Luger Serial Numbers Dwm Shoes
28.09.2019by admin
One of the prerogatives of being a freelance gun'riter is I'm not tied into one area of interest. With some gun magazines whose writers are contracted, their editors actually resist letting them step away from a pre-set 'persona.' GUNS Magazine just lets me follow my nose or perhaps better expressed, my curiosity, wherever it leads me. This month it's Lugers. Well it went like this.
A couple of years back the Montana winter seemed ceaseless. In March the wind was still blowing the snow sideways so shooting was out of the question. For entertainment I started browsing a couple of the Internet firearms auction sites. Somehow I ended up in a section on Lugers and one chambered for the.30 Luger caught my eye. It looked clean in the photos and wasn't priced outlandishly as a 'buy it now' item so I did.
Luger Newbie In my entire lifetime of shooting I don't remember ever previously firing a Luger, and know for sure I'd never pulled the trigger on a 30-caliber one. Upon arrival it proved to be all that it had been billed-beautiful condition with all matching serial numbers but with a set of most probably replacement grips. I ran down to my local gun store for a box of.30 Luger cartridges and that's when I first began to wonder if I had made a mistake. Those Winchester rounds loaded with 93-grain FMJ bullets were priced at $28.29 for 50 rounds (it's more than double that now). When checking other stores to see if the competition had cheaper prices, I found this box of.30 Lugers were about the only ones in this entire area of Montana. I bought them, fired some, and found my new Luger functioned perfectly and actually hit pretty close to point of aim at 50'. ILLUSTRATIONS OMITTED Knowing almost nothing about Lugers I set out to at least learn exactly what I had bought.
- RARE US American Eagle Test Luger, All-Matching. Serial #6777. One of over 80 Lugers we currently have in stock at Jackson Armory, this is one for the very Advanced Collector. This is one of 1000 Lugers made by DWM for the US Army handgun trials in 1900, and this is confirmed by the serial number range, this pistol is SN #6777.
- That is a nice DWM Artillery Luger for one that is made of mis-match parts. Great item to keep. You can get these in about a $1,400.00 range with all matching numbers. Non-matching numbers you can get these depending on conditions, starting around $700.00 to $900.00. Great item-I hope you never part with it.
With a 3-3/4' barrel length, DWM on the toggle and Germany on the front of the frame the books said it had been made at the well-known Deutsche Waffen und Munitions factory and built exclusively for export. In fact the collectors call it the Model 1920 Export model. A visit to Cartridges Of The World, 9th Edition gave the information that the 7.65x21mm (.30 Luger) round had been introduced in 1900 and it, along with the Luger design of handgun, had been adopted at one time or the other by the militaries of Switzerland, Brazil, Bulgaria and Portugal. Nominal factory ballistics were said to be 1,220 fps with the 93-grain FMJ bullet.
(For comparison consider this. Colt only began to warranty the Peacemaker for smokeless powder ammunition in 1900.) Good enough! So I ordered 500 rounds of Starline brass, some 85-grain Sierra. 308' bullets, and a set of Redding reloading dies. Lyman even has cast and jacketed bullet data in their latest 48th Edition reloading manual. Then I ran into a snag.
Jan 27, 2010 Re: 1916 DWM German Luger numbermatching (photos inside) The serial number, always stamped on the frame, may also appear on the receiver and barrel. If the serial numbers don't match, this indicates the pistol was assembled from parts of several pistols. The last two digits of the original serial number may appear in several places on.
Trying the recommended powders such as Bullseye, W231, Red Dot and Unique only the latter would function the.30 Luger reliably, and only then with a maximum charge. The load was 5.0 grains of Unique with the 85-grain Sierra bullet. Also overall loaded cartridge length was found to be critical: rounds longer than 1.14' would not feed.
Scratching around in my shelves full of bullet moulds I found RCBS mould No. Cast of linotype and sized to.313' those little bullets chambered perfectly, fed reliably, and shot accurately over a charge of 4.4 grains of W231.
(That's also a maximum load so don't copy me directly.) This load clocked 1,221 fps and will group between 2' and 3' at 25 yards. ILLUSTRATION OMITTED OK, I got it to shoot reliably and accurately so my interest waned and I gave serious thought to selling the Luger. In fact at a gun show I approached a fellow with several other Lugers on his table with the intention of seeing if he was interested in buying. As sometimes happens to me at gun shows things didn't go exactly according to plan because when I walked away from his table I owned two Lugers.
The new one was a 9mm made in 1938 and carrying a number of military markings indicating it had belonged to the German army during World War II. Since I'm putting together a collection of World War II small arms, how could I resist it? Finicky 9mm My newest Luger has a 4' barrel with a code of S/42 atop the toggle link.
