Walther PPK

[Rob Roy]

What's your opinion about this handgun? Does it come in 9mm?

[69Mach1]

Comes in .380, never in 9mm. The highly desired ones were imported by Interarms. Now imported by Smith and Wesson. I like the stainless versions on the PPK frame and not the PPK/S frame. Cool little guns. Former James Bond sidearm also, now replaced with the Walther P99.

[dfletcher]

No, 380 & 32 ACP. Some made in 22 LR I believe.

Nice little gun, I have a blued Manhurin made Interarms PPk/s in 380 ACP. It shoots reliably and doesn't bite my hand.

[Rob Roy]

Which caliber is the best in this gun?

[leelaw]

Which caliber is the best in this gun?

James Bond - .32

Defense - .380

[Black Majik]

I have a Interarms PPK that I rarely shoot. You'll hear mixed reports on the PPK in both the Interarms version and the S&W version. My Interarms PPK runs reliably, but it's no fun to shoot. It's not accurate past 21ft, the trigger sucks both in SA and DA. The gun is too heavy to pocket carry. You can carry it on safe, but it'll be decocked. The safety is activated in the wrong direction also.

But, I hold onto it because I feel lucky to have one that runs reliably. It certainly fills a niche, but there are others in it's size that are lighter, and more powerful, such as the PM9.

I prefer the Interarms because it doesn't have that ugly beavertail found on the Smith versions.

[HCz]

I like its concealability, but the slide bite is just too much.

[chsk9]

You will be hard pressed to hit anything past 10 feet with this- and that is after a trigger job. They are sexy and compact, but that is about it. Oh and .380 is a emasculated version of a mouse gun... not something I would want to depend on.

[darkest2000]

Comes in .380, never in 9mm. The highly desired ones were imported by Interarms. Now imported by Smith and Wesson. I like the stainless versions on the PPK frame and not the PPK/S frame. Cool little guns. Former James Bond sidearm also, now replaced with the Walther P99.

I believe they're actually made by S&W now, not imported.

[Moonclip]

No, 380 & 32 ACP. Some made in 22 LR I believe.

Nice little gun, I have a blued Manhurin made Interarms PPk/s in 380 ACP. It shoots reliably and doesn't bite my hand.

I have the same Manurhin, very nice gun. Some older rare PPK's were made in .25acp as well.

[Moonclip]

I have a Interarms PPK that I rarely shoot. You'll hear mixed reports on the PPK in both the Interarms version and the S&W version. My Interarms PPK runs reliably, but it's no fun to shoot. It's not accurate past 21ft, the trigger sucks both in SA and DA. The gun is too heavy to pocket carry. You can carry it on safe, but it'll be decocked. The safety is activated in the wrong direction also.

But, I hold onto it because I feel lucky to have one that runs reliably. It certainly fills a niche, but there are others in it's size that are lighter, and more powerful, such as the PM9.

I prefer the Interarms because it doesn't have that ugly beavertail found on the Smith versions.

The ugly beavertail is for people with fat hands These are good guns though a bit outdated these days.

[wilshire1412]

I have a small collection of post war Walther pistols, ppk and ppk/s and a couple of pp in three different calibers. My opinion is that these are great guns to collect but as far as any serious use such as HD or CCW there are many other pistols out there now that would be a much better choice. My own favorite caliber for these pp-ppk type pistols is .22lr, as they are pleasant to shoot in that cartridge. The .32 acp is OK but ammo is certainly more $$ and then the .380 is a bit sharp in recoil in these guns. The pistols that were made in .25acp were all produced prior to WWII, and when found for sale are usually very expensive since there were just not many produced. The holy grail for me at this point is a PPk-L in .22lr, they are around but with the way things are here in Cali I don't think I will find one for sale any time soon. The current run of S&W made pistols are similar in appearance but upon close examination they are not the same as the older pistols, but I think one would serve well if that is what you really want.
PPk/S .22lr

PP .22lr

PPk-L .32acp

[dfletcher]

I think the PP series, as with so many European handguns like it, was meant to be worn exposed and in a holster, sort of subscribing to the gentlemany and very European "Stop, or I shall be forced to shoot you in the buttocks" approach to injuring only self defense - or to be seen only and by its presence dissuade an offender.

I haven't shot mine but 100 or so rounds in 5 years, everytime I do I wonder why the heck I bought it, but when I look at or handle I just think it looks nice.

[Sutcliffe]

I wouldn't buy until I've tried

they are notorious for biting the hand that shoots them. If you are just into collecting interesting guns then go for it.

[JJE]

darkest2000 is correct - the S&W versions are made in the US under license, and the beavertail may look too long to some folks (looks OK to me) but it solved the "slide bite" for everybody except those with the meatiest hands.

I've shot about 800 rounds out of my S&W PPK/S and I really enjoy shooting it. I originally had a problem with the slide getting gummed up and not going back into battery after fewer than 100 rounds, but I switched from gun oil to Tetra lube and it seems to have fixed that problem. The black plastic grips were kind of ugly so I put some wood Hogues on. The only complaint I have left is that I can't positively tell when the trigger resets - there's no "click" sound or sensation to tell me that I can pull the trigger again. Even this isn't much of a problem because the trigger DOES reset in a very short distance.

Basically, this is an old gun design that has stood the test of time and works well. It's more of a challenge to shoot well than many modern designs, but that's part of the reason I like it.