[Ni3Frontier]

Hello all, my name is Yoshi. I just signed on as a new member and wanted to introduce myself and ask a few questions as well. I hope this turns out to be a place I can come back to often to share and receive helpful information

In about a month I am going to purchase my first handgun. I have been looking at several different handguns over the last few months and I believe that for the price and features I am interested in, the Walther P99 can't be beat. I am a left handed shooter and my hands are not that large, so I was very attracted to the ambidextrous and ergonomic qualities of the P99. The left handed shooter's dream would be the H&K P2000 (slide release is on both sides to accomodate R&L handed shooters), but I am looking for a full size pistol, and looking at other H&Ks, the cost would likely be too high.

I have a few questions about the P99 that I'm hoping people here can help me with.

1. What is a good price for the Walther P99? At gunshops, I've gotten a price from $584 to $600. However, online prices range from as low as $539 to $570. This is before shipping and FFL transfer fees.

2. I have read various reviews online written by P99 owners and about 1/3 are negative. Most relate to FTF, FTE problems. Is this a break-in normality that goes away after a few hundred rounds, or is this a problem that affects random weapons to the point where it must be returned to the factory? There was even one review that claimed the barrel was stripped of rifling after 100 or so rounds. However, I compare these reviews to Walther's general aura of a high quality product and reliability and I am left confused.

3. What is the average service life of the P99? Ex; On the Beretta website, they claim average service life to be from 22,000-35,000 rounds.

Thanks!

-Yoshi

 

[Cawdor]

1. At the gun shows in Houston, P99's are $500 to $520. Check Doc Walther.

2. I would not be concerned about the P99's reliability. I have about 1500 rounds through my P99 QA; I have had one jam. The also P99 passed the tests of the German police.

The perfect gun for a left-handed person is the HK P7.

In terms of size, there is no significant difference between the P2000 and the P99. Both are about 7 inches in length. The P2000 will cost $200 to $250 more.

If you have smaller hands, take a look at the Sig P239. It has a single stack magazine, so the grip is smaller.

3. One of the specifications of the German police was a service life of at least 10,000 rounds. Walther told me this is a letter: "When we perform endurance tests at Walther we shoot 15,000 rounds which give us a safety of 50% over the demand specifications of the police." I would expect a P99 to last even longer. I am not concerned about the service life of my P99. However, parts do break. I have had to replace parts on my USP, my Glock 30, and my Sig 220.

 

[Ni3Frontier]

Cawdor,
Thank you for your reply! I was amazed by the low price on the link that you sent me. I will definitely give them a call to see what the total final cost will be.

I would like an H&K, but as you said, being $200-$250 more expensive, it would be cost prohibitive for me. My budget is around $600. I was considering the Walther P22, but I felt that a larger caliber would present more of a challenge and would be more useful to me.

I was lucky enough to have somebody offer to let me shoot their Sig during one trip to the range. It was a P226. The gun was fun to shoot, but I did not like the feel of the grip. I don't know if the entire dimension of the grip is the same as that of the P229, but the width is similar from the specs on Sig's homepage.

15,000+ rounds sounds very impressive. Thanks again for your reply and your input on your personal experiences with the P99!

 

[J Hoss]

Look here in the for-sale section, HK forums, GunsAmerica.com, Gunbroker.com.

I have seen P99's for as little as $425 used. I bought one a few months ago. Many at $475.

Right now, there is a flood of HK P7-PSP's on the market from about $650 to $900 - THE ambidextrous gun.

I would think the P99 would last for thousands of rounds. I have a Beretta 92 with 50K+ and it is still tight.

 

[NM_P99]

I have over 15k rounds thru my P99 9mm.
Zero malfunctions, one broken slide stop lever spring at 10k.

 

[kbc]

I have more than 2000 rnds though my P99 9mm.
No jams, no malfunctions. It feeds fine with FMJ, HP, Lead.
Bore is still nice and "almost new looking", no unusual wear.
On a side note, I really enjoy the P22 as a companion piece.