Glock 19 / Walther PPQ

[kcevans]

I'm considering another pistol, either a back up for my Glock 19 that I have grown to like a lot or a Walther PPQ.
I'm looking on input on the Walther along with what every ones thoughts are if you had to choose one or the other.

[GJM]

I would have said PPQ, but the KKM is a game changer for the 19. (Poor attempt at humor.)

The first two firearms I would put most anywhere are a Glock 19 and a 16 inch AR with an Aimpoint. Once you have your 19 and spares, a PPQ is just a joy to shoot. I was shooting my PPQ M2 today, and loving it.

[Kyle Reese]

I'm considering another pistol, either a back up for my Glock 19 that I have grown to like a lot or a Walther PPQ.
I'm looking on input on the Walther along with what every ones thoughts are if you had to choose one or the other.

I'd say buy the spare Glock 19.

[ReverendMeat]

Couple years back I couldn't decide between the two so I bought both. Sold the Glock, still have the Walther. If you like the 19 just fine then buying another as a backup is certainly more logical and practical but I think the PPQ is a great pistol and worth checking out.

[rwa]

I have owned both and the ergomomics are substantially different. If you shoot Glocks well and like them, sticking with one platform is not a mistake. If you want something different, go fot it.

[Chuck Haggard]

What's the mission? Mission drives the gear train.

If you carry seriously then you need a spare. If you compete seriously you need a spare. Doc and I, and a number of other people I know who shoot seriously, recommend a guy have three of the same pistol.

If the mission is "I want a new pistol and something different" then by all means get the Walther. If you are pragmatic, and know you shoot the G19 well and don't need to get a different gun to try that to see if it works better, then the boring choice is obviously the better choice.

[1986s4]

What's the mission? Mission drives the gear train.

If you carry seriously then you need a spare. If you compete seriously you need a spare. Doc and I, and a number of other people I know who shoot seriously, recommend a guy have three of the same pistol.

If the mission is "I want a new pistol and something different" then by all means get the Walther. If you are pragmatic, and know you shoot the G19 well and don't need to get a different gun to try that to see if it works better, then the boring choice is obviously the better choice.

I know you're right and I've known it for some time. But dang it, I just can't follow your good advice or my own good sense. I compete these days mostly with a revolver so I have two, not exactly alike but same make and I have support gear for both. I carry a nice lightweight DA/SA semi-auto which I train with regularly to remain proficient. I do think DA revolver shooting is good training for DA/SA pistols.

To the OP I would say stick with the Glock if you shoot them well.

[Chuck Haggard]

DA revolver trigger work does, IMHO, support shooting semi-auto pistols.

[PD Sgt.]

I have had both, still have a few G19s. While I found the PPQ to be accurate and possessed of probably the best out of th box striker fired trigger I have had experience with, something about the ergos did not feel right for me no matter which backstrap I tried. There were also at the time no sight combinations that I really liked, though that seems to have improved. I also found the grip printed a bit more than my G19. I sold it to help fund my Brig Tac.

They are nice pistols, but it is hard to beat the G19 as an all around package.

[JonInWA]

Either get a second Glock G19, or sell your existing G19 and get two Walthers...

I would not suggest throwing out the baby with the bath water-unless a PPQ demonstratively improves your shooting, a G19 is certainly proven, with excellent OEM and aftermarket support, and exceptionally easy to work on/detail-disassemble/swap components....good as a PPQ may be, I don't think any of those attributes apply...Just sayin'...

Best, Jon

[Trooper224]

If you're seriously looking for a spare/training pistol, which you should be, then it should be the 19. I happen to like the PPQ quite a bit. However, you can't beat the fact that everyone and their brother who makes ancillary equipment does so for the Glock, not so much for the PPQ.

[s0nspark]

If I had to choose one or the other I would choose the PPQ because of the ergos. I could never get comfortable with Glocks, try as I might.

If I was good with the G19, though, and planned to keep on with it I'd just get a spare.

[Kennydale]

Wife asked what I wanted for 65th Birthday. Told her another G19 gen 4. I shot a PPQ last year (and at same range a Sig P320) if I was to go with a NON Glock it would be a Sig P320 (9mm) SC---- Just a personal preference.

