The gun Bond SHOULD have had...

[45King]

Since Mr. Bond is s spy, and spies aren't supposed to attract any attention or be noticed, I'd say he should either not carry or carry something very discrete along the lines of a Seecamp. (For that matter, I think he should have some plastic surgery so he's not so handsome, dress in a more mundane fashion, and stop going to all those damn casinos and acting like a high roller! He needs to become "Mr. Celophane;" look right through him, walk right past him, and never even know he's there.)

Since he is a fictional spy, I would have him using an HK P7M10.

 

[Ky Larry]

All actor's playing 007 except Sean Connery should have a pink gun. Sean can carry anything he wants.

 

[Dr.Rob]

In the 60's? A Colt Cobra .38 as Maj. Boothroyd suggested.

Nowadays? Q branch should be cooking up subcompact Hi-Powers.

On a strange side note, the the RPG for Bond, Q branch "invents" the HK4, only their version can be converted from 380 to 9mm makarov for use behind the iron curtain. The "New" version of the briefcase sports a Ruger Mk2 with an integral supressor, that's about as pro-killer as Bond ever got.

 

[TXBera]

Seeker, I'd have to disagree, the P99 IMHO is the best for Bond because it's high-tech.

I also can't see bond with a 1911, but with something with a more European or Eastern Bloc origin.

 

[pwrtool45]

Actually 45King, Flemming's Bond wasn't handsome. He was very sedate in the looks department (being a spy and all). That said, he was charismatic. Very charismatic. Quite cha...well, you understand.

I'm in agreement that a real Bond gun is going to be in a popgun caliber and very, very compact. I don't think anything bigger than 7.65mm (probably 6.35mm) would be appropriate. Bond isn't a stand-up gunfighter. His pistol was only to be used on unarmored targets who were caught off guard. Thoughout the books and movies, he did use different weapons as the need arose (e.g., PSG-1, S&W 29, S&W 10, P5, etc.). The Bond pistol was something he had to smuggle through customs, planes, parties, etc. He wasn't a one-man army, he was an information specialist.

 

[BHPshooter]

I think the PPK is about right for the Bond Gun, but if Bond is a Commander, then he had to have time in the Military. Maybe SAS? When more power is needed, I'd say maybe a Hi Power. He'd already be very familiar with it.

Wes

 

[Sean Smith]

I think the PPK was a good choice for the period, actually.

 

[Hkmp5sd]

Well, he is a spy after all.

 

[Hemicuda]

Personally, I think he shoulda stuck with that Charter Arms/Armalite AR-7 Survival Rifle he uses to hot a man in a helecopter, hovering 100 yards away... he was GOOD with that one!

 

[aircarver]

Should have been a Mak. A direct contemporary of the PPK, the Mak fires every time, unlike the PPK, which has a large population of Jammomatics. The Russians were laughing up their sleeves the whole time JB was carrying a PPK....

 

[45R]

A Sig 232 or HK P7

 

[Sprout]

Glock 7?

Actually, I've vote for an equally unrealistic polymer/ceramic PPK. Style over substance.

 

[clipse]

CZ 75 P-01

That is my unbiased opinion.

 

[Johnny Guest]

Well, let's go back to the beginning - -

- -Shall we?

In the original book, Casino Royale, Bond carried a Beretta .25, "with the sawn barrel and the taped grip," and also had a "long barreled Colt." The Colt was his car gun, and the .25 was carried in a "chamois shoulder holster." Really, most of the the guns "Bond SHOULD have had... " being mentioned are rather large and heavy for deep concealment by a true spy, as opposed to an assassin.

A book or two later, I think it was in Dr. No, Major Boothroyd counsels Bond on a more powerful piece, and mentions evaluation of several handguns. This included the Steyr M38, another 7.65 (.32 ACP.) I've always smiled at the declaration that the .32 cartridge is "a real stopper," and, "hits like a brick through a plate glass window." Well, compared to a .25, I guess it's pretty staunch. Again, we must remember that most East-of-the-Atlantic handguns were of pretty modest size and power. A 7.65 was a perfectly acceptable police sidearm, and many military officers felt the same.

The Italian Navy used the 1935 Beretta in 7.65, while their army had adopted the bigger, more brutal 9 mm Corto (.380 ACP) the previous year. As to the Germans, they adopted the rather substantial 9x19 mm early in the century, surely, but it was as a replacement for the old, large bore black powder revolvers. One of their more notable aerial warriors, Colonel Hans Rudel wrote of being afoot in enemy territory armed only with a 6.35 pistol. He survived more than one shot-down, and apparently never opted for a larger handgun.

