My New Walther: P99AS .40 S&W

[ExTank]

Cabela's is running a sale on Walthers, and I also needed some .22LR to go shooting this weekend, so I decided to stop in at Cabela's on the way home from work.

Grabbed the ammo, and just out of curiosity I decided to see what they had in the display case.

Walther P99AS in .40 S&W. For $474.88 after $25 in-store discount. Last one in stock.

Yeah. That went home with me.

All you Glock and Sig fanboys keep banging that drum and shouting it from the rooftops so that Supply & Demand will keep my Walthers very reasonably priced.

Now they need to start carrying Cz so I can get me some more Euro goodness.

 

[Griblik]

I've long since referred to my 9MM Walther P99 as "a Glock 19 + ergonomics". Love mine, it's my all-day-every-day carry.

 

[el Godfather]

Let us know how it works for you with some range time report. I used to have p99 in 0mm, but I sold it since I had bought it used and the extra grip straps were missing. I want to actually buy one in .40SW soon. P99 Re great guns that are extremely under appreciated.

 

[Fishbed77]

My 9mm P99AS is my favorite auto-loading pistol, bar none. A super trigger, perfect ergonomics, great accuracy, perfect reliability, and fit & finish that puts even H&Ks and SIGs to shame.

You're gonna love yours. By the way, you should check out waltherforums.com - a bunch of very classy guys who can answer any question you'll ever have about your new Walther.

 

[fastbolt]

Congrats.

The P99 in the Anti-Stress model is easily one of my personal favorites, although I tend to prefer it chambered in 9mm, myself.

I own a SW9940 (the AS mode S&W99 in .40 S&W, with a S&W-made slide & barrel used on a Walther 99 frame, using Walther parts in the frame & slide). I also carried an issued one for several years, and between the 2 of them, and some other agency-owned SW9940's, I've many thousands of rounds through them. I have a friend of my mine who owns a SW9940 & SW999, and he's fired several ten's of thousands of rounds through them (I support them for him as an armorer).

My favorite is a compact SW999c, though.

I've always thought the 99 series never really received the appreciation it deserved in this country.

The 99 series has received some revision and refinement over the years, too. Good guns made even better.

 

[searcher451]

That's a fine handgun and a great choice. Nice job. You don't see a lot of P99 AS models hanging around these days, so you did well to score it.

 

[Dollar An Hour]

P99's are great pistols, although they really shine in 9mm. The AS trigger just gets better and better for the first several hundred rounds too. Really short trigger reset!

 

[ExTank]

Range Report

Wish I had good news, buuuut....

Okay, everyone who's shot a "plastic pistol" (polymer) knows that it has more recoil than an equivalent caliber all-metal gun; it's just basic physics that a lighter gun transmits more felt recoil to the shooter. I knew this as I already have a P99AS in 9mm, and am comfortable shooting it.

And I've never shot .40 S&W, in anything. I've shot plenty of .45ACP in various 1911 configurations; it's my most comfortable and proficient caliber/gun combo. I've shot .357 in various revolvers with little problem, to good effect.

This P99AS .40 S&W has more felt recoil than my 1911 .45ACP.

My "range report" (see attached photo) is nothing to brag about. That's 8 hits on target out of 10 shots fired, at 5 yards. And that's slooooow fire, exercising the utmost of my concentration and skill to carefully squeeze off each shot. Can you say "flinch?"

We need a shameful face palm smiley to adequately convey my chagrin. I'm better than this; my BIL won't shoot against me with his .45 if I have my P99AS 9mm. He knows he'll be buying the beer afterwards.

So it looks like I'm going to try a different sized backstrap and see if that helps me out some. I'm thinking, as the P99AS .40 S&W seems to want to "roll up" pretty badly (I kept hitting the mag release with my finger, a problem I do NOT have with my P99AS 9mm) that the small/slimmer backstrap may give me a flatter fit to my palm and help eliminate the "roll up."

Note that none of this is a criticism of the gun itself; it is what it is. Any complaints on my part would be like the guy who buys a big V-8 muscle car and then complains about the gas mileage.

