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I have been wanting to buy another .380 pistol for a few months and the choice has really grown over the last couple of years. Rather than go the polymer route, I have been looking at a new Walther, either the PPK or the PPK/S. Has any one had any luck with these and how reliable are they?

I have an Interarms PPK that I bought several years ago that has been very reliable. I polished everything that moves in the trigger mechanism and I cut down the main spring. (I don't recall how much.) It has the best double action trigger I've ever seen on a PPK, but that's not saying much. The only downside is that the slide bites my hand unless I'm very very careful with the grip.

My son just bought a PPK/S that Smith sells and he's had a slew of problems. He just got it back from the factory yesterday and the paperwork says the slide was changed. He'll shoot it Saturday. The "Smith" version is not as likely to bite your hand.

Chas.

I agree with Charles. If you can find an Interarms Walther, or even preferrably an original German made Walther, I think you would be better pleased. I have an Interarms Walther and I love it. I haven't done any polishing like Charles mentioned, but I think it has one of the best double action triggers around. The only good thing S&W did on the design worth anything was to extend the rear backstrap/slide separator to help with the slide bite problem, but that is all the good they did. The S&W has almost the worst double action trigger I have tried.

Interarms Walther, Stainless, very reliable, very accurate, slide or sharp corner of grip usually made the web of my hand near thumb sore, (slide bite) but I still carried it a long time. I pretty much retired it to go polymer/lighter weight as a BUG to my Glock 26. A friend just bought a black/blued German one at a gun show he is supposed to bring over and show me this week

I had an Interarms PPK/s in '99 and couldn't get two mags through it without a stovepipe jam or FTE, so I sold it. I just picked up a Smith & Wesson one a couple months ago. I haven't got it to the range yet, but I can't chamber a round out of a full magazine without it hanging up on the feed ramp. Friend of mine from New York (who has a full carry license) says his instructor told him you need to run a couple hundred rounds through to loosen them up. I think this is lame, but I just like the profile of the gun for carry so much that I may do it....assuming that the worldwide shortage of .380 ammo has finally passed. I haven't checked in a while.

I have two Interarms walther pistols. A PPK and a TPH. The TPH is a .22lr version of the PPK. Both are awesome. Very reliable and amazing accuracy for such a small weapon. Of course, finding spare clips for the TPH is like searching for the lost ark, but other than that, these are top notch. I have been hearing some negative things about the Smith versions. I hope they are not true, because it would be a shame to see the quality of such an iconic weapon diminish.

Thank you very much gentlemen. I am probably better off sticking with my Sig 230!
Wonder if James Bond ever got slide cut!

Follow up on my S&W Walther PPK/s that I bought in April. I got it to the range Saturday and got 2 boxes of ammo through it with no issues. It was quite accurate and no problems loading or chambering. No biting the web of my hand either like I experienced with my Interarms version 10 years ago. This is going to be my daily carry piece now.

I have never had a problem with my PPK. Over the years, it has been abused, ignored, neglected, cleaned with diesel fuel, lubricated with 5th wheel grease, and used carefully for purposes that it wasn't intended for.

Ammunition was ball, Hydra-Shock, or Glasers. It turned 'up side down' in front pocket and somehow managed to cock itself when carried in the rear. It didn't take long to figure out the best, for me, safety position.

salty

Charles L. Cotton wrote:I have an Interarms PPK that I bought several years ago that has been very reliable. I polished everything that moves in the trigger mechanism and I cut down the main spring. (I don't recall how much.) It has the best double action trigger I've ever seen on a PPK, but that's not saying much. The only downside is that the slide bites my hand unless I'm very very careful with the grip.

My son just bought a PPK/S that Smith sells and he's had a slew of problems. He just got it back from the factory yesterday and the paperwork says the slide was changed. He'll shoot it Saturday. The "Smith" version is not as likely to bite your hand.

Chas.

I too had an Interarms stainless PPK and wish i kept that one. It was a great and reliable shooter. Never jammed and would feed anything. I replaced it later with a S&W one when they came out. The first time I tried to load it up to shoot it wouldnt even feed. Finally I chambered a round and the gun discharged due to a 'mechanical failure' when the slide moved forward. The hammer just dropped. And no I did NOT pull the pull the trigger. Even had a witness who saw it. I have had people say I must have pulled the trigger. NOPE. I couldnt believe it nor could my friend. I could hear a rattle after that and the hammer would not stay cocked if I remember correctly.Thank God it was pointed in a safe direction. I know well how the PPK operates having owned one previously. And you bet I notified S&W who didnt believe me till they got the PPK. I will NEVER own a S&W PPK or PPK/S ever due to that incident. I never had a gun fail like that and I hope I never do again. I would own an Interarms but never a S&W one. Some people have no issues with the S&W ones. But I lost all confidence in that one. As with anything you can get a lemon or a good one.

i had a Interarms .380 that was great. Never had any issues other than a bad mag., ended up getting rid of it in a trade for a Taurus Raging Bull in .454. I find that the Raging Bull is a little harder to conceal, but it's worth the extra stopping power.. ...

If you like the PPK PPK/s design, but are not stuck on having a brand-name Walther, you might want to look at the Bersa Thunder .380. I have never fired one, but pretty much everyone who has posted about them on the various forums I read RAVE about them. Appears to be inexpensive (compared to a Walther anyway), reliable, and well made. And it looks very PPK-ish (and I very much like the PPK appearance).

Looking at the pictures and reviews, it seems to share at least one of the PPK "flaws;" the slide safety works backwards as compared to the 1911, the Browning Hi Power, and most every other pistol I can think of with a slide mounted safety.

The trigger guard has a point on it, but I will bet that could be ground down to make it more PPK-ish.

Looking at the tech data, it does not appear to field strip in the same manner as a PPK, which is one of the fun parts of having a PPK, but oh well.

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