Petrol & Powder
Well-Known Member
I have long held interest in the police pistols selected in West Germany in the second half of the 1970's. I've read every scrap of information I could find on the topic, some based on solid information and some rather questionable. The three pistols that were ultimately selected by the (then West) German government were the Walther P5, the SIG P6 and the H&K P7.
It's interesting to me that at the conclusion of the trials by the West German government, they didn't pick a winner but rather created a list of approved pistols. All three of the approved guns (P5, P6 & P7) were excellent pistols that met the requirements.
Each West German state (Land) was allowed to select the type of pistol they wanted to equip their police with. Of the three models, the SIG was the least expensive. That lower cost was probably a factor in the P6 being selected by the largest number of states (seven in total) plus a few German federal agencies. In addition, the P6 (or P225) was adopted by governments beyond West Germany, including the Canadian Navy.
The Swiss had adopted the P75 in 1975. The P6 was essentially a compact version of the P75 service pistol with a 1911 style magazine release. If you envision the P75 as a full sized service pistol like the Government model 1911, then the P6 is akin to the "Commander" sized variant of the P75.
The P6 is roughly the same size as its high capacity brother the P228 or a contemporary Glock G19 but it lacks the 15 round capacity of those models.
The commercial version of the P6 was the SIG P225, The P6/P225 were nearly identical but there were small differences.
The P6 was a well made but economical pistol. It confirmed that low cost doesn't have to equal "cheap". It was first adopted more than 40 years ago and the P6 still impresses me.
It's interesting to me that at the conclusion of the trials by the West German government, they didn't pick a winner but rather created a list of approved pistols. All three of the approved guns (P5, P6 & P7) were excellent pistols that met the requirements.
Each West German state (Land) was allowed to select the type of pistol they wanted to equip their police with. Of the three models, the SIG was the least expensive. That lower cost was probably a factor in the P6 being selected by the largest number of states (seven in total) plus a few German federal agencies. In addition, the P6 (or P225) was adopted by governments beyond West Germany, including the Canadian Navy.
The Swiss had adopted the P75 in 1975. The P6 was essentially a compact version of the P75 service pistol with a 1911 style magazine release. If you envision the P75 as a full sized service pistol like the Government model 1911, then the P6 is akin to the "Commander" sized variant of the P75.
The P6 is roughly the same size as its high capacity brother the P228 or a contemporary Glock G19 but it lacks the 15 round capacity of those models.
The commercial version of the P6 was the SIG P225, The P6/P225 were nearly identical but there were small differences.
The P6 was a well made but economical pistol. It confirmed that low cost doesn't have to equal "cheap". It was first adopted more than 40 years ago and the P6 still impresses me.
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