I found one at a local store for $540.00 (NIB)
a. Is this a good price?

This model has a trigger similar to the Glock (not DA/SA).

b. Does anyone have any experience with this pistol?

Before the comparison start, I have played with the Glock 22, Sig 229, USP 40. The Walther simply intrigues me.

Regards

ACK

I am not surprised it intrigues you.  I own one in .40S&W.  If the one you are considering is new, that is an excellent price.

The P-99 is flat out, the best damn pistol I have ever owned.  I have owned Colt 1911s, Sigs, Rugers, and some others...and this one is the best of the lot.  I tried out several autos before I settled on this one, including an H&K USP in .45 ACP.  I have medium sized hands and the H&K was just to large for me.  

My P-99 is now my constant companion and I like it for the following reasons:

-Totally smooth exterior.  Nothing to catch, snag or gouge.
-Butter smooth trigger action...long, but smooth.
-SA/DA.
-Adjustable hand grips come in three sizes to fit virtually any hand size.
-Accessory rail.
-Polymer for weight reduction.
-Excellent finish.
-Large trigger guard for use with gloves and with external ridges for stable two-hand combat grips and positive control.
-Ambidextrous mag releases.  Emptys drop free easily.
-Single action/loaded chamber indicator at the rear of the slide, both visual and tactile
-VERY easy takedown.  This pistol breaks into three basic parts for ease of cleaning.  It is the easiest weapon to clean I have ever owned.
-Finally, it is damn accurate.

At the risk of getting into a pissing contest with my cyberland brethren here...I believe this pistol may be the best on the market.  I would like to see it made in .45 but then I'd give up ammo capacity.

FWIW, I did make one mod:  I added some Tritium night sights.

Buy the pistol...you won't be disappointed...and that is a good price.

[soapbox]

LWilde:  I’m not trying to hijack ACK’s thread – hopefully he won’t mind me asking a few questions:

1 - Assuming you’re holding the Walther in your right hand, is it possible to decock with that hand or do you need to use your left hand?

2 - I assume the only way to cock the pistol for the first shot is to cycle the action and toss a round.  Correct?

3 - Does the Walther magazine have an overly large floorplate that sticks in your side when carried as an extra in a belt pouch?

4 - Is it necessary to pull the trigger before disassembly (like a Glock)?

5 - Is a double strike possible (That is, if a round doesn’t go off the first time the trigger is pulled, can you simply pull the trigger again to restrike the round – or is it like a Glock where the slide must be cycled to partially recock the striker)?

6 - I’ve read elsewhere that Beretta 92 mags will fit (possibly with some alteration).  Know anything about that?

Thanks.

Apologies again to ACK for jumping in here.

Edited to add that I assume the Beretta 92 mags would have to be for 40 S&W if that's the caliber of the Walther.

I agree with LWilde, and here is my P99 in 9mm:

[img]www.ar15.com/members/albums/AR%5FRifle%2F92%2Ejpg[/img]

I have to agree with LWILDE...I'm on my 2nd P99 and think they are fantastic...
I'm a complete 1911 bigot...when I bought my first P99 (.40) I was wondering why I was buying this gun with the funny trigger as I filled out the paperwork...then I shot it...amazingly accurate and easy to shoot...
Then I let a friend shoot it...he liked it so much he made me an offer I couldn't refuse...
I bought another a few months later...this one was a 9mm and it shoots just as well as my first one

Walther lowered it's prices last week, by $142 a gun for the P99.
$540 is a middle of the road price with the new price schedule.
[url]www.youngsguns.com[/url] has them for $511.
On a different thread, a guy reported buying one for $469, at a gun show, over the weekend.

Whatever you decide, make sure it's an all German made and assembled gun.
If it's an all German gun, it will have proof marks on the right top back of the slide, on the right top back of the barrel, and on the right front of the frame, forward of the trigger guard. The proofmark is an N with eagle wings around and above it.

After spending a lot of time trying to find an online dealer who could guarantee an all German gun, meeting anything from a "huh" to a "you don't know what you're talking about" and going to several nearby shops, none of which had a Walther in the confguration I wanted, and who either scratched their heads when I talked about all German, or wouldn't order what I wanted with the condition that I'd get my deposit back if it wasn't all German, I said f**ck-it, and ordered from [url]www.waltherusa.net[/url].

$549 plus $35 shipping, but it's worth the extra money just to have peace of mind.  

Agreed.  I didn't want the American S&W SW-99.  Of note though...sometimes the Walther mags are hard to find.  I can always find the SW-99 mags and they are perfect copies.

Enjoy your pistol...

1.  I use my left hand.  The decocker is on the top rear of the slide, flush with the slide.  An easy push down and the pistol is decocked.  I don't see how you could use the right.  The mag release is ambidextrous.

