Walther P5
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| Caliber: | 9 x 19 mm Parabellum / 7.65 mm Luger / 9 x 21 mm IMI |
| Action: | Delayed blowback |
| Weight: | 795 g (28 oz) empty |
| Height: | 128 mm (5.1 in) |
| Length: | 180 mm (7.2 in) |
| Barrel length: | 90 mm (3.55 in) |
| Magazine: | 8 rounds |
| Effective range: | 40-50 m |
The Walther P5 is a recoil-operated, locked-breech, 9 mm semi-automatic pistol. It utilizes the same design principles as the Walther P38 pistol of World War II fame. The barrel does not tilt following firing in the way that John Browning's system does, but rather moves straight back approximately 5-10 mm; therefore accuracy is preserved. The trigger is a standard double action/single action trigger; the decocker is to be found on the left side of the frame. The P5 has a peculiar feature: it ejects spent casings to the left, rather than the right; this is perhaps the revenge of a bitter lefty unhappy with the traditional system.
Manufactured in Ulm, West Germany, by Carl Walther Sportwaffen GmbH, the P5 was a further development of the famous Walther P38 and P1 series. Development began in 1979 following requests by German police and federal agencies for a new sidearm incorporating modern safety features. Previous sidearms such as the PP, PPK, and PPK/S lacked efficient safety mechanisms, and the Walther P1 proved undesirable despite featuring a frame-mounted safety. Thus the P5 was born, and it was ultimately adopted by many local police agencies across the Federal Republic. Despite widespread police approval, the P5 never saw significant use by the central government.
Today the Walther P5 is the main weapon for the Dutch police force. The Dutch army uses the Glock 17.
Contents |
[edit] Variants
[edit] Walther P5 Compact
Walther P5 Compact: This is the shorter and lighter version of the fullsize P5. 3000 examples of this pistol were adopted in the 1980s by the British Army as Pistol L102A1 (NATO Stock Number 1005-99-978-4952) for issue to the 14 Intelligence Company, an all arms unit active in Northern Ireland. Some surplus examples of this pistol have surfaced in the US collectors' market and are sometimes mistakenly described as "SAS Pistols."
[edit] Walther P5 Sport
Walther P5 Sport: This model features a longer barrel, which extends beyond the slide.
[edit] External links
| Modern (post Korean War) UK infantry weapons |
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| Side-arms (Self-loading Pistols) |
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