Bought my first PPK/s in 1971. Wore the blue off of it carrying and had it nickled. Still fine today. Latest one I bought this year. Stainless Steel from the Fort Smith factory, but with the barrel and slide still made in Germany.
Bob
Bob
Any Other Walther PPK Lovers?
- Thread starter druryj
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Mr. Mosin
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You like the Fort Smith production ?
wiscoaster
Member
Ditto. I'd prefer it in that caliber as well. .380 ACP is a bit snappy. Not outrageously so, but enough so to get in the way of having fun shooting it. There are several used PPK/S's in .32 ACP available on Gunbroker - a couple of them US production. They're pricey, but in relation to the German-produced pistols ... whoo wheee ... those are way beyond my means!!
Count me in as a PPK lover,
About 6 years ago, I was looking for a reliable and compact pistol to pocket carry when I was off duty. This was before the GLOCK 42 came out. Their were many small guns, but none of them were really what I was looking for. Then I found 3 WALTHER'S at my favorite gun shop. They had two .380ACP stainless PPK/S pistols and an old blue one. The INTERARMS one was the same price as the blue gun and had a gritty trigger, so I passed on it. The S&W had the extended tang and a very smooth trigger and a nearly $700.00 price tag.
That left the blue gun which was in .32ACP or 7.65mm if you are a BOND fan. It was beat up on one side like someone left it in an area with moisture on the surface and it was a .32ACP, not a .380ACP. On the other hand, it was a GERMAN made WALTHER and when I tried the trigger, it was as good as the S&W and $200.00 cheaper. SOLD!
It has proven to be a good buy. It is 100 % reliable, shoots well and has sights just big enough for accurate shooting, so the despite the endorsement of the PPK by an ignorant blubberer earlier, I find it a very satisfactory gun for concealed carry.
Recently, my wife just had to upgrade to my GLOCK 42 (this one had night sights) and I had to go back to carrying the PPK. I am fine with that, though long term, I will get another GLOCK 42. The GLOCK is a very durable, more powerful and lighter design and can be had with night sights.
Of the other PP series, I had a MANHURIN PP in .32ACP and found it less comfortable to shoot because of the squared off grips and sold it. I have passed on the getting a PPK/S for the same reason. WALTHER should consider an extended magazine the matches the bottom of the PPK grip instead of the PPK/S, in my opinion.
I would also love to see a new aluminum framed PPK, even if it was only in .32ACP.
I have shot several of the SIG PP clones, the 230 and 232 and think they are the best of the PP/PPK series clones. The SIG decocker and passive safety system of the 232 is superior to the slide mounted safety on the WALTHER pistols and the triggers are generally very good. The sights are MUCH better, especially with night sights.
I do not find the heel magazine release to be a problem, you just have to practice till you are used to it.
I think that we shooters missed out on the 9x18 Police/Ultra round that the 230 was offered in. It matches the MAKAROV round in power and can use bullets meant for the .380ACP. I have shot .380ACP in mine when I could not find 9x18 ammo. Some rounds shot well, others did not.
I much prefer the aluminum framed SIG 232 to the stainless version. There is no gain with the extra weight and the aluminum gun shoots even better than the steel version for me because the grip fits my hand better. Also for a .380ACP, the 232 is a perfect match (no problem using a heel magazine release, it is also easier to use for a left hand reload) and will last much longer than I will.
I shot a MAK at a range and thought it was just horrible. Painful to shoot and a trigger nowhere as good as my SIG 232.
I also shot another WALTHER clone, more or less. The CZ-82. This very well made CZECH pistol has a double stack magazine and a good trigger. It is also, all steel, so it is heavier than the other, smaller clones. Like the WALTHER and the SIG, it is very reliable and an easy pistol to shoot.
Jim
About 6 years ago, I was looking for a reliable and compact pistol to pocket carry when I was off duty. This was before the GLOCK 42 came out. Their were many small guns, but none of them were really what I was looking for. Then I found 3 WALTHER'S at my favorite gun shop. They had two .380ACP stainless PPK/S pistols and an old blue one. The INTERARMS one was the same price as the blue gun and had a gritty trigger, so I passed on it. The S&W had the extended tang and a very smooth trigger and a nearly $700.00 price tag.
