Dixon
06-09-2008, 01:30 PM
The specimen that I have is the “black” one. My particular one is not really black, but a very dark brown, with an apparently anodised finish that looks good but scratches very easily to reveal shiny metal underneath. Of course, the real PPK is not black but blued steel ( or stainless ). A result not possible on the “spelter” used in Umarex CO2 pistols.
There is another version with a nickel slide, which I have not seen. Sadly, there is no version with nickel frame as well as slide. The real PPK is available in such an all stainless version but I do not know that there is one factory produced with nickel slide on a blued frame.
The CO2 bulb is inserted into the grip of the gun and tightened by a large knob under the butt. Many people have objected to the way the knob looks. Certainly a ring or lanyard swivel would have looked more in keeping with the general era of the gun. I have read that you can remove the knob and replace it with a driver-operated screw. That is a risky proposition, only for the technically confident. Personally, I don’t mind the knob but I do object to another detail. That is the safety catch. Whilst the real gun has a slide mounted catch, on the left, the CO2 pistol has a lever on the right of the frame. OK so far as it goes. But the original, inert, slide mounted catch is very poorly reproduced. It is simply part of the moulding as you would expect on a cheap airsoft model. Moreover, whilst the operating safety is marked with a nice inset red dot ( much smarter than a blob of paint and an admittedly sweet detail ) the red dot indicating “fire” mode on the real gun is not simulated at all on the fake safety. Presumably to prevent user confusion between the real and fake safety catches.
The overall look and feel of the gun is good and quite realistic. The grip plates are well reproduced and the trade-marks nicely inscribed ( although with additional inscriptions peculiar to the fact that it is a CO2 pistol, such as “Read the manual before use”, etc ). There are some very exact details around the gun, such as the subtle nip between the front sight blade and the textured rib along the top of the slide. But the poor detail of the fake safety-catch really spoils the whole result. Nor does it help to find that the breech block visible through the fairly well reproduced ejection port is black plastic. A soft, inappropriate looking plastic at that. The outer barrel is sadly made of this same cheap looking plastic.
One aspect of this design, which is the same as on the real gun, is that the trigger guard is not fixed but microscopically moveable. This makes the attachment of a laser to the trigger-guard, as widely advertised, rather a silly scheme.
Unfortunately, the heel of the grip frame is made entirely of that shiny, soft-looking plastic, being the floor of the butt, the bottom of the back strap and part of the block that contains the CO2 screw.
When it comes to loading the gun, the spring-loaded grip plate removes easily but is quite irritatingly fiddly to replace. Although it does grip very steadily once back in position. However, the stick magazine is incredibly feeble and fragile seeming. More feeble than the feeblest airsoft stick magazine. I sense it will snap in two very easily. I mean, you won’t need to accidentally step on it when it disappears into the ( even recently mown ) grass of the lawn, but just holding it without great care could, I fear, snap this pathetic effort. Compared to the solid steel magazine of the roughly similar Baikal Makarov CO2 pistol, this effort is simply a joke. Hilarious until you realise you have paid good money for it. Moreover, had those German engineers the ingenuity with which they are credited, they could have produced an all in one, full-size, gas and BB mag like that on the Baikal, rather than this feeble stick and removable grip effort. In mitigation, I must concede that the Makarov is modelled on a double stack grip that is a good bit wider than that of the PPK. Nonetheless, this magazine is very disappointing.
When it comes to firing the gun, the trigger is very light and the action delightfully smooth altogether. However, it is incredibly inaccurate. With steel BB’s they scatter so far and wide that it would, again, be hilarious, were it not positively dangerous. Pellet trap you say? Back-stop? Don’t kid yourself. The gun is so inaccurate that at five paces it’ll miss a target completely, hit the edges of the pellet trap and ricochet unpredictably. At ten metres, it’ll go wide of the back-stop even. Well, I assume so: I have never had the nerve to fire this gun at anything more than about five metres, it feels so unpredictable as to where the shot will strike.
The secret behind this dreadful performance lies in that pathetic smooth-bore brass barrel.
Incidentally, the trigger is single action only. Whereas the real PPK has double action . For subsequent shots this is no issue as the slide cocks the hammer for you. This is a genuine semi-automatic mechanism. The other Umarex guns are in reality revolvers disguised as semi-auto’s.
