1914 Erfurt
 

I finally was able to pick my 1914 Erfurt yesterday. It is indeed all matching including the grips, and has unit marks (79th Regiment). The bad is that the old war horse has very little finish left except for the toggle assembly which is very nice. But on the plus side the pistol functioned and fired perfectly. The bore is pretty good for a WWI pistol. My guess is that it was brought back from WWI.

Now the question is to restore or not? I'm leaning to not right now partly because of a gouge on the barrel. Also the grips although matching are very worn and missing a couple of chips. I think they would be too thin if sanded down and recheckered. Anyway, I'm glad to give the old soldier a good home and some occasional light work. KW

I have a 1900 AE with about 5% blue left...And a severely worn & frosty bore...I have no intention of ever 'restoring' it...It is what it is; an old well-used pistol owned by many people over 110+ years...I can gaze at it and wonder who or what left that scratch in the barrel, or the chip in the grip...Try to guess why the right grip/thumb area is worn more than the left [they are numbered & match]...Strip it down to the frame and wonder where it picked up all the crud...

This is a tool that was used, and often...It would be fascinating to find out all the owners over the years...

You can buy a nice looking new pistol just about anywhere...But an old warhorse with character...That's rare... :thumbup:

KW - If you just want to touch them up, the grips can be improved without sanding them at all. Hugh Clark can do it. You could also put some $60 repro grips on to shoot it, and keep the originals untouched.

- Geo

i could not agree more with postino. I have some 50+ pre-1945 guns in original condition, I often sit wondering about the same things as postino. Imagine the stories they could tell if only they could talk...

K. Wilhelm - leave it as it is. Its condition is a reflection of its past.

Balder

KW:
Post a few photos for our enjoyment. Believe me, we've seen worse.
dju

On board with the do not do anything to it. Value will go down not up.