I've not heard much online about people firing blank replica guns, so I thought I'd do a quick write-up of my own recent experience. I've fired pistols plenty of times, but had never tried out a blank firing gun.

I recently bought a blank firing replica of a Walther PPK semi-automatic pistol. Where I live, like most other places, it's illegal to discharge a firearm within city limits (and would probably upset my weiner dogs), so I took it down to the shooting range to try it out.

After firing off several rounds from a couple of real pistols, (an old nasty Bryco .380 auto plinker and a new Smith and Wesson .40 caliber with a nice recoil) I turned my attention to my new replica PPK blank gun.

I was not sure what to expect. Would it be a cheap cap gun with a little bang, like a .22 caliber pistol?

Let's find out.

I took the little flat-nosed, green-capped blank ammo cartridges and loaded them into the clip and inserted it into the magazine. Wearing my ear plugs and safety glasses, I switched off the safety and pulled back the slide to chamber a round, wondering what it would be like.

I aimed the pistol down range and pulled the trigger. I was rewarded with a loud boom, like any other larger caliber pistol, and a nice bucking recoil.

This was immediately followed by a small puff of smoke and the sound of the ejected spent brass tinkling on the pavement at my side. Just like the real thing.

If I hadn't known that I'd just fired a blank pistol with nothing coming out of the muzzle, I wouldn't have been able to tell the difference. Encouraged, I went ahead and pulled the trigger several more times, in rapid succession, so I could get the full sensation of firing a semi-automatic.

I got it.

When I had emptied the clip, there was a cloud of smoke, the smell of gunpowder and brass shell casings bouncing at my feet.

I have now satisfied my curiosity about shooting a blank firearm. With the exception of not firing projectiles, it's just like the real thing, and it was fun. Try it sometime!

Written by: Randall Graham

Blank Pistol from Amazon..

	Walther 9mm Blanks, For Full- & Semi-Auto Pistols, 50ct Sale Price: $44.26
	Walther blank ammo 9mm Use in full-/semi-auto guns Do NOT use in revolvers!

	9mm Blank Firing PPK - Replica Blank Firing Starter Pistol 9mm List Price: $109.99 Sale Price: $99.99
	9mm Blank firing PPK Replica Gun. James Bond style replica model semi-automatic. Made of steel alloy, It looks and feels like the original. Pull back the slide to load the first blank into the chamber...

	F 92 Black Blank Firing Gun 9mm - Starter Pistol Sale Price: $119.99
	9mm F92 Black blank-firing replica gun. This beautifully manufactured replica of a Beretta Model 92F is the Italian gun makers flagship pistol. In the early 1970s, Carlo Beretta, Giuseppe Mazzetti, and the prolific Vittorio Valle began work on a successor to the Model 951 pistol...

	GAP Automatic 8mm Blank Firing Starter Pistol with Blued Finish List Price: $239.99 Sale Price: $184.95
	This famous modern era model features detailed metal construction with authentic working single and double action. Load eight 8mm blanks into the magazine pull back the slide release and fire. This model is available in either a blued finish or bicolor with a nickel slide and blued frame...

	5 Shot 9mm Blank Detective Starter Pistol Nickel Finish List Price: $119.00 Sale Price: $93.99
	2.5 inch barrel, Nickel, Length: 7.5 inches, Weight: 1.7 lbs. .357 magnum style revolver with wood grips, working single and double actions, swing out cylinder holds 5 blanks. Can be disassembled by Gunsmith...