption that would let those new models back onto the roster.

Whether Glock bothers playing ball is another story.

Of course, litigation is guaranteed. Courts will need to wrestle with whether banning America’s most popular handgun—clearly “in common use”—passes constitutional muster.

Hammond notes the decision may hinge on upcoming Ninth Circuit rulings in Miller v. Bonta and related cases.

So what should California shooters do? If you’ve been holding off on buying a Glock, the clock is ticking. Unless this gets blocked in court, the window closes in 2026.

As always, stay informed, stay legal, and stay ready—because in California, the rules can change overnight.

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