by B.B. Pelletier
With Casino Royale coming out on November 17, there’s bound to be renewed interest in the Walther CP99 family of air pistols. I reported on the CP99 Compact already, but many of you have had a lot of interest, so I’m doing it again. This time, we’ll look at the gun in a different light.
CP99 Compact
The CP99 Compact is a BB-firing CO2 pistol. It’s modeled after the P99 Compact, a concealed-carry version of the P99. There are several different versions of the Compact, each with a different type of trigger, and the CP99 Compact appears to be modeled after the single-action only (SAO) gun. To fire, the hammer must be cocked first. The only way to do that after loading a fresh 12-gram CO2 Powerlet or putting the safety on is to pull the slide to the rear and release it.
The Powerlet goes in the back of the grip. Don’t forget to put a drop of Crosman Pellgunoil on the tip of each Powerlet!
The pistol weighs a bit over 29 oz. with a fresh Powerlet and empty magazine aboard. It has a fat grip, the result of modeling the gun after a pistol that uses a double-stack magazine to gain cartridge capacity. The barrel is 3.5″ long. When coupled with the blowback slide, I expect a muzzle velocity of around 300 f.p.s. or perhaps a little more. A Weaver rail (according to the Walther website) under the slide and forward of the triggerguard is for mounting accessories. As of this writing, there are no accessories to fit it. There is a laser that’s supposed to be available soon, and we will eagerly await it.
Trigger and safety
As mentioned, the non-adjustable two-stage trigger is single-action only, which means the gun must be cocked before firing. When you put on the safety, the gun is also uncocked, which is a good thing. That way, you can store it with CO2 but not cocked. The trigger-pull is a long first stage followed by a short second that releases at 5 lbs. There is some creep in the second stage.
The safety is a strange lever that takes a deliberate push rearward to unlock the switch so it can be moved. To aid you, the safety has three large ridges to catch the thumb. I don’t know what the reasoning is behind such a design, but as a shooter I have to say I don’t like it one bit.
The safety must be pushed to the rear to allow the lever to swing from safe to fire and vice-versa.
Blowback action
Every time the pistol fires, the metal slide blows to the rear to simulate the action of the firearm. The mass of the moving slide causes the pistol to feel like it is recoiling. Some CO2 gas is used for this function, so the total number of shots is affected. As they did with the PPK/S CO2 pistol, the designers have reduced the velocity to compensate for this. As a result, there are still plenty of shots in every Powerlet. One nice thing is that the velocity of the slide is slow enough to see the slide move, which is mesmerizing by itself. I would imagine a gunstore owner could sell lots of these pistols just by occasionally firing one with no magazine in the gun.
The magazine holds 17 BBs under spring tension. They’re loaded through the large dark hole on the left.
Tomorrow, we’ll look at velocity and accuracy. Then, I have a special treat for you!
Hi B.B.,
“The safety is a strange lever that takes a deliberate push rearward to unlock the switch so it can be moved.”
When it comes to airgun or firearm safety I’m in favor of redundancy but, a safety lever with a locking mechanism? What will ‘they’ think of next?
As you’re surely aware, some modern handguns don’t have a traditional safety button/lever. Instead there’s a decocking lever and sometimes multiple internal mechanism which secure the firing pin, hammer (if there is one), and trigger from ‘accidental’ activation.
Seems to me like the safety design on that airgun would encourage some users to only use it when they’re ready to decock the airgun and put it away.
I’m curious, does cocking the CP99 Compact cause the safety lever to flip up to the “F” position?
Cheers,
GH
Ha!
Unbelievable! I just realized that a CO2 pistol/rifle isn’t really an “Air” gun.
Yikes! I better stop drinking so much coffee.
Cheers,
GH
GH,
The P99 Compact safety is a decocking device.
Pulling the slide back with the safety on does nothing to the safety.
And a CO2 pistol IS an air pistol in the common use of the term. If not, then is a green gas pistol different than a CO2 pistol? What about those that use both gasses?
Let’s just keep it simple.
B.B.
If you go to the Youtube site and type in Walther CP99 Compact there will be a video with a PPK/S modifyed to shoot full auto. Is this easy to do, and can it be done with the CP99 Compact?
With regard to attaching a laser sight on the Weaver rail, there are several laser sights on the Pyramidair web site which should do the job, unless the rail on the CP99 is shorter than these other laser sights. BTW: I actually did get the weaver rail for my S&W 686! It was actually on the Pyramidair web site, I just could not find it. By the time they got back to me (they were having trouble with their email) I had already ordered one from Umarex directly. It is made of plastic, and therefore very light. I appreciate the lightness, since it is mounted on the top of the 686, which might cause some concern. However, the screws that came with it mounted deep into the frame and I don’t think there should be any problem. I was previously considering a rail made specifically for the S&W 686 powder .357, but I noticed it was aluminum and pretty heavy already. I would have also needed to have an additional hole drilled, so I was happy to find this. Hopefully, Pyramidair will link this rail with the gun on its web site. I already have the BSA laser pointer, but haven’t had a chance to get out and try it. Next up will be to narrow my choice of scopes. At this point, I don’t think I want to invest nearly $200 in a scope, so one of the 2×20 scopes might be the one for me.
Michael in Georgia
Hi B.B.,
Sorry… too much coffee and I regress to ‘class clown.’
Got it, “Pulling the slide back with the safety on does nothing to the safety.”
Cheers,
GH
This isn’t really important, but the Walther CP99 Compact shoudn’t really renew interest in the Walther CP99 family of air pistols, becuase, in the book at least, James Bond’s main gun was a Beretta 418, if I remember correctly.
Well now I am intrigued. I know James switched from Berettas to Walthers in the 1950s, but I thought the movie would be up to date. Now I can’t wait to see it.
Of course the posters all showed James (Sean Connery) posed with a Walther LP53 air pistol!
B.B.
I too was surprised not to see a single PPK anywhere in the new Casino Royale movie. WAS that firearm he used in the movie really a Beretta 418? –Joe
BTW, you’re gonna love the initial chase scene in the movie: it just goes on and on and gets hairier by the second. –Joe
BB-
Why is it so important to put the Crosman Pellgunoil on each CO2 powerlet?
The oil seals the gun!
B.B.
Is it absolutely 100% required that you put pellgunoil, or can you use it without it, just with less productivity?
AJ,
Is it absolutely 100 percent required that you put oil into your car’s engine?
Pellgunoil seals the gun. Don’t use it and your gun will soon need to be resealed.
B.B.