1st Luger

[DarkBiker98]

Hi! I’m newbie, and few days ago bought my 1st Luger. As I understand this is police DWM Luger. But I don’t know date when it was manufactured. So can I ask for help? Can someone tell me more about this gun?

[DarkBiker98]

More pictures.

[Doubs]

Your police Luger is a post-WW1 commercial in the q suffix block. Post-WW1 commercial Lugers will not have a date and the crown/N on the left receiver will be vertical or standing. Lugers in the q & r blocks, according to Gortz & Sturgess, page 515, will display the first independent police inspection marks. IOW, they are the first police Lugers to be inspected by only the police other than the C/N factory stamp.

The fractur G with a partial crown is typical of the police inspection stamps. G&S also note that the meaning of the small eagle stamp above the serial number on the barrel is unknown.

Your Luger shows only partial removal of the magazine safety and also has the sear safety. The sear bar may be a replacement as the two digit stamp shows a larger than normal "1" and may be an over stamp of another number. Otherwise it appears to be matching.

You don't mention caliber but it can be either 9mm (most likely) or .30 caliber as the police used both. I'm not overly familiar with police unit markings so someone else can interpret those.

If Edward Tinker sees this thread, he's an authority on police Lugers and may be able to shed more light on your Luger.

[spangy]

I agree with Doubs DarkBiker98.
The front strap marking is a police property mark. S.D. IV 1251
The Schutzpolizei (police), Düsseldorf, Fourth precinct, pistol number 1251.
The sear bar seems to me to be 'fiddled' with.
The exact date of post-WW1 commercial manufacture is best left to others to explain.

The Walther safety (magazine safety) was intended to block the trigger when the magazine is removed.


Thanks for sharing your gun ... I really like it ... but then its a rare luger that I don't like.

[tomaustin]

run the pencil down the barrel for caliber.....

[Dwight Gruber]

It is an s suffix. Places the pistol manufacture likely in 1928, or possibly very late 1927. The barrel has been replaced while in police service, no c/N commercial proof. This would have been done at a police armory during the general police conversion from 7,65mm to 9mm. The tiny eagle is most likely a power proof after rebarreling. I do not have any concern about the sear/safety bar renumberings. Commercial pistols were numbered in standard "hidden" locations; the facing numbers were most likely added at a police armory after repair or replacement.


--Dwight

[mrerick]

Welcome to the forum, and congratulations on your somewhat rare DWM Weimar period police Luger.

In original finish and matching, it is collectible.

You may enjoy our forum's FAQ PDF reference document. Just follow the link at the top of the page.

[DarkBiker98]

Wow!!!! It’s really cool! Thanks for answer to all!!! But I still got some questions. Tell me pls what is that on picture. And what you can say about magazine. It’s commercial? Produced by Haenel?

[DarkBiker98]

Originally Posted by tomaustin

run the pencil down the barrel for caliber.....

It’s 9mm. I will try make pictures of barrel inside.

[Doubs]

Originally Posted by DarkBiker98

Wow!!!! It’s really cool! Thanks for answer to all!!! But I still got some questions. Tell me pls what is that on picture. And what you can say about magazine. It’s commercial? Produced by Haenel?

The spring that's riveted to the hood is a sear safety and designed to prevent accidental discharge of the pistol during disassembly for cleaning. When the side plate is removed, a pin on the end of the spring drops into a hole on the sear bar which prevents it from being depressed and releasing the firing pin.

Apparently the police had problems with officers leaving a round in the chamber when field stripping their Lugers. If the action is cocked when the upper assembly is removed from the frame, the sear bar can be depressed with a finger and fire the cartridge. The sear safety prevents that.

IMO, better training would have solved the problem but that's the solution the German police came up with.

Dwight is correct; the suffix letter is an "s".

[DarkBiker98]

Here’s pictures of barrel. It looks like someone shoot 40-50 rounds and put gun in case for year. Or few years. But in real it looks better!

[Edward Tinker]

AS an FYI - pictures of the sear safety is in the FAQ - you DID download the document right?

Police lugers are fun, especially since they show the area / zone where they were primarily used before and during the war.

Ed

[DonVoigt]

Of course the sear bar was "fiddled" with; when the sear safety was added it had to have the small hole drilled into the bar.
It was likely numbered to match the re-worked pistol when the police modifications were done; clearly the police armorer who did the job did not have a complete number set of the smaller font
numbers.

[DarkBiker98]

Thanks for answer and Happy New Year to everyone!