Walther PP
Original Walther PP pistol.
Type	Semi-automatic pistol
Place of origin	Germany[1]
Service history
In service	1935–1992
Used by	See Users
Wars	World War II
Production history
Designer	Carl Walther Waffenfabrik
Designed	1929
Manufacturer	Carl Walther GmbH Sportwaffen
Produced	1929–present
Variants	PPK, PPK-L, PPKS, PP-Super, PPK/E, PP Sport and Walther TPH
Specifications
Weight	665 g (23.5 oz) (PP 9×17mm Short/.380 ACP) 660 g (23 oz) (PP 7.65×17mm Browning SR/.32 ACP) 675 g (23.8 oz) (PP .22 LR) 590 g (21 oz) (PPK 9×17mm Short/.380 ACP) 590 g (21 oz) (PPK 7.65×17mm Browning SR/.32 ACP) 560 g (20 oz) (PPK .22 LR) 635 g (22.4 oz) (PPK/S 9×17mm Short/.380 ACP) 630 g (22 oz) (PPK/S 7.65×17mm Browning SR/.32 ACP) 645 g (22.8 oz) (PPK/S .22 LR) 480 g (17 oz) (PPK-L 7.65×17mm Browning SR/.32 ACP) 450 g (16 oz) (PPK-L .22 LR) 780 g (28 oz) (PP-Super)
Length	170 mm (6.7 in) (PP) 155 mm (6.1 in) (PPK) 156 mm (6.1 in) (PPK/S) 155 mm (6.1 in) (PPK-L) 176 mm (6.9 in) (PP-Super)
Barrel length	98 mm (3.9 in) (PP) 83 mm (3.3 in) (PPK, PPK/S, PPK-L) 92 mm (3.6 in) (PP-Super)
Width	30 mm (1.2 in) (PP, PPK/S, PPK-E) 25 mm (1.0 in) (PPK) 35 mm (1.4 in) (PP-Super)
Height	109 mm (4.3 in) (PP) 100 mm (3.9 in) (PPK) 110 mm (4.3 in) (PPK/S) 113 mm (4.4 in) (PPK-E) 124 mm (4.9 in) (PP-Super)
Cartridge	7.65×17mm Browning SR (.32 ACP) 9×17mm Short (.380 ACP) .22 Long Rifle 6.35×15mm Browning SR (.25 ACP) 9×18mm Ultra (PP-Super)
Action	Straight blowback
Muzzle velocity	256 m/s (840 ft/s) (PP 9×17mm Short/.380 ACP) 320 m/s (1,049.9 ft/s) (PP 7.65×17mm Browning SR/.32 ACP) 305 m/s (1,000.7 ft/s) (PP .22 LR) 244 m/s (800.5 ft/s) (PPK/PPK/S 9×17mm Short/.380 ACP) 308 m/s (1,010.5 ft/s) (PPK/PPK/S/PPK-L 7.65×17mm Browning SR/.32 ACP) 280 m/s (918.6 ft/s) (PPK/PPK/S/PPK-L .22 LR) 325 m/s (1,066.3 ft/s) (PP-Super)
Feed system	Magazine capacity: PP: 10 (.22 LR), 8 (.32 ACP) 7 (.380) PPK: 9 (.22 LR), 7 (.32 ACP) 6 (.380).
Sights	Fixed iron sights, rear notch and front blade

The Walther PP (Polizeipistole, or police pistol) series pistols are blowback-operated semi-automatic pistols, developed by the German arms manufacturer Walther.^[2]
It features an exposed hammer, a traditional double-action trigger mechanism,^[3] a single-column magazine, and a fixed barrel that also acts as the guide rod for the recoil spring. The series includes the Walther PP, PPK, PPK/S, and PPK/E. Since 1971, the Walther TPHpocket pistol is a miniaturised PPK identical in handling and operation.
Various PP series are manufactured in Germany, France, and the United States.^[4] Since 2002, the PPK variant is solely manufactured by Smith & Wesson in Houlton, Maine, United States, under license from Carl Walther GmbH Sportwaffen. In the past, this particular model has been manufactured by Carl Walther in its own factory in Germany, as well as under licenses by Manurhin in Alsace, France, and by Interarms in Alexandria, Virginia.
The PP and the PPK were among the world’s first successful double action semi-automatic pistols and were widely copied, but are still made by Walther. The design inspired other pistols, among them the Soviet Makarov, the Hungarian FEG PA-63, the Polish P-64, the American Accu-Tek AT-380 II, and the Argentinian Bersa Thunder 380. The PP and PPK were both popular with European police and civilians for being reliable and concealable. During World War II, they were issued to the German military, including the Luftwaffe, as well as the police.^[1]

