So I have not cleaned or shot this thing in years but every once and a while I will slap in a magazine and rack the slide and stick it in my pocket.... did that last week and then did not check to see if a round was chambered... got home and dropped the magazine and went to eject the chambered round.... no round chambered.... seems it will not chamber a round.... not even standard ball ammo.... I guess I will figure out how to take this critter apart and clean and lube but does anybody have an idea of what is going on... does not matter about the magazine... I've tried several. Have never had this happen on any of my other semi-autos.

From what you have described, a good cleaning would be the first step, also give the magazines a good cleaning.

I don't know how much you know about the PPK so it's hard to know where to start as far as taking it apart. If you know how to take the slide off then that is about all you might need to do to give it a good cleaning.

I think I have a manual some where... could not figure out how to get the slide off last night...
looks like I'll have to read the instructions.

the ppk is one of my least favorite pistols in my collection but it does slip in a pocket with a holster well.....

Just looked... no manual time for a google search.

A stainless Interarms import PPK was my first handgun purchase and was my off duty/backup gun for a number of years.

In my experience, to properly load the pistol you need to vigorously rack the slide. Any hint of riding the slide forward will result in a round not chambering.

Removing the slide is not that difficult once you learn the trick. You need to pull down on the trigger guard and hold it down with your index finger of one hand. With the other hand, pull the slide fully to the rear. Once it is fully to the rear, lift the rear of the slide away from the frame. Once it is clear, you can push it forward and off the barrel.

Or ... do what I do when I forget how to remove a slide ... "Youtube" it!

Another trick for removing the slide is to pull down on the front of the trigger guard and place a credit card or something similar between the the trigger guard and the frame and then do like tk13 described. Make sure the gun is unloaded first!

If your PPK has been sitting unused for a long time the old lube has probably dried and a good cleaning should resolve your feeding issues.

What caliber is your PPK?

I have an old PPK/S but it has a very visible loaded chamber indicator pin the sticks out towards the hammer. Once you fix it I would check this, unless PPK’s don’t have it.

This is an Interarms Stainless PPK.... and it has the loaded chamber pin on the back...

Thanks for the help.. I got the slid off and have to say I have not seen a gun that dirty since some guys ran wolf ammo through my mini-30... and I guess that is all on me.... I soaked the heck out of it with foaming CLP and then whipped it down and sprayed it all again and etc.... seems to chamber a round fine now... One of the magazines looks pretty dirty too.

quote:

Originally posted by tk13:
Removing the slide is not that difficult once you learn the trick. You need to pull down on the trigger guard and hold it down with your index finger of one hand.

+1. It's actually a pretty cool feature which eliminates the need for a separate disassembly lever. Walther recommends after pulling the front of the trigger guard free of the receiver, pressing it slightly sideways (either right or left) and allowing the front of the guard to rest upon the bottom of the receiver. Light pressure with an extended index finger will keep the trigger guard from springing back into the closed position.

Is the rubber grip thing NOT allowing the magazines to seat fully? I've seen that occasionally with those things.

Nope, like I said... I got the slide off and soaked everything in some foaming CLP and then cleaned and scrubbed and then repeated...and now a round chambers easily... will take it to the range next week and see if it works.... have not shot it in years but it always did before.... but what every ammo I used years ago sure was dirty.

quote:

Originally posted by pedropcola:
I have an old PPK/S but it has a very visible loaded chamber indicator pin the sticks out towards the hammer. Once you fix it I would check this, unless PPK’s don’t have it.

The PPK/S LCI is excellent – the only LCI that I actually like. Visible to you, but not the BG. And, in the dark, you can feel it with your thumb without shifting your grip.

My CA SIG P238 has a “shark fin” LCI, which I hate.

And old field strip trick is to pull down the trigger guard and place a pencil in between the guard and the frame so you don’t need to use your finger to hold it open. Use caution with field strip, I’ve lost some meat off my finger more often with that pistol than any other I’ve ever owned...

I have not been around the forum lately and I am surprised and gratified to see continuing interest in the Walther PPK/S. Some of us love this pistol (& I do) with its 1930s technology and baked enameled friction plate to accomplish double action – looks like an enameled tin cup surface if you have ever been inside. I did some feed ramp polishing when I received mine and it has not had feeding issues with ball or hollow point ammo of standard pressures. They have a snappy blow-back action to begin with. When I was younger, I did experiment with Double Tap and it only took three rounds to find out they would cause a feeding issue. One or two rounds might feed OK but as the magazine spring tension got progressively less, the top round in the mag would be shocked into a more forward position in the mag and the round would hang-feed. Also, the blow-back shock was too powerful with the recoil spring being specified for standard pressures. Used as designed it has been reliable. Love the LCI! Enjoy!

It doesn't sound like a gun you should be carrying IMHO.

I probably mentioned it but the only reason I got the Walther out was I watched a Hicock 45 video on pocket carry and he changed my opinion on this 180 degrees....

In a questionable situation you can just have you hand in your pocket on the pistol and not look threatening at all.... I'd still rather have a Sig P239 or P226, preferably in 357 sig, on my side but sometimes that just won't work.

quote:

Originally posted by Blume9mm:
I probably mentioned it but the only reason I got the Walther out was I watched a Hicock 45 video on pocket carry and he changed my opinion on this 180 degrees....

In a questionable situation you can just have you hand in your pocket on the pistol and not look threatening at all.... I'd still rather have a Sig P239 or P226, preferably in 357 sig, on my side but sometimes that just won't work.

That rationale makes sense. I was more commenting on the fact that it appears (to me at least) that you put a non-functioning (dirty) gun in your pocket that you don't have any practice/range time with.

Yep, you are right and it was a mistake.... for sure.

I took the Walther to my gun club today and put about 20 rounds or more through it and it functioned flawlessly. At about 15 feet I was shooting 5" Groups with hardly aiming.

I'll clean and lube it and feel comfortable carrying it now.

quote:

Originally posted by Blume9mm:
Yep, you are right and it was a mistake.... for sure.

I took the Walther to my gun club today and put about 20 rounds or more through it and it functioned flawlessly. At about 15 feet I was shooting 5" Groups with hardly aiming.

I'll clean and lube it and feel comfortable carrying it now.

I'm glad its working for you now. I've always loved the looks of that classic pistol. I guess that ages me. :-)

One of my 'poor' jokes is Sean Connery must have small hands because the Walther looks a lot bigger in those movies ....