Finnish Board Stock

[Dick Herman]

I have a Luger artillery board shoulder stock with the Finnish Army marking in the wood. The SA is a 1/4 inch square box over a block T. Both marks are machined or stamped into the wood. In one of the grooves cut into the wood for the lug attachment device is stamped 1954.

Is 1954 a date or serial number? Has anyone seen this type of stock marking?

[Lugerdoc]

Dick, I haven't observed a date or serial number stamped into the wood of a Finnish LPO8 type board stock, but do know that about 5,000 WW1 surplus stocks were supplied to the Finns with their purchase of 5,000 commercial 7.65x98mm length barreled lugers in the early 1920s. TH

[jussi16]

Hello Dick.

Can you post some pictures?

jussi

[Dick Herman]

Here it is Jussi,

Seems to be a regular artillery slab stock with Finnish markings. As you can see the 1954 and Y mark are in the groove for the lug connection device. Any idea what the T represents below the SA on the slab side?

[jussi16]

Hello.

T=Talousvarikko. You could translate it as "the Maintenance Depot".

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by Dick Herman

Seems to be a regular artillery slab stock with Finnish markings.

Dick -

Inasmuch as you have removed the attaching iron, are you sure it is for the Luger and not the Lahti??? The gripframe lugs are similar but the lock/cutout location is different...

[Dick Herman]

Richard,
I have never examined a Lahti stock or attachment device. However, your question forced me to play with my stuff. The pictured upside down stock attachment is identical to my other artillery rigs and accepted the Artillery Lugers that were inserted. This is a Luger Artillery stock.

[jussi16]

There were only some prototype and test shoulder stocks for the Lahti. To find a genuine is really hard.
Most moving around are repros. And even they are rare.

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by jussi16

There were only some prototype and test shoulder stocks for the Lahti. To find a genuine is really hard.
Most moving around are repros. And even they are rare.

Jussi -

The stock-holster you have shown is very cool; but I was hoping that Dick had a Lahti board stock that he had no use for...So I could buy it from him and use it with an altered Luger artillery holster for my 'artillery Lahti'...

Making a curved attachment iron is outside my skill zone right now; I'm having a hard enough time making a straight one...

[John Sabato]

Originally Posted by sheepherder

...Making a curved attachment iron is outside my skill zone right now; I'm having a hard enough time making a straight one...

Rich, you can do this... think it through.

My suggestion would be either a rotary table cutting the inside curve,... or to do it on the cheap, put the raw attachment iron in a good vise and use a specially ground tool in a fly cutter in your vertical mill that is set up for the appropriate cut radius... Then walk the tool into the iron SLOWLY...

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by John Sabato

My suggestion would be either a rotary table cutting the inside curve...

I have thought of that; using a small keyway cutter...But a Luger attching iron would be simpler and quicker...

Here's a pic of the two gripframes...I don't have my verniers handy (I'm taking a motherboard to the PO) but except for the locking notch, the curve looks quite close...

I've seen pics of Lugers with attached board stocks that were at a Gawd-awful angle; I'm guessing that the stock was a Finnish board stock, locked at the Luger notch...Lugers & Lahtis are the only gripframes with external "T" lugs...

I have a Mauser stock iron that I'm using as a design aid, but I really need to find a Luger repro stock iron...

[Dick Herman]

Rich,

Thank you for the pictures. The similarity of the mounting lugs are amazing. The lug lock groove appears to be slightly different. Will a Luger attachment slip onto a Lahti lug?

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by Dick Herman

Rich,

Thank you for the pictures. The similarity of the mounting lugs are amazing. The lug lock groove appears to be slightly different. Will a Luger attachment slip onto a Lahti lug?

Dick -

I don't have either attaching iron, but I did just take a couple measurements with my verniers, and I believe a Luger stock iron will fit a Lahti (or can be 'fitted') but a Lahti stock iron won't fit a Luger.

The big difference in dimensions is in the base of the "T" - The Luger is wider. The Luger iron might be a 'sloppier' fit on the Lahti (and the locking notch is in the wrong place) but I think it could be fit. I've been told that Luger attaching iron often needs 'fitting' and repros even more so, but 'fitting' a Luger iron to a Lahti shouldn't be any more work.

That's just my general observation. There's an original Luger arty stock iron on GB right now, but for $195 it can stay there...I can buy an entire repro holster, board stock, straps & pouch for that much...

I'll wait for a repro.

[George Anderson]

Richard, there's a repro Luger stock iron on Ebay today. If that doesn't suit you, I have two originals - a little rough but complete.

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by George Anderson

Richard, there's a repro Luger stock iron on Ebay today. If that doesn't suit you, I have two originals - a little rough but complete.

Disregard...Wrong Richard!

[sheepherder]

The guy selling the original Luger attaching iron on eBay [rwcutah] is a good guy; I've bought stuff from him, but $195 is too high, IMO...

The two other 'stock iron' auctions are screw sets + punch, by a certain Ken K. DBA 'Revshop'...No iron itself; just the screws and punch, little stuff...

Sirplus70 frequently has repro stock irons on eBay; I'm waiting for Dorothy to post another Luger iron...

[John Sabato]

Originally Posted by sheepherder

I have a Mauser stock iron that I'm using as a design aid, but I really need to find a Luger repro stock iron...

You want a repro Luger stock iron to modify?

...or to just use as a design aid so you can make your own Lahti stock iron?

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by John Sabato

You want a repro Luger stock iron to modify?

...or to just use as a design aid so you can make your own Lahti stock iron?

I won't know which until I get one in hand. A repro is going to need fitting [filing/milling] and will likely be cast iron. If I have to make one it will be steel. I've read here that even original milled steel Luger stock irons may need fitting to another lug, so that's not any real benefit.

I don't like the idea of cast iron; too easy to break off. But if one slipped right on and was reasonable I'd try it. Making my own is possible, but cutting the inside curved slot with a 'T' section is annoying.

Buying the complete repro Luger rig - board stock, holster, straps, pouch etc - is the most reasonable way to get everything together. There's several on eBay/GB for $164 - $175. Not a bad price, but before I invest in something that will only be a desk display I'd want to see if it was easily modified. I don't see any problem with the holster, my concern is the attaching iron. I don't want to re-invent the wheel. If it's too much time & trouble, I'll forget it.

[LU1900]

http://cmrfirearms.com/shop/product_...products_id=86

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by LU1900

http://cmrfirearms.com/shop/product_...products_id=86

Interesting; but at $75 I would be better off buying the complete $164/$168 board + holster 'rig'.

Dick Herman - My apologies for turning your thread into a free-for-all for stock irons. I usually start a new thread but this one snowballed...