PP series[edit]

Walther PP .32 made in Germany in 1968

The original PP (Polizeipistole) was released in 1929.^[1] It was designed for police use and was used by police forces in Europe in the 1930s and later.^[1] The semi-automatic pistol operated using a simple blowback action.^[1] The PP was designed with several safety features, some of them innovative, including an automatic hammer block, a combination safety/decocker and a loaded chamber indicator.^[1]

PPK[edit]

The most common variant is the Walther PPK, a smaller version of the PP with a shorter grip, barrel and frame, and reduced magazine capacity. A new, two-piece wrap-around grip panel construction was used to conceal the exposed back strap. The smaller size made it more concealable than the original PP and hence better suited to plainclothes or undercover work. It was released in 1930.
“PPK” is an abbreviation for Polizeipistole Kurz (Police Pistol Short), “kurz” referring to the police Pistol with a shorter barrel and frame. Adolf Hitler shot and killed himself with his PPK (a 7.65mm/.32 ACP) in the Führerbunker in Berlin.^[5] South Korean dictator Park Chung-hee was shot and killed by Kim Jae-gyu, using the Walther PPK. The Walther PPK pistol is famous as fictional secret agent James Bond‘s gun in many of the films and novels: Ian Fleming‘s choice of the Walther PPK directly influenced its popularity and its notoriety.^[6][7]Fleming had given Bond a .25 Beretta 418 pistol in early novels, but switched to the PPK in Dr. No on the advice of firearms expert Geoffrey Boothroyd.^[7][8][9]
Singer Elvis Presley owned a silver-finish PPK, inscribed “TCB” (“Taking Care of Business”).^[10]

PPK/S[edit]

The PPK/S was developed following the enactment of the Gun Control Act of 1968 (GCA68) in the United States, the pistol’s largest market.^[11] One of the provisions of GCA68 banned the importation of pistols and revolvers not meeting certain requirements of length, weight, and other “sporting” features into the United States. The PPK failed the “Import Points” test of the GCA68 by a single point. Walther addressed this situation by combining the PP’s frame with the PPK’s barrel and slide to create a pistol that weighed slightly more than the PPK.^[3] The additional ounce or two of weight of the PPK/S compared to the PPK was sufficient to provide the extra needed import points.
Because United States law allowed domestic production (as opposed to importation) of the PPK, manufacture began under license in the U.S. in 1983; this version was distributed by Interarms. The version currently manufactured by Walther Arms in Fort Smith, Arkansas has been modified (by Smith & Wesson) by incorporating a longer grip tang (S&W calls it “extended beaver tail”),^[12] better protecting the shooter from slide bite, i.e., the rearward-traveling slide’s pinching the web between the index finger and thumb of the firing hand, which could be a problem with the original design for people with larger hands or an improper grip, especially when using “hotter” cartridge loads. The PPK/S is made of stainless steel.^[3]
The PPK/S differs from the PPK as follows:

• Overall height: 104 mm (4.1 in) vs. 100 mm (3.9 in)
• Weight: the PPK/S weighs 51 g (1.8 oz) more than the PPK
• The PPK/S magazine holds one additional round, in both calibers.^[12]

The PPK/S and the PPK are offered in the following calibers: .32 ACP (with capacities of 8 for PPK/S and 7 for PPK); or .380 ACP (PPK/S: 7; PPK: 6). The PPK/S is also offered in .22 LR with capacity of 10 rounds.

