Bond...James Bond

Big E3 said:

I don’t have a PPK and would love to find one as nice for the price the OP paid, nice find Navy. I do have a PP from the first year of production in 1929. It’s #37xx and in pretty good shape for its age. The grips are period correct replacements, the guy I got it from had Pachmayrs on this little classic, the horror.

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Ugh, my PPK/S had Pachmayrs grips on it when I bought it too, but thankfully came with the original factory grips as well. First thing I did when I got it home was take off those monstrosities and replace them with the factory grips. Good thing I did too, because I discovered that they were beginning to break down and part of them had actually melted a little bit. Worse yet was it appeared as though they were disrupting the slide, causing it to chatter off the frame on one side, but thankfully the marks were shallow and polished out easily with a 3M pad. If it were blued though, then that would have been a real mess to clean up.

Nowadays I have it fitted with Altamont Super Rosewood grips, which look nice, fit my hand better than the factory grips, and make it more pleasant to shoot by distributing the recoil a little better.

Dirty Harry Callahan said:

You'll be relieved to hear that the Walther PPK/S .22 is not in fact constructed from pot metal, that was just a mistake made by Walther Arms USA on their website which has long since been corrected, yet persists because the purists use any excuse they can to denigrate newer models. The Walther PPK/S .22 is made of a proprietary alloy which they can't share exact specifications for, but they claim is "much stronger than ZAMAK" and seeing as the Walther PPK/S .22 has been on the market since 2013 without so much as a single substantiated claim of slide failure like the older ZAMAK P22's, I'm inclined to believe them. It's most likely the same aluminum alloy they make their PPQ .22 and licensed Colt 1911 .22 replicas from.

Oh, and it isn't made by Umarex either, that's just more misinformation perpetuated by purists based on half-truths. While the Walther PPK/S .22 is made in one of Umarex's factories rather than Walther HQ, it's important to note that Walther has been a subsidiary of Umarex since 1993 and thus shares some manufacturing space with the parent company. They're made in an Umarex facility, but by Walther employees within their own designated sub-sector of said facility.

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Oh man, why did you have to post that information?

Now, I want one (in .22) even more than before! Dang!

oysterer said:

good luck shooting down a helicopter with it at 1,000 yards (as seen in Spectre...) ridiculous....

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Oysterer-

What ever do you mean? Are you saying that taking down a helicopter with a Walther PPK is impossible? LMAO!

I did laugh out loud in the theater when I saw that scene in the movie SPECTRE.

Do we even know if Bond is shooting a .380 version of the PPK or is he still throwing 7.65 mm/.32 rounds? Does anyone know for sure?

I would say that Bond would have had a better chance of actually being able to down the helicopter with the Glock 17 (FAB Defense KPOS Glock to Carbine Conversion) that he used in the beginning of the movie. Notice I didn't say he definitely could have accomplished it, just that he would have had a better chance of doing it with the Glock 17 (FAB Defense KPOS Glock to Carbine Conversion).

Cheers!

kia

Mr. Nichols, a question of your knowledge please...

Mr. Nichols-

I have wanted a Walther PPK since I was about 8 years old and saw my first Bond film, Goldfinger, with my Dad.

I grew up shooting and bought my first rifle when I was 10 years old, which was a World War II training rifle that the US Army used prior to the US getting into World War II.
It was a single shot .22 bolt action and became a tack driver after my Grandfather got a hold of it and adjusted the sights. I've been a dedicated shooter ever since then.

At this point in life I am lucky enough to own a 60 acre farm with my wife in rural Virginia. As a result, I have my own shooting range at home.

I have most of the firearms I have always wanted to minus one or two items, one of which is a Walther PPK. Oh, a quick aside, I do have a concealed weapons permit and carry everyday. At the moment I carry an S&W M&P Bodyguard 380, usually in an IWB holster at about 4 o'clock.

The issue is that my wife has finally come around to getting a concealed weapons permit herself. Considering that she is a mental health counselor and deals with people who are in varying stages of treatment, some of which are on medications to keep the beasts in their heads at bay. Sometimes these people go off their meds and then "lookout"!

Since she has come around she has become envious of my Bodyguard and wants mine for herself. That's fine, but now I need a .380 handgun to replace the Bodyguard that she's going to take.

