WALTHERS AND BOND

Although a fictional character, Bond has legendary status all over the world and one thing I always thought cool about Bond was his loyalty to Walther.

The gun on top, the venerable Walther PPK in .38o caliber, also known by many as the James Bond Gun, although I believe his gun was chambered in 7.62 caliber ( or calibre, as the say in the UK). You might remember at several times in his movie career, M tried to change his handgun choice, at one point moving to a much larger 9mm Walter pistol.

The pistol on the bottom is a reletively new gun from Walther, virtually the same size as the PPK but in the more potent caliber of 9mm, and also weighing abuut 5 oz less. Many thought that Bond might morph to this latest creation, but true to tradition, at least in Quantum of Solace, he kept his PPK around.

Although I'm not much into living the James Bond lifestyle, I have always had a thing about the PPK and PPK/S. I owned a PPK/S in the seventies in the rare .22 caliber. I think it cost about $250 at the time new. Twenty years later, I got one of the stainless American made PPK's at a bargain price used from a deputy I knew. My longtime music buddy Woody Oakes HAD TO HAVE IT, along with a vintage ultra concealable shoulder rig, and would just not take no for an answer.

Here's the site for the discourse on James Bond guns. It's a neat website.

http://www.jamesbondlifestyle.com/index_articles.php?m=articles&g=art080702

I'm anxious to try the PSP and see how good it shoots. It is, however, barely smaller than the Glock G36 I have in .45 caliber, which recently showed itself to be a minimalistic recoiler with the Federal Premium Low Recoil JHP ammo I shot through it. The PSP weights about the same, and the PPK comes in at about 25 oz. but is somewhat thinner than the G36.

I do like the safety features of the PPK. Double action/Single action. Manual safety. Transfer bar safety. I always felt ok carrying this gun next to my person, particularly using an IWB holster.

In any event, check out the Bond website. It's pretty cool. And kudos to our latest Bond character for having the "cool" to use the PPK instead of the many hip guns out there.