That left the blue gun which was in .32ACP or 7.65mm if you are a BOND fan. It was beat up on one side like someone left it in an area with moisture on the surface and it was a .32ACP, not a .380ACP. On the other hand, it was a GERMAN made WALTHER and when I tried the trigger, it was as good as the S&W and $200.00 cheaper. SOLD!
It has proven to be a good buy. It is 100 % reliable, shoots well and has sights just big enough for accurate shooting, so the despite the endorsement of the PPK by an ignorant blubberer earlier, I find it a very satisfactory gun for concealed carry.
Recently, my wife just had to upgrade to my GLOCK 42 (this one had night sights) and I had to go back to carrying the PPK. I am fine with that, though long term, I will get another GLOCK 42. The GLOCK is a very durable, more powerful and lighter design and can be had with night sights.
Of the other PP series, I had a MANHURIN PP in .32ACP and found it less comfortable to shoot because of the squared off grips and sold it. I have passed on the getting a PPK/S for the same reason. WALTHER should consider an extended magazine the matches the bottom of the PPK grip instead of the PPK/S, in my opinion.
I would also love to see a new aluminum framed PPK, even if it was only in .32ACP.
I have shot several of the SIG PP clones, the 230 and 232 and think they are the best of the PP/PPK series clones. The SIG decocker and passive safety system of the 232 is superior to the slide mounted safety on the WALTHER pistols and the triggers are generally very good. The sights are MUCH better, especially with night sights.
I do not find the heel magazine release to be a problem, you just have to practice till you are used to it.
I think that we shooters missed out on the 9x18 Police/Ultra round that the 230 was offered in. It matches the MAKAROV round in power and can use bullets meant for the .380ACP. I have shot .380ACP in mine when I could not find 9x18 ammo. Some rounds shot well, others did not.
I much prefer the aluminum framed SIG 232 to the stainless version. There is no gain with the extra weight and the aluminum gun shoots even better than the steel version for me because the grip fits my hand better. Also for a .380ACP, the 232 is a perfect match (no problem using a heel magazine release, it is also easier to use for a left hand reload) and will last much longer than I will.
I shot a MAK at a range and thought it was just horrible. Painful to shoot and a trigger nowhere as good as my SIG 232.
I also shot another WALTHER clone, more or less. The CZ-82. This very well made CZECH pistol has a double stack magazine and a good trigger. It is also, all steel, so it is heavier than the other, smaller clones. Like the WALTHER and the SIG, it is very reliable and an easy pistol to shoot.
Jim
Pistolpositive
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I am a PPK fan as I am also a James Bond fan (books and movies). I have a stainless Interarms .32 PPK/s, a practically mint Manhurin .32 PPK/s and a near mint PP in .32. I have had a couple of .380s (interarms blued and S&W stainless). Wish I had the Interarms back just for the caliber. Never liked shooting it. I also have an older Bersa Thunder .380 that is a PPK/s clone of sorts. For the the best shooter of the bunch is the .32 PP. Just shot it this weekend. It rivaled my CZ SP01 at about 18 yards or so. Those little sights make me blurry eyed after about a magazine. No desire to carry these bricks for CCW. But I do carry a Walther PPS (first generation) in 9mm most of the time. It is pleny accurate and super dependable (luckily only used in training and target practice).
jdh
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- Jan 5, 2008
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The reason the PPK/S came to be was to meet the import restrictions of GCA-68. A detachable magazine with an extension would not have accomplished that goal.
jdh,
Yes, I know the history of the PPK/S, but the problem is not with that, it is with the frame they used. They simply put a PPK slide and barrel on a PP frame. The PP frame is squared off at the rear of the grip, while a rounded grip panel was used for the PPK. I find that the rounded panel makes the PPK much more comfortable to shoot. I had a PP and have a PPK. I could shoot 90 rounds out of the PP and found my hand aching at the web area between the thumb and index finger. I have easily shot 150 rounds at a time thought the PPK without any discomfort.
My desire and advise to WALTHER is base your grip frame on the more comfortable gun. A PP size gun with perhaps an aluminum frame for lightness with a PPK styled grip frame would be a very nice gun to carry and SHOOT.
A PP in 9x19mm Ultra/Police with a mono-metal hollowpoint could be a real winner. I could expand to do some damage and penetrate deeper than the .380ACP hollowpoints. It could give 9m.m performance without the recoil.