 

[fastbolt]

Yeah, the .40 models do seem to take some adjustment due to the sharper snap/muzzle whip, don't they?

My hands just don't fit the largest of the backstrap inserts, so I've gone back & forth between the Small & Medium over the years (the changing temperatures of the different seasons can make one or the other feel better during live-fire, depending on my hands). Mostly I use the Medium backstrap insert.

I've found that 180gr loads typically seem to generate less muzzle whip than the 165gr & 155gr loads, in my 99 .40, in my hands.

As was already mentioned, the 99 triggers do tend to become a bit smoother and lighter with use. I've compared NIB guns to well-used guns (using just a digital gauge, though, not actual weights) and have observed decreased trigger pull weights of a pound (and more, in a couple of guns) in both trigger modes.

This may be one of those instances where you're going to have to make an "adjustment" to the shooter, going from a 9mm model to a .40 S&W model. BTDT, for more than a couple of makes/models of pistols.

The harder & snappier recoiling .40's can sometimes reveal some grip technique issues that might not otherwise reveal themselves (or be a particular issue) when shooting the lighter recoiling 9's ... or even when shooting the heavier, but slower, recoiling .45's. One of those oddities of the .40's recoil impulse.

 

[Fishbed77]

This P99AS .40 S&W has more felt recoil than my 1911 .45ACP.

That's to be expected. If I'm not mistaken, the P99 is the lightest of all full-sized polymer double-stack pistols.

 

[harmon rabb]

Wish I had good news, buuuut....

Okay, everyone who's shot a "plastic pistol" (polymer) knows that it has more recoil than an equivalent caliber all-metal gun; it's just basic physics that a lighter gun transmits more felt recoil to the shooter. I knew this as I already have a P99AS in 9mm, and am comfortable shooting it.

And I've never shot .40 S&W, in anything. I've shot plenty of .45ACP in various 1911 configurations; it's my most comfortable and proficient caliber/gun combo. I've shot .357 in various revolvers with little problem, to good effect.

This P99AS .40 S&W has more felt recoil than my 1911 .45ACP.

My "range report" (see attached photo) is nothing to brag about. That's 8 hits on target out of 10 shots fired, at 5 yards. And that's slooooow fire, exercising the utmost of my concentration and skill to carefully squeeze off each shot. Can you say "flinch?"

We need a shameful face palm smiley to adequately convey my chagrin. I'm better than this; my BIL won't shoot against me with his .45 if I have my P99AS 9mm. He knows he'll be buying the beer afterwards.

So it looks like I'm going to try a different sized backstrap and see if that helps me out some. I'm thinking, as the P99AS .40 S&W seems to want to "roll up" pretty badly (I kept hitting the mag release with my finger, a problem I do NOT have with my P99AS 9mm) that the small/slimmer backstrap may give me a flatter fit to my palm and help eliminate the "roll up."

Note that none of this is a criticism of the gun itself; it is what it is. Any complaints on my part would be like the guy who buys a big V-8 muscle car and then complains about the gas mileage.

Lol. You have just discovered 40. 45 isn't the mean common pistol caliber; 40 is. It's very snappy, doesn't matter what it's in. You could put it in a 38oz 1911, it would still be snappy.

 

[harmon rabb]

That's to be expected. If I'm not mistaken, the P99 is the lightest of all full-sized polymer double-stack pistols.

A 40s&w 1911 will have more recoil than a 45acp 1911.

 

[sigarms228]

My Son has a Walther P99 AS in .40 and the very first time I fired it I was blown away with how well I did with it. However the recoil in my book was stout. So when I got a PPQ I bought one in 9MM and the recoil is very manageable.

However shooting my SIG P229 in .40 is like shooting most pistols in 9MM. The P229 is a very sweet pistol in .40.

 

[ExTank]

Range Report: Round Two

Things are a bit better. I left the original "medium" backstrap on and tried again.

Something that's kind of throwing me is what seems to be a change in my shooting habits (for better or worse, I can't decide): the longer I take to "line up" the perfect shot, the worse I do. I'm doing better (with both pistol and rifle, which I've never been all that good with due to near-sightedness) if I just "Bring It Up/Line It Up/Let Fly."

