Imperial Vs. WWII
 

Curious with a question. Today went to the fond du lac gun show here in wisconsin and it's the biggest show in the state. Very nice lots of firearms, collectables and stories.

My question is after talking with alot of people throughout the day is why does there seem to be a line drawn between WWI Imperial lugers versus WWII made and marked lugers or any variation.

I talked to those who said the WWI were better and others who said the WWII were better. More collectable, more valuable, one era was junk and then the later ones were junk.

Is there a line drawn between them or is it just mines better than yours. I saw prices all over the board for either WWI's or WWII's.

Just wondering if someone could shed some light on this subject for me. Lugers are new to me, WWI firearms are not. And both WWI and II firearms are equally collectable and important to me.

I had a guy who had a Radom 35 late war he wanted 850 for it. And My luger was'nt for sale, just brought it with me to compare to others, and talk to other luger owners. This guy tells me my 1915 DWM all matching everything is only worth 600 and that the WWII models are much more valuable. I myself think they are all valuable and part of our history.

yes

oh, ok, a real answer. It depends on the seller and the buyer.

WW2 guns sell well because of the movies and it was not as long ago, plus the mystique / infamy of the nazi's.

But the WW1 less valuable than a WW2, not by that margin.

Ed

Hi Jerry, As someone who collects both WWI and WWII Lugers, I have to say that I find WWI much more interesting. For one thing there is more mechanical diversity, and the historical events in which these guns participated is even more dramatic than in WWII. However, younger collectors seem to be ignorant of WWI history and are fascinated with Nazi brutality. As a result the earlier Lugers are a bargain, in my opinion. Regards, Norm.
P.S. When at a gun show it's best to keep your eyes open and your ears closed!

Thank you for the info Norm, I agree with you on the ignorance of some younger collectors. I myself study both wars for the firearms used and collect from both. But to me the luger getting it's start and use in WWI makes it more collectable from those years. From WWII years I would like to and will one day get some of those dated variants just to make a nice collection.

I mostly agree with Norm above. As far as pricing: just remember the 2 main factors are rarity (number produced and remaining), originality & CONDITION. th

Here's a few pro's for each.
WW1: nicer finish that involved more time, closer fit and finish, made in a time when a man's time was worth little, and they are older.
WW2: newer and possibly improved metalurgy making better lasting shooters, the alure of the Nazis with more collector interest. (There is just not as much facination with the first War to End all Wars).
Other factors include numbers produced, numbers surviving, etc.
In the end it all comes down to which one spins your crank the fastest. I like them all but the earlier ones seem to be easier on my eyes. Entirely personal.
Anyone with a strong opinion that one is so much better than the other either has tunnel vision or has way too much money intested in the models of their preference.
dju

DJU I think I know what you mean on the too much money invested in models of their preference. One of the guys I talked to at the show who said the WWI's were nothing special, had seven WWII models on his table, none for sale, just for show and wanted to buy my 1915 DWM for a shooter since he felt the WWI's weren't as collectable. He had nice looking pieces from what I could see, if they were matching it's hard to tell. It's all rather new to me with lugers, but I will say the mystique, the pride in ones collection and the history is all very overpowering to say the least. I do thank evryone here for all their help and info though very much.

As with settling so many of life's controversies, follow the money.
dju

some things yes will agree. If i could sell a 72 ford pinto with 200,000 miles on it for 10,000 I would. But to me military firearms even a 91/30 nagant is priceless, it's the history behind it that I care about. But seems to me it's getting away from the history and figuring out that behind the piece and preserving it and all it's settled around is a dollar sign anymore.

Yes...I know that guy...He's at every gun show that ever existed...His weapons are priceless; yours are junk...But because he's such a nice guy, he'll give you a couple bucks for your piece... :rolleyes:

Well, my all time favorites are at opposite ends of the time line: the 1900-02s are just pure gorgeous art, and the same can be said of the Krieghoffs.

ALL Lugers attract me, just some more than others.
So, my collection is all over the time frames, could never just settle down to one make or era.

Yepp, he used to do the gun shows in Denver too.
I remember him well.

I had a table at this show over the weekend. Had about 9 Imperial Lugers on my table at varying prices. Some people wanted to know why there were difference in prices and, as always, told them what has been stated above....depends on condition (mostly), plus the rarity factor. For example, I Took pains to explain that my Lugers with two matched mags and holster are more valuable than ones that do not have matched mags and to show the differences in condition between the guns. I did have a couple people ask me about Imperial vs WW2 Lugers...not sure if you were one of them, but I think I would always say that it just depends on what you like. It was a great little show this weekend.