Here's the dilemma: I have little interest in spending a small fortune for a Walther PPK and I have been advised that the FEG PA-63 is the gun to buy in place of the PPK. The advice also consists of replacing the springs in the FEG to Walther springs. So, my question is this, do you think the FEG PA-63 is as good as a Walther? I realize that it has an alloy frame as opposed to the steel frame of the Walther and I have no issue with that aspect of the gun. Ultimately, I would like to have opinions about the FEG ---- and ----- GO! LOL! Thanks in advance to anyone who decides to take a crack at this question.

Cheers!

kia

rednichols said:

I've been a big Bond fan since I lived in London, beginning in 1963 when the Bond films took off. OK, maybe it was finding my Dad's paperback edition of Dr. No. Is THAT what girls will let you do?! I've been a fan of Bond's and girls ever since. Handling a PPK at a local gun dealer in London made a big impression on me; I had to ask the chap how to lower the hammer once I'd cocked it .

His pistol of course was the PPK not the PPK/S; and in the exotic 7.65mm as a leap from the 6.35mm. The page from 1958's Dr. No, in which Fleming (who is M, right down to the offices in London and the Miss Moneypenny secretary outside his doors) also appoints Berns-Martin as Bond's holster maker:

View attachment 410647

(As always on this forum, if you open the image and get a little postage stamp version, just close that window and it will reappear in full size).

9mms in that size pistol were n/a in that era; also of course. And surely why Paris Theodore was inspired to create one from the M39. He also created his own inverted shoulder holster for the Walther, because there actually was no Berns-Martin shoulder holster for it then. Paris' was more like a slingshot than one would think; the draw was quick but holstering was a two-handed affair that can't be done on the run, because it had snapped open during the draw and had to be resnapped during holstering. If you really look, it's not a conventional shoulder holster; instead it is held to the shirt by garter fasteners (so no shoulder harness, which on a Seventrees was via a centerbar buckle for adjustment, too).

View attachment 410646

But there is a Berns-Martin shoulder holster for the PPK now; built for the next Bond film in which it may or may not actually appear:

View attachment 410648

Berns-Martin is now my own registered trademark after its registration was allowed to lapse permanently more than 30 years ago, by the prior owner. The mark has been owned by a half dozen people since 1932 and I'm the current holder.

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Redpoint....... as this is the S&W forum you might want to think about another classic..... the 9mm lock breach 3913 (3914 in blue) ( or 6906/6904 double stack 12+1) ..... descended from the custom built from a Smith Model 39 ASP that was the successor (in fiction) to Bond's PPK.

I carried ( and still have a .380 PPK) in the mid to late 80s.....switched to and carried a 3913 since 1990.

Good luck.

I read all the Bond books too. He never switched to the .380. He was reluctant to give up the .25 but was ordered to by M. Boothroyd (Gerald) was a real guy who advised Flemming on firearms, and his name was used in the books....(Q)?). When he introduced Bond to the .32, he said it was "Like a brick through a plate glass window.)

In Dr. No, where his .25 was confiscated by M, he took a Centennial .38 "for longer range."

He also had a long barreled Colt secreted in his car.

In the first Craig movie, Casino Royal, he had a 9mm modern gun, still a walther, I believe. In the last Bond movie where he was chasing a BG across the top of boxcars, he was carrying, according to him, a PPK/S, I guess in .380.

Fleming asked Boothroyd what the best holster was, and B told him the Berns Martin Triple Draw. Fleming continued to use this, even though it was made only for revolvers. B-M had so many Walther PPK requests during the Bond era, they had to put out a statement that they only made revolver holsters. Or so I heard.

My PPK .32 was made in 1968, just before they were prohibited. It has the Ulm name on the slide, and the date and a stag antler on the barrel.

TTSH said:

Oh man, why did you have to post that information?

Now, I want one (in .22) even more than before! Dang!

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Sorry, it's just that it took me a lot of time and effort to get it and so I feel the need to share it whenever I see old misinformation perpetuated about an otherwise fantastic little gun that is unfairly hated because Walther USA once goofed up a spec sheet on their website and folks with ulterior motives continue to spread it in hopes that folks will overpay for their vintage PPK/S .22 on Gunbroker.

So yeah, don't think of it as though I cost you hundreds of dollars on a new PPK/S .22, but rather that I saved you a thousand plus dollars on a vintage PPK/S .22 in abhorr-*ahem* "well worn" condition.

Trust me, there are a lot of guys online who are well aware of the information I've provided here, yet continue to spread misinformation for personal gain.

RedPointGS said:

Mr. Nichols-

I have wanted a Walther PPK since I was about 8 years old and saw my first Bond film, Goldfinger, with my Dad.

