Walther developing gas-delayed blowback pistol for concealed-carry

walther ccp

walther ccp magazineWalther Arms is working on an all-new single-stack pistol for concealed-carry that, on the surface, looks like a compact version of their flagship pistol, the PPQ. But inside the gun, the new Concealed Carry Pistol or CCP may have more in common with the Heckler & Koch P7.

The CCP uses the gas-delayed blowback method of operation, where gas pressure from a spent cartridge is used to slow down the rearward motion of the slide. This is a very unusual action that has only been used in a small handful of H&K and Steyr designs.

Walther calls it the “SoftCoil” system.

Gas-delayed blowback offers several advantages over conventional methods of operation. Primarily, it allows the gun to have a fixed barrel. These makes these guns inherently more mechanically accurate. The P7, the most well-known of the gas-delayed blowback pistols, is particularly renown for its accuracy.

Because the amount of recoil is proportional to the amount of gas pressure a cartridge produces, guns that use gas-delayed blowback can have smaller, lighter slides. This also means that they can be made with lighter recoil springs and are very easy to rack. The method also requires less physical space and promotes slender gun designs.

On the outside the CCP looks a whole lot like a shrunken PPQ, but after a closer look a few changes stand out.

It has a very similar slide profile and ergonomic, contoured and textured grip. The front is serrated at the front and back for alternative charging methods and press-checking the chamber.

walther ccp (2)It remains striker-fired and keeps the six-pound trigger, but the CCP has a less trigger takeup, down to 7mm from 9mm with the PPQ and instead of featuring a trigger safety the CCP has a manual thumb safety. It also has an internal drop safety.

The magazine release is an American-style thumb button, like on the PPQ M2, as opposed to the paddle release on the PPQ M1 and a handful of other Walther hanguns.

Obviously it has a smaller capacity, but it’s above-average for most single-stack 9mm handguns. The CCP has a capacity of 8+1. The barrel is a hair longer than most as well, measuring in at 3.5 inches. The barrel sports polygonal rifling.

Size-wise it is similar to the Walther PK380. It is 6.5 inches long by 5.1 inches tall and 1.2 inches wide across the controls. It weighs 22 ounces. This puts the CCP right between the PPQ and the PPS.

The CCP will come with factory 3-dot sights that are compatible with Walther P99, PPQ and PPS pistols, so there will be no waiting for the aftermarket to catch up.

Walther will offer the CCP with bare stainless slides or with a black Cerakote finish. The price has not been listed.

This isn’t a subcompact PPQ. There are too many changes to the very similar-looking design. But it’s interesting to the point where it will have a lot of Walther fans interested. And H&K fans, and Steyr fans and … for more details head over to the product page.

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