:eek: I am a young collector,or I would like to think so at 38. Got Stereotypes?:confused:

Definitely a matter of preference. The earlier the better to me. The 1900-1906's are artwork IMO. The WW1 guns with the unit marks seem to have a lot of character to me. I'm not a big fan of the "Natzi" Lugers that seem to be the hottest items right now, though I like the PPs/PPKs and accumulate an occasional P-38.

Present company excepted. Regards, Norm.

The first luger that I bought was a byf42 and thought that the WWII era was going to be my interest. A few months later I was at the Reno gunshow and Jan Still was there selling his books and one unit marked DWM 1914. I immediately fell for Imperial Lugers. I bought that one from him and have acquired many more since then but no more WWII lugers at all. The only WWII guns I have bought are the early high gloss p38's early pp's, and early ppk's. I think when it comes to collecting lugers your real interest will take you one way or the other. That is not to say that I still on occasion buy other guns if they are too nice to pass up even if they are a little astray from my main interest. So, I would have to say I find the Imperials much more interesting and collectible than the Nazi era, but that is just me. Fortunately, there are enough eras and sub eras and variations to keep it interesting for all of us. Curt

yes, I am one of the younger collectors too, and I'm 50 :eek:

Several years ago we had a 'poll' where folks showed their age, another poll showed how many lugers folks had, both were anonymous; yet, talk about the hell it raised!

Anyway, it showed that many of the guys were well over 60 and some in their 80's.

Point is, that the folks who contribute and share, well, many are much older, but remember that younger is not always age, but how much knowledge you have. I know lots of 'newer, younger" collectors who out-age me by a decade or two... Knowledge is not always off the top of your head, but from all the books we own. I am a good generalist when it comes to lugers, I know a lot, but I know a lot because I can go get a luger book and half-way remember where the info was ;)

Even here traveling to Saudi Arabia, I brought 6 thick books with me, originally I had 15, but at Christmas time I took more than half home with me.


Ed

Hi Jerry,

Welcome to the Forum.

If your 1915 DWM military (9mm) luger was in it's original finish, with all matching and correct parts and the finish condition was over 90%, the person trying to buy it from your for $600 was trying to cheat you by offering 50% of it's value or less.

If it was refinished as some point, has non-matching parts, has minor mechanical issues or a poor original finish, the person was trying to offer you a price that would allow him to make $200 to $300 on a resale.

You should check out some of the online dealers in Lugers, look at our trader sections here and also invest in some of the reference books if your interest in Lugers is growing.

All Lugers have a market. Some Lugers have collector interest. Some Lugers have utilitarian "Shooter" interest. Ultimately, you determine the $$$$ it's worth when you actually sell it.

Cheers!!

Marc

In my view, it is a materm of personal preference.
I don't know about the others, but in my mind the Luger pistol is much more a WWI than a WWII gun, mostly because its design, appearance and mechanism.

Yes, I know that 1 million P08s were made during the III Reich timeframe, but it was, by then, an old looking gun when you think about the P38, Radom and Hi-Powers...

However, the mystique surrounding everything that is "nazi-related" has a significative impact on price and market. Add to that the fact the most Nazi officers in the Hollywood movies are always holding Lugers. A "bad boy" gun definitavely.

However, in four years your gun will be centennary. And hopefully it will be in your collection when it happens. No one else from that conflict is still with us. Your Luger is one of the only things that remains from an age long gone. This is the approach I bet you are looking for. :thumbup:

Greetings.

Douglas.

Douglas you've hit the nail on the head. One reason I collect WWI and WWII firearms is to preserve the history and to remember the men and women who sacraficed so much. The world around the firearm and the battles it was used in. If only they could talk and tell us where they were and who they were issued too.

I admire rifles and pistols from both conflicts but have always had that soft spot for WWI weapons. It is true about the fit and finnish. And when you look at the world in 1914 to 1918 and earlier it was still rather primative in a lot of aspects and to see some of the firearms that were made and used was amazing in so many ways. To me Imperial Lugers come from a time where kings and queens still ruled, Lords and high courts still existed. That imperial marking holds so much history in it and tradgedy as well. And it's one of only a few things left with that mark and connects us to that past. To compare it to nazi rule and times both I'm sure have their appeal and significance in the collector market and agree it's all in what one wants.
I'll collect from all time periods and enjoy and keep them clean and functional and safe for future generations to enjoy. I have been thinking about the 100 year mark rolling around the the one I have and am excited about it. Hope I look as good when I hit a hundred.