I grew up shooting and bought my first rifle when I was 10 years old, which was a World War II training rifle that the US Army used prior to the US getting into World War II.
It was a single shot .22 bolt action and became a tack driver after my Grandfather got a hold of it and adjusted the sights. I've been a dedicated shooter ever since then.

At this point in life I am lucky enough to own a 60 acre farm with my wife in rural Virginia. As a result, I have my own shooting range at home.

I have most of the firearms I have always wanted to minus one or two items, one of which is a Walther PPK. Oh, a quick aside, I do have a concealed weapons permit and carry everyday. At the moment I carry an S&W M&P Bodyguard 380, usually in an IWB holster at about 4 o'clock.

The issue is that my wife has finally come around to getting a concealed weapons permit herself. Considering that she is a mental health counselor and deals with people who are in varying stages of treatment, some of which are on medications to keep the beasts in their heads at bay. Sometimes these people go off their meds and then "lookout"!

Since she has come around she has become envious of my Bodyguard and wants mine for herself. That's fine, but now I need a .380 handgun to replace the Bodyguard that she's going to take.

Here's the dilemma: I have little interest in spending a small fortune for a Walther PPK and I have been advised that the FEG PA-63 is the gun to buy in place of the PPK. The advice also consists of replacing the springs in the FEG to Walther springs. So, my question is this, do you think the FEG PA-63 is as good as a Walther? I realize that it has an alloy frame as opposed to the steel frame of the Walther and I have no issue with that aspect of the gun. Ultimately, I would like to have opinions about the FEG ---- and ----- GO! LOL! Thanks in advance to anyone who decides to take a crack at this question.

Cheers!

kia

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The FEG PA-63 is a very good gun. It's inexpensive, will shoot any ammo and they are well built. They don't have the tight specs of the Walther. I would say it is very much like a Bersa Thunder 380 which we own and it also shoots and holds up well. The FEG will cost you under $300 and if you look around under $200. Folks worry about spare parts but at $200 in my book it's a throw away pistol anyway. I have the FEG SAP 380 which is essentially same gun made for S African Police specifically.
Here is a pic of my Walther SS PPK. I also have the FEG SAP 380 and Walther PP 7.65mm from 1940.

mbliss57 said:

The FEG PA-63 is a very good gun. It's inexpensive, will shoot any ammo and they are well built. They don't have the tight specs of the Walther. I would say it is very much like a Bersa Thunder 380 which we own and it also shoots and holds up well. The FEG will cost you under $300 and if you look around under $200. Folks worry about spare parts but at $200 in my book it's a throw away pistol anyway. I have the FEG SAP 380 which is essentially same gun made for S African Police specifically.
Here is a pic of my Walther SS PPK. I also have the FEG SAP 380 and Walther PP 7.65mm from 1940.

I just realized this is posted in the SW Semi Auto forum. Mods may want to move it to the non S&W gun section.

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MBliss57-

Thank you very much for your reply!
I suppose I'm just being a bit on the "cheap" side but it bothers me to waste money when the FEG would appear to be essentially the same firearm as the Walther. It's funny because in the military I was trained on the M-16, however, in the "real world", the gun that we were taught was a piece of junk, the AK-47, will run harder than an M-16 will under far more stress. Some of the guys that trained with me when I moved from being a CCT in the USAF to working for "another government agency", were just back from Vietnam and had nothing but glowing praise for the AK-47 and would often leave their M-16 behind if they had a chance to grab an AK. Granted these guys were not your average grunts but were part of the Studies & Observation Group, so they could get away with things like parting with a perfectly good M-16 and not have someone get their panties in a twist over it. They told me they trusted their lives to the AK far more than they did with an M-16.
Funnily enough, a bunch of those same guys would carry Walther PPKs for backup guns to their trusted Browning Hi Powers or M1911A1. They all said the Walther was an excellent backup gun that they would and did "bet their lives" on. Also, a lot of them preferred the Browning Hi Power to the M1911A1. Mostly it was a question of being able to scavenge ammo when needed and the 9mm round was more readily available to scrounge in the bush apparently. If I mentioned a few of the names of these guys, I'd bet you'd recognize them as they're legends from Vietnam Era Special Forces, a scant few are still upright and a very few have even recently been doing HALO jumps for sh*ts & grins, LOL!
Thanks so much for your valuable advice, I truly appreciate it as I have zero experience with the FEG.
Out of curiosity, does your FEG run .380 or the Makarov 9 x 18mm? Sorry for asking more questions but the guy that advised me to buy the FEG and replace the springs in it for Walther springs also said that he preferred the Makarov 9 x 18mm round as opposed to the .380, so I thought I'd better ask while the asking was good, LOL!

