The
Walther P5 is a
9mm semi-automatic pistol developed in the mid-1970s by the
German small arms manufacturer
Carl Walther GmbH Sportwaffen. It was designed with the German police forces in mind, who sought to replace existing
7.65mm pistols with a modern service sidearm incorporating enhanced safety features and chambered in
9x19mm Parabellum. A subsequent bid resulted in the Walther P5 being introduced into service alongside the
SIG-Sauer P225 (designated P6 within the
West German Federal Police) and
Heckler & Koch P7.
Design details
The pistol incorporates many new design features, including a new aluminum alloy frame, trigger mechanism, dual-control mechanism, firing pin safety (US patent number 4313274 dated 1979, authored by Walter Ludwig).
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 . This system results in a very accurate pistol since the barrel is kept parallel with the frame during/after firing. The trigger is a standard double action/single action trigger. The slide lock also doubles as the
decocker and is found on the left side of the
frame. Pressing it once will release the slide, pressing it a second time will drop the hammer without firing the gun.
Manufactured in
Ulm,
West Germany, by
Carl......
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