Walther P99 (40 S&W)

G

Gr8shoot

Inactive
My PD just switched to these and I was selected as one of the primary instructors for this tranistion. I am a LEO and one of my PD's Firearms Instructors. I got the gun about 3 weeks ago and put 400 rounds through it while dirtying and crapping it up, with dirty mags and all, and it never malfunctioned, not once. The triggers are kind of long, but smooth and not bad for LEO's. It was very reliable and pretty accurate for a production gun.

I am a Walther armorer and know all the mechanics and functions of the gun. What I wanted to ask is, does anyone have one of these or have any amount of time behind one where they can give me an idea on longevity, abuse, reliability and what they think of them?

Thanks,
 
I carry a 9mm on duty. I've had it since Feb. of 97. It has never failed in over 4000 rounds of all types of 124gr ammo.

The rear sight is pretty tough but it will ding a bit if whacked hard enough. No problems with the front sight. Dust and dirt like to accumulate in the pin hole above the grip strap as well as the grip strap pin hole.

Tiny brass flecks will be seen on the inside of the gun after a while as a round is loaded and unloaded on a day to day basis. This is of course if it is not shot and cleaned regularly.

These guns are well-built and as tough as any Glock or H&K for police duty.

Where were you trained and who trained you to be a Walther Certified Armourer?
 
Herr Walther,

This is Gr8shoot/Kevin replying to your question. This is my screen name on the work computer.

I am only an armorer for the Walther P99, not any of the other models of Walther. I attended an armorers class put on by a Smith and Wesson rep for the Walther P99 and Smith and Wesson SW99's.

It is good to hear that you think they are as good as Glock and HK for duty guns. Also good to hear about no malfunctions for problems in 4000 rounds. Your's is the Walther and not the Smith & Wesson copy (SW99) in 9mm right? You've had yours since Feb of 97'? When did these come out, was this one of the first to be put out?

Kevin
 
p99

A guy I shot with today put 350 plus rounds thorough his walther P99 and it was dirty, windy and blowing and we were doing reloads by dropping the mags in the sand. Not one misfeed, I believe. Kyle
 
These were first imported in very small batches very late in '96. Mine was built that year, and is one of the first made with a serial number of just #237. I bought it in Feb. of '97. It is 9mm.

I found mine in Texas over the phone by a gunshop that happened to have a table at a local gunshow the weekend I called. One of the shop's employees found my P99 at someone elses table, bought it and I bought it from them.

In case you were wondering about the "1" in front of the "237",
Walther started the serial numbering of the 9mm P99's at 001001.

wp99_3.jpg
 
Kevin,

I like this gun so much that I've got 6 of them. I've had my first one since 1998, I believe. All of them are .40 caliber.

I use them all the time in IDPA competition and I have yet to experience a failure. I currently am testing my P99QA. I haven't cleaned it for 6 months and it has around 2500 rounds through it with no problems at all.

Things I've noticed over the life span of the P99's is that they've gotten better. (at least the .40's have) My later P99's are more accurate than my first. This I attribute to Walther's redesign of the barrel. They don't round it off at the end any more. Accuracy is still excellent in my first model, consistent 3 inch groups at 25 yards, but I can do even better with my newer ones. (sub 2 inch).

I'm glad you went with the P99 instead of the SW99. I'm not that impressed with the SW99. The Melonite finsh flakes off easily and all the parts, especially those made by S&W, sound gritty when you pull back the slide or pull the trigger.

I think you'll be very happy with the Walther.

P99
 
Just be sure you get "real" P99s and not the made by S&W P99s (no German proof marks). I call em SWalthers. Several thousand P99s have slides and barrels made by S&W in the USA instead of Walther in Germany.

I shot two of those, and both frequently locked the slide open w rounds still in the mag, just like the SW99s I shot (no suprise since that is what they really are).

No, my thumbs were not rubbing the slide or lever!
 
Herr Walther and farranger,

Thanks for the info, I appreciate it.

P99,

Thank you also for your info, I really appreciate it. Are all 6 of yours in 40 you said? Nice to see that they have been used in competition and function flawlessly. Also the QA model and not being cleaned and functions perfectly.

