Walter P-38 Pistol

Information, photos, references, and trivia on the WW2 Walther P.38 and post-war P38 pistol. If you wish to link to this page, please link only to the main page, not sub-pages or documents. Please do not rip off my PDF files or pictures for your own site. Updated 20 Feb 2014 17:33 -0800. The pistol P38 has an external hammer. The combination of a perfect action design, made evident in the Walther self-loading pistols having an external hammer, and the constant readiness of a revolver makes the enormous advantages of these weapons abundantly manifest. The P38 is a Double-Action, locked-breech, semi-automatic pistol.

The Walther P-38 was the world’s first militarily acceptable double-action pistol and is so advanced that every modern military (and most civilian) double-action pistols are patterned after it.

It features:

• Double or Single action modes
• Fixed military sights
• Loaded chamber indicator
• Complete with all original NAZI military markings

Presented here in a Collector’s Presentation Case, the P-38 comes in a French-fitted American Walnut presentation case that is serially numbered with the P-38’s serial number, forever tying them together! The case has a serially numbered Knights Cross that rests below the barrel. The inside is lined with heavy red velvet. The Presentation Grade P-38 is a tribute to engineering excellence, not to the governments that used it.

This is a walther nazi p38 rig 'custom engraved', 9mm. The pistol is in very good condition, number mathing, very good bore and grips, mechanically correct (it will shoot).

Welcome to ALPS

Information, photos, references, and trivia on the WW2 Walther P.38 and post-war P38 pistol. If you wish to link to this page, please link only to the main page, not sub-pages or documents. Please do not rip off my PDF files or pictures for your own site. Thanks.

Updated 20 Feb 2014 17:33 -0800

Quick Launch: [Jump to Pistols] [Jump to Information] [Jump to Catalogs]

1. Examine the P-38. With the pistol pointing to your left, look at the main metal assembly holding the barrel, with the trigger directly underneath. On the extreme left, 'P38' is stamped into the metal. On the first issue, or '0' series, the trademark Walther banner is found at.
2. The Walther P-38 was the world’s first militarily acceptable double-action pistol and is so advanced that every modern military (and most civilian) double-action pistols are patterned after it.

Most Recent updates:

Two more 'BTH12' pistols have been reported. See 'BTH12' under 'Pistols'

Added 'When was my post-war pistol made?' to 'Information'

Added another late date AC frame pistol to 'Pistols'

Added some late war pistols to 'Pistols'

Pistol Information

An excellent article by Peter Kokalis on thewartime P.38 pistolcan be found here, and another article on thepost-war P38here.

Cached

My post-war pistol has no date or date code - about when was it manufactured? You can get a rough estimate based upon these observed pistols.

Need to replace a broken WW2 slide part with a post-war part, and don't know if the new part will fit? Read the slide part compatibility guide. Note: this information is intended as a guide only. I am not a gunsmith. If you do not have working knowledge of the P.38 pistol, consult a competent gunsmith before attempting to effect repairs to your P.38.

Over the long term, will oil cause bakelite grips to deteriorate? An attempt to find out startshere.And continuesafter one year... and finally ends at three plus years.

Atarian's quick reference magazine guide.Helps to identify which magazine is correct for your pistol.

Walther P38 Pistol Ammunition

Atarian's post-war reproduction and aftermarket grip guide.Some of the currently available non-World War II grips for the P.38.

Can a 'dipped' pistol be 'un-dipped?' The answer is yes, and quite successfully. Take a look atzero series cyq serial number 030.

Drawings and Manuals

P38 Owner's Manual (multilingual - 4.8 MB). P38 Owner's Manual v2 (multilingual - 6.2 MB). P38 Operating Instructions (multilingual - 1.2 MB, source: Walther Germany). P38 Owner's Manual (1 MB, source: Interarms(?)). P38 Owner's Manual (edited for clarity - Thanks to Quentin for providing this).

German military drawings of the 9mm Patrone: page 1, page 2, page 3, and page 4.

P.38 manual from 1940 (German) - Thanks to Johan and Ron Clarin for providing this.

P.38 illustrated parts breakdown (German - 95KB, source: Walther Germany).

Explanation of the markings on a post-war P38/P1 (source: Federal Foreign Office – Division 241, Germany).

Time Wasters

Test your P.38 knowledge with the P.38 quiz!

Auction Antics - Fantastic stories and overpriced pistols:

Walther P38 Pistol Grips

Articles and Advertisements

Information on the P.38from the 2008 Walther catalog.

The Defense Intelligence Agency's Small Caliber Ammunition Identification Guide. German ammunition section (213kb) or the entire document (10.1Mb).

Small arms section of the Handbook on German Military Forces.

Pricing ofStoeger's Mod HPs and Lugers(1948).

Stoeger's guide to World War II pistols circa 1948 (page 1, page 2).

Miscellaneous

A baker's dozen of Walther post-war slide legend variations(this is far from all-inclusive).

Here's what a P.38 frame looks like before the machining process begins.

Information Exchange Pursuant to the OSCE Document on Small Arms and Light Weapons 2003, 2008, 2010. Note in 2002 the United States was by far the largest importer of German 'Revolvers and Self-Loading Pistols' with 1,040,985 imported (of 1,082,797 - the balance of 41,812 or about 4% going to 20 other countries), while the Germans destroyed only 5,666 'surplus' pistols. In 2009 the US imported none and 17,520 surplus pistols were destroyed (none were exported to any country). See Annexes 2 and 3.

Patent Information

Fritz Walther's 'automatic pistol,' patent number 2135992 dated November 8, 1938 (English).

Fritz Walther's 'automatic firearm,' patent number 2145328 dated January 31, 1939 (English).

P .38 Pistols For Sale - World War 2 Era | Legacy Collectibles

Walther pistol patents 1926 to 1942 (German).

Walther P38 Pistol Clip

Interarms was a long-time importer of products from Walther and many other manufacturers. Browse some of their catalogs here.