PPK-L[edit]

A Walther PPK-L manufactured in 1966

In the 1960s, Walther produced the PPK-L, which was a light-weight variant of the PPK. The PPK-L differed from the standard, all steel PPK in that it had an aluminium alloy frame. These were only chambered in 7.65mm Browning (.32 ACP) and .22 LR because of the increase in felt recoil from the lighter weight of the gun. All other features of the postwar production PPK (brown plastic grips with Walther banner, high polished blue finish, lanyard loop, loaded chamber indicator, 7+1 magazine capacity and overall length) were the same on the PPK-L.

PP Super[edit]

First marketed in 1972, this was an all-steel variant of the PP chambered for the 9×18mm Ultra cartridge. Designed as a police service pistol, it was a blowback operated, double-action pistol with an external slide-stop lever and a firing-pin safety. A manual decocker lever was on the left side of the slide; when pushed down, it locked the firing pin and released the hammer. When the 9×19mm Parabellum was chosen as the standard service round by most of the German police forces, the experimental 9mm Ultra round fell into disuse. Only about 2,000 PP Super pistols were sold to German police forces in the 1970s, and lack of sales caused Walther to withdraw the PP Super from their catalogue in 1979.^[13]

PPK/E[edit]

A Walther PPK/E

A Stainless PPK made under License by Ranger Arms

At the 2000 Internationale Waffen-Ausstellung (IWA—International Weapons Exhibition) in Nuremberg, Walther announced a new PPK variant designated as the PPK/E.^[14][15] The PPK/E resembles the PPK/S and has a blue steel finish; it is manufactured under license by FEG in Hungary. Despite the resemblance between the two, certain PP-PPK-PPK/S parts, such as magazines, are not interchangeable with the PPK/E. Official factory photographs do not refer to the pistol’s Hungarian origins. Instead, the traditional Walther legend (“Carl Walther Waffenfabrik Ulm/Do.”) is stamped on the left side of the slide. The PPK/E is offered in .22 LR, .32 ACP, and .380 ACP calibers.

Manufacturing[edit]

Walther’s original factory was located in Zella-Mehlis in the “Land” (state) of Thuringia. As that part of Germany was occupied by the Soviet Union following World War II, Walther fled to West Germany, where they established a new factory in Ulm. For several years following the war, the Allied powers forbade any manufacture of weapons in Germany. As a result, in 1952, Walther licensed production of the PP series pistols to a French company, Manufacture de Machines du Haut-Rhin, also known as Manurhin. The French company continued to manufacture the PP series until 1986.
In 1978, Ranger Manufacturing of Gadsden, Alabama was licensed to manufacture the PPK and PPK/S; this version was distributed by Interarms of Alexandria, Virginia. This license was eventually canceled. Starting in 2002, Smith & Wesson (S&W) began manufacturing the PPK and PPK/S under license until 2017 when Walther began producing them again at their new US manufacturing plant in Fort Smith, Arkansas. In February 2009, S&W issued a recall for PPKs it manufactured for a defect in the hammer block safety.^[16]

Users[edit]

•  Bangladesh: Special Security Force.^[17]
•  Burkina Faso: PP variant.^[18]
•  Central African Republic: PP variant.^[18]
•  Chad: PP variant.^[18]
•  Republic of the Congo: PP variant.^[18]
•  Denmark: PPK variant. Danish Police used a 7.65mm version.^[19]
•  East Germany: A close copy was produced after World War II.^[20]
•  France: All Walther PP and variants were produced after World War II by Manurhin until 1986.^[20]
•  Guyana: PPK variant.^[18]
•  Hungary: A close copy was produced locally after World War II. A Hungarian version called the PA-63 (9×18mm Makarov) is still in service.^[20]
•  Indonesia: PPK variant is used by Komando Pasukan Katak (Kopaska) tactical diver group and Komando Pasukan Khusus (Kopassus) special forces group.^[21]
•  Madagascar: PP variant.^[18]
•  Mali: PP variant.^[18]
•  Mauritius: PP variant.^[18]
•  Nazi Germany^[20] (origin)
•  Niger: PP variant.^[18]
•  Romania: A close copy was produced locally after World War II.^[20]
•  Senegal: PP variant.^[18]
•  Seychelles: PP variant.^[18]
•  South Korea: PP variant.
•  Sweden: Walther PP. Was in use by Swedish Police until early/mid 2000s.,^[22][23]
•  Togo: PP variant.^[18]
•  Turkey: A close copy Kirikkale 7.65 was produced locally after World War II.^[20]
•  United Kingdom: MI6 and the Royal Air Force – L66A1 .22 LR and L47A1 7.65mm Walther PP.^[3]
•  United States: Produced locally and used by various police forces. Kentucky State Police issued the stainless PPK/S as a backup gun and each pistol had the agency logo engraved on the slide