Which one of your 6 do you think has the most amount of rounds through it and how many rounds in between any type of malfunctions? Also, out of all 6 of them put together, how many rounds total do you think have gone through them?

I got to play with a QA model during our 1 day armorers course. The trigger and reset were pretty sweet for a production gun.

I agree with you on the accuracy and not going with the SW copy. I had never shot the gun before the 1 day class we got it. I shot the gun at 50 yards freestyle (unsupported) and put a whole mag in a 12 inch circle. For a production gun, in my experience, that is pretty damn good. At 15 yards, I could put all the rounds in a half dollar easily shooting freestyle (unsupported). I'm no stranger to handgun shooting (IPSC Limited Master class shooter, but I still liked this quite a bit.

I also agree on getting the original Walther. That was my first question when they told us about possibly getting these guns, was, "Are we getting the original Walthers or SW copies?" I hate to say it, but SW has a terrible habit of copying another manufacturers design that works great, and their copy doesn't work worth crap. I don't know how they do it ,but they do. This is exactly why I wanted the Walthers and no copies.

Broken Arrow,

I'm looking at my Walther P99 right now and this is what it has on it: The frame says Carl Walther ULM/DO on the left side and "Made in Germany" with German proof marks on the right side. As well as "Read: Safety manual" in German.

The slide has a German proof mark on the right rear near the rear sight, says "Walther USA LLC Springfield, Ma" on the right front by the front sight, and has the Walther symbol on the left front by the front sight. The barrel has the Walther flag symbol, German proof mark, serial #, and caliber (40 S&W) on the barrel hood.

What do you think? I think it is the original German model. The only thing that might concern me is the Walther USA, Springfield MA on the slide. Other than that, there is nothing of US or SW on it.


Kevin
 
Oh also forgot to add,

Did you guys hear about the New Jersey State Police giving the SW99's in 9mm back to SW and giving their Troopers the HK P7's back. Long story short, New Jersey State Police (NJSP) had HK P7's and tested the SW99's in 9mm. Liked them and tested the hell out of them supposedly. Started issuing them and during the transition, officers were having lots of problems.

NJSP was very concerned and demanded SW come out and find the problem. Our PD training unit got on this quick and spoke with SW who said the problem was with the ammo and OAL was too long and it got caught between the ejector and barrel/hood. That's the last I've heard until my source just told me NJSP finally called it quits and told SW the deal is off and to take back the 3200 guns (3200 man dept) back.

I'm sure glad I got the original Walthers. Anybody know anything else?

Kevin
 
You have a Walther made, Ulm proofed, genuine German P99.

I can tell you when it was made if you tell me what the two letters are on the right side of the dustcover or the right side of the exposed chamber hood.

The Walther USA you are seeing along with Springfield MA. are the importers stamp. This must be on all firearms imported after 1968.
 
Kevin,

Yes, all of mine are .40 caliber P99's. The only problem I've had was with the first two. Both had slide locks with magazines still full, but the problem went away after 100 rounds. I've never had that problem with any of the other 4. (Of course the two P99 QA military's I haven't shot yet. And I haven't made up my mind if I will. There's only 4 of them in the world and both of mine are consecutivily serial numbered) One other problem was my own fault. A squib from my own reloads. I got it during a competition. It was imbarrassing.

Total rounds through all of them is at least 10,000. I stopped counting at 5,000. My regular P99 military has 3500 and my P99 QA is gaining on 5000. And like I said earlier the P99 QA, I haven't cleaned or lubed since April. (It has had 1250 rounds through it since April and no problems) I have been cleaning the magazines though.

I also heard about the NJ police problem. It didn't surprise me. I'm not too fond of the SW99. The first one I ever picked up sounded like it had gravel in it, especially when you pulled the slide back and forth and the finish was chipping off. And this was a brand new gun.:eek: :barf:

Keep us informed about your experiences with the P99. I, especially would like to hear from you concerning how well they're working for your department.

P99
 
Herr Walther,

My Walther P99 Military .40 S&W has an AA on the dust cover. Would you please tell me what year it was mfg?

