first luger
 

I just returned from a gun show today with my first luger and I was wondereing if I got a good deal. Its an imperial luger made in 1918 all matching parts 2 matching mags and the original finish is about 98% I paid $1000 for it did i get a good deal?

I have been searching this type of deal for a while and am not lucky. Was this a gun show somewhere near Arizona? One collector found a minty 1930 Mauser C96 rig (gun + stock + harness) for $1650. Waiting for pictures. I guess the rareness of matching Luger magazine is not far away from matching C96 stock, and you have two of them!

Welcome to the forum.

If it's all original, then you didn't just get a good deal. You stole it at that price!

The show was in boone iowa the dealer i bought from bought it from a guy in town whos father brought back from the war it shoots good to!

We'd love to see pictures. Are the matching magazines wood based or aluminum based?


welcome to the forum


ed

Here are some pics I think the blued mag has a repro body but the floor plate is original i think the finish is more like 90% should i clean the grips? they have some wear on them but have no cracks the nickel mag is made by schmeisser and completely matches the gun.
http://s268.photobucket.com/albums/jj7/applestrudel1/

applestrudel -- Sorry, it's not viewable. The album asks password. Could you make it public ..... or tell us the password?

or better yet, post pictures here on teh forum. Posting them at photobucket or the like means they'll get changed a lot quicker or used too much. Sp, please post them here...

Sorry i couldn't get them to post on the website hopefully these links work better.
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/j...Picture097.jpg
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/j...Picture094.jpg
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/j...Picture095.jpg
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/j...Picture085.jpg
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/j...Picture086.jpg
http://i268.photobucket.com/albums/j...Picture096.jpg

Hmmm. Looks like the extractor has been replaced with one with a different serial number. It looks like the number on the extractor has also been crossed out. Maybe that was a field armory repair, but it still detracts from the value from what I've learned. Your pics are a bit blurry, but from what it looks like to me, I'd question 90% on the finish.
I also think the magazines should have a wooden base shouldn't it?
A deal on a pistol is worth how happy you are with it, but unless there's factors I don't know (and if so, others here will no doubt correct me), I think you got a very nice shooter, and so the price paid is not such a great deal, and may actually be a bit on the high side.
You need to read up on disassembly and see how matching the interior numbers are, including the grips.
If it is "shooter" grade, don't feel bad, now you can shoot the heck out of it without guilt or remorse.

The extractor is replaced but magazines were made with an aluminum base.

$1000 is not cheap on this one.

Applestrudel, this gun would have originally been issued with two wooden bottom magazines with matching serial numbers with one with a + sign. Collectors would consider these magazines force matched to the gun as they go with later model guns. Curt

Is that a K-date mag on the left?

ohh well if it's not original it's a great shooter won't lose value and it's still a piece of history it's worth every penny in my book
were do you find the date on the mag?

Don't let these folks discourage you. Yes, you didn't get a terrific deal, but overall it isn't all that bad. I do not have a problem with mis-matched magazines. A matched magazine is by far more the exception than the rule. However, you really should consider swapping the WWII aluminum bottomed magazines for proper WWI wooden bottom examples.
If the extractor is the only mis-matched part, it is a bit of a downer but considering the escalation of Luger prices, it won't take long for the market to catch up with your purchase price. You won't hurt the value by shooting it and if you do shoot it, that Schmeisser mag functions very well.

Thanks Ron i do have one question i shot it yesterday with some winchester ammo and it jammed 12 shots out of 50 i've read that this is because european military ammo is more comparable to 9mm+p and that some commercial ammo won't cycle is this true or is just that it hasn't been fired much in 80 years?

Much more likely the jamming is due to old parts and/or cleaning than the ammo. Experience by active Luger shooters is that +P ammo is not the solution to reliable functioning.

must be the cleaning i stripped it down and had to clean out chunks of dried up grease and dust.

They gotta be clean and well lubed to work 100%. If you still have troubles consider borrowing or buying a Mec-Gar magazine.