2.  Incorrect.  I carry with the pistol ready to fire.  All it requires is positive action by the shooter.  Unlike my 1911 which had a cockable hammer, such that to carry it at the ready with one in the pipe, you must have hammer back and safety on...this auto functions thusly:  One in the pipe, fully reloaded mag in the pistol, action/trigger decocked.  This means the first shot will be DA with a long but smooth trigger pull.  Subsequent rounds will be SA.  Somewhat like a Glock if you are familiar with that pistol.

3.  No.  It is not overly large.  It fits flush with the pistol and extends just a bit beyond the mag sides.  This makes it easy to grasp and extract quickly from my mag pouch.

4.  You must decock it first.  Breaking the pistol down is really easy.  Start by removing the magazine, clear the chamber, decock the striker, push down on the barrel catch tabs located on either side above the trigger and pull the slide forward off the frame. Then remove the recoil spring and barrel as you normally would with most other autos.

5.  Pull it again!  Since the pistol remains in DA until a round is fired, you can just cycle the trigger again...and again...and again.  That's a good question...I've never had it happen.  Hope I'm right on this.

6.  Not sure.  My son told me the same story.  I haven't tried it yet.  Since this is my constant companion and I depend on it for my life, I use only P-99 mags.

Hope this helps.  Go try one...you'll like it.

[:D]

The_Beer_Slayer and LWilde:  Thanks for your responses; they really help (I’ll be Walther hunting this weekend).

I botched question 2 – I meant do you need to cycle the slide to fire the first round SA instead of DA.  I’m pretty sure the answer is yes so please don’t bother responding.  (I also belatedly noticed that ACK was looking at a different trigger mechanism, which I didn’t know existed.)

Apologies again to ACK, I’ll shut up now.

[size=3] I WANT ONE...- IN .45![/SIZE=3]

is it ever gonna happen?

Hey, the new 22lr version of it is preaty kewl too, makes for a great sub caliber trainer at a very good price.

Actually, you only need to pull the slide back about a half inch, maybe less, to get it to cock and go into SA.  It can easily be done without ejecting the chambered round.

I wish!

True enough.

199 Not to worry, the more input/comments the better the thread.
Please note that the QA action has a shorter trigger pull than the conventional DA/SA mode. Main peeve with some users.
http://www.walther-usa.com/p99_specs.htm
shows a neat comparison graph.
Armed_Scientist: crap I forgot about the little beast. Looks like I will be spending more money.

Regards

ACK

ACK-  In what store did you find it?  My brother has a standard model in .40 but I prefer the QA trigger.  Most shops up here in the Bay Area run around 650-750 with the guns and every once in a while Trader's has them for 599.  Haven't seen any evidence of this price cut at any of the local shops.

Some first p99 were offered in 9x21 too.
Anyone here got one ?

Additional info (since ACK doesn’t seem to mind):

Went to a gun show today and found a dealer displaying the following Walther P99’s:

40 S&W, Quick Action, green frame, black slide, $519
9MM, SA/DA, green frame, black slide, $529
9MM, SA/DA, black frame, matte silver colored slide, $569.

All of them had the German proof marks mentioned by Crookshanks, above.

The dealer described the P99 with the silver slide as stainless.  While I found the gun on Walther’s web site, they don’t say what kind of steel the P99 slides are made of.  The green/black P99 looks much sharper IMHO.

I wanted a SA/DA .40, which naturally he didn’t have.  The dealer told me to call him this week and he would order it for me.  He said he believed the price had just gone down.  He gave me the impression the P99’s he had at the show had the older, higher price (I hope, I hope, I hope!!), though frankly I think he is mistaken.

Incidentally, a large local sporting goods store (Gaylan’s Trading Post) has the apparently inferior S&W version for $599.

Greetings:
Sorry about the delay. Actually it was at a Turners in Orange County. When I saw it a coworker was with me. When I returned for a second look it was gone. I wonder if the SOB got it?
I called other Turners. None in the warehouse but they might have them in display.

Regards
ACK

The Walther P99 Quick Action made one single important improvement to the P99..the trigger

The Glock type trigger on the P99 was too long, the trigger pressed too far back to get a good shot and the raise on the trigger guard hindered shooting the weapon.

They fixed it on the QA model, i think it might be a tad heavier but it breaks with a shorter trigger pull.

"The dealer described the P99 with the silver slide as stainless."  
According to the catalog the silver slide is the P99QPQ. The slide is hardened steel Tenifer coated.

At Turners (CA sporting good store) they had a P99QPQ standard DA/SA for $539.99 and the blue Smith model for $519.99

The P99QA has the price of $539.99 They found one at a different store, they will make a transfer and if I like its condition I will take it.

Of course this is the start. I will be requiring a holster, extra magazines, brass, bullets, reloading dies, new plate for the old Dillon, perhaps a tactical light. Then I will have to spend time at the range, chronograph a few factory loads then the reloads. Then a P22 for training. Perhaps someone will make a 357 Sig barrel...

Thanks for all the support