My DWM 1915 Luger
 

Hello,

This is my first post here and I'm pretty new to Lugers. I picked up two DWM Lugers in the past couple weeks and was hoping to get some info on them from the experts here. One of the Lugers is a commercial model so I'll post some pictures of that one under the commercial Lugers section.

This one I picked up today for $800 from my local gun shop and I'm very excited about it! It's a DWM marked 1915 with all matching parts except for the mag. I took it completely apart and every numbered parts was correct, including the grips.

Included with the gun was an original holster (not original to the gun obviously) and in the holster tool pocket was the original takedown/mag loader tool. Some of the stitching is gone but other than that the holster in pretty good shape. The back of the holster is marked R. Ehrhardt Poessneck 1937 and it has the WaA186 proof mark.

Anyway here are some pics, hopefully I did as well on this gun as I think I did.

Welcome to the forum.

the old adage is buy books then guns, few of us do that. At $800, it is unlikely you got burned too bad, if at all.

I can't see a date, but since you say it is a 1915, then I assume that it is dated over the chamber. Some close ups of the serial on the left, front and date would be good. The markings on the right are a bit light, but I can't tell if it has been reblued at some point?

Is it all matching and do the numbers look about the same, i.e. firing pin, inside of grips, hold-open, etc?

The tool looks possibly wrong to me, but we'd need to see close ups of it, along with full shots both sides.

I think that for $800 you did fine, the holster is not pristine, but easily worth a $100 and the tool if blank another $35-$45, double that if marked with a nice marking. If a repro it is worth about $10


Ed

Thanks for the info Ed!

I took a bunch more pictures so hopefully this will help.

Oh and here are some close ups of the tool as well and the markings on the holster.

There are no markings on it that I could find.

It looks like a decent example to me, more than worth what you paid.

I bet some gun oil and some careful cleaning it will look even nicer :)


If you take the grips off, pop the magazine out, then after you take the grip screws off, gently push from inside while slightly prying with your fingernail, sometimes they stick, thus the 'million-dollar' chip that happens up by the safety.


Ed

Ed is unusually mello today, so I'll play the heavy... :p

It is requested that you post your pics directly to the LugerForum, not PhotoBucket, YouTube, or offsite. The reason is that those places frequently shuffle albums/pictures around, change URLs, or go out of business...and mostly, because our best Luger people are behind corporate firewalls that block YouTube, PhotoBucket, etc...So you will not get the best advice possible, because our best people won't see your pics... ;)

Please post directly to LugerForums! Thank You! :D

Fixed, thanks for letting me know

Hello

I'm surprised that all you "experts" didn't mention that the " Eagle " marking that can be seen on the last picture ( before those of the tool ) on the first part of the lock ( extractor) , is an Erfurt one, what is not in accordance with the DWM marking on the second part of the lock.....

amazing......

"All us experts?" Only two people have commented so far. The entire membership is not on the site at any one time.

This fact should have been pointed out without taking a condecending, personal dig at the group.

May I suggest that if you wish to find a home here that you be as polite as you find everybody else is?

Apologies
 

Many apologies for my writing ! I'm not English mother-tongue (as you can see) and I think that the way I wrote could be understood as a disdainful replay ( If this is the correct word ? ) what was not my scope...

I try to read as much as possible in your Forum, to increase my knowledge of " american way to express nuances "

The problem is that writing dont allow to see the reaction on the face of your correspondent.

The translation in French of my answer , would have been considered as someting "funny" or " joke between pals"...
and apparently I have to learn how to express that in English

So please go on telling me if some writing is not adapted

Hi Pierre,

I understand the language barrier can often be an issue. No offense taken, (by me, at least!).

Often in English, putting a word inside quotation marks, (""), indicate a sarcastic, cinical or opposite meaning for the word by the writer. "Experts", in quotes, really means you doubt that designation. Therefore we are amateurs.
The "amazing" at the end implies that we are not as smart as you and cannot spot obvious details in the photos.
I'm sure we will all get along fine going forward.
Best,

lugerguy08,

Welcome to the forum and congrats on your acquisition, it sounds like you made a good deal! Your pictures are of excellent quality, are you using a lightbox or something? Good camera as well.

I also have a brown holster by the same manufacturer. It contained a 1942 byf Luger ("Black Widow") and was carried by a German NCO when he was disarmed by my father in May 1945. I have the gun as well.

Balder

(and yes, I know I should post pictures directly on the forum...)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4.../tohylstre.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v4...s/P1060818.jpg

Interesting that sometime between 1937 and 1939 they went from a Weimar to a nazi eagle acceptance stamp.
Balder, your holster seems much slimmer and better formed than Lugerguy08's. I have seen his more "squat" design on a number of holsters.

Was there more than one pattern approved?

Hi Doug

Thank you for showing understanding for my incorrect English writing.

There are some words , we French speaking people have difficulty to manage.

"amazing" is one of these. Maybe you know that in French we have the word " amusant" , but the meaning is quite different, because it means "funny" .
Thanks to you I have discovered that this word refers to persons and not things....

Nathan, Nice presentation. Good photo's. I think you did really well..The magazine is a beauty. You don't say if it's matched? I doubt it but..
Your left belt loop is broken and restitched.

I don't have my books in front of me to quote from, but I believe in 1915 the Erfurt style started showing up on DWM Lugers, usually on the breechblock and sometimes also on the barrel. I think the receiver eagle usually stayed as the DWM one.

It would be cool to find documentation as to why this occurred. According to standard beliefs, these firing proof eagles should have went on at the same time, right after proof firing so having 2 different styles would seem odd. But my theory is that the pistol was not actually proof stamped until much later after the firing and apparently more than one inspector, or inspection stations, was utilized to inspect the parts (separately) then the proof eagles were stamped. Maybe one of the inspectors was from one of the government arsenals and carried over his stamp?