I have had a Walther p22 for several years now. It has fired approximately 5000 rounds the vast majority being; Remington Golden Bullet bulk pack. The gun runs well with golden bullets and CCI. Unfortunately the firing pin cracked in half this past October. Walther is distributed in the US by Smith & Wesson. So I called S&W and they promptly sent me a prepaid shipping label. I slapped it on a box and fed-ex picked it up later that day. Very easy, no questions asked, and no charge. The gun was back at my door in 2 weeks. OUTSTANDING COSTUMER service from S&W!
The gun was back in working condition, for about 100 rounds, until it failed to cycle several times in a row. A few failures to fire or cycle is nothing strange for a .22lr so I wasn't too worried. Then I noticed a crack on the left side of the slide roughly inline with the chamber. I called S&W and once again experienced outstanding costumer service. However, they informed me that broken slides have been an ongoing problem with the P22. They also said that they will fix it (again and free of charge) even though WALTHER ONLY GIVES A ONE YEAR WARRANTY! They went on to explain that Walther is opening up a plant in the US and S&W will NO LONGER be selling or fixing any of their products after AUGUST 2013.
What I learned:
If Walther had already fully set up shop in the US I would likely have a broken gun or had to pay for a new slide.
I'm lucky that S&W is such a reputable company that they are even willing to fix a product that they distribute with no questions asked. Even if that product only caries a one year warranty from the manufacturer.
Even though my slide did not explode, as some on other forums have reported, I'm glad I had shooting glasses on.
If you own a Walther P22 and shoot it often, the question is not if the slide will break but when!
In the future, your experiences with Walther may not be as easy and cost free as mine was with S&W.
In the future I will stick with my Colt Huntsman and Ruger MarkIII.
S&W also makes a newish 22lr pistol with a 12 round mag! BEWARE the slide is made out of the same or very similar and very thin metal. If it does break and my experiences with S&W hold true; then it should be fixed no questions asked.
The gun was back in working condition, for about 100 rounds, until it failed to cycle several times in a row. A few failures to fire or cycle is nothing strange for a .22lr so I wasn't too worried. Then I noticed a crack on the left side of the slide roughly inline with the chamber. I called S&W and once again experienced outstanding costumer service. However, they informed me that broken slides have been an ongoing problem with the P22. They also said that they will fix it (again and free of charge) even though WALTHER ONLY GIVES A ONE YEAR WARRANTY! They went on to explain that Walther is opening up a plant in the US and S&W will NO LONGER be selling or fixing any of their products after AUGUST 2013.
What I learned:
If Walther had already fully set up shop in the US I would likely have a broken gun or had to pay for a new slide.
I'm lucky that S&W is such a reputable company that they are even willing to fix a product that they distribute with no questions asked. Even if that product only caries a one year warranty from the manufacturer.
Even though my slide did not explode, as some on other forums have reported, I'm glad I had shooting glasses on.
If you own a Walther P22 and shoot it often, the question is not if the slide will break but when!
In the future, your experiences with Walther may not be as easy and cost free as mine was with S&W.
In the future I will stick with my Colt Huntsman and Ruger MarkIII.
S&W also makes a newish 22lr pistol with a 12 round mag! BEWARE the slide is made out of the same or very similar and very thin metal. If it does break and my experiences with S&W hold true; then it should be fixed no questions asked.