[GJM]

Wife asked what I wanted for 65th Birthday. Told her another G19 gen 4. I shot a PPQ last year (and at same range a Sig P320) if I was to go with a NON Glock it would be a Sig P320 (9mm) SC---- Just a personal preference.

Probably a good joke in there about different wishes for a 65th birthday versus a 25th birthday.

Back to the topic at hand. What makes the PPQ is the trigger, and in that regard it is delight to shoot. What holds the PPQ back is it isn't a system, accessories are fewer, and there is some weirdness that, while making it great to shoot once in your hand, makes the 19 far easier to live with. In particular, the Glock shape draws much easier for me.

I think the most likely contender to rival Glock and the 19 is the Sig 320. It is a system, doesn't suffer from Walther weirdness, and it is well supported in accessories, except perhaps holsters (which is just a matter of time). Time will tell whether the 320 is reliable, but so far mine are reliable, very accurate, easy to shoot and easily convertible to whatever configuration (caliber and size) you want. I have a full size and compact 9 with Robert Burke now for trigger jobs. My wish is for something that shoots like a CZ but I can treat like a Glock. The 320 is the best candidate so far, but only time will tell.

[ReverendMeat]

What PPQ accessories would you be looking for? Holster, sights, grip tape, magazines are all available. Still waiting on a slide plate with the punisher logo though.

[GJM]

For starters, HD sights that don't rely on the OEM adjustment, and as a result, can be sprung loose by pressing down on the retaining screw. And, a factory magazine spring, that provides enough tension, that the M2 magazines won't fall out just looking at the release.

[Sasage]

What PPQ accessories would you be looking for? Holster, sights, grip tape, magazines are all available. Still waiting on a slide plate with the punisher logo though.

10-8 makes sights for the PPQ. I also saw some people install a Pro Glo front with some engineering.

If you are apt to hit the mag release with your palm, I would get an extra selector spring to stiffen the release.

[JodyH]

Could always buy the PPQ M1 with a paddle release like God intended.

[GJM]

It is all part of the "charm" of the PPQ. Walther introduces the PPQ M2, and acts like that is the product they will be supporting. Legacy PPQ and P99 magazines, of course, don't work. Then Walther does an about face and suggests they will keep making the original PPQ.

Then, the spring on the magazine release on the M2 is so light, that I wouldn't carry the pistol and expect magazines to stay in the pistol. Walther apparently knows about it, but does nothing. There is a fix, get a spring out of an AR15 and trim it until you like the tension. Perfectly logical on Walter's part -- everyone has an AR.

Rear sight on the PPQ is secured by one small piece, that if you push it with even your finger nail, the sight literally ejects off the pistol. Suggested work around is to get HD sights for the PPS. Only problem is the rear PPS sight is finger loose in the dovetail, and relies on the set screw to keep it in place. There is the 10-8 sight, but no tritium.

As I said, delightful gun to shoot, but Walther weird.

[JodyH]

Walther is very much a old school German company.
As to the rear sight, I ran a P99 hard with that setup and never lost the rear sight. I did crack part of the slide rear sight dovetail off, but the sight never moved and never popped out.

[ReverendMeat]

It is all part of the "charm" of the PPQ. Walther introduces the PPQ M2, and acts like that is the product they will be supporting. Legacy PPQ and P99 magazines, of course, don't work. Then Walther does an about face and suggests they will keep making the original PPQ.

I don't think Walther ever claimed that they would discontinue the M1, and I don't see how it's a problem that they're still making it instead of the M2 exclusively. Magazines are readily available for both. Though M1 > M2 so there was your first mistake ;)

[JackRock]

Though M1 > M2 so there was your first mistake

As I keep saying, this is not a FACT but a PREFERENCE. I keep seeing people actually claim (not sarcastically or jokingly) that the M1 is simply better in all cases, bar none, no matter who is the owner/shooter.
As an example, I have an M2 as my EDC, and I have shot and owned the M1 - still prefer the button style mag release.



Sorry - this is the third time I've seen this claim in two days, and I see it a lot between here, DC and Waltherforums. It grinds my gears when I see it presented as fact, instead of preference. If it were fact, the M2 would never have been produced in the first place.

