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The Walther P38 (also known as a Pistole 38) is a 9 mm semi-automatic pistol that was developed by Walther arms as the service pistol of the Wehrmacht shortly before World War II. It was intended to replace the costly Luger P08, the production of which was scheduled to end in 1942. ==Development== The first designs submitted to the ''Heer'' (German Army) featured a locked breech and a hidden hammer, but the ''Heer'' requested that it be redesigned with an external hammer. The final developmental stage in the P38's design history was the Modell MP/H (indicating exposed hammer). Apparently only a few were produced before the army adopted the HP in 1938 (Modell Heeres Pistole—Model Army Pistol). The production relationship between the HP and the almost simultaneous P38 (Pistole 1938) is unclear and quite confused. The P38 concept was accepted by the German military in 1938 but production of actual prototype ("Test") pistols did not begin until late 1939. Walther began manufacture at their plant in Zella-Mehlis and produced three series of "Test" pistols, designated by a "0" prefix to the serial number. The third series pistols satisfactorily solved the previous problems for the ''Heer'' and mass production began in mid-1940. Early P38s were almost identical to the HP (which continued to be produced for "commercial sales," i.e., to well-connected Nazis). The major differences were different slide markings, an external extractor, the HP's rectangular firing pin was replaced by one with a round tip, a different configuration for the locking lever and slide stop lever on the left side, and a re-configuration of the grip panels. It is interesting to note that in 1944 the cost of one complete P38 was $14.08, while the cost of one complete P08 Luger was $19.80. The commercial retail price of the Model HP during this time was $75.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=p.38 Masterpiece or misfit? )〕 Several experimental versions were later created in .45 ACP, and .38 Super, but these were never mass-produced. In addition to the 9 mm Parabellum version, some 7.65×21mm Parabellum and some .22 Long Rifle versions were also manufactured and sold. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Walther P38」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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