Hold-Open Latch

[kurusu]

Originally Posted by Olle

I have one like that as well. That conversion was more than likely not done on any commercial guns, so it's probably not super rare to find one without it.

Now an uneducated question: Weren't early Lugers equipped with the hold open? I think I recall reading that it was only omitted for a while to save some cost, and then re-introduced again?

The hold open is part of the original Luger design. There will be no commercials without it. Only the military P.08 didn't had one in the beginning (the army board thought it already had to many parts), later they thought it over and it was reintroduced in production. Those that started without it were to be sent to Erfurt arsenal to install one. As the menace of war grew many never had the chance to be retrofitted.