Opinions on this P-08
 

Hi all. This is my first post in this forum.
I am a Spaniard militaria collector. I am also a shooter and I have decided to purchase my first P-08

I have been offered this P-08.
It is a "G date" made in 1935
IMO is a good example,not refurbished or restored. It has all the matching numbers,incluided the mag, but the hold open lacht and its spring are missing..

I would like to ask you opinions on it and how much would you pay for it? ( My intention is not using it for shooting,just a few rounds per year because I already use my S&W MP9 for training)
I would like to ask you also about where to find the missing pieces and if could be possible to find them in a mint condition.
Thank you very much!!

Nice example, looks good. I wouldn't pay any more than 1500 for it. Closer to 12-1300 but I'm a cheap***.

Real nice. At least $1500
G.T. or Lugerdoc will have the parts.

I think that is a very nice G date Luger. Any chance of getting close-ups of the magazine numbers?
I'm no expert but I'm guessing around $2k in the US. You may find a correctly stamped hold-open with a bit of looking.
Welcome aboard!
dju

Bienvenidos Hombre! Your pistola is a little rough around the edges..I would wish to pay much less than these generous fellows because of condition and a missing holdopen latch. The latch and spring will likely run $75-100 USD. You may find one with the right number but it could take some time..No need to look for a mint one either..it would not match your pistol then!
$1000 seems like a generous offer IMO.

Thank you very much guys!!
You are a really big support for all those who are starting!!!
It is offered for 950 Euro incluiding an extra repro mec-gar mag and a repro holster..
Those values orientated me a lot, but keep in mind that here in Europe and specially in Spain-where gunlaws are very restrictive when comparing with US gunlaws-we have a very limited Luger market...currently there are just three or four Lugers for sale here.

I hope to show you more pictures once I own the Luger!
Thank you!!

And I thought that I was the tight-wad here! I'm seeing a G date Luger in pretty good shape, showing some wear but mostly photo flash. Excellent straw, all matching including mag, but alas, missing the hold open.
Personally I'd buy that gun all day at $1000.
dju

+1

Finish looks at least 95%

In hand the gun looks better, the camera flash gives it a strange appearance..
It has a noticeable use in the sides, I can imagine it has been made by the use of the holster, but apart from that the general condition is very good IMO.
Talking about the missing pieces, could you send me some internet links where those pieces are sold? I am going to wait until a correctly stamped piece apears.. it will take me a lot of time, but I think that is much better if I want to have a "coherent" Luger

Welcome, Pedro Jose,

After checking with Lugerdoc on this forum, another place to start your quest is by posting in the "Wanted to Buy" section on this forum, and Jan C Still's fourm' also watch the "Wanted to Sell" sections. Auction sites offer parts--eBay, Gunbroker, etc. Classified sites have some, occasionally. A Google search may turn some up in a link to, say, another obscure or regional forum. Some of the larger volume sellers , e.g. Legacy Collectibles, Numrich, Sarco, etc. offer various original parts. It is conceivable one might turn up at a gun show...

All in all, there is no one specific place to obtain just the right part with just the right number on it. You may have beginner's luck and encounter one next week. More likely you'll spend your spare time looking. But that is the challenge, the thrill of the hunt with its discomforts to endure, the hope, the anticipation. Every collector and every experience--all different!

David Parker

I agree with David. Put an ad in the WANTED section below, and look up the LugerDoc. Or search internet sites like E-bay and Gunbroker.com.
dju

I also agree with David.

I know a lot of the long-time collectors on this forum have many excellent and top-dollar P08's in their collection. So, the "low end" pistols have little or no collector or financial value to them. I frequently see posts on this forum where guys say "I wouldn't pay more than $500-$600 for that pistol". But, when I look at similar pistols for sale on other gun boards, auction sites, etc, I can't find anything even close to that cheap.

Not trying to start a firestorm here since I know values given on this forum are subjective and without "gun in hand". But I oftentimes think values given on this forum are based upon what the assessor would pay for it versus what they go for on the open market.

Just my opinion.

I wish he was selling it

Same here. I'd pay $1000 for it in a heartbeat! :)

Thank you for all your opinions and advices, it has been great finding this forum and all of you are really helpful with the rookies!!
I will have to wait until the christmas end to start the acquisition process, which will last about 6 weeks...
I hope to show you more detailed pictures once the gun has been transfered to me.
Once I have the pistol I will start the search of the "20" stamped piece, I will take a look in the sources you gave me... and hopefuly it will appear in some time..

