The upgrade will be performed at no charge to you. For free shipping, please enter your information here, and complete the online form. NOT ALL PPS M2 MODELS ARE AFFECTED. Be sure to VERIFY that your serial number is affected by the recall before shipping your gun back for the recall. After completion of the form a confirmation email will be sent including shipping information.
The upgrade will be done at no charge to you. For free shipping, please enter your information here, and complete the online form, making sure to include the serial number. After completion of the form a confirmation email will be sent including shipping information.
Walther serial numbers
Please contact Walther Arms via phone (479) 242-8500 or email us using the Contact Us form if your PPK or PPK/S serial number is within the range of recalled guns. Our customer service team will provide you with an RA#, Return Form, and a PrePaid FedEx label.
The ArmeePistole (army pistol) was the very first prototype/predecessor of the P38 and was already produced in 1935 by Walther in small quantities (highest serial number known is 55). This pistol had a concealed hammer and extractor. Only a handfull of those pistols were produced because the German army decided to go for the more advanced P38. The grips have a very distinct look. They are checkered and have round loopholes for the lanyard.
The Walther HP (Heerespistole) was produced in parallel with the P38 for the commercial market. Production started halfway 1939. About 25.000 HP pistols were produced in mainly 9mm and also a few in 7.65mm. Around 1500 Walther HP pistols (serial number range 1000-2500) were exported to Sweden in 1939-40 to be used by the Swedish army under the name m/39. The grips of the Swedish m/39 have round loopholes for the lanyard and are checkered.
The 0-Series was the first official P38 variation issued to the German army. This variation is produced between june 1939 and may 1940. Serial numbers of this variation always start with a 0, hence the name 0-Series. Determination of a 0-Series pistol is easy. The Walther banner and P38 model indication are stamped on the left side of the slide with the serial number next to it. All parts of the 0-Series pistols are stamped with the Walther acceptance stamp E/359 and the sight is painted White/red. The bakelite grips are black checkered and have a round loophole for the lanyard. Most of the P38 pistols produced after this variation have rectangular loopholes. Magazines are stamped on the housing with the respective serial number and spare mags have an additional + in front of the serial number.
In 1940 the German army decided to use secret codes on weapons to designate the manufacture. The Germans were afraid that the Allied forces could easily locate the German weapon production sites and bomb them when they knew the manufacturer. In June and July 1940 Walther used the secret code 480. The pistols produced in this period are therefore stamped with 480. The serial number was stamped on the slide. A schematical drawing is shown below. 480 is also stamped on the triggerguard.
The secret code 480 for the Walther factory was already abandoned after two months use and replaced by a new code. This new code was ac and was introduced in august 1940. In addition to the secret code the last two digits of the year of production were also stamped on the slide. There are periods were ac + production year were stamped next to eachother and periods where this combination was stacked. Most of the serial numbers also have a suffix letter.
Walther used serial numbers ranging from 1 to 10,000. The firm started over at 1 when the number 10,000 was reached. To ensure that every pistol had a unique serial number, the Germans added a suffix letter. The letter went up one character each time the serial number once more started at 1. At the beginning of a new year, both the serial numbers and suffix letters again started over. The first 10,000 pistols produced at the start of the year had no suffix letter. For example: The 25,000th pistol produced in a certain year had serial number 5000b,and the 35,000th pistol produced had serial number 5000c. The combination of year + serial number + suffix (or no suffix for the first 10,000 pistols) is unique for every pistol. From this combination it is easy to determine the production date of the pistol. The goal of every P38 manufacturer was to produce 10.000 P38 pistols every month. So every month started with a higher suffix letter. Below is a picture of an ac variation.
Mauser employed a comparable serial numbering system to the one used by Walther. Serial numbers ranged from 1 to 10,000. Mauser started over at serial number 1 each time the number 10,000 was reached. After the first 10,000 pistols were completed, the firm added a suffix letter to ensure that each pistol had a unique serial number. The suffix letter increased each time the plant started at serial number 1 again. In contrast to Walther, Mauser did not start over with serial numbers at the beginning of every year. After reaching serial number10,000z in late 1944, Mauser started again with serial number 1, without a letter suffix. The combination serial number + suffix + production year is unique for every Mauser pistol.The Mauser acceptance stamp is E/135 (until midd 1944) and E/WaA135 (late 1944-45). In total 323.000 P.38 pistols were produced by Mauser during the Nazi regime.
The third manufacturer of P38 pistols was the Spreewerk factory. Spreewerk production started in 1942 and the secret code was cyq. Spreewerk also used serial numbers with suffix letters and applied to same serial numbering system as Mauser. In february 1945 a pistol with serial number 10000z was produced and a new way of counting had to be introduced because all the letters from the alphabet were finished. Spreewerk decided to start recounting but instead of putting a suffix letter they now decided to use a prefix letter. So the first serial number after 10000z became a1. Two months later the Germans decided to abandon this form of counting and introduced a new system. A0 was now place before the serial number and no suffix/prefix letter was added anymore. This variation was called the zero seriesSpreewerk variation. The Russian army conquered the factory one month later and around 100 more pistols were produced under Russian control before the factory was dismantled. Pistols produced under Russian control have a serial number that start with 00 in stead of one 0 and this variation is called the double zero series variation. In total 282.080 pistols were produced by the Spreewerk factory. The inspection stamp 88 (E/88) was used by the Spreewerk factory.
For most of the P38 pistols it is really easy to determine the production date from the markings on the pistol (manufacturer + serial number + prefix/suffix letter). A handy guide to determine production dates of your wartime P38 can be found below. Also links to other technical data are included.
This variant was produced between 1920 and 1926. Serial numbers range from 390000 to about 480000, and around 84,000 first variant guns were manufactured. The breech assembly, consisting of the breech block, firing pin, firing pin spring, and the extractor, was removable, with no external extractor visible. The firing pin is retained in the breech block by a projection on the extractor. A small latch on the trigger guard releases it for disassembly.[1]
Produced between 1927 and 1933 or 1934, this variant has serial numbers from about 700000 to 720000. The breech block is integrated into the slide, with a spring and plunger in a drilled recess to retain the external extractor. A plate and screw hold the firing pin at the rear of the slide. There is still a latch button for disassembly on the right side of the trigger guard. After 1927, the Walther banner was stamped on the grips and on the bottom of the magazines, which had a U-shaped flat follower, closed at the front.
Early guns proofed prior to 1 September 1911 have the double-crown-over-U proof mark on the right side of the slide in front of the chamber. After 1 September 1911 the crown-over-N nitro proof mark is found. According to Marschall, the change from double-crown-over-U to crown-over-N took place around serial number 3500. Please contact me if you have a gun in this serial number range.* I know that serial number 3502 has the crown-over-N proof but I also know that guns were not always proofed in serial number order. Grip plates are of checkered hard rubber with the CW monogram in an oval at the top.
The one button variation was made through at least serial number 14506. Dieter Marschall states that the Second Variation begain around serial number 15500. Please contact me if you have a gun in this range that would give us more precise information on when the First Variation ended.*
Somewhere between serial numbers 17000 and 19000 (please write if you can help clarify this change*) we begin to see guns that display the following one-line slide inscription above the Walther banner:
Messerfabirk Vulkan G.m.b.H (The Vulkan Knife Factory) is listed in Die Werkzeugmaschine, Volume 8 (April 1904) as having previously been named Vereinigte Messerfabriken G.m.b.H (United Knife Factory). Very little is known about these pistols. The numbers on these guns appear to be in the standard Walther series, but the only ones I have observed are very high serial numbers. Walther Model 3 pistols are also found with identical markings. 2ff7e9595c
Comments