Pistol Walther PP (Polizei Pistole), a police pistol from the Carl Walther Waffenfabrik company, it is rightfully considered one of the best examples of German short-barreled weapons. Walther PP, despite its 80-year history, and today is a role model and is in service with the army rear special and police units in many countries.
Walther PP began production in 1929, but the history of the appearance and creation of this weapon began much earlier. The main distinguishing features of the Walther PP are its principle of operation - with an automatic mechanism based on a free-wheeling bolt and a double-action trigger (trigger mechanism), which allows the pistol to be put into a combat state with one hand.
Weapons experts believe that the inventor and developer of this type of weapon is the brilliant Czech gunsmith Alois Tomishku. It was he who developed and subsequently patented a pistol with a self-cocking trigger and several original solutions in the field of pistol automation. He sold his patents to the Vienna Arms Factory in 1919, based on these developments, the factory released the original Little Tom pistol, which became the world's first serial automatic pistol with a double action trigger.
Little tom
In 1924, the Little Tom pistol caught the attention of Fritz Walter, then head of Carl Walther GmbH. Little Tom was modified by German designers: the replaceable magazine in the grip was equipped with a push-button latch, and the return spring under the barrel was replaced with a spring around the barrel. This pistol became the progenitor of the famous Walther PP.
After the defeat in the First World War and the signing of the Treaty of Versailles, a ban was imposed on the production of military pistols with a caliber of more than 8 mm and a barrel length of more than 98 mm. But the German command, not wanting to lag behind other states, decided to bypass the ban. By order of the Reichswehr, a number of German arms companies, including Carl Walther Waffenfabrik GmbH, began to develop a pistol that, within the framework of the established restrictions, would have tactical and technical characteristics as close as possible to military pistols of other states.
In 1929, on the basis of a 6.35-mm Walther pistol model 8, Walther engineers developed one of the most successful designs, which caused a real revolution in the arms world. The 7.65 mm Walther PP (Polizei Ristole) pistol was designed for a pistol cartridge 7, 65 mm Browning and met all the restrictions of the Treaty of Versailles, while its characteristics were very close to military models.
The main advantages of the Walther PP were: a self-cocking firing mechanism, which made it possible to fire the first shot without first cocking the hammer, as well as an indicator of the presence of a cartridge in the chamber, which later became a trademark of all Walther pistols.
The weapon's automatics worked on the principle of using the recoil of a free breechblock with a stationary barrel. Breechblock systems are most often found in the design of service and civil pistols. They use a heavy inertial body as a bolt, pressed against the breech of the barrel by a spring. During the shot, the powder gases press on the bottom of the sleeve, which plays the role of the engine piston, and through it on the inertial bolt fixed in the barrel casing. The shutter receives the stock of kinetic energy necessary for the operation of the weapon's automation. USM pistol - trigger type. Fuse - flag type, mounted on the casing-shutter, when turned on, blocked the drummer and pulled the trigger. Magazine capacity - 8 rounds.
In 1931, a compact model of the successful Walther PPK (Walther Polizei Pistole Kriminal) pistol was released, a smaller copy of the Walther PP for concealed carry. In addition to its small size, Walther PPK was cheaper to manufacture, ergonomic, improved manufacturability and easier to disassemble and assemble. The new grip design has improved firing accuracy even with a shorter barrel. The Walther PPK, despite its enormous cost (a regular barrel cost three times as much as another Parabellum legend) was much more popular than its older brother Walther PP.
Walther PP (PPK) was very popular in pre-war Germany. Officials of almost all German ministries had such pistols, differing only in the brand on the handle. Walther PP with a holster was issued as part of the uniform of the NSDAP and the combat units of the Hitler Youth. Even the employees of the German imperial radio flaunted the service Walters.
This pistol was also popular among representatives of the highest political and military elite of the Wehrmacht. It was fashionable for party comrades to give VIP versions of Walther PP with heroic mottos, original patterns and ornaments.
With the outbreak of World War II, the quality of the pistols produced dropped somewhat, but nevertheless, until the end of the war, the Walther PP continued to be a reliable weapon. By the middle of the war, the production of the RR and RRK was practically stopped by orders for the Walther P38 army officer pistol, and after the war, the RR fell under a production ban, as well as other military weapons.
Walther P38
In 1947, in the GDR, the production of Walter policemen was resumed, they made it from pre-war stocks of parts. Further, the production of Walter clones began around the world: in France, the Manurin company produced under license pistols chambered for 22 LR (PP) 7, 65 mm (RRK) and 9x17 mm "kurz" (PP and RRK) cartridges], in Italy (model "Bernardelli 80"), Argentina (model "Bersa 95"), Turkey and South Korea (model DH380 "Daewoo"). In addition to these pistols, pneumatic and gas versions of pistols began to be produced.
Carl Walther Sportwaffen GmbH also did not stand aside, in 1968 this arms company released a pistol of the RRK / S model. This pistol was the latest development in the Walther PP series of pistols. For its production, the most modern materials at that time were used, which made it possible to lighten the pistol by almost a quarter.
The successful pistol model has served as a role model throughout the world. So, for example, the legendary PM is even outwardly very similar to Walter. For this he was nicknamed in the West "Russian Walter".
By the way, the series of film novels about Agent 007 James Bond brought Walter PP a new wave of popularity all over the world. It was Walther PP that was the main weapon of Her Majesty's agent from the first to the eighteenth series. But Walther PP's film career was not limited to this, he was also seen in many other action films, such as "Die Hard", "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade", "Lethal weapon", etc.
Carl Walther Sportwaffen GmbH produces the PPK, PPK / S and PPK / E models for the American and European markets. In the "European" modification, the magazine is fixed with a spring in the lower part, in the "American" modification the magazine is located in the area of the trigger.
Cartridges 9x17 mm "kurz" (9 mm Browning Kurz), for which most of the Walther PP clones are made, are produced in almost every country that produces ammunition.
Even today, Walther PPK is popular with intelligence officers around the world as a second, spare weapon.
