Traded my PPK...

T

Tamara

Moderator Emeritus
Sold my Manurhin PPK and used the proceeds to help finance a sweet Mauser HSc. This thing is just a gem, and a treasure trove of neato engineering details, from the novel slide lock setup to the groovy faired-in hammer. What a happenin' little gun!
hsc.jpg
 
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Good show! I see some of these pop up new in the box in Texas. Ray's Hardware of Dallas has them NIB. They also have 60's circa Detective specials NIB and .357 Agents as well.

If you are ever in Dallas, you would go ape seeing all of the NIB guns they have in handgun and longarm configuration from days gone by. They are on Singleton in the center of Dallas and I doubt they have a web site.
 
I recall the HSc very well from my days of working in a small gun shop in the late '60's when the HSc became popular due to it's very low price for LEO's looking for a low end off-duty weapon. As I recall we sold them for under $80 per LEO price. :eek:

I think we got them thru Interarms in Alexandria, VA (Interarmco).

They were the best example of a jam-o-matic handgun that I have ever run across, even with ball which was the most common load in those days.

Super Vel ammo was the big thing then and it WOULD NOT feed thru an HSc. Super Vel used a Sierra HP bullet then of about 88 gr.

Also, that gun had one of the heaviest DA's for a small gun that I have ever fired.

You would have done better to keep your PPK. ;)
 
JMC,

you didn't see the PPK in question. It was a Manurhin, and it would rarely go through a full mag without hanging up at least once. I doubt that the HSc will perform any worse, and at least it looks much better. :)
 
First, an 88gr bullet would be quite a trick for this gun, seeing as how it's a .32 ;)

Second, almost all the Interarms ones were actually made in Italy; I have somewhat higher hopes for this Oberndorf specimen. (Unlike the French-made jam-o-matic PPK I just sold)

Third, why would someone expect a pistol designed to feed ball, back when hollowpoints were an oddity, to function reliably with JHP ammunition?

Last, I have a good eight or nine pistols suitable for carry. There's plenty of room in my collection for plinkers, collectibles, and oddities.
 
I've always wanted an HSc, just because they look like a piece of artwork shaped into a gun. I'm with Tamara though, I would not use it for SD, just for fun. The trigger pull on every HSc I have ever encountered took two mules and an ox to pull. Have fun.
 
Oooops...I thought it was a .380! :eek:

Just seeing one brought back the bad memories.
The ones we sold were Mausers, banner and all.

Good luck w/yours. ;)

Third, why would someone expect a pistol designed to feed ball, back when hollowpoints were an oddity, to function reliably with JHP ammunition?
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PS: At this very same time I had a Walther PPK in .380 that fed every JHP made at the time and it too was designed to work with ball!!! :p

That's the difference in quality of the two guns.
 
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I dunno, JMC...

I've handled quite a few German-, French- and American-made PPK's, and a few HSc's of varying vintages, too.

In workmanship and fit & finish, I'd put this thing up there with the best of the Walthers from Germany, and light years ahead of any Manurhin or Interarms. Our gunsmith's brother has had an Oberndorf HSc for many years that has been utterly reliable and is used as a carry piece frequently.
 
ATeaM

If JMC hadn't said anything, I probably wouldn't have queried our gunsmith, and would have learned nothing new.
 
Tamara, congratulations

on your new Mauser HsC. I have one bought new in 1971 (unfortunately Interarms marked) and they are truly a work of art. My wife calls it "sleek and sexy". Won't reliably feed anything but ball though.

One thing, if no one has told you. When the slide is locked back, don't jerk on the slide to release it. You'll damage the gun. Correct way to release is to insert a magazine to trip the slide release and then ease it forward. At least this is what I was told many years ago.

Enjoy your HsC for many years to come.

Raider
 
Hi Tamara,

Thought you might be interested in a bit of history on the manufacture of the post-war European Walther PP and PPK pistols :-)

Walther began manufacture of the PP and PPK in 1986. Prior to that all PP and PPK pistols were made in France by Manurhin regardless of whether they were marked “Manurhin” or “Walther.” These pistols marked “Walther” and “Made in Germany” were actually made in France by Manurhin, trucked over the border to the Walther factory in Germany, where they were proofed and roll marked as being made in Germany.

There’s nothing wrong with Manurhin produced pistols - Manurhin did a nice job :-)

Best regards,

Kyrie
 
I always liked the HSc, somebody once described it as an Art Decco gun. The only problem I had with it was the backstrap didn't fit me as well as the Walther PPK/s.
 
I wonder what the person that gets that PPK is going to think.
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If they take the time to track down a quality magazine for it, they'll think it's a tackdriver. I never got around to finding a good mag to replace the el-cheapo that was with the gun, so I thought it was a tackdriving jam-o-matic. ;)
 
Walther began manufacture of the PP and PPK in 1986. Prior to that all PP and PPK pistols were made in France by Manurhin regardless of whether they were marked “Manurhin” or “Walther.” These pistols marked “Walther” and “Made in Germany” were actually made in France by Manurhin, trucked over the border to the Walther factory in Germany, where they were proofed and roll marked as being made in Germany.
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That is not entirely correct.

Walther too, manufactured the PP and PPK during this time entirely in the Ulm plant. In reality, they were competing with themselves and Manhurin during this time. (ref. Eine Deutsche Legende)

There is no way to tell where your roll-marked Walther was actually manufactured before 1986. For the PPK after this time the point is moot.
 
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