Walther LP300 vs LP400

BrentonJ · Post by **BrentonJ** » Tue Jun 21, 2011 11:09 pm

Hi Guys,

I've just been down to the local gun shop and saw that the whole walther shipment is on sale atm and im in the market for a new AP. I was looking at the LP300 Club and LP400 Is their much difference between the two? They didn't have a LP400 on display but from what i could gather the major difference were grip and style?'

I liked the feel of the LP300 club and at $1400au it isn't a Bad Buy the LP400 is going for $2069 is it worth the Extra $$ or should i try pick up a second hand Morini162?

jipe · Post by **jipe** » Wed Jun 22, 2011 1:51 am

The LP400 is a completely new pistol that has nothing to share with the previous LP300.

The feeling (grip shape, weight, balance, trigger, reaction after the shot...) of the LP400 and LP300 are very different.

The LP300 club is a lower price version of the LP300XT made as its name suggest for shooting clubs. It do not know exactly the differences between the LP300XT and the club but the baseline is identical.

So the big price difference comes partly because it is the club version, partly because the LP300 is now a commercially obsolete model and partly because the LP400 is a brand new pistol.

So, I would say that if you like it, the LP300 club isn't bad choice and that you cannot predict that you will like or not like the LP400 from your experience with the LP300.

Note that there are two versions of the LP400, the one with aluminum coated barrel similar to the LP10 and the one with carbon coated barrel. This last one has a very low weight, much lower than the LP300 such a very low weight may not be an advantage.

BrentonJ · Post by **BrentonJ** » Wed Jun 22, 2011 7:33 am

I got talked out of the LP300 Club by our club captain, Im now looking at the XT300 5D and the LP400

I shot and older 300XT tonight and i liked the feel it was a nice gun.

Im keen to hear peoples thoughts on the LP400 Alu tho

paulo · Post by **paulo** » Tue Jun 28, 2011 7:55 pm

Some people have commented on the 400, do a search of the site.

Goran · Post by **Goran** » Thu Jul 07, 2011 6:58 am

BrentonJ wrote:Im now looking at the XT300 5D and the LP400

A few months ago I swithced from XT3005D to LP400 Alu. My old XT300 would produce single hole groups from a test bench all day with the right pellets, so there was nothing wrong with it:-)

My reason for changing was that I felt that the XT300 with a full size air tank was to heavy for my taste. I did shoot it for about half a year with the shorter junior air tank, and that brought the weight down to just right for me. The problem then was that the balance of course changed, and I would have liked the total weight to be the same but more weight forward.

I started looking for a new gun and tried the Steyr LP10E, but I have the Walther importer just a few minutes away from where I live and I have always gotten good service and great deals from them and wanted to try the new LP400.

Having been shooting the LP400 for a couple of months I am getting used to the new feel from my old XT300 and am just about done getting the new grip the way I want it.

For me the difference that matters could be summarized in the following:

The LP400 is a lighter pistol, even the LP400 Alu I have is lighter than the old XT300. The other LP400 models are even lighter. Weight is a personal taste thing, but at least for me getting the LP400 has made it possible to get the weight and balance I wanted, that I could not acchieve with the XT300.

The LP400 is a new gun that as far as I can tell has no shared parts or design with the old one. For me, other than the weight/balance change, the new trigger design has been a big change. On my LP400 the trigger is much better (cleaner break, no creep) than what I had on my old XT300D and it is a lot easier to adjust. The new trigger can also be moved further back towards the grip than the older one for those that would need/like that.

The LP400 also has less movment when the shot releases than the old XT300. Changes in design of muzzle ports and the addition of a moving weight inside the gun is as I understand the reason for this reduced movement. I feel that the Steyr LP10 has even less movement, but the reduction in the LP400 is still a big step forward. I had both the XT300 and the LP400 for a couple of weeks and shoot them back to back for comparsion, and going back to the XT300 after a session with the LP400 felt like shooting an air gun with recoil and slight muzzle lift. I have no better way of describing the feeling:-)

The LP400 has movable front and rear sight, and additional weights that can be placed along the full length of the alu cover. The front sight can be moved along the full length of the alu cover, and the rear sight assembly can be moved further rear on the frame. This gives more options to get the sight radius and weight/balance the way you want it, but again this is a personal thing.

The grip on the LP400 is a totaly different design than the old XT300. The new grip is slimer and fills out less in the hand, and personally I liked the old grips better. Not a big deal, it still needs fitting for the individual shooter.

The great thing about the new grip is that it is removable without loosing the relative position on the gun. The bolt that lockes the 3D rotation joint to the frame is not the same bolt that lockes the grip to the frame.

Everyone is different and some of the things I have mentioned that matters for me might not matter to you. For me the change was a based on weight/balance, but I like that I have gotten a better trigger and less movement in shot release as well.

The change has not been all fun and games as getting used to a new gun and setting up a new grip takes (for me at least) some time. My scores are about the same (555-559 in competition), but I shoot more tens and eights now than what I did with the XT3005D. I feel that the LP400 is less forgiving than the XT3005D was, a bad shoot is more often an eight now than it used to. But at the same time as long as I do my part I find it easier to shoot deep tens with the LP400.

I am sure that the way forward is dependent of my work as a shooter, not solved by the change of my gun. But I now have a gun that I like the weight and balance of, a thing that I never really felt with the XT3005D.

Bottom line - for me the change from XT3005D to LP400 feels like it was a good choice. Will you be happy with the LP400? I don't know, but I hope some of my comments based on my change has given you some help. They both are great guns, and for the record - my best score is still with the old XT3005D (but not for long!).

Gøran

David Levene · Post by **David Levene** » Thu Jul 07, 2011 9:05 am

Great report Gøran

pauln · Post by **pauln** » Sat Jul 09, 2011 4:00 pm

I'm sure the trigger is fine , but was quite surprised that it doesn't have an electronic one . If nothing else would be a good sales pitch considering the main opposition both have them . Anybody no if Walther are planing one ?

ghostrip · Post by **ghostrip** » Sat Jul 09, 2011 4:29 pm

considering they have an e-trigger planned for ssp it shouldn't be difficult to modify lp400 for use with this module.but i don't expect it in the next year

Richard H · Post by **Richard H** » Sat Jul 09, 2011 6:27 pm

Planned for the SSP? It's already out. The design criteria was the ability to use the electronic trigger across platforms so I suspect you'll see it in everything eventually. It helps to defray development costs.

The Doctor · Post by **The Doctor** » Sun Jul 10, 2011 11:08 am

I think the biggest problem facing walther with their new series of pistols is that they are in big danger of pricing themselves out of the market - recommended retail for the standard alutec shrouded version of the LP400 here in the uk is £1500, add the cost of an extra cylinder, weights and better trigger blade, and you are talking the best part of £2000 pounds - something you get already for £1240 with the steyr Lp10. Couple this with Walthers' almost cavalier attitude to getting these pistols out in a pre-Olympic year, and I think they have shot themselves in the foot (pun intended).

Thoughts?

Lee

ghostrip · Post by **ghostrip** » Sun Jul 10, 2011 6:11 pm

Richard H wrote:Planned for the SSP? It's already out. The design criteria was the ability to use the electronic trigger across platforms so I suspect you'll see it in everything eventually. It helps to defray development costs.

i have not seen them sold in shops.