Again my thanks!

Cheers!
kia

BAM-BAM said:

Redpoint....... as this is the S&W forum you might want to think about another classic..... the 9mm lock breach 3913 (3914 in blue) ( or 6906/6904 double stack 12+1) ..... descended from the custom built from a Smith Model 39 ASP that was the successor (in fiction) to Bond's PPK.

I carried ( and still have a .380 PPK) in the mid to late 80s.....switched to and carried a 3913 since 1990.

Good luck.

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Bam Bam-

Thank you for the advice. I like the 3914 quite a bit and the only one I have ever fired was very accurate and a straightforward firearm without any major flaws that I ever found. I appreciate you bringing it up as I had forgotten all about them.
Also, note that I am a hardcore S&W fan. Not only do I have and currently carry an S&W M&P Bodyguard, but have and sometimes carry an S&W M&P Shield 9mm.
Also, back in the old days when I worked as a private investigator and personal protection specialist, OK, LOL, bodyguard, I would often carry an S&W Model 36, sometimes called the Chiefs Special. It was a super carry gun when I needed to have something that was really low key and hard to spot. Great little gun for those times when I didn't need the hassle of carrying a larger handgun.
As a note, I'm done posting about the PPK and just wanted to hit up someone who had a large collection of handguns and knew the PPK and possibly the FEG for comparison.
Regards-
kia

RedPointGS said:

MBliss57-

Thank you very much for your reply!
I suppose I'm just being a bit on the "cheap" side but it bothers me to waste money when the FEG would appear to be essentially the same firearm as the Walther. It's funny because in the military I was trained on the M-16, however, in the "real world", the gun that we were taught was a piece of junk, the AK-47, will run harder than an M-16 will under far more stress. Some of the guys that trained with me when I moved from being a CCT in the USAF to working for "another government agency", were just back from Vietnam and had nothing but glowing praise for the AK-47 and would often leave their M-16 behind if they had a chance to grab an AK. Granted these guys were not your average grunts but were part of the Studies & Observation Group, so they could get away with things like parting with a perfectly good M-16 and not have someone get their panties in a twist over it. They told me they trusted their lives to the AK far more than they did with an M-16.
Funnily enough, a bunch of those same guys would carry Walther PPKs for backup guns to their trusted Browning Hi Powers or M1911A1. They all said the Walther was an excellent backup gun that they would and did "bet their lives" on. Also, a lot of them preferred the Browning Hi Power to the M1911A1. Mostly it was a question of being able to scavenge ammo when needed and the 9mm round was more readily available to scrounge in the bush apparently. If I mentioned a few of the names of these guys, I'd bet you'd recognize them as they're legends from Vietnam Era Special Forces, a scant few are still upright and a very few have even recently been doing HALO jumps for sh*ts & grins, LOL!
Thanks so much for your valuable advice, I truly appreciate it as I have zero experience with the FEG.
Out of curiosity, does your FEG run .380 or the Makarov 9 x 18mm? Sorry for asking more questions but the guy that advised me to buy the FEG and replace the springs in it for Walther springs also said that he preferred the Makarov 9 x 18mm round as opposed to the .380, so I thought I'd better ask while the asking was good, LOL!

Again my thanks!

Cheers!
kia

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My FEG is chambered in 380 ACP aka 9mm kurz or the 9 x17 not the 9x 18 Makarov. Enjoy your gun when you get one.

RedPointGS said:

Bam Bam-



........., back in the old days when I worked as a private investigator and personal protection specialist, OK, LOL, bodyguard, I would often carry an S&W Model 36, sometimes called the Chiefs Special. It was a super carry gun when I needed to have something that was really low key and hard to spot. Great little gun for those times when I didn't need the hassle of carrying a larger handgun.

kia

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Thought all you guys carried was a P7 and a Browning HP.........while humming "I will always love you"

Have an original Walther PPK, Smith can not hold a candle to the REAL PPK!

Gene L said:

I read all the Bond books too. He never switched to the .380. He was reluctant to give up the .25 but was ordered to by M. Boothroyd (Gerald) was a real guy who advised Flemming on firearms, and his name was used in the books....(Q)?). When he introduced Bond to the .32, he said it was "Like a brick through a plate glass window.)

