Finally found one - LP53

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ctshooter

ctshooter

Member
Oct 30, 2018
4,272
2,248
CT, United States
It's taken some time but I finally found a Walther LP53. I had a certain price point in mind and the one offered on eBay was several hundred over that number and the seller was smoking some of the funny stuff IMO. There was a post here on AGN about gunbroker having generally more reasonable prices so I decided to take a quick peek. Low and behold there was a LP53 with a day left on the auction. Condition is very good with a few minor marks and one ding in the back, but otherwise it was a nice solid piece with original box, an insane amount of paperwork and documentation, all the extra front/rear sights, etc.

I won the auction and the final price was within my range of purchase price, so I am beyond happy with the item I received a couple of days ago. I've given it a little cleaning and rub down and some of the marks came off easily. Function is perfect.

LP53 - 1.jpeg
LP53 - 2.jpeg
 
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Exactly that. I wanted it to look like a 50s .22 Target pistol like the Mandolin, or Jaegar..
As you guessed, The rifling was not shortened, its stock…I just machined down the outer casing, leaving 3/8” of void to still allow the use of the cocking aid. Simply machining away 50mm of void that is not rifled.
To get it looking correct, i machined the 8mm x 2 mm step at the muzzle…
Balance became perfect and hold on target is rock solid.

Removing the foresight intact was a scary and very risky moment, but i managed it Following the advice of Len on the Vintage airgun forum. Foresight is attached in the same way a full bore rifle sight is fitted.
As far as a i know, only 3 in the world like it….Lens, this one and a .22 version i did….hours of complex machine work for that one….
 
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Congratulations on finding such a fine pistol. Can't help but love the fine fit and finish of those Walthers. They made them from 1952 to 1983 so someone must have liked them! I have a couple now but I still regret selling my first one. It was an early gun, 1956-57, with the smooth finish and a fitted case. Jay

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I've only done a little shooting with it, but it equals my LP3 and some others of the similar quality and age.

I'm not sure the date on mine, but curious to do a SN lookup and find out.

That fitted case is really nice.

I will say $350 for a Predom seems really high. I missed out on one on eBay a while back which went for around $200-225. $350 is the price I paid for the LP53, which I felt was a fair price. My window was basically $3-400, knowing the lower end of $300 would prob never happen.
 
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The Predom benefits from the same direct feed into bore, TP directly behind the barrel, with no 90 degree bend, low piston weight and good compression ratio efficiency ( they can both make 525 fps) but its let down by the trigger and lacks the thumb rest..
Its steel barrel can be a boon for easy refinishing (re-bluing) versus the alloy on the 53 however.
 
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Agree with all of the above. The LP53 at $350 is fairly priced. The same price for a Predom not so much…I remember when they were much more common and a lot lower price, and before the bay price gougers ran them up. Woulda Shoulda….Heck , just look at the asking prices for classics like the MK 1‘s and 2’s or the 78/79g‘s or the 717/747/777 line….but I digress

back to the topic - love your LP53. Congrats and enjoy
 
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