Opinions needed: What happened to this P-38?
 

I bought this all matching AC 43 Walther P-38 last summer rather inexpensively.

It functions beautifully, I've put 500 rounds through it with literally only a few feeding issues. So I'm happy with it but it came with this bend back of that band on the front of the slide.

I've not only wondered how that happened but should I get it repaired? I doesn't seem to cause any function issue but aesthetically it looks weird.

I would figure that if the thing had blown up before it would not only be non functional anymore but also a lot more damaged.

So did it just get knocked hard on that band of metal and bent back or what? The person I bought it from did not know (or wouldn't tell me).

It looks like a production error, which would not be unheard of in the German's haste to turn pistols out in 1943. I say this because there are no stress marks, cracks or folds, which would surely be evident if someone had tried to bend this after the initial cooling, hardening had taken place. If may have been overheated during production then was overly bent during machining.

I think for it to be bent like that the slide/barrel would have to be removed. Since it is all matching it couldn't have been a barrel blow-up.

Thank you very much Doug, that makes total sense. Especially it making it out of the factory like that considering that time in the war.

Well then I may have found one with a little character, if only it could talk! I wonder if it ended up in the hands of some solder in disfavor but still needed? Or did it stay at the factory until after the war (if that is what this is)?

fn slide
 

I can't tell for sure?? But I don't see a period after the P in P.38 ... the frame waffenampt shows late Mauser manufacture..what are the proofs marks on the slide right side and on the slide bottom at the back... might be an fn slide?? If so, a very rare gun...and might explain the deformation... Alanint is correct, looks bent then machined...part came that way..probably shouldn't be shooting it, any parts breakage will hurt the value.......til..lat'r...GT

Seems like the actually is a crack on the right side....?

I think I know what you may be seeing as a crack is actually a towel fiber (there are a few, I thought I got them all). I haven't found any cracks.

You are correct there is no period after the P in P.38 on mine.

The pic is of the only right side markings and there are no markings on the slide bottom at the back that I can see.

Hi....
 

It appears to be an fn slide variation gun made in the last days of WW2. These were interspersed with ac 44 fn slides, byf 44 slides, and svw marked slides... it was originally all gray phosphate, with perhaps a dual tone blue barrel... If all matching and not import marked, I would keep it for a collectible.. or, if you want it nice, have Thor restore it... some, although I've never seen one, were reported to be all blue... cant really tell from your pictures.. But, nice gun, and the factory crudeness adds to the mystique, as it was uncommon, even very late in the war, for Mauser to let such a thing pass for issue... Best to you, til...lat'r....GT

Thanks for the info GT. It is all matching and there are no import markings.

I bought it at a gun show from guys who acquired guns from estate sales. I thought (and so did they) that it was a shooter so I got it for $600. I'll now consider not shooting it anymore (except for maybe every once in a while and only a few rounds).

This apparantly from the locking block lug shearing off and wedging during recoil or return.
It is a CYQ, known to be thin at this point.

Ruint a good souvenier piece.

Mike,

CYQ's, (Spreewerk) are known to have this happen on occasion. The reason? Spreewerk was manned by mostly slave labor. Collector's have known for years to carefully inspect CYQ guns for flaws or carefully executed sabotage before firing.

It appears there are cracks at the base of the yoke. I would guess a locking block failure at some point.

I had owned that pistol over 40 years.
Used to fire it occaisionally with various ammo.

Using this commie stuff when it blew.


I have a bunch of original Lugers and a few P 38s I rarely fire anymore for this reason.

Been collecting and shooting 50 years and don't want any more paperweights.

Going to have a spring cleaning sale one of these days.

I'll take a look again tonight and take it apart & take closer pics of those areas. I did clean more than a few towel fibers off of it yesterday but maybe those are actual cracks I didn't see!

Yes picture #3 and #4 shows some crack developing on already pointed out areas. Take magnifying glass and carefully examine these two points. Somebody used that gun to try pry open something in the past. Is barrel original?

As far as the barrel being original it has matching serial numbers to the rest of the gun so it appears to be. Weird if someone used it to pry something open! And if it did have a locking block failure it isn't showing any other damage on the other parts.

Like I said in my first post I've already put 500 rounds through it with almost no issue. Of course if those are cracks (or probably even if they are not) I wont be firing it again!

Is the locking block matching and undamaged? That would settle any locking block failure argument.

On my locking block failure, the little lug sheared and got jammed in the channel at the bottom of the slide.
This caused a spreading effect which tore the strap and visibly spread the slide at the front.

Ok first of all I apologize for the quality of these pics, I need better lighting & an actual camera instead of my droid.


Olle, SIGP2101 & Ron Smith were right about the crack in the right side front (but not the left) of the slide, it is minor, does not extend inside but looks like someone tried to peen it to try to cover (or slow it) up the crack.

Funny thing is the locking block is not only original but from what I can see undamaged (but I'm sure someone here will know how to tell better) as are all the other parts!

So I guess that's the end of firing this guy. I would still be curious as to how it occurred unless the locking block failure was so minimal that the front of the slide is the only obvious damage?

The slide bridge was bent like that, on purpose, by a soldier, in the field, to try to tighten the barrel slide fit and so improve accuracy. Fairly common to see the same situation on GI 1911 45's, they squeezed the slide in a vice. The OP's gun was not used to pry something. Good idea, but using the barrel to pry would have also bent the slide/barrel rails below, which they are not. What happened was a bar or tool was used to bend the bridge up and back. The barrel was removed, the slide reassembled onto the gun and the tool was used. Look inside the very top apex of the bridge, I guess you will see a mark where the tool bore on that point.

So does that mean that the tiny crack on the right front of the slide was an eventuality. I wouldn't think that whoever (and however long ago) that the crack was peened would've stabilized it but I did get 500 rounds with almost no issue.

I wonder if the 500 rounds I put through it reopened the crack some and that's why it is more noticeable. I didn't see it when I bought it (just the bend in the slide front arch) but it may have been the light at the gun show & my desire for an inexpensive shooter that overlooked it?

The crack could have happened right then when initially bent. Or there was an invisible stress point right that there that opened up later on with shooting. No way to tell now.

To last nearly 70 years (if it was bent during WWII) with a crack or stress point right there without blowing up would seem amazing!

The 70 years have no effect on "blowing up". How many rounds were fired does. The OP fired 500 rounds and that is a good showing for a gun with a stress or crack. But..... that exact area is not a "direct" stress point like a crack on a locking lug.

Yes I know that time alone i.e. 70 years would have no effect on the gun, it is implied that with all that time that before me the gun has most likely not sat idle & could have been fired considerably in all that time (at least more than the 500 rounds I've put through it in the last 9 months).

If what you are saying is true i.e. "that exact area is not a "direct" stress point like a crack on a locking lug." then are you implying that it would still be potentially safe to fire?

I absolutely would not fire it! It could blow at the next shot! I am just saying that some cracks can be more critical than others and yours is very critical! It is less critical than the lug itself, but still very critical. For example, a minor crack on the frame, down near the magazine release would have little effect on firing safety.