In Dr. No, where his .25 was confiscated by M, he took a Centennial .38 "for longer range."

He also had a long barreled Colt secreted in his car.

In the first Craig movie, Casino Royal, he had a 9mm modern gun, still a walther, I believe. In the last Bond movie where he was chasing a BG across the top of boxcars, he was carrying, according to him, a PPK/S, I guess in .380.

Fleming asked Boothroyd what the best holster was, and B told him the Berns Martin Triple Draw. Fleming continued to use this, even though it was made only for revolvers. B-M had so many Walther PPK requests during the Bond era, they had to put out a statement that they only made revolver holsters. Or so I heard.

My PPK .32 was made in 1968, just before they were prohibited. It has the Ulm name on the slide, and the date and a stag antler on the barrel.

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That is all roughly correct. Geoffrey Boothroyd indeed was the real person who enticed Fleming to issue a Berns-Martin triple draw to Bond, and both a Centennial and a PPK to go with. The Centennial was the "something bigger" that M wanted for Bond. It was unfortunate that M speaks of the Walther first tho because it was mrant for the opposition. Yes Berns Martin, having been handed off to a third party just after the first film in late '62, did mark it's brochures that way.

I am another lifelong Bond fan who can't bring myself to pony up the scratch for a PPK. I have an IJ TP22 and a TP25 though and love the design, even if they are 3/4 scale and made of Zamac.

I also have a Bersa CC380 that I plan on shooting for the first time this weekend. It really isn't a PPK clone though. It is more a Sig p230/p232 clone, and the Sig is a more of a PPK derived design, rather than a true clone. The takedown mechanism for the Sig and Bersa is a rotating lever above and in in front of the fixed position trigger guard, rather than the hinged trigger guard of the Walther and true clones.

rednichols said:

Geoffrey Boothroyd indeed was the real person who enticed Fleming to issue a Berns-Martin triple draw to Bond, and both a Centennial and a PPK to go with. The Centennial was the "something bigger" that M wanted for Bond.

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Geoffrey Boothroyd denied to his dying day that he ever recommended to Fleming that Bond carry a PPK. Boothroyd wanted Bond to carry a "S&W Centennial Airweight" in a Bern-Martin holster. For the "something bigger" gun he wanted the N-frame S&W .357 Magnum (whatever it was called back in 1957). Fleming was excited by the idea and promised Boothroyd that in the next novel Bond would carry the Centennial.

Before the "next novel" (Dr. No) Fleming realized that a revolver couldn't use a silencer (as everyone called them in the 1950s) and that an automatic (as everyone called them in the 1950s) was more appropriate for a secret agent, so he picked the Walther PPK from a list of pistols Boothroyd had suggested for Bond's opponents.

But being a British gentleman, Fleming didn't go back on his promise but conflated the Centennial with the .357, and had Bond carry it (briefly) in the novel. And because Fleming didn't really know his Aston from his elbow about guns, he kept the Berns-Martin revolver holster for the PPK.

mjr said:

Geoffrey Boothroyd denied to his dying day that he ever recommended to Fleming that Bond carry a PPK. Boothroyd wanted Bond to carry a "S&W Centennial Airweight" in a Bern-Martin holster.

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Yeah. There are BBC videos on-line that have Geoffrey Boothroyd explaining his preference for Bond to carry a revolver. He refers to the PPK in .32 ACP as a compromise at best.

I don't mind Ian Fleming choosing the PPK for Bond. Hey, let's face it: It worked out well for all involved. But it really is too bad that Fleming got the PPK in Berns-Martin holster thing so very wrong. That mistake hurt Fleming's credibility and image as the real life secret-agent-turned-writer behind the fictional secret agent, James Bond.

RedPointGS said:

.../

/... Here's the dilemma: I have little interest in spending a small fortune for a Walther PPK and I have been advised that the FEG PA-63 is the gun to buy in place of the PPK. The advice also consists of replacing the springs in the FEG to Walther springs. So, my question is this, do you think the FEG PA-63 is as good as a Walther? I realize that it has an alloy frame as opposed to the steel frame of the Walther and I have no issue with that aspect of the gun. Ultimately, I would like to have opinions about the FEG ---- and ----- GO! LOL! Thanks in advance to anyone who decides to take a crack at this question.

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I don't think the PA-63 is as good as the Walther PP, but it can be a very good pistol, it depends on the condition and whether it's an original all matching number pistol or a mix master assembled from parts.