[s0nspark]

Sorry - this is the third time I've seen this claim in two days, and I see it a lot between here, DC and Waltherforums. It grinds my gears when I see it presented as fact, instead of preference. If it were fact, the M2 would never have been produced in the first place.

Seems at some point those gears would be ground smooth ;-)

My preference is for the paddle release (VP9 in my case) ... despite having had much more time overall behind guns with the "American-style" button mag release. I don't fault Walther for offering both, though - I just wish the M1 was as available for people to try.

[JackRock]

Seems at some point those gears would be ground smooth ;-)

I do regular maintenance. I've just run so often into shooters who say that the ONLY POSSIBLE REASON for somebody to prefer buttons over paddles is that they simply haven't used paddles yet. I keep pointing out that I own both - and I still choose the button.


My preference is for the paddle release (VP9 in my case) ... despite having had much more time overall behind guns with the "American-style" button mag release. I don't fault Walther for offering both, though - I just wish the M1 was as available for people to try.

Oh, I get that. I do admit the M2 is easier to find. But that's usually a choice - perhaps a predisposition - of the gun stores, rather than Walther.

[s0nspark]

I do regular maintenance. I've just run so often into shooters who say that the ONLY POSSIBLE REASON for somebody to prefer buttons over paddles is that they simply haven't used paddles yet. I keep pointing out that I own both - and I still choose the button.


I certainly felt like the monkey with the proverbial football when I first started using the paddle releases :) Now I prefer it because I find it less disruptive to my strong hand grip to drop the mag with trigger finger instead of thumb... but it did take quite a few reps for it to feel instinctive.

The real thing, though, is that it is great to have options! What works for one may not for another and some certainly lose sight of that!



I do admit the M2 is easier to find. But that's usually a choice - perhaps a predisposition - of the gun stores, rather than Walther.


Agreed... selection in my area is usually limited to what is cheap and/or easy to sell :-/

[BobLoblaw]

I've just run so often into shooters who say that the ONLY POSSIBLE REASON for somebody to prefer buttons over paddles is that they simply haven't used paddles yet.

I prefer paddles to buttons because:
1. Less prone to inadvertent mag drops
2. Trigger finger activation = no grip shift
3. Ambidextrous

Assuming none of these provide advantages to you over buttons, what are your reasons for them over paddles? Not being inflammatory. I'm genuinely curious.

[JackRock]

I prefer paddles to buttons because:
1. Less prone to inadvertent mag drops - I think I may have just gotten lucky, as I haven't had this without attributing it to myself (incorrect mag insertion)
2. Trigger finger activation = no grip shift - I have to shift my grip, regardless. Probably has to do with hand shape/proportions. I also have some joint issues in my index finger, so I'm sure that has something to do with it.
3. Ambidextrous - This is the only thing that leads me back to M1

Assuming none of these provide advantages to you over buttons, what are your reasons for them over paddles? Not being inflammatory. I'm genuinely curious.

See my answers above in red. However, I will admit that the difference isn't so great that if my wife had gone to the P99 as she originally planned (she ultimately bought the PX4), I probably would have found a way to trade my M2 in for an M1, just to keep the magazines consistent. But since I don't have that element, I can stick with what feels better and that I prefer.

[GJM]

'cause the Glock, CZ, Sig, XDM, 3rd Gen S&W, 1911, 2011 and Beretta pistols I also shoot have a button release.

[ReverendMeat]

As I keep saying, this is not a FACT but a PREFERENCE. I keep seeing people actually claim (not sarcastically or jokingly) that the M1 is simply better in all cases, bar none, no matter who is the owner/shooter.
As an example, I have an M2 as my EDC, and I have shot and owned the M1 - still prefer the button style mag release.



Sorry - this is the third time I've seen this claim in two days, and I see it a lot between here, DC and Waltherforums. It grinds my gears when I see it presented as fact, instead of preference. If it were fact, the M2 would never have been produced in the first place.

I purposefully put a winky face after my statement hoping to avoid that kind of reaction. Sorry about your gears, bro.

ETA: Re. last sentence. How often do facts matter at all when it comes to what guns people buy? Even if I could mathematically prove that M1 > M2, if you think people who tend to confuse the slide release with the trigger would buy the M1 instead then I've got a Taurus Curve and a box of RIP to sell you :p