enlighten me on the walther ppk .380

Well Soda, I have one made by Interarms in the US. I have to say I love it. It's easy to clean, accurate, little recoil but that sucka is LOUD. If I had to run out the door with a gun that I had to hide, that would be it. I think it's a perfect night stand gun (except for the caliber)- worth every penny. It's reliable, balanced, easy to point, and fun to shoot. I don't think the ones made by Smith are as good as the German or Virginia ones but thats my humble opinion.Hope that helps.

These are superb pistols. They are not one of the super-light micro carry .380's that are the current vogue, but they are very accurate and certainly have style. I have two. The first is an original 1966 PPK imported before the '68 Gun Control Act. This one is my normal carry PPK since it is smaller:


Below is an example of it's accuracy:


The second is a newer model PPKS. I did not need this but I could not pass up the two-tone finish:


Likewise, it is accurate as well:

Gorgeous, classic, well made guns. But nowadays, folks would also classify them as big and heavy for the caliber. (Rohrbaugh/Keltec 9mm is smaller, etc) They've also been known to take a bite out of your hand when shooting.

I have an Interarms PPK/s (slightly longer grip) with about 1500 rounds through it, plus 400 from a previous owner.

Pros:

-All steel (I like having the weight to soak up recoil)
-Small, but not too small. Its about the smallest gun I'd ever have, because I like having some gun to hold onto to get a proper grip and bring it down for follow-up shots
-Good single action trigger. A little heavy, but very little take-up and breaks cleanly. Decent reset, too.
-Accurate. I can hold 4-5 inch 50 shot groups at 25 yards if I slow down a little, and from the way its grouping I can tell that at this point I'm still the limiting factor, not the gun.
-Very slim, conceals easily. I carry mine either in a shoulder rig under a dress shirt or appendix carry. Very comfortable with no printing. Also fits in pockets if you wear loose pants.
-Good ergonomics. Very natural fit in most people's hands. Easy, natural reach to mag release.
-Extraordinarily easy to field strip.
-Boat loads of fun to shoot. I know this is horribly subjective, but shooting it always puts a smile on my face.
-Very, very pretty.

Cons:
-It'll bite you. High grips or meaty hands will get lacerated by the slide rails. A little experimenting will help you find a good grip that lets you control recoil without having to wash blood off your gun after every range session. This is not an issue if you get one of the S&W ones with the big beavertail.
-More recoil than you'd expect from such a small caliber in such a heavy (for its size) gun. Again, shooting it a lot and experimenting with different grips will land you on one that's comfortable.
-Can be difficult to rack slide. The recoil spring is very stiff, and the location of the safety in the middle of the slide serrations can make it difficult to get a good grip on.
-Can be finicky with hollowpoints. I carry ball in mine, as it doesn't feed Hyrda-shoks well, and I haven't been able to get my hands on enough of another brand to do any proper testing.
-Destroys recoil springs. I'd recommend having several on hand and replacing every 1000 rounds.

Matters of personal taste:
-Slide mounted safety works backwards from most American guns (safe is down, fire is up) and some people don't like that. It doesn't bother me because I carry it decocked with the safety off.
-Heavy double action trigger. Most people seem to hate mine, but I like it more than most double actions. It is very heavy, but all the weight is in the first part of the trigger pull, so once you get past that, the trigger sort of snaps back the rest of the way. I find it very easy to pull the DA trigger quickly without moving the gun.
-Small sights. Doesn't bother me too much since the rear line/front dot is really quick to acquire for me, but many people don't like them. What I don't like about them is that they're unfinished metal (on my stainless gun at least) and can be hard to pick up sometimes. I'm going to fix that with some flat black model paint.
-No external slide release. You have to slingshot the slide to release it from lockback, and you can only lock it back with an empty mag.

Notes:

I've vastly improved the shootability of mine and eliminated recoil discomfort by putting a Houge grip sleeve on it. The palm swells make it easier to get a good grip on, and by positioning the finger groove you can force yourself to always grip it in a fashion that won't get your hand cut. It makes the gun wider, so you have a trade-off in concealability, but I find it worth it, especially since it distributes the recoil force over a wider part of your hand. (that backstrap is pretty narrow)

Cylinder & Slide does custom work on PPKs. Trigger jobs, checkering, even cutting the slide for larger and easier to aquire sights. Here's a link.