A combination gun is a break-action hunting firearm that comprises at least one rifled barrel and one shotgun barrel. Combination guns using one rifle and one shotgun barrel usually are in an over and under configuration. Side-by-side versions are referred to as cape guns. A drilling (German for “triplet”) is a combination gun that has three barrels. A vierling (German for “quadruplet”) has four barrels. Combination guns generally use rimmed cartridges, as rimless cartridges are more difficult to extract from a break-action weapon.

Use[edit]

Combination guns have a long history in Europe, Africa, and Asia, dating back to the early days of cartridge firearms. These guns are almost exclusively hunting arms. The advantage of having a single firearm that can fire both rifle and shotgun cartridges is that a single gun can be used to hunt a very wide variety of game, from deer to game birds, and the shooter can choose the barrel appropriate for the target in seconds. As a result, they are popular with gamekeepers who often need the flexibility of the combination gun during their normal duties.

Firing mechanisms[edit]

The earliest combination guns were called swivel guns (not to be confused with the more widely known small cannon), which used a set of barrels designed to rotate to allow either the rifled or smooth-bore barrel to line up with a flintlockmechanism.^[1] Modern combination guns tend to resemble double-barreled shotguns and double rifles, and are almost universally break open designs. Combination guns generally have a selector that allows the user to choose which barrel will fire. Drillings with two shotgun barrels and one rifle barrel may have two triggers, one for each shotgun barrel, and a selector that will allow one trigger to fire the rifle barrel. Four-barrel versions known as Vierlings generally have two triggers, and selectors to switch each between shotgun and rifle.

Layouts[edit]

Combination guns[edit]

M6 Aircrew Survival Weapon

Combination guns are over/under designs, usually with a shotgun barrel over a rifle barrel. Iron sights are commonly used for aiming the rifle, and the front sight alone is sufficient to point the shotgun. Scope mounts are available, sometimes with a cutout for aiming the shotgun barrels. However, the thinness of the shotgun barrels that are usually on top make the scope mounting awkward.
An interesting combination gun is the Ithaca M6 Aircrew Survival Weapon and a civilian version Springfield Armory M6 Scout, an all-metal folding combination gun in .22 Hornet over .410 bore.

Cape guns[edit]

A cape gun is a side-by-side version of a combination gun, and is typically European in origin. These were at one time popular in southern Africa where a wide variety of game could be encountered. British versions are commonly chambered for the .303 British service cartridge and a 12-gauge shotgun barrel, with the rifle barrel positioned on the left. German and Austrian cape guns have the rifle barrel on the right side and it is fired by the front trigger. The front trigger is usually a set trigger as well. The German and Austrian versions are commonly chambered in 9.3×74mmR and 16-gauge, although they were chambered in a wide variety of rifle and shotgun cartridges.

Drillings[edit]

Common drilling barrel arrangement side-by-side shotgun barrels over a rifle barrel

Scoped Drilling with a shotgun, center-fire rifle and rim-fire rifle barrels.

Drillings normally consists of two matching shotgun barrels and a rifle barrel (German: Normaldrilling, common drilling), but may cover a much broader range of shapes and configurations:^[2]

• Two matching rifle barrels and one shotgun barrel
• Two rifle barrels of different calibers (typically one rimfire and one centerfire) and one shotgun barrel
• Three matching shotgun barrels
• Three matching rifle barrels

