Walther QF SF

T

Tactical Jackalope

New member
Hello. I've long been a huge fan of Glock, HK, Sig Sauer classic P-Series pistols. I had 1 Walther PPQ shortly after they released over a decade ago. I gave that pistol to one of my best friends and haven't had a Walther again since.

Felt this at a gun shop and never knew it existed.

The Walther Q4 SF is an all steel striker fired pistol. All steel, being born in the 80s, makes me happy. I read up and saw that it is said to have the bloodlines of a competition pistol and a duty pistol. I opened it up with permission to do so and began to try and poke holes subconsciously. No luck. Felt it, tried out the trigger, and had to have it. This is essentially an all steel Walther PPQ, which have been known to have one of the nicest striker fired triggers out of the box and it did. So it came home with me.


I had the luxury of range time at the time (last year) as well as being gifted some ammo that the person who gave it to me didn't feel comfortable shooting. So it all lined up just nicely for me. I want to talk about one thing that comes to mind first after saying the owner of that ammo didn't feel comfortable shooting it. Because I don't think I've ever tested a firearm in this manner.

I basically fired ammunition that one would naturally "come across" in an apocalypse or something. I was clearly poorly maintained or stored incorrectly. This was ballsy or stupid, I'll accept both, but the all steel construction made me feel....safer? I suppose?

600 rounds of Russian steel cased ammunition was so bad that the projectiles themselves were powdery, white, and corroded. I was also given about 900 rounds of old brass ammunition that had about half that were green. Some of the rounds felt pitted or had what could be described a some type of lacquer/growth on them. The brass bunch had a mix of JHP and FMJ. I didn't separate them to count. All of this was given to me in a bucket with only the steel case ammo in a bag of its own.

Shockingly, there were none but 1 malfunction. Which was a casing of one of the brass cartridges that sheared off when cycling into the chamber. Aside from that 1 issue, it fired everything with no issues. This was a shock to me. 1, with a new weapon that I personally feel is over sprung and 2, right out of the box. No cleaning was done, but l did lube it with WeaponShield grease and occasionally some oil that the range had.

I also fired 10 different popular JHP defensive loads through the Q4 SF and after all of this, I'm just over 1,200 trouble free rounds aside from the 1 fluke.
So, 115gr, 124gr standard and +P, 127gr +P+, and finally 147gr all fired well and accurately.


Recoil impulse is one of the best I've ever felt, I wish I could compare it to my old BHP, but I haven't fired a BHP in 15 years. Of course, being all steel and chambered in 9mm has it's benefits in the felt recoil department. The slide tracks back on target right after the shot breaks without a snap forward/bounce due to that added weight. And a Streamlight TLR7-A which is what I have mounted when I carry it or a Surefire X300U-B just to test it, makes it feel even better. I wish I could upload a video of me doing a mag dump with one hand at 5/7 yards with it to show this. If you know how I can share this video here, let me know.


All in all, I am very impressed by Walther as a whole now. And I admittedly overlooked them for a very long time. They seem to be very underrated in the firearms and training community. I'm going to assume it's due to pricing and lack of marketing? I don't know. I just know that I did not expect this to "wow" me the way that it did. It's definitely been in my carry rotation but coming it at 41oz, sometimes I'm not feeling up to it. But most of the time, I am. Only thing that gets more holster time is the Glock 19 Gen 3 with a Maple Leaf Firearms X5/MOD1 slide and RMR or a USP 9 Compact.

Anyway, seems long winded enough. I think I may have missed some things or added things that didn't matter.
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Glad you like yours. No questioning the quality.

These don’t sell quickly at all—one sat for MONTHS in a prominent display case at Shooters World Peoria AZ—and I think it’s due more to a market miscalculation by Walther than any failure to market, since I saw the ads in a number of magazines.

One problem is the weight—your other carry options save you over a POUND in carry weight! So not practical for carry.

Not designed as a race gun either. And for a “Range Toy” to show off to friends, it lacks color and style. Compare to a Shadow 2 or even a Rival-S, which my gun buddies love to shoot.

So you are left with a home defense piece, a role easily filled by a Glock or any number of other guns at likely half the price….
 
Oh yeah. This thing sat for a few years at this shop... I think the pistol was like on book 48 or 49 and the shop was on book 53 at the time of purchase. lol, definitely a miscalculation on their part. Just happy to have this tank of a pistol.

Shadow 2 is super nice. Which one is the Rival-S?
 
The PPQ line keeps the P99 single action arm that does nothing in the Q. Canik copied the Walther sear house and also ported over the P99 single action arm that does nothing. All the TP9/TP9SF/Rival/SFX models have it.

The Walther PDP deleted this arm.

The Q got a lot of long time love. I think the SF series did not, particularly the Q4. Like the Shadow 2 Compact, there just isn't a lot of reasons for a compact steel that is "nice." :)

I love my Q5SF and my polymer Q5s.
 
Rival-S is the steel framed Canik Rival race gun. Chrome, very flashy. Shoots too, with less muzzle jump than the polymer ones.
 