Also, my slide is marked Carl Walther USA LLC Alexandria/VA. Do you know when they began marking the newer P99's w/the Springfield/MA designation?

I am shopping for a 9x19 military model P99 at this time. I have found that some dealers/distributors are hesitant to tell me if the pistols they have for sale do in fact have the German proof marks or not. I have stayed away from these guns for that reason.

I would also prefer one marked w/Alexandria/VA and not the S&W imported guns.

My FFL had a listing for Walther P99's at $513.95. When we checked, they were the S&W mfg. top end guns w/o German proof marks. His indication was that he was not moving them very quickly.
 
I have heard of NO S&W manufactured 9mm P-99s (the ones without the proof marks). If anyone can produce evidence of one, please do so. You should not have any qualms about buying the 9mm Walther P99 for fear of it not being all German.

AA Date code is 2000 manufacture. All Walther products are marked with the Carl Walther USA LLC Alexandria/VA designation. Even the ones with the S&W made top ends (again, in .40S&W ONLY).

- Correction: All Walther products IMPORTED BY WALTHER USA are marked with the Carl Walther USA LLC Alexandria/VA designation. The one's imported by Earl's Repair Service are so marked with his designation and NOT Walther USA's.

Regards,
James:D
 
Extremist,

Thanks for the info on the date of mfg.

Sorry, I am unable to tell you the name of the distributor that my FFL spoke with in regard to the 9x19 military P99 Walthers but, I had him specifically ask if the guns they had did in fact have the German proof marks and the distributor said that they did not.

My FFL is a personal friend of mine, not just a dealer that I use. He too wants to buy a P99 but with the correct proof marks, not a S&W top end gun.

In an e-mail direct from Kurt Hindle of Walther-USA to me, he advised me that there were P99 pistols with top ends made by S&W on Walther frames w/o German proof marks (understandable) but, I don't recall if he mentioned caliber(s).

I am now looking to buy my 9x19 P99, possibly from Earl's Repair Shop. Do I understand your post correctly that his guns will be so marked on the right side of the front portion of the slide?
 
Farranger wrote:
"p99
A guy I shot with today put 350 plus rounds thorough his walther P99 and it was dirty, windy and blowing and we were doing reloads by dropping the mags in the sand. Not one misfeed, I believe. Kyle"

That was me, the final round count was about 630 or so rounds, in crappy dusty weather, with no cleaning over two days, and dropping the mags into the dirt, with zero malfunctions. This was during an OPS tactical pistol course, and by god "EMPTY MAGS GO ON THE GROUND!" :D I used to be die-hard Glock 17, but this Walther P99 9mm is my new favorite.
 
I may be wrong about the NJSP issue, but the guns I think were a special manufacturer project. I think the internals were that of a DAO or Quick Action were the trigger length is always the same, a modified single action without the "click."

I thought that these pistols were not politically correct enough for they have no safety other than don't pull the trigger when you don't NEED to. The topwrox were modified as to include a decoker on a glock type set up. I heard that there were too many things poured into the pistol to get it to work correctly. Hence the buy back.

I have owned my 40 for close to 20 months, it has the Alexandria, Va and proof marks. I too had problems with the first 100 rounds locking the slide prematurely. This is my daily CCW gun and it is my primary IDPA and HD weapon. I never have had a problem with it, but I clean it every hundred rounds or so.

Mine really likes Georgia Arms 165 grain.
 
Herr Walther,

The two letters on the right side of the dust cover on mine say "AB". Thanks for the help.

P99,

Thanks for the info and help. I will definitely keep you all informed on the progress and the transition of these guns at my PD. I will be out there instructing for it almost everyday.


I'm not sure if the NJSP had special order or modified/prototype stuff or not. I'm just too leary about SW copies, they don't work over half the time.


Kevin
 
Decifering the date code

OK, here is how you decifer the date code. (notice there is no I)

A = 0
B = 1
C = 2
D = 3
E = 4
F = 5
G = 6
H = 7
J = 8
K = 9

So if you have AB your pistol was built in 01 or 2001.
KK would be 1999, KJ would be 1998, and AA is 2000.

Hope this helps.

P99
 
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