The VP-70 was designed by Heckler & Koch cofounder Alex Seidel, and introduced in 1973. It was made with the idea of being a gun easily mass produced for arming a civilian resistance in case of Russian invasion of East Germany, but the West German government opted not to adopt it. In the original military form, the gun is semiautomatic as a pistol, with the option to use a 3-round burst firing mode when the shoulder stock is attached. The stock also doubles as a holster.

Mechanically, the VP-70 is simple blowback, and has several features which were quite cutting edge at the time. It is the first production service pistol to use a polymer frame, and it came with double-stack, double-feed 18-round magazines; the highest standard capacity of the day. It is striker fired, and the striker is at rest completely forward, unlike modern striker-fired pistol which use the cycling of the slide to partially cock the striker. This means that the VP70 is ac very safe action, but has a trigger pull best compared to a staple gun.

After the military rejection of the VP-70M, a civilian model was made, designated the VP-70Z. This model did not have any of the burst fire components, not the fittings to attach the buttstock. About 23,000 were made, including about 400 in 9x21mm for the Italian commercial market. This is far more than the approximately 3,500 VP-70M pistols made.

Thanks to H&K for providing access to bring you this VP-70M!