Hi guys
Afer a long wait I have eventually received my Luger P 08 G Date
I finally paid 950. for the pistol the extra repro mag and the repro holter. Attending how the Luger market is here in Spain is a really cheap price for a gun in this condition.
I hope you like it.

Sorry for the bad quality of the pics but i didnt have my reflex with me.
The pistol came quite dirty, I have been cleaning it during this weekend, but it still needs cleaning.
Looking at other Lugers I have seen that some of them have also maker marks in the grips, but I dont see them in my Luger ( I cant remove the screw which holds the grips because it is really tight). Do you know if this Luger should have markings on the grips?

Very Good. Some G Dates do have the last two of the serial inside but some don't inside the grips.
Looks like a very nice G Date the mag pic is hard to make out with the flash but for what you paid I'd be happy with it.
Mike Z.

Nice looking 'G' and an interesting display. As this is a 1935 date, and you are in Spain, what is the chance it was used by German troops in Spain's civil war??? Was it kept inside Spain??? Do you know its history???

My method of loosening stuck screws is to clamp the stripped gripframe to a milling machine table and use a screwdriver bit in a Jacobs chuck in mill quill to manually turn the screw out. Soak screw in lubricant (or lightly from back in case of grips), lower quill w/bit to screw, set quill lock, and turn screw counter-clockwise by hand to free screw. You may have to 'rock' it back & forth.

It usually works... :rolleyes:

From pictures, probably no. The label says "Afrika..."

I am wondering Spanish gun law. I assume civilian guns were illegal in Franco decades. But there are shooting clubs (from forum postings), I guess the law was changed in post-Franco era... true?

So, you're saying this is an Afrika Korps Luger??? On what do you base that identification??? :D

I can put my Luger in a box with a Totenkopf picture [Flammenwerfer!] but that won't make it a Freikorps Luger... :rolleyes:

Thank you guys for the replies, I will try to answer them in order.
-First of all, I will try to loose those screws with some lubricant this week, but I dont want to broke or damage them so if they are extremely tight I wont force them.
- Regarding its origin, I have bought it to a mate, which has had it for 5 or 6 years, I will ask him some questions about the man he bought it to.
Here in Spain there are hundreds of weapons which fought both in the Spanish Civil War ( 1936-1939) and in the WW II ( Due to the Spanish participation in the Russian Campaign). Those weapons were usually stored in garages and hidden places like churches or private houses because their owners had keept them in fear that another civilian war started. That situation was clearly described with the phrase " por si vuelven los rojos" which means something similar to " just in case the reds came again". With the years those former owners passed away and those weapons were discovered by relatives or simply workers which were performing some job in the house or church( I have some familiar story about this issue).Some of those weapons could be legalized by that moment ( former Gun Law enabled all the military officers and NCO's to have one submachine gun for their personal defence. I dont know much about civilian gun law in Franco's era, I am just 23).
So for sum it, here in Spain there is a certain amount of legal handguns which took part in both wars due to trades among military personel and other war circunstances.
This P 08 could be one of those Lugers which were part of trades among the officers ( It seems to havent been fired too much,the main using marks are due to a holster and it still has one of its original mags), but there is no documental proof of it.
IMO it has been used as personal weapon of a military man for a long time, until he passed away, when the gun was sold for first time.

Regarding the CT Afrikakorps, it is just one of the pieces of my militaria collection. I have displayed the Luger with those pieces just until I have a specific place for it, which will be a wooden box with a blue velvet cover inside.

Pedro Jose, congratulations on your Luger and welcome to the forum.

it is always wonderful to know the history of a firearm, but sometimes this is lost as it is bought and sold. As you have owned it for 5-6 years, it is understandable if you cannot locate the original owner through the friend that sold it to you.

Since you have it with one of the original magazines, it is more likely that it was used away from groups of German soldiers. This is because it was very common for them to exchange magazines, which accounts for not finding so many with matching magazines.

It would be good to live where a trusted citizen could have their own sub-machine gun for personal defense. That seems to make sense!!!

Please let us know more of your Luger's history as you discover it...

Marc

That story would be an interesting addition to anyone writing a book about war leftovers... :)

That's right. It's relationship with Afrika is not unlike its relationship with Spanish Civil War. Putting stories aside, it's still a very nice Luger though.

Hi guys!
I couldn't forget those people who helped me before purchasing my first P 08, so I would like to show you how it has been displayed.

I made a wooden box,covered in blue velvet and added a group of medal bars ( all of them belonging to the same man- a German officer- and bought directly from his great daughter. ( In the picture also appears a repro mag because the original one is inside of the gun)

I hope you like it

Nicely done! Great display.
Ron