Although evidently designed for steel BB’s and the magazine hates lead shot, the gun itself shoots much better with them. In spite of that smooth-bore barrel. The gun is fast, and therefore “fun”, but ultimately unsatisfactory when you realise that it shoots less well than you do! Almost uniquely in air-gunning.
I have read that it is possible to switch the barrel for a rifled one from another gun ( a Daisy ) and use lead shot with vastly improved accuracy However, this project is not straightforward as the barrel is not easily removed and you could end up with a pair of pistols that don’t shoot at all!
The shooting experience is quite fun, at first. But soon gets familiar. There is a lack of vigour about the gun. Not much kick even from the recoiling slide. It is also too quiet. I am not that bothered about the power of a gun, but for what it’s worth, with lead shot, this baby only punched to about 50 pages of the phone book compared to my Baikal Makarov’s 300 pages of penetration! Same book, same shot, roughly the same distance. Herein is a clue to the feebleness of the gun. Much of the gas is put into the blow-back mechanism and cocking the hammer.
I have not kept precise count, but my impression is that you get roughly fifty usable shots from one CO2 bulb.
If you want to experience that blow-back and a genuine semi-auto operation, then that is the strongest point of this item.
A distinctive quality of the genuine semi-auto mechanism is the lightness of the trigger, the mechanism being cocked for the next shot by each blow-back of the slide. This is something that the revolver mechanism in the fake semi-auto’s made by Umarex could never compare with.
As a collector, I appreciate this gun for it’s feel, operation, general appearance and look. It is an interesting object to handle and good as an example of...well, German CO2 guns at the end of the 20th Century. It is indicative of the terms in which the gun does appeal that it has grown on me as I have been writing about it, re-examining it in detail.
However, it is not a gun I can recommend except within those parameters. That is to say, no collection would be complete without it and it is also a fun gun for the once in a blue-moon shooter ( whether it is safe in such hands being a different matter ). But it is not suitable as a dedicated tool for a serious, enthusiastic shooter who wishes to invest in but one pistol with which to practice.
Many of the gun’s deficiencies are due to it having clearly been made to sell cheaply. However, the Baikal Makarov, a very similar gun ( sometimes referred to as a Russian copy of the PPK ) is not much more expensive and is superior in every respect although lacking the blow-back mechanism.
The price for this gun varies hugely. In the UK, the cheapest I know of is £55 from DAI Leisure Pursuits ltd. But most retailers ask for nearer £80. Some even higher. At £55 it is a good buy. At the higher prices, less so.
There is another version with a nickel slide, which I have not seen. Sadly, there is no version with nickel frame as well as slide. The real PPK is available in such an all stainless version but I do not know that there is one factory produced with nickel slide on a blued frame.
The CO2 bulb is inserted into the grip of the gun and tightened by a large knob under the butt. Many people have objected to the way the knob looks. Certainly a ring or lanyard swivel would have looked more in keeping with the general era of the gun. I have read that you can remove the knob and replace it with a driver-operated screw. That is a risky proposition, only for the technically confident. Personally, I don’t mind the knob but I do object to another detail. That is the safety catch. Whilst the real gun has a slide mounted catch, on the left, the CO2 pistol has a lever on the right of the frame. OK so far as it goes. But the original, inert, slide mounted catch is very poorly reproduced. It is simply part of the moulding as you would expect on a cheap airsoft model. Moreover, whilst the operating safety is marked with a nice inset red dot ( much smarter than a blob of paint and an admittedly sweet detail ) the red dot indicating “fire” mode on the real gun is not simulated at all on the fake safety. Presumably to prevent user confusion between the real and fake safety catches.
The overall look and feel of the gun is good and quite realistic. The grip plates are well reproduced and the trade-marks nicely inscribed ( although with additional inscriptions peculiar to the fact that it is a CO2 pistol, such as “Read the manual before use”, etc ). There are some very exact details around the gun, such as the subtle nip between the front sight blade and the textured rib along the top of the slide. But the poor detail of the fake safety-catch really spoils the whole result. Nor does it help to find that the breech block visible through the fairly well reproduced ejection port is black plastic. A soft, inappropriate looking plastic at that. The outer barrel is sadly made of this same cheap looking plastic.
One aspect of this design, which is the same as on the real gun, is that the trigger guard is not fixed but microscopically moveable. This makes the attachment of a laser to the trigger-guard, as widely advertised, rather a silly scheme.
Unfortunately, the heel of the grip frame is made entirely of that shiny, soft-looking plastic, being the floor of the butt, the bottom of the back strap and part of the block that contains the CO2 screw.
