Walther PP

The PP model ( German: Polizeipistole - police pistol) was launched in 1929.

In 1931, a shortened and lighter Walther RRK model appeared ( German: Polizeipistole Kriminal - a criminal police pistol), which was a reduced PP in size, but also had some original design features. The barrel length was reduced by 15 mm, the total length by 16 mm, and the height by 10 mm. Accordingly, the design of the frame and the shutter-casing, which received a different shape of the front part, were slightly changed.

After the war, pistols were not manufactured for some time, but in the early 1950s they began to be manufactured in France and the Federal Republic of Germany .

In the 1960s, Walter resumed production of PP and PPK models, which continued until the end of the 20th century.

In addition, a production license was sold in the United States, in 1978 pistol production was started by Ranger Manufacturing for Interarms, and after its closure, in 2002 by Smith & Wesson . In the United States, Walther branded weapons are sold by Walther Arms, Inc., a PW Group subsidiary based in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

Currently, Walther PPK is produced in two versions - “PPK” and “PPK / S” under the 9 × 17 mm cartridge, as well as in the small-caliber version “PPK / S. 22” under the .22 Long Rifle cartridge ^[1] .

The action of Walther PP and PPK automation is based on recoil with a free shutter .

The gun consists of 51 parts.

Double-action trigger mechanism with an open trigger with a round hole in the spoke. The coil spring is twisted, cylindrical, located in the handle. The trigger pull when cocked is 2.7 kg, in self-cocking mode - 5.9 kg. The trigger rod is located on the right in the slot frame and is closed by a bolt.

The fuse is located on the left side of the shutter housing. To turn off the fuse, its flag must be moved to the upper position (as with other German Parabellum and Walther P38 pistols ). When the fuse is turned on, the trigger is automatically released from the combat cock, the trigger is safely released and the trigger is locked. The trigger and hammer are also blocked. The shutter does not lock and when the fuse is on, the weapon can be reloaded.

The trigger of the trigger is that when fired, the trigger remains in the forward position when the trigger is not cocked, and when the cock is cocked, it remains in the rear position. When you remove the fuse, the trigger takes the front position. One can observe how after a safe trigger release, especially those who used the PM pistol, turn the flag up and down again so that the trigger takes the forward position, which is natural when the trigger is lowered. There is no such ambiguity in the PM pistol.

The developers of Walter PP refused to USM from the Koltovo safety platoon in the form of an additional tooth on the trigger. In the future, this became a hallmark of German pistols. The circuit with the trigger and hammer stripper provides reliability and greater safety of handling weapons, although it complicates the design.

Protection against a shot when a weapon falls is provided by a vertically located, spring-loaded disconnector of the trigger and hammer. The trigger cannot act on the hammer until the disconnector lifts the whisper. The trigger that breaks stops in front of the drummer with the protrusion of the disconnector. Release of the trigger lock occurs only after the trigger is fully displaced, when the uncoupler rises and with its protrusion takes position opposite the groove on the surface of the trigger.

To prevent premature firing, the trigger rod has a protrusion, which acts on the shutter when not reaching the locking position, disconnecting the rod and the sear. When the trigger and trigger are disconnected, pulling the trigger will be possible only when the shutter is in its most forward position and the trigger is released to pull the rod under the sear.

The magazine is single-row, the magazine latch on most pistols is on the left side of the frame, behind the trigger axis, and looks like a button. However, there were other options - with a magazine latch located at the base of the handle. An indicator of the presence of a cartridge in the chamber is provided in the form of a pin that protrudes from the rear side of the shutter above the trigger head.

After the cartridges in the magazine run out, the shutter will engage the bolt delay in the rear position. After changing the store, the shutter needs to be slightly pulled back and released. The shutter is removed from the delay and, under the action of a return spring located around the barrel, sends a cartridge into the chamber. The weapon will again be ready to fire.

The shutter latch lever is not provided; therefore, it is impossible to remove the shutter from the delay without removing the empty magazine. Before removing from the delay, you must either remove the empty magazine, or remove and insert the empty magazine or equipped.

The frames of all 9 mm Walther PPK pistols manufactured today are different from the original German ones in that they have an elongated rear protrusion that protects the shooter's hand from being hit by the trigger head or by a bolt when fired. In February 2009, Walther PPK introduced an automatic fuse for firing safety in order to increase handling safety.

Pistols Walther PP and Walther PPK were produced in various modifications and designs for cartridges of four different calibres. The total number of issued pistols exceeded a million pieces. The most mass-produced pistols were chambered for 7.65 × 17 mm , the second was 9 × 17 mm caliber , the third was .22LR (5.6 mm rimfire) and the rarest were 6.35 × 15 mm Browning pistols, of which there were less than 1000 pieces released.