Since drillings were generally made by small manufacturers, each maker would pick whichever layout they preferred, or whatever layout the customer ordered. The most common layout was a side-by-side shotgun with a centerfire rifle barrel centered on the bottom. A similar arrangement of a side-by-side shotgun with a rifle barrel centered on top, generally a .22 caliber rimfire or .22 Hornet, was also fairly common.
Rarer were the drillings that used two rifle barrels and a single shotgun barrel. These were harder to make, since, like a double rifle, the rifle barrels must be very carefully regulated, that is, aligned during manufacture to shoot to the same point of aim at a given distance. This requires more precision than regulation of double-barreled shotgun barrels, which are used at shorter ranges with wide patterns of shot where a small misalignment won’t be significant. If the rifle barrels were the same caliber, then the three barrels were generally arranged in a triangle, both rifle barrels on top, or one rifle and the shotgun barrel on top (this being known as a cross-eyed drilling). If the rifle barrels differed in caliber, generally the layout would be an over/under using the shotgun and a centerfire rifle barrel, with a rimfire rifle barrel mounted between and to one side. These configuration, with shotgun/centerfire/rimfire barrels, are the most desirable configuration for modern collectors.
The triple barrel shotgun is the rarest configuration, and arguably is an odd variant of a double-barreled shotgun rather than a drilling, since it lacks the rifle/shotgun combination that all the other drillings have. The triple barrel shotgun is generally laid out like a side-by-side shotgun, with the third barrel centered and below the other two. The barrels are all the same gauge.
An unusual but notable drilling is the TP-82, or space gun, is a short-barreled drilling pistol consisting of two 12.5 mm smoothbore barrels over a 5.45 mm rifled barrel, with a detachable shoulder stock. It was developed by the Soviet Unionas a survival gun for their space program, and was in use from 1987 to 2007, when it was retired due to the fact that the unique ammunition it uses had degraded too far to be reliable.

Vierlings[edit]

Vierlings generally consist of two matching shotgun barrels, a .22 caliber rimfire rifle barrel and a centerfire rifle barrel. Although, they can come in a variety of configurations. Vierlings are quite rare and are almost always custom made for the high-end commercial market.

Calibers/gauges[edit]

This section’s factual accuracy is disputed. Relevant discussion may be found on Talk:Combination gun. Please help to ensure that disputed statements are reliably sourced. (February 2012) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Few modern American makers make high quality combination guns for the retail market; most are simple, spartan models designed as survival guns or youth models. Combination guns show a fairly wide range of calibers and gauges; Savage Arms, for example, made models from .22 LR over .410 bore shotgun up to .30-30 Winchester over 3″ 12 gauge magnum (the Savage Model 24). The Springfield Armory survival guns are typically .22 long rifle or .22 Hornet over .410 bore Drillings are even rarer, and are almost invariably custom made to order. If ordering a custom model, the layout and gauge/caliber choices are up to the customer, so it is difficult to make generalizations about them. The used market shows some strong preferences, however; the side-by-side shotguns with single rifle barrel is the most common type, and therefore the least expensive. The single shotgun barrel with two different caliber rifle barrels is the most desirable, and will bring double the price, even more if one of the rifle barrels is .22 Long Rifle.
Vierling are especially rare, they generally have two side-by-side 12 gauge barrels, a .22 Long Rifle barrel on top and a center-fire rifle barrel below the shotgun barrels.
Since these guns tend to be break-open designs, they work best when chambered in rimmed cartridges. Rimmed case rounds like the .22 Hornet, .30-30 Winchester, 7×65mmR, 8×57mm IR(S) and 9.3×74mmR are all common choices, with 7×57mmR and 8×57mm IR(S) being the most common, as well as the heavier 9.3×74mmR, a round used commonly in Africa by European hunters. Gauges tend to be large, 16 or 12 being most common. Since drillings and vierlings are primarily European, American calibers are rarer and, at least in the American market, more desirable and expensive. Twenty-gauge drillings and vierlings also command a premium due to the relative rarity compared to the larger gauges. Many pre–World War II European guns are chambered for 65mm or 2- ⁹⁄₁₆” shotgun shells. .
It is not uncommon to find combination guns paired with sub-caliber inserts for the shotgun barrels. These inserts, usually 9 to 11 inches long, slip inside the shotgun barrel(s) and chamber rimfire cartridges such as the .22 LR or .22 Magnum. These further increase the flexibility of the guns, and will add considerably to the value.

See also[edit]

• FAMARS Rombo a two caliber four barrelled break open shotgun
• LeMat Revolver
• Marble Game Getter
• Multiple barrel firearm