Jim
Yes, I know the history of the PPK/S, but the problem is not with that, it is with the frame they used. They simply put a PPK slide and barrel on a PP frame. The PP frame is squared off at the rear of the grip, while a rounded grip panel was used for the PPK. I find that the rounded panel makes the PPK much more comfortable to shoot. I had a PP and have a PPK. I could shoot 90 rounds out of the PP and found my hand aching at the web area between the thumb and index finger. I have easily shot 150 rounds at a time thought the PPK without any discomfort.
My desire and advise to WALTHER is base your grip frame on the more comfortable gun. A PP size gun with perhaps an aluminum frame for lightness with a PPK styled grip frame would be a very nice gun to carry and SHOOT.
A PP in 9x19mm Ultra/Police with a mono-metal hollowpoint could be a real winner. I could expand to do some damage and penetrate deeper than the .380ACP hollowpoints. It could give 9m.m performance without the recoil.
Jim
wiscoaster
Member
Ummmm ... have you actually compared shooting two guns of the same make and model and caliber, one with a steel frame and the other with an alloy frame? Hmmmmm????
I loved mine in the 80’s, until lighter, more powerful pistols became available for CCW.
I loved it as a range gun as well, until a friend introduced me to the Browning BDA ( Death Wish 2 ?), what a Cadillac 380 at the range!
Nowadays I have two PPK’s as stash guns in the house.
I loved it as a range gun as well, until a friend introduced me to the Browning BDA ( Death Wish 2 ?), what a Cadillac 380 at the range!
Nowadays I have two PPK’s as stash guns in the house.
.455_Hunter
Member
I like certain features of the P230/232, like the heel mag release and decocker. Unfortunately, as a lefty, the decocker level placement jams the actuator into my trigger finger.
Wiscoaster,
Yes, but I have a SIG 232 with an aluminum frame and find it is controllable and because of its better shaped grip, more comfortable than the steel framed guns of the same series whose grips do not fit me as well. It is one of my favorite .380ACP pistols to shoot.
The PP is a larger gun than the PPK and with a larger, better grip frame design should offset an increase in recoil. At least that is my thought, I could be wrong, but only one way to find out.
I know that I would buy an aluminum framed PPK in .32ACP. My old pre-war gun is what I am carrying now as my wife has taken possession of my GLOCK 42.
As for comparing aluminum to steel. I posted earlier in other posts about doing that. The difference is a steel and aluminum framed S&W J-frame is what forced me to switch from an aluminum framed model 38 Bodyguard to a steel framed model 36 Chief's Special. I found the recoil to now be more than I wanted and the weight difference not to be a problem.
I also have compared a 4 inch S&W model 12 with a model 15 (nearly double the weight) and COLT 1911 .45ACP Lightweight Commander's with steel framed 70 series.
With light recoiling rounds like the .32ACP (depending on the gun, also) or the .380ACP, the size and shape of the grip may become more important than the weight.
My plastic framed .380ACP GLOCK 42 is a joy to shoot with less perceived recoil than my .32ACP PPK. It is one of the few guns that my wife can operate and shoot effectively.
Jim
Yes, but I have a SIG 232 with an aluminum frame and find it is controllable and because of its better shaped grip, more comfortable than the steel framed guns of the same series whose grips do not fit me as well. It is one of my favorite .380ACP pistols to shoot.
The PP is a larger gun than the PPK and with a larger, better grip frame design should offset an increase in recoil. At least that is my thought, I could be wrong, but only one way to find out.
I know that I would buy an aluminum framed PPK in .32ACP. My old pre-war gun is what I am carrying now as my wife has taken possession of my GLOCK 42.
As for comparing aluminum to steel. I posted earlier in other posts about doing that. The difference is a steel and aluminum framed S&W J-frame is what forced me to switch from an aluminum framed model 38 Bodyguard to a steel framed model 36 Chief's Special. I found the recoil to now be more than I wanted and the weight difference not to be a problem.
I also have compared a 4 inch S&W model 12 with a model 15 (nearly double the weight) and COLT 1911 .45ACP Lightweight Commander's with steel framed 70 series.
With light recoiling rounds like the .32ACP (depending on the gun, also) or the .380ACP, the size and shape of the grip may become more important than the weight.
My plastic framed .380ACP GLOCK 42 is a joy to shoot with less perceived recoil than my .32ACP PPK. It is one of the few guns that my wife can operate and shoot effectively.
