Do Luger Parts Wear Out And Need Replaceing
 

In normal use? If so what parts are most vulnerable? How do replacement parts affect the guns value? I would assume Erfurt lugers are hardest to replace due to the multible proofs and on just about on every part. ~~Eric

The bullets have almost no life at all. I have to replace them virtually every time I go shooting! !
:eek:

What about the shell casings?

The takedown lever retaining spring wears out frequently...So much that it no longer holds the lever in...

Model 1900 mainsprings 'wear' [fatigue] from repeated flexing and one leaf will break...

Rifling wears out...Probably due to those lowlife boolits... :rolleyes:

Are parts interchangeable between DWM and Erfurt? For what its worth!! http://www.chuckhawks.com/dwm_luger.htm

Yup, although just about every Erfurt part has its own proof mark. Somebody stuck an Erfurt takedown lever onto my DWM some time in the past. It fits fine, of course, and the #50 matches my s.n., but it is wrong because it has the Erfurt proof, right there next to the last 2 serial # digits.

WTB/WTT Need DWM takedown lever #50!

I have Erfurt sideplate #06 on my Mauser... :rolleyes:

(Unless Erfurt stamped them upside down...Then it's #90...)

Are all parts from both maker interchangeable?

They CAN be Interchangeable but often require fitting by an armorer. Once all the parts on a newly manufactured Luger were fitted, and inspected they a were numbered alike to make sure all the correct parts were assembled after the bluing process. So if a numbered part had to be replaced the substituted replacement part would have to be fitted to work properly with the rest of the gun. Sometimes you get lucky and a replacement part would drop right into place and be functional. Other times you might have to try several parts that were a close fit and then polishing would complete the job of restoring functionality. It is why the Luger was so much more expensive to manufacture and maintain.

And worth every dollar!

John is absolutely correct, in fact the odd time I happened to replace a part it NEVER fitted!

Sergio

This is already an old thread but...

Last weekend saw another hold open break in a friend's hands.

That makes about 4 of them I saw break in some 20 years. The other parts I saw break where: 1 Extractor; 2 Ejectors.

K, These are the 3 parts that experience the most movement (wear) and prone to breakage. TH

These parts all stopped? :D:roflmao:

:roflmao:

That's what you get when your'e typing with your feet.

But the parts definetly stopped. :D

Thanks for the head's up.

See the second stickied discussion in this forum.

--Dwight

Any concerns about the mainsprings in 90+ year old guns? Do they need periodic replacement?

I used to always replace the mainspring in a new (to me) Luger because it is a cheap part and I reasoned that there was no harm in replacing the spring but potential harm in shooting with a weak spring. However, now that I reload and have more experience with lugers I have learned that the old springs, despite the age, are usually just fine. Coil springs seem to keep their vigor better than leaf springs. Can anyone here with real engineering knowledge support this opinion?
KFS

This is my own 20 year survey of about 20 to 30 Lugers used in target competition 70 rounds per event 2 to 3 events a year.

I forgot to mention 4 failures of the rear toggle link because the parts didn’t actually broke but developed cracks and would break if continued to be used.







No engineering knowledge but, The luger mainspring is almost at no tension when at rest.

Just a small note: there is a really big difference between being functional and serviceable-- I have seen many many lugers that would fire but would no longer meet the anyone's concept of consistency or accuracy.

Just a Note :)

Vern