Former artillery police rework

PatrickB · 03-07-2021, 05:41 PM

I have a refinished 1916 DWM shooter with no real collector value because of the refinish, but it does have some features that arouse my curiosity.

It seems to be a police rework because it has the sear safety and a matching number magazine with an aluminum rather than wood base. It has no magazine safety or police markings.

The receiver has a notch cut at the forward edge which I associate with artillery rather than regular military lugers. The barrel does not have the serial number on it, and it looks like the artillery barrel was removed and a regular barrel installed for police use. Further evidence that the Luger used to be an artillery model is that the number 14 on the part of the toggle with the rear sight is stamped with a different font than the number 14 on the rest of the components, suggesting that sightless rear toggle of the artillery was replaced with a regular piece during the rework and numbered then.

The barrel has several proof marks that may not be very visible in my photos. On the left side near the receiver is a sideways proof mark of an eagle shrugging its wings with a number 35 below. On the right side of the barrel is a proof mark of an eagle with four little lines on each side of its body to denote wings and another mark above the eagle of "FP" or "PP" with the letters close together.

I ask the police luger experts on the forum for an opinion on when and by whom would this rework have been accomplished.

03-07-2021, 05:41 PM	#1
PatrickB User Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Virginia Posts: 26 Thanks: 2 Thanked 3 Times in 2 Posts	Former artillery police rework I have a refinished 1916 DWM shooter with no real collector value because of the refinish, but it does have some features that arouse my curiosity. It seems to be a police rework because it has the sear safety and a matching number magazine with an aluminum rather than wood base. It has no magazine safety or police markings. The receiver has a notch cut at the forward edge which I associate with artillery rather than regular military lugers. The barrel does not have the serial number on it, and it looks like the artillery barrel was removed and a regular barrel installed for police use. Further evidence that the Luger used to be an artillery model is that the number 14 on the part of the toggle with the rear sight is stamped with a different font than the number 14 on the rest of the components, suggesting that sightless rear toggle of the artillery was replaced with a regular piece during the rework and numbered then. The barrel has several proof marks that may not be very visible in my photos. On the left side near the receiver is a sideways proof mark of an eagle shrugging its wings with a number 35 below. On the right side of the barrel is a proof mark of an eagle with four little lines on each side of its body to denote wings and another mark above the eagle of "FP" or "PP" with the letters close together. I ask the police luger experts on the forum for an opinion on when and by whom would this rework have been accomplished. Attached Thumbnails