Gun Review: The Walther PPK/S – Truly a Classic Carry Option

By: Allen Forkner, GunBroker.com

I have a confession to make. Despite all the warnings and Internet experts telling me I’m basically a dead man walking, I occasionally carry a .380 Auto (a single-stack nonetheless). That said, I don’t just CCW any .380 ACP. My carry gun is more than just a pistol. It’s a piece of history in a holster. It’s a pop culture phenomenon, not just a pop gun. It oozes class and style like a surplus SKS bleeds Cosmoline. I carry a Walther PPK/S.

Just saying the name is enough to start hearing the orchestral strings playing the James Bond theme. And the PPK/S, in .380 ACP, is the ultimate combination of classic styling and modern performance. And mine is special. (Yes, I know Bond doesn’t carry a PPK/S, but PPs in 7.65mm are too eclectic even for me.)

A Special Walther PPK/S

Recently, I and the No Lowballers Podcast team had the privilege of touring the Walther Arms factory in Fort Smith, Ark. Here, the German-based small-arms giant manufactures the new PDP F Series handgun and the classic PPK/S.

It was a bit of an interesting dichotomy seeing the most modern PDPs in the Walther line being built right across the aisle from one of the oldest designs still in production. Beginning in 1929 as the Walther PP, this family of guns has evolved over the decades in both caliber and manufacturing, without losing the original look and feel.

What makes my PPK/S so special is that I built mine with my own hands, only the fifth guest to do so in the new facility. I’d like to apologize to Walther’s customers as the line’s productivity went to pretty much zero while I was fumbling through the steps.

While that’s cool in its own right, the serial gods were smiling on me that day and the frame I randomly grabbed from the rack to build up happened to end in -007. The Bond nerd in me smiled mightily when I had to enter the number into the invoicing system at the end of the process and realized my serial success.

Is .380 Enough Cartridge?

Do I feel undergunned with a .380 Auto? Not especially. I’ve seen the ballistic gel data. Modern .380 ACP is a solid performer. The lighter weight bullet penetrates, but I will admit it’s a bit near the bottom in energy transfer. Physics is still physics. I wouldn’t take a “three-eighty” to a gunfight for sure.

But for a trip to the grocery store, or walking the dogs around my suburban block? For those mundane, short run tasks I feel perfectly confident in the PPK/S riding in its Galco Executive shoulder holster.

Yes, I have AIWB holsters for it, but it feels wrong somehow. It’s like parking an Aston Martin DB5 in one of those pop-up carports instead of a proper garage. PPs and PPKs were born to be carried in a shoulder holster.

Now Galco no longer makes the fantastic little Executive (which was the choice of Pierce Brosnan’s Bond), but you can order the Half Harness and PPK/S shoulder holster from their website and make your own. You’re on your own for the tuxedo, though.

The Classic Walther

The PPK/S itself has remained fundamentally unchanged for decades. A DA/SA semiauto, the decocker/safety is large and set up for right handers. The sights are stackable two dot, and admittedly a bit small. But the PPK/S is not designed for 25-yard head shots at USPSA speed. It’s a deeply concealed firearm for close personal defense.

While the double-action trigger pull comes in at a robust 14 pounds, the single-action pull drops down closer to 5 pounds, making for accurate shots.

A relatively simple design, the fixed barrel PPK/S is about as bulletproof a design as almost 100 years of manufacturing can produce. And now they’re all-American made. From the hand painted sights to the in-house Melonite finishing work, the PPK/S is built to be a showpiece as well as a work horse.

What it's like to shoot the Walther PPK/S

Shooting the Walther PPK/S brings the PP experience, which simply cannot be duplicated in any other handgun. The slide rides mere millimeters above the web of the hand, threatening (and sometimes delivering) slide bite with every shot. The recoil impulse tells you immediately what you are shooting, as the all-metal design and simple blowback design create a different feel than other .380 Auto options.

My only wish was that it was easier to suppress, but with a fixed barrel adding threading is a challenge that requires a specialist and a small pool of money. While you can get the urge to start introducing yourself last name first just by holding a standard PPK/S, a suppressed version will drive you right for a shaken, not stirred, martini and a Scottish accent.

For a piece of cinema iconography and a true piece of firearm history, it’s hard to beat the feel and fun of the Walther PPK/S. And mine is truly a one-of-a-kind heirloom.