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Books for Walther lovers/gun lovers

29K views 25 replies 19 participants last post by  Salmongunner 
#1 ·
are there any books that has complete history of these great guns?
 
#3 · (Edited)
May I add the 2 books of Gene Gangarossa:

P 38 Automatic Pistol: The First Fifty Years

and

The Walther Handgun Story: A Collector's and Shooter's Guide

The author's pics are atrocious but the text is generally accurate and well written. It gives a good, general understanding of the subject. And they are reasonnably priced IMO (gun books in french or german are horribly pricy).

P.S: Oups, I didn' checked the prices on Amazon. That's really awfull!!! But it may prove that these books are looked for. I payed mine in the 25 $ area, that was reasonable...
 
#4 ·
If we get some additional suggestions, and there must be a lot of them, we can turn this material into a Sticky notice for future reference.

Keep 'em coming, guys. :)

As has been mentioned previously, a must-have book for every Walther fan is Dieter Marschall's excellent "Walther Pistols Models 1 Through P99," available from Ucross Books in Los Alamos, New Mexico.
 
#5 ·
These are the Walther books I have:

Walther Pistols and Rifles, W.H.B. Smith

Know Your Walther PP & PPK Pistols, E.J. Hoffschmidt
Know Your Walther P.38 Pistols, E.J. Hoffschmidt

Walther Pistols Models 1 through P99, Dieter H. Marschall

The Walther Handgun Story, Gene Gangarosa Jr.

Walther Models PP and PPK 1929-1945, James L. Rankin
Walther Volume II, James L. Rankin
Walther Volume III, James L. Rankin

A Pictorial Collector's Guide to the Walther PP - PPK Pistols, Per Mathisen

Walther, A German Legend, Manfred Kersten

All have their individual strong points. Best value is perhaps Dieter Marschall's.

searcher451 quoted Orv at the P38 forum as saying "Before you buy guns, buy books". Words of wisdom!

Best of luck,
Craig
 
#7 ·
A very good price

Walther, A German Legend, Manfred Kersten
Edward R. Hamilton Books(http://www.edwardrhamilton.com) has still(9/15/09)got this book for $29.95 plus $3.50 shipping.

I ordered this book from them about 2 months ago-was pleased with
the shipping & packaging.

BTW: when doing a search for this book on their site, search either by author or if by title omit Walther, i.e.: A German Legend


FYI: They also have a pretty good selection of military history titles-all at
discount prices.
 
#9 ·
The most intensely detailed book of all, really only for the advanced collector, is Warren Buxton's 3-volume (so far) magnum opus, The P.38 Pistol.

Other less vertical books contain lots of significant information on Walther pistols, including Jan Still, Axis pistols; Ed Ezell, Handguns of the World; Whittington, German Pistols and Holsters, 1934-45; Jon Speed et al, Mauser Pistolen; Bruno Brukner, Faust-Feuer Waffen; Konig & Hugo, 9mm Parabellum, and W.H.B. Smith, NRA Book of Small Arms, Vol. 1: Pistols and Revolvers. All are useful.

M
 
#10 ·
I can thoroughly recommend the Edward R. Hamilton shop but search on the web, print out the order form and send with a check. This way the price is what you see plus $3.50 for shipping irrespective of the number of books in a package. Prices are excellent, book condition as described. I have been buying from them for years (much to my wife's chagrin). Dave_n
 
#11 ·
Try http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320437209418&ssPageName=ADME:X:RTQ:GB:1123

I have no connection with the seller and cannot vouch for the book, but it may be worth a try.

The seller told me in a reply through ebay the following:
Paperback: 72 pages
# Publisher: Naval & Military Press Ltd (28 May 2003)
# Language English
# ISBN-10: 1843425920
# ISBN-13: 978-1843425922
# Product Dimensions: 18.2 x 11.8 x 0.8 cm

I don't even know if he ships to the US.

There are other sellers with the same book.
 
#16 ·
W.H.B. Smith, 'Walther Pistols and Rifles. I am not sure of the availability (I got mine in 1966!) but included is a great chart that shows the overlapping production of military and commercial HPs and P.38s from 1937-1945, including the differences between them and slide markings on HP thru svw45. I am still amazed at commercial HPs and Mod.P.38s manufactured thru 1944
 
#17 ·
I'm not sure if this is the appropriate place to post information about my books, but many members have complained that they could not find anything on them.

"SS Walther PP/PPK Identification & Documents" was first published in 2010 and quickly sold out. The second edition is still available and is called the "Gold Edition". This is the only book on the market that documents the issue of PP/PPK's to the SS/RSHA. Each variation is described including serial number ranges and details to look for to identify them. A growing number of collectors are carrying the book to gun shows in order to identify not yet discovered SS issued guns.