• Walther PP ( German: Polizeipistole ) - "police" model arr. 1929 ^[2] . In 1929-1945 in Germany, about 200 thousand units were produced. ^[3]
• Walther PPK ( German: Polizeipistole Kriminalmodell ) - compact model mod. 1931 with a barrel shortened to 83 mm ^[2] , developed by order of the Ministry of the Interior of Prussia. In 1931-1945 in Germany, about 150 thousand units were produced. ^[3]
• Walther PPK-L - A modification of Walther PPK with an aluminum alloy frame, developed in Germany in the 1950s
• Walther PPK / S is an export version of Walther PPK chambered for 9 × 17 mm , developed for the United States after Walther PPK was discontinued in 1968 in accordance with legislative changes (which set the minimum size of imported civilian pistols to 101 mm). It was produced in Germany and licensed in the USA. It was a combined version that combined the frame of the PP pistol and the shortened barrel and bolt of the PPK.
• Walther PP Super - A modification of Walther PP chambered for 9 × 18 mm Ultra ^[2] . Designed in 1972.
• Walther PPK / E - a modification of Walther PPK, is available for cartridges 7.65 × 17 mm, 9 × 17 mm and .22 LR.

In addition, a number of countries produced copies and clones of Walther PP and Walther PPK pistols:

• in the Hungarian People’s Republic since 1948, a 48M pistol was produced at the FÉG arms factory (a Walther PP copy chambered for 7.65 × 17 mm with minor design changes) ^[4] , they had a modified automatic fuse design, a different indicator of the presence of a cartridge in the chamber, protrusion on the store feeder (with which the shutter was stopped after all cartridges were used up) and the lining on the handle with the emblem of the People's Republic of Hungary ^[5]
• in Turkey , MKEK produces copies of Walther PP chambered for 7.65 × 17 mm and 9x17 mm ^[6]
• in 1955, licensed production of replicas of Walther PP and Walther PPK pistols chambered for 7.65 × 17 mm, 9 × 17 mm and .22 LR (under the name Walther-Manurhin ) was launched in France at the Manufacture de weapons Machine du Haut Rhin ”in Mulhouse ^[7] , they were mass-produced from 1955 to 1989.
• In the People's Republic of China, a 7.65 mm caliber Walther PPK was produced and has been in service since the early 1950s under the name Type 52. ^[8] In the 1980s, the army and the police began to receive the 7.65 mm “Type 64”, developed back in the 1960s, it was a PPK with a trigger mechanism and a fuse similar to the Soviet PM. ^[9] A copy of Walther PP is exported under the name Norinco PPN ^[10]
• Walther PP and Walther PPK have influenced the design of many compact free-pistol pistols developed after the end of World War II, including the Hungarian FEG PA-63, Argentinean Bersa Thunder 380 , Spanish Astra Constable, Czechoslovak CZ50 and South Korean Daewoo DH380.
• At the competition 1947-1948. on a new gun for the command staff of the Soviet Army, Soviet weapons designers F.V. Tokarev , S. G. Simonov , S. A. Korovin , I. Ya. Stechkin , K. A. Baryshev , P. V. Voevodin , I. I. Rakov , A. A. Klimov , G. V. Sevryugin , A. I. Lobanov , N. F. Makarov presented samples more or less similar to Walther PP. The automation scheme (free shutter) set by the competition facilitated the use of similar design solutions. The German pistol was also tested in a competitive program - for comparison. ^[11] . The PM who won the competition had the same layout and inherited some design decisions (a folding trigger guard as a shutter travel limiter), although it differed in many details (USM design, fuse, many smaller differences). This led to numerous disputes about whether the PM can be considered only a redone copy of Walter. Obviously, the answer depends on the a priori attitudes of the evaluator. In Soviet and Russian sources, the point of view is advocated that the differences are significant enough to consider the PM to be an independent structure, albeit made “with an eye” on a German pistol ^[12] . Western sources, on the contrary, express an opinion on the significant similarity of the two structures.

Traumatic, gas and pneumatic guns

• Umarex Walther mod. PPK is an 8mm powder alloy gas gun . A divider is installed in the barrel bore in order to exclude the possibility of firing a live cartridge.
• Walther Super PP - 9 mm gas pistol chambered for 9 mm PA . Manufacturer - Enser-Sportwaffen (Germany). Made of lightweight aluminum alloy. A divider is installed in the barrel bore in order to exclude the possibility of firing a live cartridge.
• Umarex Walther mod. PP - 10-mm traumatic gun chambered for 10 × 22 mm T , certified in the Russian Federation as a “ gas gun with the ability to fire a rubber bullet ." On July 1, 2011, the import of foreign-made traumatic pistols certified as a “ gas pistol with the option of shooting with a rubber bullet ” to Russia was stopped.
• ERMA PP-T - 9-mm traumatic gun chambered for 9 mm PA manufactured by ERMA-Inter, first introduced in 2010. It resembles Walther PP. The shutter is made of steel, and the frame is made of black anodized aluminum alloy ^[13] .
• ERMA 55P - 9-mm traumatic gun chambered for 9 mm PA manufactured by ERMA-Inter. It resembles Walther PPK ^[14]
• WALTHER PPK BOND 007 Starting signal pistol, chambered for hilt.
• UMAREX WALTHER PPK / S is a 4.5 mm pneumatic gas cylinder gun manufactured by the German company Umarex ^[15] . The design of the gun provides movement of the barrel casing shutter and cocking the trigger after firing.

