Working The Walther P38

The Walther P38 is among the most influential handguns of all time, having introduced the double action first shot and combination safety/decocker innovations to service pistols and spawning a number of imitators. It is arguable that the present service pistol, the Beretta 92, is simply a highly developed Walther P38 with a high capacity magazine. The Smith and Wesson Model 39 has been called the Americanized P38. The P38 was a result of Germany’s modernization move during the 1930s.

The Luger pistol was expensive to manufacture and maintain and the aging design was sensitive to ammunition types as well as debris. The Walther design was intended to be more effective and reliable, yet cheaper to manufacture. There were quite a few contenders, including some of Walther’s own enlarged PP type pistols chambered in 9mm Luger. Influence from J P Sauer, Mauser and Luger is seen in many of these handguns but Walther is produced a working example of the most modern service pistol of the 1930s.

The Walther design was adopted as the P38 in 1938 and became the standard issue handgun for German forces. Although Germans used many handgun types, including those captured from their enemies, the Walther was the official German service pistol. The P38 was among the first military handguns to use stampings for some parts, rather than forgings, and made extensive use of coil springs instead of flat springs. Stampings are cheaper and coil springs are easier to manufacture and more compact.

While the P38 pistols are consistent as far as design and parts interchangeability, it must be noted that a great contrast exists in the quality of fit and finish of P38 pistols. Early model Walther military P38s are very well made, as good as anyone’s service pistol. Fitting is flawless, the steel is among the best of any pistol in that era and the Bakelite grips are uniformly well made. As the war progressed and both labor and material was more scarce, the finish of the pistols degraded.

Late model pistols produced during 1944 and 1945 were often made with inferior materials and poor finishing. While I have never seen an example that seemed overly loose or rattled when shook, in some cases the pistols may be unsafe to fire. It is an even bet that reports of the pistol firing when the decocker is actuated to lower the hammer on a loaded chamber or reports of the slide cracking may most often be traced to these inferior handguns produced late in the war.

While a modernized service pistol compared to the Luger, the Walther P38 requires comparatively more machine work and hand fitting than practically any modern double action pistol produced since and is an interesting pistol to work with. Generations In the later part of World War Two the original Walther plant was destroyed. Walther moved their plant to Elm and resume manufacture of the P38. There were several slight design changes, such as making the slide easier to manufacture and less likely to crack.

In the 1950s, when submitting the P38 for German military trials Walther used aluminum alloy for the receiver instead of the steel frame of the older pistols. The German Bundswehr adopted the pistol in 1957 as a standard issue, designating the new aluminum alloy receiver version the P1. The subsequent P1 pistol was used by the military and select police departments well into the 1980s.

It is interesting to note that the P1 features very subtle changes in slide geometry compared to the P38 which, to the best of my knowledge, intended to prevent slide cracking. Another feature of the P1 to enhance strength is the addition of a pin in the aluminum receiver. It should be noted that the P1 is a thoroughly modern police service pistol equal to or superior to that produced by any nation. As a rule, feed reliability with wide mouth hollow points or function with +Por +P+ ammunition is never a problem.

Wear and abuse, however, are another matter. Over the years I have worked many P38s. During my time in police training a number of the old hands kept one as an example of what a good automatic pistol should be. Unfortunately the pistol was also a favorite of the more dangerous type of outlaw. As a result of this popularity many were seen in action and were confiscated by police. While a fine pistol, long, hard use takes its toll.

The many thousands of P1 pistols imported are often in excellent shape and well maintained, but the quality of fit and finish is not of the usual Walther commercial grade. Good WWII-era P38s we are likely to see in the shop have often been shot to death. As an example, it was once common to see an enthusiastic hand loader bring a P38 into the shop with the top slide cover blown off! Without sounding reactionary I would advise shooters not to trust the decocker of any original P38.

Wear and a less-than-practiced reassembly figures into this equation. Any shooter grade P1 or P38 should have the original springs replaced with WC Wolff units. Magazines are often worn and it is the springs or

These surplus handguns have been offered for as little as $300. Some are much rougher than the example illustrated. magazine that are often the culprit with feeding issues. You have to decide if the issue is cycle related and replace the springs, or feed related and replace the magazine. Spare magazines are available from Triple K, a good resource for good quality magazines for older pistols.

When the P38 or P1 comes into the shop, usually the fix is springs, sometimes a worn locking wedge and other times Anyone familiar with the Beretta will be at home with the P1 and P38. the pistol should be scrapped. We will look at disassembly and other replacement procedures. Disassembly We begin the procedure the same as with any self loading pistol. Remove the magazine and clear the chamber. Set the magazine aside. Push the safety on. Lock the slide to the rear using the slide stop.

