Another newbie auction buy. How did I do?
 

Hey guys,

Well, somehow I managed to buy another Luger, my second. Not sure how it happened, to be honest. I saw a 1920 commercial in about 50% blueing condition but with all matching numbers. I've been looking for a shooter and figured that I'd toss in the first bid at the opening price of $500. What I didn't realize was that it was a fairly short auction and I wound up being the only bidder.

I'm not sure if I was the only bidder because I got lucky or if its just not worth the $500 bid to begin with. Did I mention I'm a newbie?

Anyway, here's the closed auction. I don't have the gun just yet to take my own pics, but this should suffice. Another contributing factor to this purchase was that I had dealt with this place before many times and their pictures always look worse that the actual gun once I get it. I trust Collectors Firearms completely.

So please, anyone, tell me what you think. Did I do well, break even or get taken?

http://www.auctionarms.com/closed/di...temNum=6622837

Thanks,

Steve, I believe this will be in .30 Luger. The seller dosen't say. Expensive ammo for a shooter. Not a bad price on the pistol though. Jerry Burney

Kind of rough, but not excessive price....

You got another luger!! That is the way to look at it, heck, its just money...

:)

Ed

Yeah Jerry, it's the .30. I don't care about the ammo cost as I don't shoot anything but my CCW gun very often. I did buy it to shoot, but it's not like I'll go through multiple boxes of ammo. In fact, if it's more of a collector piece than a shotter piece, I may not shoot it at all, except to verify function. I'm embarrased by the number of guns I have which I've never shot. Thanks for the confimation of price... :-)

Ed, between you and VIS35, I've been irreversibly infected with "Lugeritis". His reply to that acusation was that he must be the "Typhoid Mary" of Lugers.... :-D I really appreciate the help of the both of you, and a few others, in my edification of Lugers. I really do need to pick up a decent book, but the selections are so caried and many of the ones suggested to me are too expensive (like an $800 gun isn't :-P ) or are backordered. I guess it's time to go back to Amazon and check on them again.

So I did pretty well on my second attempt? I'm glad to hear that.... :-) Thanks guys....

BTW, is this something I should send out to Thor to see what he can do? Or would that just be wasted money?

Thor can make it a gun you will always be proud to own, but you will about double your investment.

Steve,
Pretty hard to beat Jan Still's books and the price is extremely reasonable if you buy them from him. He sells on eBay and through his web site.

http://www.gunboards.com/luger/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2535

Tom

I take that as a complimnet, cuz VIS35, he's a really nice guy!

The more collectors the better, as there are tons of guns out there, and each of us likes something a bit different...

:)

Thanks again guys. Maybe I'll reconsider Thors work. I'm sure he's good, but unless his work triples the value of the gun, it's just not worth it to me. I don't mind a slightly "preowned" look, I'm just scared to death of ruining the value, even slightly. And if his work doubles the value, it still doubles the cost. Damned if you do, damned if you don't kinda situation.... :-( But I hear his work is highly recomended.

Tom, I'll drop by and pick up one of Jans books right now. I really need an education and quickly before I buy again! :-O

Ed, yes that was indeed a compliment. But I've got to tell you, that bastage VIS keeps posting pictures of his collection on the Parallax Bills site and is driving me to run up my credit card bill.... :-P Ya gotta love 'em though..... :-D

So, at what point does one decide to sink that kind of money into Thors restorations? At what point is it worth the extra expenditure? I mean, other than just personal preference....

Steve,
The difference is, unless you plan on trying to sell it right away. Lugers double in value in just a few years. It will be worth a lot more down the road.

I would highly recommend talking to Ted [Thor] about redoing it. You won't be sorry. Shoot it first to get your enjoyment, because he doesn't do quicky jobs, but he is very ,very good.

I have nothing to gain from this recommendation. Just a word of encouragement.

Ron

Thanks Ron. I'll give it some consideration.... $500 is a lot to spend on "restoring" it though. Wouldn't restoring it somehow reduce it's value? I mean, what could he possibly be able to do to it that won't detract from it's value but make it more appealing at the same time?

I'm cornfused....

Hey Tom, there was a problem with your link. I need to be a member there....

Maybe I'll just try Amazon or something.... Thanks anyway.

Steve, easy to become a member there, it is Jan Stills forum. I am a moderator there, as I am here :)

PS: I sent you an e-mail or PM earlier...

Ed

Got it and replied...

I seem to remember registering there a long time ago, but I can't remember which address or log in name I used then and I can't seem to make the system recognize me....

I guess I'll just keep looking. I belong to enough groups as it is.... :-P

you can use the same user name and password, makes it easy, easier... I PM'd again.

You want to check it out, just e-mail me...

Because of their abundance, 1920 commercial Lugers are not in demand by collectors unless they are in virtually mint condition, and even then mint commercials can often be bought for $800 to $1000, so the cost of restoration doesn't make a lot of sense. Besides, the value of a restored pistol is not as much as as one with a nice original finish. What you have is a shooter worth $400 to $500, so shoot it and enjoy it. Yes, the ammo is expensive, so buy a couple of boxes, save the cases and do some reloading.

Steve,

Some WD40 and very fine steel wool will make that gun look 50% better!:thumbsup:

Thanks for the advice Aaron. I did buy it as a shooter, but I rarely shoot anything other then my CCW gun, in actuality. If I shoot it twice a year, that'll be a lot. I'm just going to have to be more discriminating on my next purchase (and liberal in my spending).

Hugh, that's almost exactly what I intend to do, but I'll use some of the fine machine oil in the machine shop at work. Somehow, it really does wonders with some 0000 brass or steel wool and machine oil. :-)

I do that with many of my "less beautiful" guns and it's amazing how much better they look while still retaining that lovely patina.

Guys, I'm really appreciating all of the advice and thoughts. I'm learning volumes here....

Aaron, 10 years ago you could buy a "mint" 1920 commercial for $400-$500. They have gone up just like every other Luger.

Ron

That's exactly what I said, Ron. Today you can buy a minty 1920 for $800 to $1000.