I guess all this historical rambling is merely aimed at these considerations: What was Bond's mission? Would he have felt the NEED for a larger pistol for daily use, as opposed to special circumstances? What was the prevailing attitude toward handguns in the time/place for which Fleming was writing? And, do the movies bear much actual relationship to the novels Fleming wrote? Remember, many of the above comments are based upon what was depicted on the screen, and NOT in the books.

Really, the PPK wasn't a bad choice given the era. I might have chosen a Remington Model 51 for him, and a five-shot S&W .38 would have served very well, especially in the early Airweight versions.

Anyway, this is all a lot of fun.


Johnny

 

[garrettwc]

Fumegator, Bond held the rank of Commander in the British Royal Navy.

As for the gun, the P7 would be a good gun then and now.

In one of the books he carried an ASP and I though that would be the perfect one off spy gun.

 

[BHPshooter]

Fumegator, Bond held the rank of Commander in the British Royal Navy.

Ah, yes. Thank you for reminding me.

But really, what's wrong with a PPK as long as it works? Maybe he could have one in .32 and one in .380 for different situations?

Wes

 

[prisoner6]

Actually, if memory serves, I'll double check later, in the book Dr. No, when issued the PPK, he is also issued a S&W Centennial Airweight (for situations calling for more power). Reportedly, because Fleming liked the name, and was not really well-versed in guns. There are quite a few gun errors in the early books. Some argue these are planned as Mr. Flemings various alleged clandestine services would have given him at least a passing familiarity with firearms. Officially, he was just a writer, so who knows? Shame we can't ask him.

 

[Sleuth]

LaFrance NOVA 9mm, with the original extened and threaded barrel. Same size as the PPK, 9mm ammo all over Europe.

 

[Dr.Rob]

Funny thing, Fleming thought David Niven was the best choice to play Bond, and he did in a Woody Allen film.

 

[Johnny Guest]

Interesting you should mention that - -

Dr. Rob - - -

David Niven served with the Commandos in WWII, and did a couple of the rather sneaky missions.

Ian Fleming served in the intelligence service (sorry, I don't reecall which one) in WWII. The high stakes gambling bit in Casino Royale was based loosely on an actual intelligence operation, in which Fleming had some role. IIRC, though, it didn't turn out nearly so well as the one in the novel.

Best,
Johnny

 

[hansolo]

Bond; James Bond's handgun

Sean Connery era - BHP

Current - Desert Eagle .50 AE

..............................................
What's the deal with Pierce Brosnen? I'd cast Billy Bob Thornton as the next Bond. No? How 'bout Samuel L. Jackson?

 

[pwrtool45]

"Now reach in that bag and hand me my PPK."

 

[Dorian]

I think the P99 was a good gun to go with.

It's a step up from the PPK and a good all around pistol.

And it's still Walther.

 

[otomik]

I think Fleming made pretty good choices actually, even before major boothroyd added his 2 pence, of course it would be different if he wrote the books now.

Then: PPK in holster, .45ACP Colt New Service DA Revolver in Glove Compartment.

Now: Beretta 3032 Tomcat Titanium in holster, SIG-Sauer P-220ST in the Glove Compartment (modified w/ tac light and converted to .38 Casull utilizing handloaded military armor-piercing 9mm bullets)

 

[Lone Star]

I know a little about this, having read all of the original books by Fleming and corresponded with the REAL Geoffrey Boothroyd, who Fleming fictionally made into "Maj. Boothroyd, the Armourer of the Secret Service". (See "Dr. No". It was even in the film.)

First, the Hi-Power is too large for discrete carry. The SAS have used it, but not usually as an undercover weapon. The British concealed weapon is usually the Walther PP, although I forget the government stock number. It is often issued to operatives in Northern Ireland and other trouble spots. RAF aircrew have lately carried the PPK in lieu of the older Browning 9mm. The PPK was a very logical choice, and one that apparently also appealed to many CIA agents, although their issue guns were generally a choice between the Browning 9mm or the S&W Chief's Special .38 snub.

Boothroyd said in 1965 in his superb, "The Handgun" that the real James Bond gun should be the S&W M60 .38, the first stainless handgun, and small enough to conceal in most circumstances.

The "long-barrelled .45 Colt" mentioned by Fleming was probably the Colt New Service in .45 Colt. (5.5-inch barrel.) He encountered this gun in WW II Naval intelligence service, and was shown with one in a "Life" feature on him in the early 1960's...sitting in his Bentley automobile! Fleming owned several handguns, which was then quite legal for British subjects who could jump through the right hoops made of red tape. One was a Colt Official Police .38 given to him by Wild Bill Donovan, who headed the wartime OSS, later the CIA. He bought a S&W Centennial on Boothroyd's advice, before the stainless M60 snub appeared.
He was shown with it on the back cover of some paperbound Bond books.

I trust this has been of some interest.

Lone Star