FEG also made a number of military and commercial pistols and if you review this site:

Manowar's Hungarian Weapons & History

under the "Hungary 1948-1990" and "Hungary 1990- " headers and look at the FEG pistol models you'll see both the progression and the distinctions between most of them, more or less on order of evolution in the 1948-1990 section with the "AP" pistols being the commercial variants.

In the 1990- section you'll see mostly commercial variants with the MBP, PMK and SMC variants reflecting models imported by K.B.I. Michael Kassanar (owner of K.B.I) posted this in 2008 on the high road and it explains the model numbers used on the FEG pistols:

"KBI (my company) and Kassnar Imports (my father's old company) imported umpteen thousands of FEG pistols and their AKM rifles from the mid-80's until today. They had different issues at different times, but the function was always very good even if the finishing at times left something to be desired. The prices were always fantastic.

For you to truly understand my relationship to FEG pistols and rifles over the years, I will pass on a little known fact about some of the model names that came here to the US:

The PJK-9HP was named for my wife, Pamela Jane.
The MBK-9HP and MBK-9HPC were named for me.
The PMK-380 was named for my father, Paul Martin
The GKK-45, GKK-92 and GKK-92C were all named for my daughter.
The SMC-380, SMC-918 and SMC-22 were named for my sales manager at the time (who got jealous that I was naming all the guns after my family).
Then my sister complained that we had not named anything after her and I replied that there already was one named for her, the AK. Her name is Alexis!

And of course FEG was intimately involved with the Charles Daly HP project, producing all of the components that were ultimately finished in the US.

FEG also sold some of these same models at various times to the old Interarms company and Century. (FEG could never be trusted to honor any exclusives for very long!) That is why you see some of the same guns with different model designations over the years. However, all of the above model names belonged to Kassnar or KBI so they could only have come from these two companies."

K.B. I. also owned the Charles Daly brand and it was the upscale brand for the company. The Charles Daly pistols were very well made and nicely finished. The K.B.I. branded pistols were spec'd for low price so the polish wasn't as nice and the parts tended to be whatever FEG had on hand at the time. As noted above, I do have an SMC .380, but it's not comparable in finish for function to my other FEG pistols imported by TGI, and in particular Interarms.

You can find the KBI imported FEG PP'esque pistols for around $225-$250 and they are fairly common.

At the other end of the spectrum, the Interarms imported FEG pistols have excellent polish and blue and are exceptionally reliable. Interarms started importing them as an alternative to the PP series pistols around 1984 when Walther and Manuhrin ended their licence agreement and manufacturing relationship and it wasn't clear that Interarms would be able to continue to import the PP and PPK/S pistols it had been getting from Manuhrin.

In my opinion the finish on the Interarms imported FEG AP9S, AP7S, APK9S and APK7S pistols is better than on the Walther or Manuhrin PP series pistols and they are more reliable or at least less finicky about ammunition. You don't see them come up all that often but they can be found in very good to excellent condition for around $350 to $400. This one is on GB with 15 hours left in the auction with no bids and a $325 starting price. If I didn't have multiple copies already, I'd buy it myself as it is an excellent pistol for the money.

Interarms FEG APK Mark II .380 Used $325 Nice NR - Semi Auto Pistols at GunBroker.com : 818223200

In between, you have the AP and APK pistols imported by TGI. The reliability is there, but the polish and blue is not to the same high standard.

I always thought that James carried the PPK because a true gentleman doesn't use a gun any larger than what is absolutely necessary to get the job done. Carrying more gun than necessary simply wouldn't be sporting, old man!

I once owned a Walther PPK with an alloy frame. I guess they called it dural. I occasionally tucked in inside my belt, just to the left of the buckle. What a sweet carry gun.
As far as Fleming and guns go, from what I've read, he didn't know a lot. He misspelled Beretta in the original typescript of Casino Royale and had the .25 Beretta's firing pin filed to a point! And why have a "skeleton grip" on an already very small gun? Other mistakes abound, like the Colt Army Special in .45 calibre that even had a safety in "For Your Eyes Only."
His lack of accuracy doesn't bother me. Somewhere in one of his writings, Donald Hamilton (creator of Matt Helm and quite a hunter and a firearms aficionado) advises writers, if they don't quite know everything about guns, to go ahead and fake it as well as you can. Most readers don't know any better and won't spot any gaps in your knowledge. Those who do see the errors won't mind if you're a sufficiently talented writer.
Fleming was a pro at sounding like an expert; that's part of his genius.