Luger Shooting Failures

JD · 09-20-2007, 03:33 PM

I don't think that there would be any more of a chance of "blowing up" an old gun in perfect condition than a new gun in perfect condition. The problem arises from the fact that many old guns that are out in circulation are far from being in perfect or even good condition. There has been a recent post showing a cracked toggle on lugers; imagine what might happen if the owner continued to fire the gun.....

I have a friend that owned a gun shop for a long period of time, and I inspected a lot of guns that came through his shop. Many of the older guns had clearly been subjected to abuse, neglect, and kitchen table gunsmithing over their long lives, and more than a few were to the point that they were unsafe to fire. It was not the fact that they were of older construction that was the problem, it was the fact that they had a much longer period of time to be subjected to wear and abuse, the effects of which are cumulative.

I recently saw the barrel of a fine old british double rifle which burst during firing. There was no problem with the ammo, and the gun appeared to be in perfect condition. The testing lab that performed the forensic analysis determined that the steel failed due to fatigue cracking. Basically, more than a hundred years of use had finally caused the steel to fatigue and fail. Perhaps the barrel had a small flaw in the steel which precipitated the failure, but the lab couldn't determine if that was the case.

As a structural engineer, I can say that the steel alloys available today are superior in many respects to those available in the past, and the quality control for steel available today is far superior to that of the past. In most cases it does not make a measurable difference in the performance of a firearm, but the higher strength steels used today can give a higher safety margin to help withstand abuse and wear.

In terms of the luger, I'm not concerned with blowing up the gun, but rather in abusing a fine piece of craftsmanship. The supply of vintage lugers is finite. Why run hot loads through a luger and batter it and risk breaking parts? Vintage guns should be treated with some measure of respect, and there are much cheaper new guns out there to hot rod if that is the desire........

09-20-2007, 03:33 PM	#4
JD User Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Southern Idaho Posts: 107 Thanks: 58 Thanked 22 Times in 17 Posts	I don't think that there would be any more of a chance of "blowing up" an old gun in perfect condition than a new gun in perfect condition. The problem arises from the fact that many old guns that are out in circulation are far from being in perfect or even good condition. There has been a recent post showing a cracked toggle on lugers; imagine what might happen if the owner continued to fire the gun..... I have a friend that owned a gun shop for a long period of time, and I inspected a lot of guns that came through his shop. Many of the older guns had clearly been subjected to abuse, neglect, and kitchen table gunsmithing over their long lives, and more than a few were to the point that they were unsafe to fire. It was not the fact that they were of older construction that was the problem, it was the fact that they had a much longer period of time to be subjected to wear and abuse, the effects of which are cumulative. I recently saw the barrel of a fine old british double rifle which burst during firing. There was no problem with the ammo, and the gun appeared to be in perfect condition. The testing lab that performed the forensic analysis determined that the steel failed due to fatigue cracking. Basically, more than a hundred years of use had finally caused the steel to fatigue and fail. Perhaps the barrel had a small flaw in the steel which precipitated the failure, but the lab couldn't determine if that was the case. As a structural engineer, I can say that the steel alloys available today are superior in many respects to those available in the past, and the quality control for steel available today is far superior to that of the past. In most cases it does not make a measurable difference in the performance of a firearm, but the higher strength steels used today can give a higher safety margin to help withstand abuse and wear. In terms of the luger, I'm not concerned with blowing up the gun, but rather in abusing a fine piece of craftsmanship. The supply of vintage lugers is finite. Why run hot loads through a luger and batter it and risk breaking parts? Vintage guns should be treated with some measure of respect, and there are much cheaper new guns out there to hot rod if that is the desire........