Jim
herrwalther
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Eventually I would like to own one. Probably not as an EDC firearm though.
One thing that surprises me is why at a time when everyone is searching for the perfect $400 carry gun Walther doesn't make a poly frame PPK. It could be completely reengineered on the inside just so long as it looks like a PPK. I'd buy one and I don't do poly.
halfmoonclip
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- Feb 4, 2011
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- 2,755
Meh, guns like the Glock42 or SIG 365 have far outstripped the PPK for any serious use.
That doesn't mean it isn't still an interesting pistol to own and shoot. The .32 and .22 iterations really are fun; the .380 version is rappy. We like to think that we of The Walther Forum (there are some familiar names here!
) have made the .32 version hard to come by, and it would be great if the .32 were put back in production, especially a PPK-L version.
For my money, the PPK or /s feels better in my hand than nearly anything.
The SIG 230s are the ultimate version; again, the .32 iteration is nicer than the .380.
Jimbo, a half poly PPK? The ghost of Reinhard Heydrich would haunt you.
Moon
That doesn't mean it isn't still an interesting pistol to own and shoot. The .32 and .22 iterations really are fun; the .380 version is rappy. We like to think that we of The Walther Forum (there are some familiar names here!
) have made the .32 version hard to come by, and it would be great if the .32 were put back in production, especially a PPK-L version.For my money, the PPK or /s feels better in my hand than nearly anything.
The SIG 230s are the ultimate version; again, the .32 iteration is nicer than the .380.
Jimbo, a half poly PPK? The ghost of Reinhard Heydrich would haunt you.
Moon
Gladius
Member
I have a couple... I'm a bit of a fan, even though there are better carry choices today. It's more for nostalgia and a piece of history, and because I'm a fan of two things: 1. James Bond (bet you didn't see that coming), and 2. WWII. A couple years ago I was able to purchase an early pre-war commercial PPK, made in Zella-Mehlis (as were all Walthers until after the war). This has particular significance to me as my father was a member of the unit that took the Walther factory in 1945. He remembered walking through the salesroom and seeing GI's walking out with gold-plated, engraved limited edition PP's and PPK's. He himself didn't get one of those guns, but he did pick up a couple more standard pistols (which he gave away to other soldiers prior to returning to the states).
ozarkhillbilly
Member
I have wanted one for sometime now, but every PPK that i have ever seen in a shop has been way over priced. Last one I saw a couple of years ago was a used S&W version and the shop wanted $675 for it, and this shop has good prices on most guns.
Ignition Override
Member
My "Made in W. Germany" PPK/S became very reliable after installing a slightly Weaker recoil spring. Beautiful bluing etc.
But I didn't care for the DA trigger or recoil so much with the .380. The actual Makarovs (Bulgy, EG, Russian, Chinese), which are imitations of the PPK, are more pleasant to shoot.
But the PPK's and PPK/S' coolness is very hard to beat.
But I didn't care for the DA trigger or recoil so much with the .380. The actual Makarovs (Bulgy, EG, Russian, Chinese), which are imitations of the PPK, are more pleasant to shoot.
But the PPK's and PPK/S' coolness is very hard to beat.
ThomasT
Member
I have a PP in 32acp I bought in 2008 from a pawn shop. I got it for $250 OTD. Mine is a Manhurin built gun that has had the Walther Xed out and the Walther banner scrubbed on the grips. The story was that Walther and Manhurin got crossways and stopped Manhurin from making the guns. On another forum it was determined that my gun was made in 1957. And it looks almost perfect with only the tiniest bit of wear on it.
I haven't shot it a lot but it has been 100% reliable so far. I wouldn't sell it. I like the way it looks and feels in my hand. My gun looks just like the gun in post #43.
I haven't shot it a lot but it has been 100% reliable so far. I wouldn't sell it. I like the way it looks and feels in my hand. My gun looks just like the gun in post #43.
jabram
Member
My father-in-law relived a German Sargent of this .32 cal PPK during the battle of the bulge WWII. I've never fired it, but have dry fired a couple times. Has the heaviest trigger of an gun I've ever handled.
Jack19
Member
JERRY
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lanyard loop.
Jack19
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Tony50ae
Member
I have the S&W PPK/S on 380 that I bought years ago. While some don't like the extended beavertail, I don't mind it. It is a little snappy in 380 but I don't shoot it often. I never used it for ccw though.
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