Erfurt Luger 1918
 

I have the opportunity to buy an Erfurt Luger 1918. I have been having issues trying to find values and here is why.
The pistol is not functioning and several of the parts that are supposed to move either do not or are very tight. The barrel has obvious rust in it and not sure about pitting or not didn't have the correct light to see the whole barrel. All serial number match except for the two magazines but both seem to be of german decent. The gun is currently owned by an 85 year old widow who has the p/w to show it came from the war in 1945. Also she has had it stored in a Ziploc bag in the dresser for the last 50 years so I am guessing that is where the rust is from. Also I thought that these Lugers were 9mm but in the magazine there was original or close to original ammo the read Peters .30cal or I believe 7.62mm. Is this rare or what?

Gun has heavy pitting and can not be fired in its condition. So what I am looking for is a fair value backed by someone or a book that I can share with this lady. Can anyone help? I have pics but not sure how to load them as I am brand new to this site.

Wes

First of all welcome to this forum of LUGER enthusiasts, well, coming to the point I think it would be essential to see some detailed photos, just to have an idea of what we are talking about.
Second, I realize that is just a matter of personal choice, BUT, since an Erfurt dated 1918 is not that rare at all, may I ask why are you interested in a gun in that state?

Why I am interested is this gun is part of a larger collection that this lady has and her son currently have. Her son has some of the guns and she has some I want them all. The only 4 that are made before 1970 were this Luger, 2 F&W .32 cal revolvers and a Mauser Rifle which I found info about already.

here is the third pic

I know they are not that rare but what I was asking is this is not a 9mm but a 7.62mm that is why I was asking about what is rare or not as most have said the lugers are 9mm.

Welcome to the Lugerforum.

This gun is pretty common and not a rare specimen. If a standard #2 pencil will fit into the bore, then the gun is 9mm. If it doesn't fit, it is .30 caliber and that would indicated that the gun barrel at the very least has been replaced after the war (World War 1, not 2) and is made up of parts, and not as it left the manufacturing process at Erfurt. Erfurt was a German military arsenal that never produced any .30 or 7.65mm Luger pistols, or any commercial pistols. The original manufacturer of the Luger was DWM, and they were the only one to ever produce commercial pistols in 7.65 caliber until the Mauser company made a new batch in the 1970's.

CAREFULLY remove the grips and soak the gun in PBlaster penetrating oil for a few days and all the parts will slowly begin to move with some exercise. This should also stop the active rust process.

BTW, there was no such thing as a ZIP lock bag 50 years ago, or for that matter, I don't think they even had polyethelene bags back then... so it probably spent some of its storage time in some other place or wrapped in something that attracted moisture.

Parts guns are classified here on the forum as "shooters" because they have little or no collector value since factory original parts have been replaced.

In it's current condition with rust present all over the gun, I would rate it's value at less than $500.00 and possibly lower.

I doubt you will find a book that will quote you even a passing value for a gun covered in pits and rust.

This forum has been in existence for over 10 years with thousands of members world-wide who are Luger enthusiasts and historians, some of whom have authored internationally known books on the subject. I have personally been studying Lugers for over 50 years. You can use this forum as your reference. Let a few others comment on what they believe is the value, and then just show this discussion thread to the present owner.

I just posted 3 pics of the gun so maybe that can help you. Like I said before I couldn't get a pic of the inside of the barrel but just by shining a light inside I could see obvious rust. And I hate to correct but Ziploc has been on the market since 1968 so 45 years and the lady said she has had it in a bag like a Ziploc or she says, plus it has been wrapped in a cloth inside that bag. But kind of amazing but doesn't seem Ziploc has been around that long. I do not know how it was stored before that.

But thank you for the info as these pistols are very new to me and all the info is AWESOME!!!! So would an original barrel then have the serial number on the bottom of it? This pistol has no serial numbers on the bottom?

The original barrel would have had the serial number on the bottom close to the frame. There would also be a bore diameter stamp in millimeters like "8.83"

The serial number would appear on the front of the frame under the barrel and on the left side of the upper receiver as shown in your photos.

Ok then it does not have the original barrel because there is no serial number on it. And since then gun is not operable then maybe 100 bucks for a parts gun or a little more? And one other question if I did get it operable and the barrel is chambered for .30cal or 7.62 then would some of the internal parts have been changed also to allow for the different cartridge? And when chambered for a different caliber would it be safe to shoot if made operable? The current bullets that were in the clip were bottle neck and that threw up red flags that it was not a 9mm as I have a few current day 9mm pistols.

Get the rust off, clean the gun thoroughly, have the headspace checked, and it should be good to go for shooting. The only parts that would have to change to make it a 9mm, would be the barrel, and the recoil spring in the frame that absorbs the recoil. The 9mm recoil is a little stiffer than the .30 caliber rounds... all other parts are the same, including the magazines.

If you get the gun for $100... you stole it!

Thanks for the info you have help tremendously! The gun in current condition what would be an estimate if 100 is to low being that is not operable and not in original condition, or I should say what would you pay or offer as a fair price seeing that you have been doing this many years? I do not want to shaft this lady as I would feel bad doing it as she is a friend of mine.

In its current rusty and inoperative condition, I would offer her $250 or so and not feel bad as the gun will require work, and possibly a replacement part or two to become operational again. If you were to pay someone to do the work, it would cost you at least a couple hundred dollars in labor plus any parts. That would be the equivilent of paying $450 to $550 dollars for a non-rusty functional gun that had reasonable finish for its age.

I don't think that it looks all that bad, and would probably pay $400 for it. Less if you have to pay someone to repair it.
It would be an interesting labor-of-love to a Luger-phile.
dju

Wes,
with all the respect, I share 100% what John Sabato has told you, but, common sense would me also add that, perhaps, would be wiser to have the gun checked by a serious armourer before shooting it.
So, have good fun at the range, and safe shooting!

"have the headspace checked, and it should be good to go for shooting."

David I thought my words above covered the requirement to have an armorer check it before shooting?

I doubt anything is broken and there doesn't appear to be enough rust to worry about the recoil spring having lost its power. A careful disassembly and cleaning and it should be a functioning Luger again.

I would add a little something;

1) I wouldn't shoot the ammo in the mag.
2) don't know where you live but finding a gunsmith that actually knows anything about Lugers is not always easy--specially if they are under 30 years of age. There is a fellow on here going by the handle of Lugerdoc. I don't know him personally but by his posts and PMs I would sure give him a try first off. He probably knows more by accident than some locals do on purpose.
3) If you choose to send the gun anywhere to get it worked on be sure and check shipping regulations. Even though it is old and classed as a Curio and Relic a person holding a Federal Firearms License is needed. If you talk to Lugerdoc he can set you straight on all that.

I think $250~$300 is an honorable offer.

Gary