The left-left target was my first set of rounds, from the 5 yard line, and I started low (probably flinching in anticipation of the recoil) and brought it up to the 9 o'clock, and then over with the second mag. On the left-right target, aside from a flyer or two, I kept pretty centered.

The right-hand targets I moved back to the 10 yard line. Again, aside from an occasional flyer, I think I did considerably better than my initial range trip.

I'm getting used to the .40.

 

[777TRUTH]

CZ's and Walther's.

I'd say you have very good taste my friend.

 

[777TRUTH]

The left-left target was my first set of rounds, from the 5 yard line, and I started low (probably flinching in anticipation of the recoil) and brought it up to the 9 o'clock, and then over with the second mag. On the left-right target, aside from a flyer or two, I kept pretty centered.

The .40 S&W takes some getting used to. The next time out will be even better. Be patient.

 

[TonyT]

I have both a S&W99 and a Walther P99QA. The S&W trigger is the AS variety. Both are great guns. I am fond of their unique ambidextrous safety. Both of mine are 9mm versions and are very accrate shooters considering their relatively short barrels - 100% reliable to date.

 

[ExTank]

Welll, it's been a while, and I've tried all three backstrap sizes, and the originally installed "medium" seems to work best.

I've become fairly accustomed to the recoil, and am approaching the accuracy levels I can get out of my 9mm (the fault isn't the gun, it's my reaction to the .40 S&W's snappy recoil).

My method of stopping my accidentally hitting the mag release is to squeeze and hold the trigger all the way in through the action cycling before releasing it.

I can usually make it through the first mag (12 rds) w/o accidentally hitting the mag release, so I'm guessing it's a fatigue factor sorta thing from wrangling the thing due to the peppy recoil.

I can now keep everything in the 9 ring (no head shots), even out ot 15 yards, for the first two mags; subsequent mags have the occasional "stray" out into the 8 ring.

My P99 AS 9mm is still my favorite of the two. It's a tack driver, and I can drive 'em with it.

 

[DAdams]

Thanks for the report. Interesting. I bought a P99AS a couple years ago after finding the ergonomics were number one for me. I opted for the .40 (my first) wanting something in a more substantial caliber with decent capacity. The other reason at the time I bought the .40 was the availability of ammo vs 9 and .45.
The P99 and their predecessors were designed around 9mm and at 21 ounces they are a challenge in .40. I bought a S&W 40C after that and it's an interesting challenge as-well. About the same weight.

One of these days I think I'll get a PPQ in 9mm since ergonomics wise I still really like the Walthers.

 

[PabloJ]

Thanks for the report. Interesting. I bought a P99AS a couple years ago after finding the ergonomics were number one for me. I opted for the .40 (my first) wanting something in a more substantial caliber with decent capacity. The other reason at the time I bought the .40 was the availability of ammo vs 9 and .45.
The P99 and their predecessors were designed around 9mm and at 21 ounces they are a challenge in .40. I bought a S&W 40C after that and it's an interesting challenge as-well. About the same weight.

One of these days I think I'll get a PPQ in 9mm since ergonomics wise I still really like the Walthers.

I found Glock 29SF easy to shoot with 180gr Federal Hydra Shoks and Hornady 180gr XTPs (essentially .40S&W loads). Recoil is quite similar to S&W 457 .45 with standard loads.
The .40S&W isn't really 'snappy' or hard to master.
Boys, next time buy better guns.

 

[ExTank]

n/m

 

[ExTank]

Glock, glock, GLOCK! Glockglockglock.

 

[Zebraranger]

The P99 is a great gun and you got it at a very nice price. I have a 1st gen P99 .40 AS and it too is my favorite semi auto. I love the trigger and superior ergonomics, not to mention the reliability and durability of a well designed pistol. I cant imagine ever getting rid of it.

 

[CPshooter]

I had one of these for a week or two. Found the recoil to be far too much to really enjoy shooting it so I sold it. It also hurt my trigger finger after about 50 rounds. Not sure why but overall it was unpleasant to shoot. I can see why the 9mm version would be a good gun though.