A little research showed the marking indicated it had been manufactured by Mauser at their Oberndorf factory in Germany. Overall it is in excellent condition but with a few small spots of pitting spread here and there, most probably picked up from being outdoors in weather and carried in a leather holster. It was the Germans' habit at this time to put the last two digits of the serial number on about every part in a Luger. With this one they all still match including the one on the magazine. From what I have learned about military Lugers so far, having a magazine with serial number matching the pistol itself is a cause for true joy. Something else I have learned about 9mm Lugers is something I have often read also. That is that they are very finicky about the ammunition they will feed reliably.
The first factory loads tried through it were some with 115-grain hollowpoint bullets. Not a single one of them would travel from magazine into chamber.
So being the clever fellow I am, some scrounging around in my ammo shed netted me a box of Hornady factory loads with 124-grain roundnose FMJ bullets. They functioned perfectly.
Being a compulsive cast bullet shooter I was soon back digging through my bullet moulds and came up with RCBS 9mm-124RN, for a roundnose, gas check, 9mm bullet. Cast of linotype, sized.357', lubed with SPG, and fitted with Lyman gas checks these bullets weighed 123 grains. Loaded over 4.2 grains of W231 in Starline brass, they likewise fed perfectly and shot accurately. Velocity at 6' was 1,024 fps and groups about 1-1/2' to 2-1/2' at 25 yards. Considering the sights on Lugers that's not too bad.
In fact it's a good thing Lugers have such a reputation for being good pointing pistols because their sights are terrible. Lugers point wonderfully, shoot reliably and accurately when fed proper ammunition, and are built to amazing levels of quality for a military issue handgun. They may not replace Colt SAAs as favorites in my heart of hearts, but I'm glad I bought these two. They are interesting.
PHOTOS: YVONNE VENTURINO LOADED AMMO FIOCCHI AMMUNITION 6930 N. OZARK, MO 65721 (417) 725-4118 WWW.FIOCCHIUSA.COM WINCHESTER AMMUNITION 427 NORTH SHAMROCK ST. EAST ALTON, IL 62024 WWW.WINCHESTER.COM COMPONENTS HORNADY P.O. BOX 1848 GRAND ISLAND, NE 68802 (308) 382-1390, WWW.HORNADY.COM RCBS 605 ORO DAM BLVD OROVILLE, CA 95965 (800) 553-5000, WWW.RCBS.COM SIERRA BULLETS 1400 WEST HENRY ST.
SEDALIA, MO 65301 (888) 223-3006 WWW.SIERRABULLETS.COM STARLINE BRASS 1300 WEST HENRY ST. SEDALIA, MO 65301 (660) 827-6640 WWW.STARLINEBRASS.COM.
Dear Friends: I have the opportunity to purchase a 1918 DWM Artillery Luger. Guy is asking $750.00 but I think it is to much and plan on offering $500.00.
I was not all that interested when I was inspecting it as I did not note it's serial number. After giving the matter some thought it may not be a bad deal.
All numbers match including front adjustable and rear sight. Barrel is original and much of the finish is worn and appears a dull blue. Most of the blue wearing on the barrel.
Grips are original but loose. One of the grip screws appears to have been replaced. Not much strawing is left either but Luger has to pitting and rifling is good. The front and rear straps are in good shape with much of the blue remaining. Please let me know your feelings regarding this Artillery Luger.
Regards, George. Dear George: I have attached a picture of an Artillery Luger that is for sale at Simpson Ltd item #D4871. This 1917 Luger has the same front sight as on the DWM 1918 I am looking.
This 1917 is priced at $1395.00 and there appears to be much pitting. I guess price of $750.00 is not out of line. I'll make return to this shop today and will keep you posted. Regards, George Download Attachment: images/iconpaperclip.gif 1917 Artillery Luger.jpg (Artillery Luger.jpg) 63.74KB. Dear George: I checked the numbers on this Luger and they all match, I am sure, I think?
Now I am second guessing myself. Yesterday was the second time I was in this gunshop and again inspected this 1918 Artillery Luger.
I am 99% sure the numbers on barrel, frame & slide match! But if you say that 1918 models are not very common with fine tune front sights, I will go along with you.
I am going to take my digital camera to this gunshop and put this matter to rest! My feeling is that Luger has matching numbers. If all numbers match on this 1918 Artillery and does have fune tune front sight, what do I have here? Possibly I should buy it on the spot and not let it get away? The batteries for my digital camera are charging. I will head out in about two hours and report back upon my return.
I own all of Jan Still books plus just about every book on Lugers. At present I own 3 Lugers.
My problem is that we are living in an apartment as our new house is being built. All my reference library is in a self storage where I have no access to it. Figures this would happen, oh well.
