AMERICANRIFLEMAN.ORG SEPTEMBER (^201969)
ometime in the mid-’80s, while visiting my home state
of Florida, a college buddy invited me to join him for
a little informal “schützenfest.” In those days, I was
spending nine months a year on safari in Botswana as
a professional hunter with Maun-based Safari South. While
on safari, I lived with a gun in my hands, but they were
long guns—medium- and large-bore ries for big-game
hunting and backing up safari clients, and shotguns for
bird shooting. Most African countries prohibited handguns,
so I did not own one, and my shooting experience with
them was minimal. My friend was determined to rectify
that aw in my character, offering to introduce me to a
whole new world of shooting by providing some trigger
time with his handguns.
Slightly apprehensive at rst, I held the handguns
ultra-carefully, but soon warmed to their t and feel as I
handled and shot them. I observed the same safety rules
that apply to ries and shotguns and enjoyed the day’s
target session enough to feel the need to add a handgun or
two to my own gun collection.
A helpful gun store manager in Tampa, Fla., showed me
two quality guns, either of which he recommended for a
rst-time handgun buyer—a 2½" Colt Python revolver in
.357 Mag. and a nickel-plated Browning Hi Power 9 mm Luger
semi-automatic pistol. It was tough deciding between the
two, so I bought them both and got change back from $700.
The combined value of those two handguns in new condition
today is around $5,000.
Shortly after acquiring those rst two handguns, another
friend was pleased to show me his carry gun, which hap-
pened to be a Walther PPK/S. After some range time with
the little .380 ACP, I felt a distinct urge to add one to
my modest, but growing, collection. Learning that James
Bond—007 himself—staked his life on the dependable little
Walther made it all the more compelling to own one.
In early novels, Bond was woefully under-gunned. He
carried a .25 ACP Beretta Model 418 semi-automatic pis-
tol that he concealed in a chamois shoulder rig. On the
advice of British rearm expert Geoffrey Boothroyd, who
felt, “this sort of gun is a lady’s gun, and not a really
nice lady at that,” author Ian Fleming re-armed Bond
with a Walther PPK in its original 7.65 mm Browning
(.32 ACP) chambering.
Fleming was grateful for Boothroyd’s advice, replying to
him in a letter. “As Bond’s biographer, I am most anxious
to see that he lives as long as possible and I shall be most
grateful for any further technical [advice] you might like
me to pass on to him,” Fleming wrote.
As a “thank you” to the rearm expert, Fleming created
the character Major Boothroyd, who rst appeared in Dr.
No as Bond’s service armorer. To deal with the gun switch,
Fleming had the silencer of Bond’s Beretta get caught in
the waistband of his trousers at the end of From Russia
With Love, an event that almost costs the secret agent his
life. When M, the head of MI6, orders Bond to turn in his
Beretta pistol, Bond argued unsuccessfully that because of
the silencer, the incident would have happened with any
kind of gun. Major Boothroyd replaces the Beretta with
the “superior” Walther PPK and recommends Bond stay
away from silencers. Further to Boothroyd’s advice, Fleming
exchanged the chamois shoulder holster, which was not
practical for a quick draw, with a smooth leather rig.
BACK TO THE FUTURE
But by the time Bond holstered his new PPK, the slim
little semi-automatic’s reputation for unfailing dependabil-
ity was already long-established by serving German military
personnel, police and civilians. The story began back in
1929 when German gunmaker Carl Walther introduced
the ground-breaking PP (Polizeipistole or “Police Pistol”),

UNSHAKEN

Classic lines, timeless style and reliable features have dened the legendary PPK as the

quintessential concealed-carry semi-automatic pistol for nearly 90 years. Now the gun, a cultural

icon in its own right, is being made in Arkansas.

BY JOE COOGAN

Walther’s PPK