Demilled wwi po8?

[DaveN]

I can not make this out. Lots of grinding to ruin this piece. The only clue is the stamping on the forward grip. Sorry the pics aren't very good. If someone can make heads or tails out of this I will thankyou.
It reads...M.W.A. L.I.R. 38 _ _ B. 38. there is a mark I can't duplicate just above the two under lines(looks like two apostrophes ' ' )

Information

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[Patrick Chadwick]

A personal marking, not official, so could be anything. But no collector would do that, as it spoils the originality. So it must have been the original private owner, before P08s were regarded as collector's items. And he would only need to mark it to avoid confusion if he was coming into frequent contact with other P08 users - maybe a reserve officer?

Perhaps something like...

Herr M.W.A. Leutnant im Ruhestand/Reserve etc.

Pure guesswork, of course - you are welcome to use your own fantasy!

[Patrick Chadwick]

Minen-
Werfer (i.e. mortar)
A...
L...
Infanterie
Regiment
38
....

Sorry, I can't find a proper match, and I still think the stamping looks so ragged that it was "privately" applied.

[DaveN]

Patrick, does this fit into the category of a WWI lugar that was de millitarized, though it seems if a reputable company did it it would have been done more professionally. All markings except the ser# have been removed as well. viewed in person on the left side I can make out a faint 191 and a mark the same size but can't make out the number, thought it might be a date between 1910-1919. Don't even know if they put the date there or not. also the ser# ends in 91 so not sure if some one marked it like that. but its all been worn or ground off. It might be worth a mention that this appears to have had some corrosion behind the handles so maybe the grinding was to rid some of that.(I know that's a long shot). Also the mag is WWII with ser#2435 and was told lugars are worth more if mag matches? More logs on the fire.

Any answers?

[DaveN]

Patrick or Gunner, any answer to the post above. Same to any other P 08 xpert.

[Patrick Chadwick]

And he would only need to mark it to avoid confusion if he was coming into frequent contact with other P08 users - maybe a reserve officer?

Just to stir your fantasy - this is not serious history! With the confusion arising from the collapse of Imperial Germany and the chaos of the "Räterepublik" phase, the "Schwarze Reichswehr" and the growth of paramilitary movements, leading finally to the rise of the Nazis, it is quite conceiveable that a P08 was "privatized" by an ex-army person in one of these organizations. I stick by my previous opinion: the marking is too untidy to have been an official army mark of any kind.

Patrick


---------- Post added at 11:59 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:52 AM ----------

Also the mag is WWII with ser#2435 and was told lugars are worth more if mag matches?

Yes. Which is why those magazine bases are sold for more if they are not numbered... as I always say stamps are cheap, and anyone who pays a price that is inflated by stamped numbers needs to be very, very careful What you have to consider is - all those sets of number punches being sold on the unmentionable auction sites. Just ask yourself - am I feeling lucky!

[Bruce McAskill]

The removing of the lug most likely was the result of gun control actions. Some Luger owners thought that by having the lug on the gun they could be charged as having a firearm that was considered a short barreled rifle because a stock could be attached to it. Nothing was futher from ther truth but some panicked and by removing the lug they felt that they could not be charged with having a possible short barreled rifle as there was no way to attach a stock.

[Patrick Chadwick]

Sorry Dave, but without better photos I cannot deduce any more than I have already written*. For instance, I believe that some batches of Lugers for specific users were manufactured without the lug. The thing needs to be examined by a "hands-on" expert.


*Photography tip: do not place the object on a structured background. You can see im some photos that the camera has focussed on the rug, not the pistol!

[Johnny Peppers]

The stock lug has definitely been crudely removed, as has the metal on the front of the receiver and the lanyard loop. I know of no program to "demilitarize" Lugers following WWII other than alterations to make them conform to the Treaty of Versailles, of which the stock lug was not included.

You might also check to see if the macro function of your camera is turned on when making close ups.

[DaveN]

Thank you all for the picture advice. I know I can do better but get rushed and impatient. I will try a little harder on the pics.

You are right about the non professional way this was worked. My only concern at this time is to do the best to determine the year it was made. The only thing is that it seems to be pre WWII. I'm not out any money on this so it's pure curiosity on my part. I'll try posting better pictures in the future.