The barrel American Gunsmithing Association

In this illustration the lever is in the disassemble position. The locking wedge appears original and is stamped with the small star that denotes production after the French took over the Walther plant in 1945. The rest of the pistol is well worn but the locking wedge is in fine condition. retaining latch, borrowed from the Luger, is rotated forward. Carefully release the slide and run it forward and off of the frame.

Turn the slide upside down to expose the locking block or oscillating wedge, a design borrowed from the Mauser C96. There is a pin in the locking block that is pressed to move the block and separate the slide and barrel. Pay careful attention to the locking block. These have been known to crack. I have seen the service life of the locking block quoted at 3,500 rounds, although this may be a bit low, and I have seen the Beretta 92 outperform this standard by a considerable margin.

Still, they should be inspected on a regular basis. It is not unusual to see anew locking block in surplus P1 pistols. The edges should be sharp and not show eccentric wear. If the locking block is worn it will function but eccentric wear indicates the locking block should be replaced. Moving to the slide, there is both a firing pin and a loaded chamber indicator. The loaded chamber indicator is often referred to in period literature as the indicator pin.

Loaded chamber indicators area typical part in European handgun design of the period. Beretta dispensed with this feature in their Model 92 and instead use the extractor as a loaded chamber indicator. Working off of the breechface, use a screwdriver to press the indi- The slide has cracked and been repaired toward the front. Another crack is appearing just below the open top of the slide.

The cover is pressed forward and up. cator pin inside the slide and insert the tip of the blade of the screwdriver just under the long flat part of the slide cover. This part, which also holds the rear sight, is the slide cover. Be careful that the rear sight does not fall as you check and disassemble the slide. The trick is to press the cover upwards slightly at the same time that you press forward, freeing the slide cover. Very few handguns feature a detachable slide cover of this type. I have seen

Take care in handling this part. more that one of these blown off of the slide, as far as I can tell most by a very hot hand load. Interestingly, the rare P6 was among the last Walther pistols of this design and does not have a slide cover. As for the last pistol I examined with a blown slide cover, the pistol was undamaged and worked just fine after reassembly. I did use a brass bunch to peen the part but only slightly, and then replaced the slide cover with no other modification.

To completely strip the slide you may remove the firing pin spring, firing pin retainer and indicator pin and spring by prying them out with the smallest screwdriver in your kit. To remove the firing pin, the safety lever must be moved to the fire position. This is a good time to memorize the relationship of these small parts. Next, you may remove the safety lever. This isn’t tricky but there is only one way to remove the lever.

The safety lever is positioned mid way between the on safe and off safe position for removal. A last bit of advice here. Often as not there is an accumulation of varnished oil and grease in the slide. The parts may seem stuck but a thorough cleaning solves a lot of problems. Next, we will move to the frame. Remove the grips first. To relieve tension on the hammer, begin by The grips and attached spring keep the drawbar in place. depressing the magazine catch.

The easiest way is to exert pressure against the work bench. When the pivot pin on the catch is in position for removal, which it is due to the removal of the grips, remove the magazine catch and the hammer spring. You are now field stripped and ready for spring replacement. The P38 and P1 pistols each use dual recoil springs. Beretta went to a simpler design, with a single spring

One of the locking wedges has been replaced. You would do well to memorize the position of all small parts if you are planning on working with the action. in the conventional manner, but in many ways the dual springs allow for a very compact pistol. To remove the recoil springs, insert a small screwdriver about eight coils from the front of the spring guide. Compress the recoil spring as much as possible, then slip the spring guide out of the frame.

The recoil spring is then carefully allowed to release tension and is lifted out. Replace the springs of the pistol and restore it to normal operating condition. This is as far as I usually go in disassembling the Walther pistol for replacing springs. The common problem areas such as the wedge and spring replacement are easily handled at this point. If you wish to disassemble the piece further, you may remove the trigger bar or drawbar.

The drawbar may be pulled from the frame once the spring behind the drawback is loosened, which maintains pressure against the drawbar, keeping it in place. The trigger is pinned into the frame and there is no real reason to remove it. If you do remove it is simply a pinned-in affair similar to the High Power or Beretta 92. Make certain you memorize or record the position of the trigger return spring. I have never seen a bent drawbar but the part isn’t very substantial for the work it does.

Common Problems I mentioned the slide cover being blown off. This part is quite thin and This is the hammer spring assembly. ham-handed or ten-thumbed owners often ruin this piece, usually by trying to beat it back on. There is a certain finesse needed in the sliding motion to the rear and down that replaces this part. While it may be peened and reshaped it will probably need replacement. The other problem is a locking wedge with eccentric wear.

Finally, some of the aluminum frames of the P1 seem a little softer than others. I have seen several with bad dents. Simple spring replacement will cure most function problems. AG