[green5]

Is walther going to make a .45acp P99?

 

[Hermo Gut]

P99 in .45 Cal. configuration ? Honestly I don't know but would sure like to have one too. Hmmm..., would like to compare it with HK USPc.

 

[sprntr]

I wouldn't hold my breath waiting. Not much demand outside the U.S. where S&W already has their imitation P99.

 

[Catbird]

About 6-8 months ago, I e-mailed Walther (Germany) with this question. They said "No".

I realize that others don't feel the same way, however I'm hopeful that Walther will see fit to produce a P99 in .45GAP.

 

[Ni3Frontier]

If anything, I would expect to see P99s in .357 Sig first. The only thing Walther would have to do is change dimensions on the barrel as the .357 Sig is essentially a necked down .40 S&W cartridge. Proof of this can be seen in the available barrels to convert .40 cal to .357 Sig.

I am wondering if Walther will not offer a .45 P99 because the exclusivity of the .45 to the SW99 is keeping sales afloat?

I have read some magazine publications on the .45 GAP but I do not fully understand it. From what I gather it is essentially a shortened .45 ACP cartridge. I remember reading that Glock created this shorter round to solve a dimensional issue with their handgrips, but I do not recall what it was and I'm interested in why they actually did it. Basic reasoning tells me that the .45 GAP will be less powerful than the .45 ACP. If thats the case then whats wrong with .40, 9mm, .357 Sig compared to .45 GAP?

 

[BreakerMorant]

Quote[/b] (Ni3Frontier @ Mar. 26 2004,9:39)]I have read some magazine publications on the .45 GAP but I do not fully understand it.  From what I gather it is essentially a shortened .45 ACP cartridge.  I remember reading that Glock created this shorter round to solve a dimensional issue with their handgrips, but I do not recall what it was and I'm interested in why they actually did it.  Basic reasoning tells me that the .45 GAP will be less powerful than the .45 ACP.  If thats the case then whats wrong with .40, 9mm, .357 Sig compared to .45 GAP?

The  .45 GAP is shorter, lighter, and faster than the .45 ACP.  The extra speed sort of offsets the lighter weight of the round.  I believe the original concept was to make a gun that had the same dimensions of the Glock 17/22, that shot a round with the stopping power of the .45 ACP round, and where capacity was not compromised by a single stack magazine as it was with the G36.

At the 2003 SHOT Show, the prototype / mockup of the gun actually had a slide that was the same width as the 17/22.  If memory serves, it didn't cycle reliably.  I think the charge caused the slide to move too fast which meant it either would miss picking up a round from the magazine or have it misfeed.  They ended up taking a G21 slide and shaving off a little to get the weight right.  If you look at a G37 the slide is slightly wider than the frame.

I'm sure some people love it but I think the wider slide defeats the purpose of the gun and the round.  The only thing you get is the narrower grip while having most of the concealment problems of the G21. Personally, I think they should've just made the grips and magazines of the 36 longer to get better capacity, but I guess I'm in the minority. If others felt that way, I imagine their marketing gurus would've picked up on it.

 

[Ni3Frontier]

BreakerMorant,
  Thanks for the clarification on the .45 GAP.  My gut reaction is that this cartridge will not be around long.  But thats what I felt about .357 Sig until I heard that LE agencies took a liking to it.  If I'm not mistaken I believe the secret service uses .357 Sig.  

  I did a little bit of research on the .45 GAP.  Here's a website with quite a few details and some test results for the GAP compared to its competitors;  
  .45 GAP

  The author is very obviously in favor of the .45 GAP, but I still do not really see the point - its ballistics are almost identical to the .40 which is supposedly the .45 GAPs main competitor.

Quote[/b] ].40S&W 180 gr GDHP 4 inch barrel
Velocity 1025 fps
Power Factor 184
Energy ft-lb 420

.45GAP 185 gr GDHP
Velocity 1020 fps
Power Factor 188
Energy ft-lb 427

Quote[/b] ]I find the factory 200 grain TMJ (993 fps at 199 Power Factor & 437 ft lbs of energy) to be a very brisk round, somewhat similar to hot .40 caliber rounds.

Quote[/b] ]On fast shots, the 200-grainer felt a lot like a major .40...same kind of snap.

My thinking is, if its so similar to the .40, why not stay with something that has been tried and tested? I think the .45 caliber itself has a certain connotation attached to it and some people will not settle for anything but a '45'.

 

[BreakerMorant]

While that webpage was interesting, a lot of people who do those things have agendas. His apparently are championing the .45 G.A.P. and slaying dragons. -It's good to have hobbies.

Beyond performance, the real hurdle for acceptance is perceived need. Since a lot of agencies switched over to the .40 S&W in the last few years, I don't know how many are going to be excited to jump at buying new guns for their personnel with marginal performance differences.

With the civilian market, some people avoid buying pistols chambered in .40 S&W because of the difference in cost of ammo between it and a 9mm. I'd expect the .45 G.A.P. to be pricier than the .40 S&W since it will be made in smaller quantities.

The .45 G.A.P. may make some inroads, but like the .357 Sig, it has a long way to go before it will gain wide acceptance. Since it has to compete against very well entrenched calibers (9mm, .40 S&W, and .45 ACP), I suspect that it will end up in the history bin of exotic calibers. -That is assuming no major push from the firearms industry or LE sponsorship.