Circle-S Interim Report

[Dwight Gruber]

(Note: this article was published in the February issue of Auto Mag. The version presented here is revised with new observations and information received since it was submitted for publication--Dwight)

Circle-S Marked Lugersâ??Interim Report
�©2007 Dwight Gruber



Long-time collector interpretation of the circle-S (c-S) mark on the left receivers of Luger pistols has been that these guns are reworks by Simson and Co., Suhl, taken into police service. This has been in the realm of â??conventional wisdomâ?� or expressed without citation (Costanzo, Walter). However, documentation has not been forthcoming to support this assertion.

About 13 months ago I instituted a survey of c-S marked Luger pistols.
My intent has been to see if this speculation can be affirmed statistically and, if it is not supported, to try to determine another meaning for the mark.

So far, I have 35 c-S marked pistols in my database. Information has come from personal examination, ownersâ?? reports, photographs and other information extracted from on-line sources, and published works. Information gathered includes manufacturer, model, and year; serial number; whether or not the pistol is 1920 property marked; left and right receiver marks; Police characteristics (sear and/or magazine safeties); rear frame numbers; any and all markings associated with rework; Police unit marks. Not all reports have included all the data points.

Considering the collector awareness of these guns 35 seems to be a rather small sample, and I am frankly surprised that they are not in fact more common. Nevertheless, even with this sample, there is a consistency in the results which makes it worthwhile to report some general observations. One of the Lugers reported is so completely dissimilar in its characteristics that it raises serious questions either about itself or the range of the samples.

As this is only an interim report I am not presenting the complete database or conclusions, merely making some interesting observations based on the data.

29 of the pistols are DWM: Imperial military pistols; commercial models; or early Weimar production. Five are Erfurt Imperial military. Receiver proof marks are: Imperial military; e/ArA4; e/WaA4; dove/WaA4; or lazy c/N.

c-S appears to be associated with Weimar government property. All of the reported Lugers are 1920 property marked.

All of the c-S Lugers were manufactured 1921 or earlier, by chamber date or serial number.

The fundamental assumption about the c-S mark is that it is an indicator of Simson rework. In fact, the survey thus far demonstrates that it does not indicate a rework of any kind. Only a third of the guns are reported with customary rework indicators: e/number, HzA, or WaA stamped parts. Many of them are in completely original configuration, including a Navy and two Artilleries with their original barrels.

More than one-third of the c-S guns have no police characteristics, but there is a strong correlation with c-S and rear-frame numbering. Of the c-S marked guns with police characteristics (sear safeties and some mag safeties) all the reported examples save one are numbered on the back of the frame. Three of the guns without police safeties bear rear frame numbers which have been struck out. This data for 13 examples is unreported. Only four examples with police safeties are reported with conventional police unit marks.

Examination of photographs of the circle-S mark reveals that the stamp is not a single stamping, that the S and the circle are applied separately. The position of the S varies within the circle, and one example reported has only the S, without the circle (all its other markings are consistent with the other examples). In addition, at least two different S stamps can be recognized.

The out-of-place pistol noted earlier has no property mark or chamber date, e/6 barrel and right receiver, a serial number which is both post-1921 and inconsistent with its proof marks, no police characteristics, and no rear frame number. The sample total is too small to permit rejecting this single sample out-of-hand, although for the sake of clarity I have not included it in the descriptive analyses above.

There is also a single C-96 â??broomhandleâ?� Mauser in the database, a recent addition which needs to be researched before any comment can be made about it.

What this survey has not been able to provide, is what c-S actually signifies. It is apparent that rear-frame numbering, whose meaning is itself unknown, may be a significant clue in understanding this mark.

I am still chasing this topic down, along with assistance and encouragement from several collectors including Ed Tinker and Don Maus in particular. My thanks go to everyone who has sent me information thus far.

I believe it is time to expand this survey to include all rear-frame numbered Lugers. If you have a circle-S marked Luger which you have not yet reported, or any rear-frame numbered Luger, please contact me, Dwight Gruber, dwightg@pacifier.com. If you have any circumstantial or documentary insight into the meaning of circle-S or the number stamped on the rear frame of some Lugers, I would certainly appreciate knowing.

[Lugerdoc]

Dwight, Interesting analysis. I will follow your progress with interest. I must differ with you re the proofs that you mentioned above as being Imperial. I bet you meant to say Weimar period. TH

[waffen]

Thanks for your patient research and scholarship Dwight! I find the history (even the possible history) of the many Luger variations fascinating and this kind of post is great reading.

Good hunting!

- Kevin Searock

[Dwight Gruber]

Tom,

Nope, I meant Imperial. All the Imperial military Lugers for which the information is reported retain their military proofing. The only Weimar proofed guns are four 1920 and 1921 dated pieces.

--Dwight

[Ron Wood]

Dwight,
I think the confusion comes from the statement "Receiver proof marks are Imperial military, e/ArA4, e/WaA4, dove/WaA4, or lazy c/N". Perhaps it would be clearer if it said "Receiver proof marks are: Imperial military; Weimar e/ArA4, e/WaA4, dove/WaA4; or Commercal lazy c/N".