GR Maruzen-Clone PPK/S

[Misfit]

 

First of all, a big thank you to Get-Reload Airsoft, who donated this in order for it to be reviewed.

 

http://www.get-reload.com/airsoft-gun-ppk-007-gbb-pistol-black-p-678.html

 

 

Those airsofters that like to hoard shiny, stylistic boxes are likely to be disappointed – it arrives packaged in a rather dull, grey cardboard box, with a graphical inlay in the lid. As for the gun itself, it appears to be a clone of the Maruzen PPK/S, which accurately recreated the real steel Walther PPK/S to some of the smallest details; this attention to detail is happily still present. When first released, the Maruzen PPK/S didn’t particularly attract attention, namely due to issues regarding accuracy, range and power; this was later amended by a newer version with an adjustable hop-up and other upgrades. This latter, upgraded version is the one cloned.

 

 

Unlike the Maruzen however, this PPK is primarily made of metal, including the slide, frame and outer-barrel, which is threaded ready for the addition of a suppressor. As with the real steel and Maruzen, the pistol uses a double action trigger mechanism, and also includes the dual function safety/de-cocking lever. However, the de-cocking lever appears to be slightly finicky, when used it will enable you to fire from the safe ‘hammer down’ position once, but then it appears to fail to ‘catch’ the hammer again in order to re-fire when you pull the trigger, until the slide is drawn back and released – this is made slightly annoying by the fact the slide can only be released by ejecting the current magazine and racking it again.

 

This issue could also be a side effect of or related to the integrated trigger safety mechanism whereby you cannot fire another shot until pressure on the trigger is fully released, therefore it may be possible that there is a slight incompatibility between this and the decocking mechanism, resulting in the random failures to fire.

 

 

Unfortunately for those like me, the pistol does not come with a manual or any instructions, therefore, as I was unaware of the precise mechanics of the PPK, field-stripping the pistol was an exercise in poking stuff and scratching my head until I discovered how, which is by pulling the front of the trigger guard away from the frame of the pistol, which allows the slide to literally slide off. Like the real steel and the Maruzen, the PPK does not use guide rods for the recoil spring, instead using the outer barrel itself, as a result of this when reassembling the spring has to be inserted a certain way; the recoil spring’s ends are actually different diameters and the larger diameter end must be re –inserted towards the muzzle.

 

Like the Maruzen which came included with a suppressor, the outer barrel is pre-threaded to accept a suitable suppressor.

 

 

Test Shooting

For this, I set up a target I had printed out approximately 10-15 metres away, and attempted to not embarrass myself, using HFC 134a and .20g BBs firing from standing.

 

After some initial difficulty gassing the magazine, it did not appear to want to retain gas, resulting in either complete misfires where nothing happened or extremely lacking in power shots. After some fiddling and testing I got it all working smoothly with the magazine holding enough gas for approximately 2 fully loaded magazines (44 bbs total).

 

 

 

The two derp-shots in the lower left were fired when I was fiddling with the magazine and gas trying to get it firing properly, the accuracy issues I read about with the original Maruzen appear to be resolved, at least at CQB ranges, which unfortunately is all you'll probably be able to do effectively as the sights on the PPK while wearing goggles or glasses are pretty awful to use, and they become pretty much useless at extended ranges or in low light situations.

 

The grip when firing was surprisingly comfortable unlike many other compact pistols, as your little finger rests on the magazine's extended plastic base, unlike on some other small pistols where you are left with either a floating finger or having to struggle to get it on the grip. As the large recoil spring suggests, the PPK's recoil is rather nice, providing a noticeable kick considering it's small size. The slide cycles rather quickly, enabling rapid firing after you get used to the trigger safety mechanism of fully removing pressure on the trigger before firing again. For the price, the PPK appears to be rather robust, issues with the safety/de-cocking mechanism and initial gassing magazine teething problems aside. The small size makes it perfectly suited for use in close quarters environments provided there is no risk of trying to use it at extended ranges or lighting issues, and you can crack James Bond quotes until your friends gag you when using it.