P99 Pro/con FAQ .1
1. Re-strike capable. Striker fired weapons have traditionally lacked re-strike capability. For example, if you pull the trigger on a Glock and the round fails to fire, you would not be able to pull the trigger again until you cycled the slide (and another round into the chamber). The P99 acts like a traditional hammer fired double action and allows a follow-up pull of the trigger.
2. Multiple front sites. Four front sights come with every P99, and are marked with a single digit on the top-front of the blade. This allows one to tailor the sites to your ammunition.
3. Ergonomics. The Walther P99 is certainly the most ergonomically designed double stack available. Walther brought in a designer of Olympic target pistol grips to assist them. The result was probably the most unusual looking grip ever put on a production gun. All P99s come with three grip back-straps: Small, Medium, and Large. The Medium one is installed from the factory. This allows the P99 to be tailored to almost any hand (the H&K P2000 has stolen this feature).
4. Safety. The Walther has quite a few safety features. First of all, it can be carried in double action mode. Second, it has a trigger safety that helps prevent unintentional trigger movement. Of course, it also has a striker, and drop safety as well. On top of that, it includes cocking and chamber loaded indicators.
6. Well designed slide release. Unlike the Glock, the Walther actually has a usable slide release.
7. Metal magazines. Unlike early polymer “wonder-nines†(Glock and USP), the Walther has steel magazines. Besides being tougher than plastic, steel allows the magazine to be thinner (and naturally, makes the P99’s grip is thinner).
8. Compact. The P99 is quite compact for a 16 round 9-mm. A P99 is …
9. It is James Bond's gun. How cool is that?
Con.
1. Unusual manual of arms. The P99 is unusual in that it is a striker-fired double action. Unlike a traditional hammer-fired double action there is no cocked-back hammer or trigger to give you a visual cue that the weapon is cocked. Walther attempted to address this with a small "weapon cocked" indicator on the back of the slide. A person is probably more likely to holster a Walther P-99 cocked than a traditional double action. Only after the trigger is pulled for the first time will it remain set back (or cocked). This too often confuses those new to the system.
2. Strange de-cocker placement. Unlike most other weapons equipped with a de-cocking lever, the Walther has a recessed button atop the rear of the left side of the slide. Theoretically this might lead to slightly slower de-cocking. In reality, this is simply unusual. I can think of no real drawback. Only the most hopeless "mall Ninja" is concerned about speedy de-cocking.
3. Proprietary equipment rail. The Walther equipment rail along the front of frame is unlike any other. Therefore, you are limited to "Walther only" toys. This is being addressed with the newer, revised (and ugly) Walthers.
4. Mag release button is the less-popular HK type. The mag release on the Walther is a recessed lever along the rear of the trigger-guard. It allows for ambidextrous, and rapid use. Unfortunately, some will complain that isn't the older, Luger-style button release. Some have complained that this style release is more likely to be accidentally activated--although this is hard to confirm.
5. Plastic sites. The P99's standard sites are made of plastic. This means that they will likely be less durable than the usual metal site. Walther, apparently, manufactures a metal replacement for those who care enough to pay. Plus, all the available tritium sites have metal bodies.
6. Mysterious hump in the trigger guard. The trigger-guard of the P99 has a little hump built into the trigger guard right ahead of the trigger. The purpose of this little feature is to serve as a visual indicator of whether the trigger is in its forwardmost position. The 2004 model has ditched this cool-looking but perplexing feature. (Tamara)
7. Some magazine baseplates are breaking. There have been reports on the internet of magazine baseplates cracking or coming of entirely. (theJrod)
8.Plastic guide rod. Some feel that plastic is not strong enough for a guide rod. This is probably nonsense as Glocks, which are sturdy firearms no matter what you think of them, have always used plastic. A metal one is available for those who can’t stand the thought.
1. Re-strike capable. Striker fired weapons have traditionally lacked re-strike capability. For example, if you pull the trigger on a Glock and the round fails to fire, you would not be able to pull the trigger again until you cycled the slide (and another round into the chamber). The P99 acts like a traditional hammer fired double action and allows a follow-up pull of the trigger.
2. Multiple front sites. Four front sights come with every P99, and are marked with a single digit on the top-front of the blade. This allows one to tailor the sites to your ammunition.
3. Ergonomics. The Walther P99 is certainly the most ergonomically designed double stack available. Walther brought in a designer of Olympic target pistol grips to assist them. The result was probably the most unusual looking grip ever put on a production gun. All P99s come with three grip back-straps: Small, Medium, and Large. The Medium one is installed from the factory. This allows the P99 to be tailored to almost any hand (the H&K P2000 has stolen this feature).
4. Safety. The Walther has quite a few safety features. First of all, it can be carried in double action mode. Second, it has a trigger safety that helps prevent unintentional trigger movement. Of course, it also has a striker, and drop safety as well. On top of that, it includes cocking and chamber loaded indicators.
6. Well designed slide release. Unlike the Glock, the Walther actually has a usable slide release.
7. Metal magazines. Unlike early polymer “wonder-nines†(Glock and USP), the Walther has steel magazines. Besides being tougher than plastic, steel allows the magazine to be thinner (and naturally, makes the P99’s grip is thinner).
8. Compact. The P99 is quite compact for a 16 round 9-mm. A P99 is …
9. It is James Bond's gun. How cool is that?
Con.
1. Unusual manual of arms. The P99 is unusual in that it is a striker-fired double action. Unlike a traditional hammer-fired double action there is no cocked-back hammer or trigger to give you a visual cue that the weapon is cocked. Walther attempted to address this with a small "weapon cocked" indicator on the back of the slide. A person is probably more likely to holster a Walther P-99 cocked than a traditional double action. Only after the trigger is pulled for the first time will it remain set back (or cocked). This too often confuses those new to the system.
2. Strange de-cocker placement. Unlike most other weapons equipped with a de-cocking lever, the Walther has a recessed button atop the rear of the left side of the slide. Theoretically this might lead to slightly slower de-cocking. In reality, this is simply unusual. I can think of no real drawback. Only the most hopeless "mall Ninja" is concerned about speedy de-cocking.
3. Proprietary equipment rail. The Walther equipment rail along the front of frame is unlike any other. Therefore, you are limited to "Walther only" toys. This is being addressed with the newer, revised (and ugly) Walthers.
4. Mag release button is the less-popular HK type. The mag release on the Walther is a recessed lever along the rear of the trigger-guard. It allows for ambidextrous, and rapid use. Unfortunately, some will complain that isn't the older, Luger-style button release. Some have complained that this style release is more likely to be accidentally activated--although this is hard to confirm.
5. Plastic sites. The P99's standard sites are made of plastic. This means that they will likely be less durable than the usual metal site. Walther, apparently, manufactures a metal replacement for those who care enough to pay. Plus, all the available tritium sites have metal bodies.
6. Mysterious hump in the trigger guard. The trigger-guard of the P99 has a little hump built into the trigger guard right ahead of the trigger. The purpose of this little feature is to serve as a visual indicator of whether the trigger is in its forwardmost position. The 2004 model has ditched this cool-looking but perplexing feature. (Tamara)
7. Some magazine baseplates are breaking. There have been reports on the internet of magazine baseplates cracking or coming of entirely. (theJrod)
8.Plastic guide rod. Some feel that plastic is not strong enough for a guide rod. This is probably nonsense as Glocks, which are sturdy firearms no matter what you think of them, have always used plastic. A metal one is available for those who can’t stand the thought.
