In November of 1986, I wandered through a gun show searching for my first center fire pistol. It was my 21st Birthday and I was charged as I walked table to table - unable to decide what I should buy. I stopped at a dealer flying an HK banner "In A World Of Compromise Some Don't" stretched across his table. Having purchased an HK93A2 at 19, I was naturally drawn to the table of German goodness. Sitting in a display case, I spotted what was to be my first center fire pistol - an evil, futuristic looking lump of polymer and steel - the Heckler and Koch Vp70z. To many it was and still remains one ugly pistol. To me however, it was and still is a thing of beauty - which of course is in the eye of the beholder and a piece of firearms history - the worlds and my own. I laid down my $275.00, snatched up a case of 9mm and headed to a patch of wilderness in the Northeast Ohio woodlands.
I remember the cool November air feeling suddenly warm as my fingers fumbled to load the cartridges into the 18-round magazine - a fox squirrel barked in the beech tree behind me. I leaned a makeshift target board against an old fallen beech and tacked a target to it - turning to pace off my steps as I finished loading my third magazine. I picked up the gun from it's box, laying on the autumn colors of the forest floor - the fox squirrel continued to bark, as I inserted the magazine into the well and cycled my first round. As I clicked off the safety, I began to study the sight - an odd reverse of the sights I was used to on my Ruger Mark II. I aimed to the x-ring and squeezed the trigger which seemed to take forever to drop the firing pin. My ears cracked - as I realized my hearing protection was laying at my feet, but my first center fire pistol went off and the round struck just below the bullseye - the fox squirrel fell silent - I was in bliss. With hearing protection on, I whiled the remains of the afternoon, filling mags, shooting for the X-ring and reveling in the woods with my very first of what would become many more. I can still feel the leaves crunching under my boots, smell the beech forest, see the last of the sun setting behind an Ohio cornfield, as I made my way to my 67 Town Car parked along the train tracks on the road to Lisbon - thumb sore from loading seemingly endless 9mm rounds. Sitting behind the wheel of my old Lincoln, I loaded those three mags again, dropped the VP into the inside pocket of my Levis jacket and began what would now be nearly a quarter-century of carrying a gun at my side. The VP70z would not be carried for long - later that year, I bought my first 1911 - a Korean War Colt, but my VP never sat in the safe for long. I poured 9mm through it - thousands and thousands of rounds - until the magazine latch quit in 1994. It was relegated to my safe and stayed there for many years - I had moved on to other things, but could never bring myself to sell my first....
Twenty two years later, the circle is complete again - an envelope from Numrich Arms was waiting on the table as I arrived home from an impossible day. I just got done installing a new magazine catch - fits perfect. I loaded up those three old mags and tonight, the VP will stand guard with me once more and when I wake, it's off to the range to get to know my old friend again. I still need to refinish the slide - maybe I'll get it coated, but it sure is nice to see my old Vp70z. Anyone who may wonder what shooting a pistol with a 22lb trigger pull is like, (though mine seems lighter than that) - stop by and see me at the Pumpkin Shoot Saturday - I'll be glad to introduce you....
I remember the cool November air feeling suddenly warm as my fingers fumbled to load the cartridges into the 18-round magazine - a fox squirrel barked in the beech tree behind me. I leaned a makeshift target board against an old fallen beech and tacked a target to it - turning to pace off my steps as I finished loading my third magazine. I picked up the gun from it's box, laying on the autumn colors of the forest floor - the fox squirrel continued to bark, as I inserted the magazine into the well and cycled my first round. As I clicked off the safety, I began to study the sight - an odd reverse of the sights I was used to on my Ruger Mark II. I aimed to the x-ring and squeezed the trigger which seemed to take forever to drop the firing pin. My ears cracked - as I realized my hearing protection was laying at my feet, but my first center fire pistol went off and the round struck just below the bullseye - the fox squirrel fell silent - I was in bliss. With hearing protection on, I whiled the remains of the afternoon, filling mags, shooting for the X-ring and reveling in the woods with my very first of what would become many more. I can still feel the leaves crunching under my boots, smell the beech forest, see the last of the sun setting behind an Ohio cornfield, as I made my way to my 67 Town Car parked along the train tracks on the road to Lisbon - thumb sore from loading seemingly endless 9mm rounds. Sitting behind the wheel of my old Lincoln, I loaded those three mags again, dropped the VP into the inside pocket of my Levis jacket and began what would now be nearly a quarter-century of carrying a gun at my side. The VP70z would not be carried for long - later that year, I bought my first 1911 - a Korean War Colt, but my VP never sat in the safe for long. I poured 9mm through it - thousands and thousands of rounds - until the magazine latch quit in 1994. It was relegated to my safe and stayed there for many years - I had moved on to other things, but could never bring myself to sell my first....
Twenty two years later, the circle is complete again - an envelope from Numrich Arms was waiting on the table as I arrived home from an impossible day. I just got done installing a new magazine catch - fits perfect. I loaded up those three old mags and tonight, the VP will stand guard with me once more and when I wake, it's off to the range to get to know my old friend again. I still need to refinish the slide - maybe I'll get it coated, but it sure is nice to see my old Vp70z. Anyone who may wonder what shooting a pistol with a 22lb trigger pull is like, (though mine seems lighter than that) - stop by and see me at the Pumpkin Shoot Saturday - I'll be glad to introduce you....
Last edited:
