Hi All -
I don't post much, have lurked on a regular basis for several years .
The P99 QA was my second handgun; my first being a Glock 23, which I owned about one month before selling. They don't call it a "Block" for nothing.
But I liked (and still do) the idea of a "safe action", "semi double action", etc. consistent trigger pull. I did a bit of research, and decided in the spring of 2002 that the Walther P99 QA in .40S&W was what I wanted.
If I recall correctly, at the time, QAs were not commonplace like they are today. I walked into my gunshop, expecting to place a special order and wait weeks, but there it was on the wall -- They had just gotten the first one in.
It fit my hand perfectly, felt balanced, pointed naturally -- I was sold. I still have my receipt and it's a little painful to look at. Let's just say I paid a premium -- even for gunshop prices -- and leave it at that!
However, in five years and a guesstimated 6,000 rounds, the P99 has NEVER had a FTF, FTE, or any other malfunction whatsoever. And with the exception of reloads, I've fed it just about every type of ammo available, from cheap Fiocchi to premium Gold Dot.
I trust my P99 to go "bang" 100% of the time. And that, I think, is the most crucial element in a defensive handgun.
But it hasn't been all roses...
In the summer of 2002, probably after ~500 rounds, the trigger fell off while at the range. I kid you not: The - Trigger - Fell - Off.
I had the trigger, but couldn't find the retaining pin, so I sent the gun into Walther USA/S&W in MA for repair. I sent it FedEx overnight and got it back about two weeks later.
I'd requested an explanation and a refund for shipping costs (~$30 I think). I didn't receive either...
But the P99 was fixed and continued to function flawlessly as the years passed and the round count grew.
At about 5,000 rounds -- less than six months ago -- I decided to order two parts from Walther/S&W: A new recoil spring and striker spring. The former because it just seemed about time and the latter because I had cut a few coils off the original striker spring in an attempt to reduce trigger pull weight.
However, it didn't take long to recognize that cutting coils wasn't an particularly bright idea. Especially for a defensive gun... Personally, I couldn't tell a difference at all in trigger pull, but I realized that I had weakened it's "bang" ability somewhat and also opened myself up to a potential civil suit ("Your honor, the defendant -- much like Travis Bickle in "Taxi Driver" -- took it upon himself to increase the deadliness of this gun by lightening the trigger, enabling the him to gleefully shoot more people faster...").
I won't delve into the saga involved in obtaining these parts from S&W; but it was a nightmare. Finally, I spoke to Kate Fredette (?) on the phone and everything was made right.
I installed the new recoil and striker spring, and off I went. No problems.
Until this week... The trigger fell off again! Fortunately, the retaining pin was at my feet and I reinstalled it myself, using a minute amount of Loctite and small punch. I wasn't about to resend the entire pistol on my dime to S&W yet again for the same repair.
I'm confident that it's secure now. Also, FWIW, this is not an isolated incident. I'm not sure how common it is, but I've read accounts of other P99 owners who had their triggers just fall off over the years.
Later, I noticed that the "new" recoil spring wouldn't lock into place upon reassembly.
Puzzled, I took a look and saw that it was noticeably bent. I attempted to straighten it and it immediately snapped in half. Fortunately, I'd saved my old recoil spring as it had served me faithfully in the past and the only reason for replacing it was preventative maintenance.
For some reason, I'd bought into the Walther assurance that their polymer recoil spring rod was just as sturdy as metal one. Ehh... A metal rod wouldn't have bent and certainly would not have snapped in my hands. If I hadn't of kept my original recoil spring, I'd be without a working pistol... My guess is that the choice to go with polymer was primarily a cost cutting measure -- and not a way to reduce weight as claimed.
I'm sending the broken guide recoil spring into S&W tomorrow; hopefully they'll replace with a metal one (if available) or at least replace it with the right recoil spring for this make and model... I'm actually wondering if the broken part was for a 9mm? Anyone know? If so, I wouldn't be surprised. I just hope this doesn't turn into another drama of the wrong parts being delivered over and over...
I recognize that I sound like I'm slamming Walther -- both the pistol and the distributor. That's really not my intent as this P99, again, has never jammed on me. Although reliable, not one of my other autoloading pistols can make that claim. They've all choked at one time or another or are finicky about ammo.
So as a five year owner w/ a moderate number of rounds put downrange I'd assess the P99 QA .40S&W thusly:
Pros:
- Excellent value for the money (not when I bought mine, but today)
- Exchangable backstraps for custom hand fit
- Utter, complete reliability
- Good accuracy; I'm sure even better with the AS model
Cons:
- Poor service from S&W; I really, really hope mine was an isolated case. Will find out soon enough!
- There are/were problems with the trigger retaining pin (or whatever the part is); at least on their 48xxx serial # QA pistols
- More of a neutral, but trigger pull could be improved. My feeling is that the QA sits somewhere betwen the mushy Glock trigger and the crisp Steyr trigger. All are striker pistols, precocked. The QA trigger is acceptable, but could be improved imo.
Five year verdict: Can't speak to the new generation of P99s, but mine is fundamentally rock solid, but exhibits a couple of flaws that really should be addressed. Overall score: B+. YMMV.
That's it... Hope you found my five year retrospective a worthy read!
