Send us your own comments about this object.

Title:	PISTOL, SEMI-AUTOMATIC -  GERMAN PISTOL WALTHER MODEL 5 6.35MM SN# 379300
Maker/Manufacturer:	WALTHER, CARL
Date of Manufacture:	C 1917
Eminent Figure:
Catalog Number:	SPAR 885
Measurements:	OL: 10.7CM 4 1/4" BL: 5.3CM 2 1/8" 9.6 oz.

Object Description:

GERMAN PISTOL WALTHER MODEL 5 6.35MM SN# 379300
Manufactured by Walther, Zella-Mehlis, Germany - Commercial German semi-automatic pistol with 6-round feed mechanism. Blued finish. Smooth wooden grips not original. Fixed sights. Similar to Model 2 except rifling was six grooves. Weapon weighs approximately 9.6 oz. Missing magazine and takedown lever otherwise complete and in good condition.

Markings:
Barrel: Crown/N, commercial proofs.
Frame: 379300.
Slide: WALTHER'S PATENT. 6.35/ Walther logo. Right side: WAFFENFABRIK WALTHER ZELLA MEHLIS.

Notes: "To say that the early history of the Walther automatic pistol series is shrouded in confusion would be an understatement. When Carl Walther, assisted by his son Fritz and his cousin Friederich Pickert, developed his first semiautomatic pistol in 1908, they could not have guessed that by the time of their 50th anniversary in 1936 they would have produced over a million pistols. It was at that 50th anniversary that most of the confusion really came to a head. A Swiss firm by the name of W. Glaser Waffen put out a special, commemorative, 50th-anniversary catalog showing the complete Walther line. The advertising man who put the catalog together was not familiar enough with the line to do it justice, but he still tried, and he created a step chart, showing the various models as he saw them and the dates of their inception. Unfortunately, the chart leaves out several distinct model variations, and the Model 5 was one of those affected; therefore it is often confused with the Model 2. The distinction between the two models are: the Model 2 has a pop-up rear sight that acts as a loaded chamber indicator. The Model 5 is identical, except that it has two variations; one that is normally confused with the Model 2 has no sights at all, rather it just has an aiming groove milled on top of the slide. The later type has a milled rib and sights. While externally it is distinctly different, the internal structure of both is the same." - Balderson

"MODEL 5 - The early Model 5, essentially an improved and simplified Model 2, was built in 1915 to a higher standard of workmanship. The primary mechanical change - though not immediately apparent when examining the two pistols side by side - was the substitution of six-groove rifling pattern for the four-groove type used in the Model 2. A more obvious change was the adoption of a dual-function rear sight, which popped up to serve as a loaded-chamber indicator. This feature was eliminated altogether in the Model 5, first in favor of a simple groove machined down the slide top, and later by front and rear sights. Late in the production run of the Model 2, however, Walther had already eliminated the complicated dual-purpose rear sight. So its presence or absence does not readily indicate whether one is looking at a Model 2 or a Model 5. Since Walther did not place model designations on its pistols until the Model 8 appeared in 1920, the best way to distinguish between a Model 2 or a Model 5 is to count the grooves in the rifling (but not until making sure that all ammunition has been removed from the gun).
The Model 5, while small, concealable and easy to carry, used the well-established .25 caliber round known for its effectiveness at close ranges. Also, with its magazine fully loaded and a round in the firing chamber, this pistol held an impressive seven shots. Having proved itself highly accurate at close ranges, the Model 5 became popular among German soldiers as a concealment pistol. Consequently, Walther built many more of these guns during the war, though not anything near the number of Model 4s produced." - Gangarosa

"This pistol, introduced in 1913, was an improved version of the Modell 2. As with the Modell 3 and Modell 4, the Modell 5 was built to an even higher-standard of quality that the first Walther handguns. By this time (1913-1915), the Walther work force had grown to about 75 and the numbered of powered machine tools was about 50. By the middle of the World War, the work force was 500 and the number of machine tool
"Model 5 was produced by Walther in 1913 to meet a large domestic and foreign demand for a fine pistol of the vest-pocket type. The design followed very closely that of the earlier Model 2 but the finish and general manufacture are much superior. Ejection is to the right, as in Model 2, and the thumb safety is on the left." - Smith

"This was an improved Model 2 with a fixed back sight and six-groove rifling instead of four." - Zhuk

References:
Balderson, Robert H. COLLECTOR HANDGUNS. 5th Ed. House of Collectibles. N.Y., N.Y. 1996.
Ezell, Edward. HANDGUNS OF THE WORLD. Stackpole Books. Harrisburg, Pa. 1981.
Gangarosa, Gene. THE WALTHER HANDGUN STORY. Stoeger Publishing Co. Wayne, N.J. 1999.
Smith, W.H.B. MAUSER, WALTHER & MANNLICHER FIREARMS. Stackpole Books. Harrisburg, Pa. 1971.
Zhuk, A.B. THE ILLUSTRATED ENCYCLOPEDIA OF HANDGUNS: PISTOLS AND REVOLVERS OF THE WORLD, 1870 TO THE PRESENT. Greenhill Books. London, England. 1995.