

The PPK/S is basically a PPK slide and barrel atop a PP frame. Smith & Wesson became the licensee to produce the guns beginning in 2001, an arrangement that continued until 2012. Walther licensed Emco in Gasden, Alabama, to manufacture the PPK and PPK/S in 1983, and production continued until 1999. PP and PPK/S guns were imported by Interarms until the early 1990s. Since they were proofed in Germany, these models could be marked as German made. Some of these models were marked with the Manurhin name.įollowing the reunification of Germany in the 1980s, Walther built a new factory in Ulm, Germany, and some of the pistols were finished and proofed there after being machined in France by Manurhin. Manurhin made all the post-war PPs and PPKs until the Gun Control Act of 1968 went into effect. The factory had been destroyed in WWII, and because firearms production was prohibited in Germany after the war, Walther contracted in 1953 with the French company Manurhin to make the guns. Walther produced both the PP and PPK until 1945.
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In addition to the Walther company, several other manufacturers have made the PP series of pistols. 22 LR and, with the box, could be worth $7,500. The gold engraving and Nazi markings make this PPK quite rare. While not quite as concealable as a PPK, some shooters find the PPK/S to be more comfortable to shoot.

A new model was created that passed the point system and it was named the PPK/S. Walther engineers came up with a simple solution, which was simply to mount a PPK slide onto a PP frame. The ATF came up with a point system that determined whether a gun could be brought into the USA, and the PPK didn’t make the cut.

One variant was the result of the infamous Gun Control Act of 1968 that prohibited the importation of small handguns. More than 70 different listings for PP and PPK values are found in Standard Catalog of Firearms, and many are included in the sidebar on the next page. There are many variations of the PP series, with numerous finishes, grips, engraving patterns and special editions, making collecting the PP series somewhat of a challenge.
