Walther Q5 Match Pistol Review

The Walther Q5 match pistol is a game changer in the market of competition pistols. It comes competition ready right out of the box. This innovative design is very versatile and is great for USPSA, steel challenges, 3-gun, 2-gun, and any other shooting competition.

Here are the reasons why I recommend the Walther Q5 match pistol:

1. The Sights

The sights were something I was very excited about. I come from a background of shooting Glocks, Berettas, Smith & Wesson’s and a couple of other brands where a lot of aftermarket products needed to be added before bringing to a competition. I have used stock, Trijicon, TruGlo, Big Dot Tritium, and many other sights on these pistols. The Walther Q5 has a fiber optic front sight and adjustable rear target sights. The best part about the Walther Q5 rear sight is the ability to adjust for windage and elevation. Most firearms require a pusher and can only adjust the rear sight for windage.

For shooters who enjoy optics on their pistols, the Walther Q5 comes with three mount bases. They will accept Docter, Leupold or DeltaPoint, and Trijicon sights. The mount bases are marked accordingly. Typically, you’d have to send your pistol to a gunsmith or somewhere that can cut a slide to hold an optic. With the Walther Q5, you can do it yourself as soon as you want to change it out.

2. Slide Serrations

The slide serrations on the Walther Q5 are on the rear and the front of the slide. The benefit of these cuts is for easy manipulation of the slide. If you do a press check of the pistol, the front serrations give you an easy grip to do so. If you don’t use the slide lock to load your pistol, the back serrations also provide a non-slip grip to rack a round quickly. This is true of clearing malfunctions as well.

Like most firearms, it does have a Picatinny rail. While I use this for competition shooting, if this is a pistol you’d like to keep at home for self-defense, it does allow for lasers and lights to be added to the rail.

3. Ambidextrous Functions

If you’re left hand dominant or ambidextrous, the slide stop and magazine release on this pistol are both ambidextrous. This makes it extremely easy to use for anyone quickly running and gunning. The magazine release on this pistol does not protrude too far out, nor is it hard to find. The Gen 4 Glocks, in my opinion, have a very easy to find magazine release that also causes some grip issues for me. I ended up having to replace this part on the Glock for one of the older releases that don’t protrude so far out. The Walther Q5 has solved all my issues with their comfortable magazine release.  

4. The Grip

The grip of the Walther Q5 is one of the better grips I’ve shot with. The polymer frame advertises a non-slip, cross-directional grip surface. It’s hard to compare with other pistols, but if you’re like me and not a fan of stippling, this is a happy medium between stippling and a smooth polymer frame. The pistol also comes with interchangeable backstraps. My biggest recommendation is to find which backstrap works for you based on your grip and hand size.  

5. The Trigger

Let’s talk about the trigger and the new ones Walther Arms just announced. The trigger on my stock Q5 has a 5.6lb trigger pull with only a .4 inch travel. The trigger reset is just .1 inch. The trigger I believe is what sets this pistol apart from all of the others. It takes some getting used to, especially when I was used to Glock and Smith and Wesson triggers. The Glock 17 trigger pull is just about the same, but the full-size M&P is almost a pound heavier. I’m not a fan of split triggers that aren’t all one piece like Shield produces. Glock triggers have longer to travel and aren’t anywhere close to the Q5 design. When you first use the Q5, dry fire before trying it out with live rounds.

If you haven’t heard, Walther has announced some new triggers for the Q5 match pistol on their Instagram page. I’m a fan of all of them and can’t wait to try them out. This just adds to the ability to customize your competition pistol. Here are the triggers they announced:

Adjustability: Pre-travel, Over-travel and Weight.

Trigger Shoe Size options: Small, Medium and Large.

Trigger styles: Flat and Curved

6. Magazine Capacity

The capacity for the Q5 is 15+1 rounds. While this is lower than some competition pistols, I chose to upgrade my magazines with Taran Tactical and Taylor Freelance mag extensions. Depending on what division I shoot in in competitions, this pistol can be used out of the box in Production or Limited. If I shoot in Limited, I add on my flared magwell from Taylor Freelance. The benefit to having the extra backstraps is that I was able to cut one to use with the magwell, but can always take it off if I want to shoot Production.

7. Accuracy

This pistol is more accurate than I am. In a 2-gun competition, there was a 50 yard shot with my pistol. On the very first try, I hit the target. Don’t believe me? Check out the video. My buddy can shoot the Walther Q5 at 100 yards and be dead on with it. Going back to the sights, this pistol can be sighted in for you and your sight picture.

8. Walther Arms Warranty and Their Buy Back Program

Walther Arms offers their Legendary Lifetime Limited Warranty:

“If you purchase a Walther firearm, it carries its Legendary Warranty regardless of whether or not you are the original purchaser. This warranty covers Walther centerfire and rimfire firearms, produced after 1993 only and does not apply to antique, limited edition, or custom firearms.”

I have complete trust in Walther for this and am really surprised at their level of customer service. Their latest program is called, “Shoot It. Love It. Buy It.” They are advertising a 30-day money back guarantee so if you don’t love the pistol, you can send it back for a full refund and they’ll even pay the shipping cost. Some dealers are able to offer a try before you buy program where you take a pistol for a “test-drive” with no-money-down. If this still doesn’t persuade you, I don’t know what will.

9. Other considerations

This pistol was also released in an all steel frame. Just the other day, Walther showed how it’s made on their Instagram page. It’s an impressive pistol and I can tell you very durable in the competition shooting world.

If you’re familiar with the type of pistol James Bond used back in the day, (hint: it’s a Walther) then you probably caught on to the latest Hollywood sighting of a Walther Arms pistol. Cable in Deadpool 2 was seen toting two Walther Q5 match pistols. Besides the actual purpose of the slide serrations and design, this is one mean looking pistol.

Walther has been around for over a century and is a quality firearms manufacturer. Trust in a brand is a big deal and I am a proud owner of the Walther Q5 match pistol. I appreciate how this company has remained innovative and continues to improve their products.