The book include hundreds of photographs of index cards and other documents found in the National Archives which confirm issue of more than 2,000 PP/PPK's. I have also included my entire database of serial numbers which contains all of the guns presently in collectors hands and "orphan magazines" which are serial numbered and prove the existence of guns not yet found. A valuable resource that belongs in the hands of every veteran and aspiring collector.

The book can be ordered directly from me for $35.00 plus $4.00 for shipping and packaging.

Send check to:
Steve Stepan
Box 261
Ely, Minnesota
55731
 
#19 ·
SS PP/PPK Gold Edition

Hello,
I recently purchased a copy of Mr. Stepan's gold edition at my last visit to Tom Whiteman's shop.
I have since read it cover to cover.
I started collecting german axis pistols in the 90's.
I changed directions in collecting, went to USMC firearms, and recently returned to axis pistols.
Mr. Stepan's work is the newest research to come out on axis pistols in decades.
I was not even aware of the "documentation" in existence on SS pistols
PP/PPK.
It's been a long time since I've gotten excited about collecting as there
has been nothing "new" until I came across this work.
It is worth buying and reading because you never know what you may stumble onto.
I am excited about obtaining a genuine documented PPK supported by an archive record. Now that is worth getting excited about.:cool::cool:
Marshal
 
#21 ·
Hello,
I recently purchased a copy of Mr. Stepan's gold edition at my last visit to Tom Whiteman's shop.
I have since read it cover to cover.
I started collecting german axis pistols in the 90's.
I changed directions in collecting, went to USMC firearms, and recently returned to axis pistols.
Mr. Stepan's work is the newest research to come out on axis pistols in decades.
I was not even aware of the "documentation" in existence on SS pistols
PP/PPK.

It's been a long time since I've gotten excited about collecting as there
has been nothing "new" until I came across this work.
It is worth buying and reading because you never know what you may stumble onto.
I am excited about obtaining a genuine documented PPK supported by an archive record. Now that is worth getting excited about.:cool::cool:
Marshal
You have certainly led a sheltered collector's life.

While I do not mean lessen Mr. Stepan's accomplishments, the original archival research on this topic was completed and published several years prior to the publishing of his book by the noted German collectors and researchers Dieter Marschall and Joachim Görtz. These men located, cited and published the RSHA arsenal inventory documentation from German archives. In turn, this information was soon elaborated upon by members of the National Automatic Pistol Collectors Association who first connected the archival information with the actual physical characteristics of the RSHA pistols in members' collections. These physical characteristics as described in Stepan's book had never been associated with the guns listed in the Marschall/Görtz book until their work.

It remained for Mr. Stepan to re-publish the Marschall/Gortz book but with the ultimate benefit of including all the documentation discovered and identified by Görtz and Marschall that was also available in the US National Archives. And Mr. Stepan has included his voluminous RSHA pistol data base information for the benefit of collectors.

Others of us have contributed in other small ways by providing information/articles on the aspects of the RSHA weapon documentation.
 
#22 · (Edited)
Anyone who might be considering the wisdom of adding the Black Book to their library would do well to read two forewords graciously provided by two of the world's foremost authors and researchers of the Walther PP/PPK.

They are John P. Pearson and Dieter H. Marschall.

First John Pearson:
"Steve has found documentation of more than 1,000 additional pistols, which are listed by exact serial number in this book. He also presents copies of some of the actual German documents that he found in his research. Steve has also made available for the first time photos of actual SS inventory cards which were used to identify the guns listed in the Red Booklet. In this book he has also provided corrections for errors and omissions which were discovered in the Red Booklet.

I can tell readers that this book contains new information about the use of Walther PPK pistols within the SS, and that this new data should be in the library of all German gun collectors."

Dieter Marschall:
"...Steve has obviously contracted the "research virus" and decided to do some further research, which took even more time and effort. Whereas Joachim's and my "Red Booklet" was more or less a by-product of other projects, Steve here concentrates on this matter and corresponding research.

Not surprisingly, the result of this work is no longer a booklet, but an important book with new and valuable information for collectors and researchers.

I am sure Joachim would have been proud to see his work carried on and extended. So am I."
 
#25 ·
The cheapest I have been able to find that Hoffschmidt (Know Your P-38) book for is $32.00!!!!!
That is for a 77 page paperback manual. I think when I bought it back in 2007 it cost me all of $10.95. :eek:

Just a heads-up, but there are a LOT of videos on YouTube SHOWING the disassembly of the P-38 and other classics. Might want to look at them for free before getting hosed for a book. But books like Buxton's works are awesome as well as collectors items. They are out of print. So expect to pay big $$$ for them.



 
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