David
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I don't post much, have lurked on a regular basis for several years .
The P99 QA was my second handgun; my first being a Glock 23, which I owned about one month before selling. They don't call it a "Block" for nothing.
But I liked (and still do) the idea of a "safe action", "semi double action", etc. consistent trigger pull. I did a bit of research, and decided in the spring of 2002 that the Walther P99 QA in .40S&W was what I wanted.
If I recall correctly, at the time, QAs were not commonplace like they are today. I walked into my gunshop, expecting to place a special order and wait weeks, but there it was on the wall -- They had just gotten the first one in.
It fit my hand perfectly, felt balanced, pointed naturally -- I was sold. I still have my receipt and it's a little painful to look at. Let's just say I paid a premium -- even for gunshop prices -- and leave it at that!
However, in five years and a guesstimated 6,000 rounds, the P99 has NEVER had a FTF, FTE, or any other malfunction whatsoever. And with the exception of reloads, I've fed it just about every type of ammo available, from cheap Fiocchi to premium Gold Dot.
I trust my P99 to go "bang" 100% of the time. And that, I think, is the most crucial element in a defensive handgun.
But it hasn't been all roses...
In the summer of 2002, probably after ~500 rounds, the trigger fell off while at the range. I kid you not: The - Trigger - Fell - Off.
I had the trigger, but couldn't find the retaining pin, so I sent the gun into Walther USA/S&W in MA for repair. I sent it FedEx overnight and got it back about two weeks later.
I'd requested an explanation and a refund for shipping costs (~$30 I think). I didn't receive either...
But the P99 was fixed and continued to function flawlessly as the years passed and the round count grew.
At about 5,000 rounds -- less than six months ago -- I decided to order two parts from Walther/S&W: A new recoil spring and striker spring. The former because it just seemed about time and the latter because I had cut a few coils off the original striker spring in an attempt to reduce trigger pull weight.
However, it didn't take long to recognize that cutting coils wasn't an particularly bright idea. Especially for a defensive gun... Personally, I couldn't tell a difference at all in trigger pull, but I realized that I had weakened it's "bang" ability somewhat and also opened myself up to a potential civil suit ("Your honor, the defendant -- much like Travis Bickle in "Taxi Driver" -- took it upon himself to increase the deadliness of this gun by lightening the trigger, enabling the him to gleefully shoot more people faster...").
I won't delve into the saga involved in obtaining these parts from S&W; but it was a nightmare. Finally, I spoke to Kate Fredette (?) on the phone and everything was made right.
I installed the new recoil and striker spring, and off I went. No problems.
Until this week... The trigger fell off again! Fortunately, the retaining pin was at my feet and I reinstalled it myself, using a minute amount of Loctite and small punch. I wasn't about to resend the entire pistol on my dime to S&W yet again for the same repair.
I'm confident that it's secure now. Also, FWIW, this is not an isolated incident. I'm not sure how common it is, but I've read accounts of other P99 owners who had their triggers just fall off over the years.
Later, I noticed that the "new" recoil spring wouldn't lock into place upon reassembly.
Puzzled, I took a look and saw that it was noticeably bent. I attempted to straighten it and it immediately snapped in half. Fortunately, I'd saved my old recoil spring as it had served me faithfully in the past and the only reason for replacing it was preventative maintenance.
For some reason, I'd bought into the Walther assurance that their polymer recoil spring rod was just as sturdy as metal one. Ehh... A metal rod wouldn't have bent and certainly would not have snapped in my hands. If I hadn't of kept my original recoil spring, I'd be without a working pistol... My guess is that the choice to go with polymer was primarily a cost cutting measure -- and not a way to reduce weight as claimed.
I'm sending the broken guide recoil spring into S&W tomorrow; hopefully they'll replace with a metal one (if available) or at least replace it with the right recoil spring for this make and model... I'm actually wondering if the broken part was for a 9mm? Anyone know? If so, I wouldn't be surprised. I just hope this doesn't turn into another drama of the wrong parts being delivered over and over...
I recognize that I sound like I'm slamming Walther -- both the pistol and the distributor. That's really not my intent as this P99, again, has never jammed on me. Although reliable, not one of my other autoloading pistols can make that claim. They've all choked at one time or another or are finicky about ammo.
So as a five year owner w/ a moderate number of rounds put downrange I'd assess the P99 QA .40S&W thusly:
Pros:
- Excellent value for the money (not when I bought mine, but today)
- Exchangable backstraps for custom hand fit
- Utter, complete reliability
- Good accuracy; I'm sure even better with the AS model
Cons:
- Poor service from S&W; I really, really hope mine was an isolated case. Will find out soon enough!
- There are/were problems with the trigger retaining pin (or whatever the part is); at least on their 48xxx serial # QA pistols
- More of a neutral, but trigger pull could be improved. My feeling is that the QA sits somewhere betwen the mushy Glock trigger and the crisp Steyr trigger. All are striker pistols, precocked. The QA trigger is acceptable, but could be improved imo.
Five year verdict: Can't speak to the new generation of P99s, but mine is fundamentally rock solid, but exhibits a couple of flaws that really should be addressed. Overall score: B+. YMMV.
That's it... Hope you found my five year retrospective a worthy read!
David