Shooters World Avondale does have your Q4 SF for rent, and I tried it a couple of times. It IS accurate, with a nice trigger, and with basically NO recoil due to the weight. Takes Glock sights aftermarket, though has nice night sights standard ( as it Should, for the price).

The general impression was of great density, solidity: built like a tank is no exaggeration.

Walther’s rather odd market calculation benefits you at least!

I was hoping for a desperation discount for the one in the case but it “disappeared “ before that happened…..
 
The PPQ line keeps the P99 single action arm that does nothing in the Q. Canik copied the Walther sear house and also ported over the P99 single action arm that does nothing. All the TP9/TP9SF/Rival/SFX models have it.

The Walther PDP deleted this arm.

The Q got a lot of long time love. I think the SF series did not, particularly the Q4. Like the Shadow 2 Compact, there just isn't a lot of reasons for a compact steel that is "nice."

I love my Q5SF and my polymer Q5s.
Click to expand...

I gotta be honest with you, I don't know what the first half means. I'm guessing a part of the trigger bar? Strange, huh? Keeping whatever that is on and not having a reason to be there.

I think aside from the PDP in recent years, Walther has a really bad marketing team. With that, a lot of people associate Umarex with Walther (since they own Walther) in a negative way, since Umarex makes airsoft guns. Or so I heard.

If you're referring to the new Shadow 2 Compact, that thing looks and feels amazing. Personally, the Q4 SF checks boxes for me because I love an all steel weapon. Before, it was mainly had in hammer fired guns being either SAO or DA/SA. This being a striker-fired weapon really impressed me. On days I feel like carrying the softest recoiling 9mm I own in all steel, which isn't too often, I'll carry this.

My main EDC handgun is a Gen 3 Glock 19 in OD Green with a Maple Leaf Firearms X5/Mk1 slide that sports a Trijicon RMR Type 2 3.25 MOA and a Streamlight TLR7A. Ironically, I've been itching to carry the Q4 SF all week but haven't done it.

Rival-S is the steel framed Canik Rival race gun. Chrome, very flashy. Shoots too, with less muzzle jump than the polymer ones.
Click to expand...

Oh. Nice, man. I think one of my good friends in South Africa shoots Caniks in competition almost exclusively.

Shooters World Avondale does have your Q4 SF for rent, and I tried it a couple of times. It IS accurate, with a nice trigger, and with basically NO recoil due to the weight. Takes Glock sights aftermarket, though has nice night sights standard ( as it Should, for the price).

The general impression was of great density, solidity: built like a tank is no exaggeration.

Walther’s rather odd market calculation benefits you at least!

I was hoping for a desperation discount for the one in the case but it “disappeared “ before that happened…..
Click to expand...

Yes! So much that it is just as accurate with irons sights (Night Fision is what I went with for the Q4 SF) as I am with my red dot sighted handguns from bad breath distance till about 15 yards + and then I have to hand it over to the RDS guns. But that thing is a tack drive and simply does not move in my hands at all. I shoot it the fastest while maintaining accuracy as if it was a cheat code.


lol yes, I call it my German boat anchor at times. The thing is a cow. Their odd market worked on me to some degree. What sold it to me was not knowing what it was but holding it in my hand. And I'm not really the type to buy guns that don't at least have a great track record. Haven't rolled the dice on a "random" handgun purchase in many years.

As for it disappearing, an employee probably bought it. They didn't budge too much on the price for me at the time either. And you could say I had a "hook up" there.

I saw that they can be had for $900 these day for the non OR version like mine.
 
I'm glad you like it.

I think it is a great option if you want steel frame.

I am really disappointed that people confused that the PPQ and the PDP do in fact have the cut at exactly the same location (recall, the FCU are interchangeable)...the PPQ is shaped gun. The Q series had the grip texture the PDP has. So lame.
 
Great guns -- I have seen a few folks trained on Glocks whom are not and will never be avid shooters but do want a home defense gun steer towards them. Not cheap by any stretch but if your trained / tuned up to the basic striker fire set up BUT want the heft of steel to dampen recoil it is hard to go wrong with these. Price could be better but it is what it is -- lot of CNC time to crank one of these puppies out as opposed to an injection molded lower.
 
Amen to that!

Hands down of my favorite guns ever. Funny you mentioned Glock. I have a Gen 5 19 with an AimPoint Acro P2 and a ported barrel/slide combo. I still shoot the Q4 SF better and it even recoils less. Heck of a testament to it.
 
I remember when the Q5 S hit the market. It felt lumpy and awkward compared to the plastic gun. A friend's Canik Rivals, steel and plastic, strike me the same way.
If I want a steel framed gun, it will likely be a 1911 or CZ.
 
My Q5 and S2 have a more similar trigger and reset than some might think.

The difference between a boring P226 with STR is significantly different (faster) than either the Q5 or S2.

The Q5 defiantly has the more refined cuts over my S2s. Solid billet frame on the Walther, cast on the CZ.

Walther does need to rework both the Q5 and the PDP tang. Both are super freaking off.

CZ does have a fun factor, but the low priced Q5, if that's what your looking for, is a great option.

*PDP takes glock sights, not Q.

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