When it comes to loading the gun, the spring-loaded grip plate removes easily but is quite irritatingly fiddly to replace. Although it does grip very steadily once back in position. However, the stick magazine is incredibly feeble and fragile seeming. More feeble than the feeblest airsoft stick magazine. I sense it will snap in two very easily. I mean, you won’t need to accidentally step on it when it disappears into the ( even recently mown ) grass of the lawn, but just holding it without great care could, I fear, snap this pathetic effort. Compared to the solid steel magazine of the roughly similar Baikal Makarov CO2 pistol, this effort is simply a joke. Hilarious until you realise you have paid good money for it. Moreover, had those German engineers the ingenuity with which they are credited, they could have produced an all in one, full-size, gas and BB mag like that on the Baikal, rather than this feeble stick and removable grip effort. In mitigation, I must concede that the Makarov is modelled on a double stack grip that is a good bit wider than that of the PPK. Nonetheless, this magazine is very disappointing.
When it comes to firing the gun, the trigger is very light and the action delightfully smooth altogether. However, it is incredibly inaccurate. With steel BB’s they scatter so far and wide that it would, again, be hilarious, were it not positively dangerous. Pellet trap you say? Back-stop? Don’t kid yourself. The gun is so inaccurate that at five paces it’ll miss a target completely, hit the edges of the pellet trap and ricochet unpredictably. At ten metres, it’ll go wide of the back-stop even. Well, I assume so: I have never had the nerve to fire this gun at anything more than about five metres, it feels so unpredictable as to where the shot will strike.
The secret behind this dreadful performance lies in that pathetic smooth-bore brass barrel.
Incidentally, the trigger is single action only. Whereas the real PPK has double action . For subsequent shots this is no issue as the slide cocks the hammer for you. This is a genuine semi-automatic mechanism. The other Umarex guns are in reality revolvers disguised as semi-auto’s.
Although evidently designed for steel BB’s and the magazine hates lead shot, the gun itself shoots much better with them. In spite of that smooth-bore barrel. The gun is fast, and therefore “fun”, but ultimately unsatisfactory when you realise that it shoots less well than you do! Almost uniquely in air-gunning.
I have read that it is possible to switch the barrel for a rifled one from another gun ( a Daisy ) and use lead shot with vastly improved accuracy However, this project is not straightforward as the barrel is not easily removed and you could end up with a pair of pistols that don’t shoot at all!
The shooting experience is quite fun, at first. But soon gets familiar. There is a lack of vigour about the gun. Not much kick even from the recoiling slide. It is also too quiet. I am not that bothered about the power of a gun, but for what it’s worth, with lead shot, this baby only punched to about 50 pages of the phone book compared to my Baikal Makarov’s 300 pages of penetration! Same book, same shot, roughly the same distance. Herein is a clue to the feebleness of the gun. Much of the gas is put into the blow-back mechanism and cocking the hammer.
I have not kept precise count, but my impression is that you get roughly fifty usable shots from one CO2 bulb.
If you want to experience that blow-back and a genuine semi-auto operation, then that is the strongest point of this item.
A distinctive quality of the genuine semi-auto mechanism is the lightness of the trigger, the mechanism being cocked for the next shot by each blow-back of the slide. This is something that the revolver mechanism in the fake semi-auto’s made by Umarex could never compare with.
As a collector, I appreciate this gun for it’s feel, operation, general appearance and look. It is an interesting object to handle and good as an example of...well, German CO2 guns at the end of the 20th Century. It is indicative of the terms in which the gun does appeal that it has grown on me as I have been writing about it, re-examining it in detail.
However, it is not a gun I can recommend except within those parameters. That is to say, no collection would be complete without it and it is also a fun gun for the once in a blue-moon shooter ( whether it is safe in such hands being a different matter ). But it is not suitable as a dedicated tool for a serious, enthusiastic shooter who wishes to invest in but one pistol with which to practice.
Many of the gun’s deficiencies are due to it having clearly been made to sell cheaply. However, the Baikal Makarov, a very similar gun ( sometimes referred to as a Russian copy of the PPK ) is not much more expensive and is superior in every respect although lacking the blow-back mechanism.
The price for this gun varies hugely. In the UK, the cheapest I know of is £55 from DAI Leisure Pursuits ltd. But most retailers ask for nearer £80. Some even higher. At £55 it is a good buy. At the higher prices, less so.