They make A fantastic product, I own the PPS and to me it's the best single stack 9 mm I have ever shot. That's including the 365 and G 43. I think the new PDP that just came out is also pretty awesome. Their triggers are some of the best in the striker fire world, lI just can't understand why they don't get the love of some of the other companies?
They're not as aggressive at getting LE contracts in the US, which makes them less common, less common means less aftermarket support and parts availability. They seem like they're interested in making a strong effort with the PDP so we'll see. I don't think there's any disagreement that they make nice pistols, it's more are they nice enough to get new holsters, mags, parts etc.
I personally agree about the PPS, but on paper it's not as good as the other options. I wish they would have stuck with paddles though. Heavy is good, heavy is reliable. If it doesn't work you can always hit him with it.
PPQ was popular or not unpopular.
The PDP is having teething issues with triggers. They seem to get worse with use
PPS M1 wasn't bad but mags are/were expensive. And the gun was expensive. M2 was kinda meh. And was killed by the Shield.
And now there's no point really in a single stack when the same thing can be had in a 1.5 stack.
But ultimately they don't advertise aggressively and there's not much aftermarket support
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It's a mixture of reasons.Originally Posted by GmanVP9
Marketing:
For decades, Glock left everyone behind in the dust on this. To a large degree, their product line was reliable, so most people didn't dispute the "perfection" claim.
So, a huge head start. One could argue that Walther is turning around the way they do marketing and outreach with the PDP rollout, but again you've already got the hurdle of being perceived as "niche" to overcome. Some brands understood in the early 2000s that the lifestyle marketing was where the success was. Walther was still pushing the James Bond theme.
This isn't solely a Walther problem. Look at Beretta. Where was their marketing before Langdon+Wilson gave them a boost? Most of the world still doesn't know the APX exists.
Law Enforcement/Military Adoption:
Glock went after the LE sphere very hard and early and gave them deals that weren't not economically worthwhile to refuse. So there's a generation of cops who are happy with Glocks, acquisitions guys who are happy with the finances of such decisions. The guns work. The support is extensive.
How much of a better deal do you have to offer to get them to switch from something that already works? Can Walther afford to give that kind of deal?
S&W and Sig compete in this space. Beretta/HK/FN do too, to a lesser extent.
It's a very crowded field to compete in unless you have product that can undercut price and maintain same level of satisfaction. Easier said than done.
This all comes back to marketing again, because guess which guns civilians tend to buy? The ones cops and soldiers carry.
Aftermarket support:
Civvies love tricking their guns out, playing Legos with different parts, etc.
For Walthers, even the basics like a wide variety of sights is difficult to come across.
On Paper vs In-the-hand factors:
A lot of civilian/internet shopping culture is obsessed with on paper statistics.
For double stacks, Walthers aren't as size-capacity efficient as their competitors. For single stacks, they are heavier than their competitors.
So there tends to be less hype about them, which leads people to not actually try to carry or shoot them. When they do, these kinds of people are generally pleasantly surprised.
Last edited by Hot Sauce; 09-03-2021 at 03:13 PM.
Gaming will get you killed in the streets. Dueling will get you killed in the fields.
-Alexander Hamilton
Which I don't understand because the M2 is way better than the Shield IMO
It undercut it on price and had an extensive advertising campaign.
Gaming will get you killed in the streets. Dueling will get you killed in the fields.
-Alexander Hamilton
Glock owns the LE marketplace because they honestly have a great simple product, great factory reps, offer nearly free training locally, undercut most on price, and there is tons of aftermarket support (holsters, training guns, everything).
In the non-LE market they've come to be like a 1911 where you can build an entire Glock without any Glock in it. The availability of slides, mounting plates, holsters, everything you would ever want, is available for Glocks. Not the case with most other pistols. S&W and SIG can "sort of" compete with Glock (SIG is trying hard). Beretta and H&K barely compete in the US LE marketplace at all these days.
Regarding Walther and LE...
The P99 had a lot of potential. Back in the early 2000's when 40 S&W ruled the world, Walther partnered with Smith & Wesson to import the Walther P99 and to produce the PPK, as well as the 40 S&W and 45 ACP P99's dubbed the SW99. The SW99 was absolute trash. Yours truly had one issued to him (well actually two since S&W took the first batch back when they all broke). Ultimately, S&W replaced all issued SW99's for free in 2007/2008 with M&P's and even bought some departments (like mine) new holsters to go with them. S&W wanted the guns completely gone (and pretends they never existed) because they were actually that bad. The S&W-made PPK/S models weren't exactly known for their reliability and performance either. Something was lost in translation between Ulm and Springfield. The entire Walther/ S&W debacle, for those of us that remember it, left a really bad taste in LE's mouths.
So if I'm a police administrator or on an armorer committee, what does Walther offer me over Glock?
One is universally known and supported and the other might offer some nice features, but very little support and likely costs more.
Hence, Walther will remain a niche gun.
Walther couldn't market free sex with supermodels at a Star Trek convention.
I didn't care for it in any way. Liked the original way better. The Shield I would put on par or slightly better than and the 2.0 does everything better. The PLUS is obviously a plus
IMO it's more advertising than LE issue. Just look at the popularity of the XD
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That might be one of the more epic phrases yet turned here on PF.
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