Regards, George. George, I stopped by the gunshop and inspected the 1918 Artillery Luger. I took a ton on pictures but most were blurry so I guess I was to close. With the digital set for close-ups,I need to determine how far away I need to get for future pictures.
All the numbers match and serial number is #9839! The number #39 is stamped on all the small parts. The barrel has the same serial number and the stamping has a halo around it so I guess original. The witness mark mating the barrel to slide is 100% as well. This 1918 Artillery does have a fine tune front sight as the pictures show. Sorry about being so blurry. Please let me know your thoughts.
We agreed on $700.00! Dear All: I did, I did! I purchased it for $700.00! Thanks for all you encouragement. Without my books, I am at a loss. George you said DWM stopped production of fine tune front sights in 1917? Maybe this Artillery is a early 1918 model.
Any thought or commits would be appreciated. Every small part was numbered to the gun including firing in & hold open. Now I need to get the tool for adjusting the front sights and a nice wood bottom magazine to go with. It came with an aluminum bottom eagle 63 as I recall.
Regards, George. I aint telling nothing! If I was too tell you guys where my secret gunshops are, you all with deep pockets will grab all the good stuff before us poor folks have a chance to count our loose change to see if we can afford it! Thanks for your kind words Keoki7,Point622000 and the rest of you! Hey George(Keoki7) by the poor pictures I uploaded, this 1918 Artillery would you say is correct?
Luger Serial Number Database
I will forward addition pictures once I get it home and my wife is not around! The only other handgun I have that is as long as the Artillery Luger is my Smith & Wesson model 500.50 caliber revolver and these two don't look anything a like and my wife would be suspicious! Regards, George. George/George,. Mr. MacTague wrote an article for AutoMag in Sept., 1997 based on his and much of the research previously done by Mr.
The following are some pertinent excerpts relative to the 1918 fine tune sights: (A) 'There appears to be no standardization of the installation of the fine tuning adjustment in the 1917-1918 years of assembly. It is not unusual to find consecutive serial numbered pistols with different sight configurations.' (B) 'The use of the fine tuned sights during the 1918 assembly period continued through the 'b' suffix in one of the following configurations: (1) Fine tuned front and rear - 3% (2) Fine tuned rear only - 9% (3) Fine tuned front only - 10% (4) No fine tuning - 79%' (C) 'The fine tuned front and rear configuration(1 above) disappeared after the 'n/s' assemblies. Configuration 2 & 3 continued through the 'b' suffix, and then became practically nonexistent thereafter.' - You received a wonderful buy on your Artillery.
From the pics, as best as I can tell, your pistol #9839 bears no suffix lower case letter. This denotes early 1918 assembly; probably in January, 1918 if I were to guess. Trust this helps. PS: A histogram of the four 1917 fine tune sight configurations by suffix block is included in Mr. MacTague's article. George, I have a 1918 serial numbered 246a, it too has a fine tune front sight. Mine also has birch grips, something common to many 1918's and some 1917's.
As to the wife/gun problem I have found that three is the magic number; once you have three they are unable to count. I am also always going and coming with pistols and long guns in cases. They just can't keep track of them. You might also get a friend to bring it to your house while you are away. Have it in a pouch or case of yours. Have your friend hand it to your wife and say he is returning George's gun. She may ask if it's loaded but nothing more.
P08 German Luger Serial Numbers
Your wife will bring it into the house and put it away for you. It's kinda like the old devil myth that he must be invited across the threshold. Works every time. George: I picked up my 1915 DWM & 1918 DWM Artillery Luger yesterday. I field striped and cleaned them with mineral spirits and a soft brush. I used the Brownell whiting product to clean the grips.
Both sets of grips are matched to the Lugers. After I cleaned all four grips I noticed the ones of the Artillery were much lighter in color. I would guess that they are made of birch like you mentioned yours were. This artillery Luger is in better condition than I thought. It cleaned up real nice.
I will post pictures of both Lugers later this evening. Regards, George.
Dear Friends: Here is my bargain DWM 1918 Artillery Luger with fine tune front sight and birch grips. Cleaned up pretty good and I have no complaints. Could someone please advise how I can firm up the grips as they are loose on this Luger. I am tried shimming with paper in the past and was just wondering if there was a better way.
Have a great weekend. Dear Crankshaft: Regarding my Smith & Wesson model 500,.50 cal with 8-3/8' barrel compared to Smith & Wesson 629 with 6-1/2' barrel in 44 magnum its a big gun! See attached pictures.
I reload a Speer 325 gr with 43.0 gr of H110 @1856 feet per second. George Download Attachment: images/iconpaperclip.gif DCP7506.JPG (135.35KB Download Attachment: images/iconpaperclip.gif S&W 500 cal compare.jpg (500 cal compare.jpg) 20.48KB.