•   Germany : Walther PP and Walther PPK were in service with the police ^[16]
•   Germany : Walther PP and Walther PPK were armed with police and special services, were used as personal weapons by tankmen, Luftwaffe and the German Navy officers, senior Wehrmacht officers ^[16] , some were transferred to the Reich Ministry of Justice as personal weapons for staff. Since 1944, Walther PP began to issue and graduates of Wehrmacht officers' schools ^[3] . Also, Walther PP and Walther PPK were used as an award weapon for the highest ranks of the Third Reich ^[16] .
•   Great Britain : captured pistols were used during the Second World War (including those operating in occupied Europe by SOE agents and special services) ^[5] ; after the end of the war, 7.65-mm Walther PP pistols (under the name XL47E1 ) were issued by British troops in Ulster for constant use as self-defense weapons ^[17] . Pistols remained in the warehouses of the mobilization reserve until the early 1980s ^[5] .
•   USSR : captured guns were used during the Great Patriotic War; in the early post-war years, a small number of Walther PP and Walther PPK pistols were used in the diplomatic courier service, some more were transferred to award funds and used as award weapons ^[3]
•   Iran : about 2 thousand Walther PP chambered for 9 × 17 mm were purchased in 1938-1939. for the Iranian police, all of them were marked in Farsi ^[18]
•   Germany : from the moment the West German police were put into service, Walther PP and Walther PPK pistols, released in the Third Reich, and later a French consignment of 7.65-mm Walther-Manurhin pistols ^[19] ; Since 1956, Walther PPK was launched for the Bundeswehr under the name P21 (used in the military police, military counterintelligence service (MAD) , military pilots and couriers) ^[20]
•   France : Walther-Manurhin pistols entered service with French police
•   Egypt : in 1958, the 9-mm Hungarian FEG 48M was adopted by the Air Force under the name Walam 48 (the emblem of the Arab Republic of Egypt was depicted on the left side of the shutter of these pistols) ^[5]
•   Sweden : a small amount of Walther PP was purchased for the Swedish police, they were armed with certain categories of Swedish police officers until 2003-2004. ^[21]
•   Indonesia : at least until 2007 some Walther PPK was in service with the commandos (combat swimmer groups Komando Pasukan Katak and special forces Komando Pasukan Khusus) ^[22]
•   Ukraine : in the 1990s it was an award weapon ^[23] ; as of August 15, 2011, at the custody of the Ministry of Defense there were 90 pieces. 7.65 mm Walther PP pistols and 175 pcs. 7.65mm Walther PPK Pistols ^[24]
•   Ireland : Walther PPK officially remained in service with the Army Rangers in the 2000s ^[25]
•   USA : some Walther PPK was used by the US police ^[26]

In addition, even before the start of World War II, pistols went on sale as civilian weapons and became widespread in various European countries.

Use in the UK

After the war, the British used the 7.65 mm Walther PP in the MI5 and MI6 intelligence agencies and the police as the main service pistol until the early 1970s. ^[27]

British SAS fighters used Walther PP in the 1960s and 1980s. Initially, these were pistols chambered for .22LR, but in 1974 they were replaced by PP of 7.65 mm caliber. PP was in service with the personal guard of the royal family and diplomatic services in the 1970s.

Until 1974, a caliber of 7.65 mm was used, after - a weapon chambered for 9 × 17 mm. Walther PP was used in the UK until the end of the 1980s, when it was replaced by a Walther P5 Compact pistol, which, however, was unable to displace PP. Officially, Walther PP has been discontinued as the “primary personal defense weapon” since 1989, but is still used as a “personal weapon of self-defense outside the service”.

Walther PP is still used in the UK Air Force .

• Victor Gordienko. Walther PP Series // Master Gun magazine, No. 31, 1999. pp. 40-47
• (site deleted) The material part of small arms . Ed. A.A. Blagonravova. - M .: Oborongiz NKAP, 1945
• Monetchikov S. B. Infantry weapon of the Third Reich. Volume 1. Pistols. Submachine guns. - M .: Atlant, 2005. ISBN 5-98655-012-9

• Yaroslav Koval. Pistol Walther PPK and PPK / S / site mgewehr - Notes about weapons.
• M.R. Popenker. Pistol Walther PP, PPK and PPK / S (Germany) / Modern Small Arms of the World website
• An article by Vladislav Kashtanov on a Walter PP pistol on armoury-online.ru
• An article by Vladislav Kashtanov on a Walter PPK pistol on armoury-online.ru
• Walther PP, PPK, PPK / S, PPK / E / gewehr.ru website
• Walther PP Pistol Series / Internet Movie Firearms Database