Today I wanted to take a look at a few details about the PDP that I don't think are adequately addressed in the majority of videos and articles that I've seen. Before we start, you can find the PDP and lots of parts for it at Brownells.
The first thing about the PD that I wanted to talk about is the design of the PDP, and it's modularity in particular. The PDP is modular, meaning you can put any length slide on any length of frame. Some combinations will obviously have dust covers that are either too long or too short to completely match lengths, however.
The second thing that I wanted to talk about is the optic mounting system on the slide. While the PDP is already optic ready from the factory, it uses a mounting plate system that a lot of people don't like. Now, however, Walther is currently offering a direct-milled slide for the PDP, cut for various popular optic footprints. These are footprint specific, so you need to know your footprint before ordering, or you might risk your optic not fitting on the slide. Walther offers slides cut for the most popular optic footprints currently. Also, it should be noted that these are bare slides so they will need the internals transferred over, and you will need a specific extractor plunger assembly. From what I can tell they are also a limited run, so if you want one of those buy one now.
The next detail I wanted to touch on is the PDP's accessory rail. The PDP Full Size frame has a distance of about 2.5 inches from the front of the trigger guard to a point that is flush with the end of the frame. This means that for the full size PDP, the maximum length for lights/etc that you want to have a flush look to the front of the frame should be 2.5 inches long at the most.
Next, some details about the factory sights. The first detail (and sometimes the most easily missed detail) is the fact that the factory sights are adjustable for both windage and elevation by turning the screws on the rear sight. There is no adjustability on the front sight; it is all on the rear sight. The next thing to note about the factory sights is the fact that they are NOT tall enough to offer any sort of cowitness with most optics due to the plate mount. The Justice mounted on the test PDP is pretty low in terms of deck height. The 407C has a higher height. Even with the lower height of the Justice deck, the factory sights won't cowitness. Lastly, it is important to note that the PDP sights are Glock compatible, so it is easy to upgrade to sights that will cowitness.
Continuing with parts compatibility, the PDP shares some parts with the PPQ since the PPQ was the predecessor to the PDP, and the PDP is an evolution of the PPQ design. Visit https://waltherarms.com/2021/01/14/walther-pdp-parts-compatibility/ for specifics. One specific compatibility detail to note is about magazines; PPQ M2 magazines will fit the PDP Compact, but not the PDP Full size. So that's a quick rundown of things about the PDP that I think fall by the wayside or get otherwise glossed over in other review videos. That's all I have for you this time, so until next time, stay safe!