We are at the beginning of another new year and, if I’m honest, in terms of replicas coming out in 2022 there just isn’t much new stuff out there that really grabs me. Umarex have announced a new Gen 5 Glock but I find it difficult to get terribly excited about something that’s just slightly different from what has come before. The same goes for yet more iterations of the Colt 1911, Beretta 92 and various models of Sig handguns. I mean they’re all great pistols, but haven’t we done that already?
What I’d really like to see is something completely new and different. So, not in any particular order, here are three replica pistols I’d especially like to see coming in 2022.
A blowback Browning Hi-Power. OK, I know, there is a WE 6mm, green gas replica of the Hi-Power, but it’s pretty old now, it’s not a great shooter and it’s a replica of the ugliest of all the Hi-Powers, the hump-backed Inglis version. There’s also an Umarex 4.5mm BB shooting Hi-Power, but it’s all plastic and lacks blowback or even a moving slide. What about a metal, blowback version of the original Hi-Power, or maybe the later Mark III version?
A Hi-Power MK III
A decent, blowback Walther PPK. The Umarex PPK/S was one of the first CO2-powered replicas to feature blowback, but it has been around for some time and it’s really showing it’s age now. The non-functioning slide-mounted safety is a problem, it just doesn’t shoot well and the grip is weirdly elongated. I know that a CO2 powered version of the original PPK must be technically possible because Umarex also produce a very reasonable replica of the Walther PPS, and that has the same overall dimensions as the original PPK. So, what about an accurately sized, CO2-powered blowback PPK with a working slide safety?
Small, but perfectly formed. The Walther PPK
Colt Model 1903/1908 Pocket Hammerless. Over half a million examples of the original .32 Colt Model 1903 were made up to 1946 plus many more of the basically identical General Officers Pocket Pistol which was issued to senior officers in the US Army up to the 1970s. The .38 Model 1908 is visually identical. This design remains so popular that, in 2015, Colt resumed limited production of the Model 1903. So, how come there aren’t any CO2 or gas-powered replicas of this incredibly iconic handgun?
One like this, please. With solid rubber grips if possible.
Personally, I’d love to see decent new replicas of any of these. I appreciate the efforts that manufacturers put in, but the truth is that I’m bored with seemingly endless ranges of replicas of Glocks, Beretta 92s, Sigs and Colt 1911s and I’d love to see replicas of some more historic handguns.
What do you think? Don’t be shy – feel free to disagree and/or to add your most-wanted replicas in the comments below. Who knows, someone from a manufacturer may actually read this and see a new commercial opportunity…
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