Because its an older design and fairly small, there's a lot of little complex bits you can't really get to to clean. The easiest solution is to have some brake cleaner on hand to hose out the places you can't reach.

The PPK is a straight blow-back design with a pretty stiff recoil spring. It'd be a little tough for a woman to chamber a round. The spring needs to be replaced every once in a while, you'll know when. I think they're great guns.

Having said that, I'd recommend you check out the Kahr 9MM before you make a final decision. It's about the same size and weight but a lot more performance. JMO/YMMV

Nothing much I could add that others haven't already posted. Just going to reiterate that it's a great gun and has indeed lasted the test of time just like the 1911 has. I carry mine 99% of the time. Great little pistols can be a joy to shoot.

I think they are the best looking of all the small handguns ... except maybe for some 1911's which dress-up pretty well. I see a PPK and am instantly charmed by the sleekness of the lines and the elegance of the design.

Never shot one never owned one but when I see a picture it always gets my undivided attention.

Sig 230/232 > PPK

JMO/YMMV

i am looking for a lighter carry pistol and this is it.

Click to expand...

Well, probably the heaviest of all the .380's. I have no quarrel with it, but some feel it's too heavy for pocket carry. I respectfully disagree....
In this summer heat down by the border, carry it most of the time either in the pocket or lght jacket....

The few times that I've shot my buddy's older .380 PPK(handed down to him from his dad and bought in the 70's or 80's, I believe) it has bitten the crap out of my hand. It's uncomfortable to shoot after a few mags.

I also tried a PPK, and found that I prefer the Sig P230 - it's the one that I own.

However.. and please understand I don't mean to hijack the thread - it's just that I've found that many people either are or are not fans of the smaller autos (particularly the German ones) and those who are generally have more than one - so let me ask that crowd...

I've recently been eyeing a couple examples of the old Mauser HSC pistols. I haven't held one in my hands yet, but on gunbroker, etc. they appear VERY similar to the Walther PP family of pistols.

Since I have a P230 and have handled the PPK in .380, can anyone use either or both of them to have an offhand comparison to the Mauser HSC?

On the rare occasions I have carried a PP, it has been a German gun in .32 caliber. (I know that today you need at least a .600 Nitro to stop bad guys, but the ammo costs too much.) The .32 is what the gun was originally designed for in 1929, and there is less recoil plus reliability is greater than with the .380. I like the little Walther, but I admit that it is more from an aesthetic point of view than a really practical one in this day and age.

Jim

I'm another P230 convert and would highly recommend you look at them, as well as their successor, the P232, when you look at the PPK's. Best to do it side by side, and even better, shoot them, to understand.

I've owned two PPK's, well, a German PPK and an Interarms PPK/S. Both were blood thirsty and accurate, the German was reliable, the Interams not. Both had overly and unnecessarily heavy DA triggers.

The P230's (I have two) are much nicer to shoot and have never drawn blood, every bit as accurate as the Walthers, have been as or more reliable than the German PPK, and have a DA trigger thats something to marvels at. While they are slightly larger, they are also a good bit lighter.

Count me as a Walther fan. I've tried the SIG a few times but prefer the PPK/S, likely because I've owned one forever and have practiced with it so much during that time. The issue of Walther-bite, so-called, depends on your technique and the size of your hands, I guess. I've never been bitten, and I put hundreds and hundreds of rounds through each of my guns each year (except for this year, when .380 ammo has been so hard to find). I carry the Walther daily and count it as a reliable and accurate friend. I wouldn't think of leaving home without it.

My wife bought one about a year ago that she uses as her concealed carry weapon. Walther/Smith & Wesson PPK/S. She loves it and is a great shot with it.

The only problem we have had is when I field stripped it for cleaning, somehow the spring behind the ejector came out and I didn't realize it. Needless to say, the next time she shot, it jammed continuously until I figured out what was going on. We had to order a new spring, actually we ordered several just in case. It was an easy fix and I am pretty sure it was a mistake I made and not a design or quality issue.

Have you looked at the "clone" of the PPK? The Bersa thunder .380. Here's a link of a review http://www.gunblast.com/Bersa_Thunder380.htm. I have not owned either of both pistols, but some owners have bragged at how more forgiving and comfortable the Bersa shoots compared to the PPK. The Bersa is also twice as cheap.

I like the design, and I like the Sig P230 a lot better. The trigger on mine is like butter, the lines are beautiful, it shoots very well and recoil is a breeze.