1941 German Luger

[Orefed]

1941 numbers matching German Luger that my father gave me in 1999. I don't know much about it other then the serial number is 1317 and all the parts with numbers on them have 17. The Magazine has 4117 0n it. Would that be 41 for the year and 17 for the serial number? It also has the original holster with an after market magazine and what I think is the take down tool. I have only shot it one time 10 years ago and it functioned perfectly.

Information

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[matthanne1]

Nice family heirloom. Many of these are tracked by the date code over the breech, which gives the year of manufacture. I assume yours is 41. The serial number of the weapon is also found in front of the trigger guard, as well as a letter suffix (when used). That would be the whole serial number, the one on the left of the breech is a partial and the rest are two-digit confirmations of original factory assembly. The serial on the magazine indicates it was issued to a pistol with that serial (4117) and there may also be a letter suffix there too, and if a plus sign is present, it indicates that the magazine was the spare issued with it.

[browningautorifle]

Those are postwar grips scales? Black plastic...?

[Brian Dick]

It looks like a very honest pistol to me. The black bakelite grips are correct for a 41 chamber date, Mauser manufacture P.08. It should have a 41 date on the top of the chamber and a 42 on the toggle if built in January and early February. These can have either walnut or black bakelite grips. Later production with the byf on the toggle will only have the black bakelite grips and chamber dates of both 41 and 42. They were nicknamed "Black Widow" and should have an unnumbered, fxo coded, (Haenel mfg.), magazine. We don't have a good picture of the toggle and top of the chamber to see exactly which it is but the earlier "pre Black Widow" variant demands a big premium if that's what it is. It is a nice family heirloom either way.

[browningautorifle]

The black bakelite grips are correct for a 41 chamber date

Got it...

[Mister Coffee]

Good thread, gentlemen. Thank you.

[mrclark303]

Very nice, I had a very similar one some years back.

You will also find the serial number scratched on the inside of the bakelite
(or early plastic perhaps??) grips.

I still have a pair of grips somewhere here....

Not to be confused with the post war GDR refurbished Luger's, they also had plastic grips, but ribbed with a circle in the centre.