New member needs help identifying P08
 

Third time is a charm! Thanks a lot for your help, Mr. Mreick.

Back on track now. My wife got this from her step-dad, along with the Army letter allowing it to be brought into the USA after WW-II. I would like to find out the manufacturer and date. Is the magazine correct? Is the holster correct? I know from family history that they all came together. It appears to be in very good condition with bluing rubbed clean in only a few spots where it rubbed in the holster. I can provide additional pictures if anyone needs more to help me id this P08 and determine some of its history. I assume Army? Thanks in advance.

Edit this thread in "advanced" mode and look for the manage Attachments button below the editable text.

This dialog will allow you to upload photos. Try sizing them to about 1024 pixels across before uploading them to this site.

The letter is called a "Bring Back Paper" and is good to have with your Luger because it helps authenticate it. Early Lugers didn't have the stock attachment, but most did.

It will be difficult to find a matching magazine except in a few cases. Later Mauser made lugers are correct with unnumbered plastic based FXO magazines.

Obviously, I'll need to see your pictures in order to answer more of your questions.

Welcome to the forum! Marc

Mreick, thanks a lot. I finally figured out that my pictures were also too large. I downsized them and it works as you instructed. Thanks again.

Can anyone help me identify this P08? It was given to my wife by her step-father along with the Army letter allowing it to be brought not the USA after WW-II. I would like to know who made it, when, if it was Army or ? I would also like to know if the magazine is correct, even though the mag number is wrong. Do all P08 magazines interchange? This P08 is totally original as far as I can tell from its family history. The holster has no visible markings inside or out. I can post additional pictures of anything that might help in identification. Thanks to anyone who can shed light on this for me. Paul

Your pistol was made by Mauser (42) in 1939. It was made for and issued to the German Army (Wehrmacht). The magazine appears to be for a Mauser but a photo of the markings on the base are needed. The holster appears to be for a P38 or other military 9mm.

Your holster is for a Browning High Power. Your magazine appears to have a bad crack in it up at the top in front of the follower button.

Thanks for the info. Note, I was now able to load more pictures in an album under "NavyVet24 P08." I guess it took a while for my registration to go through. Works fine now.

I had wondered about the holster, even though her granddad brought them back together and it was cited on the letter. It does not match any pictures I have found. The magazine definitely has a crack, but I was not planning to shoot the P08. My wife has it hanging on the den wall in a shadow box. I found a "correctly numbered" magazine for sale, but it is from an earlier pre-war P08 even though it has an aluminum base with the correct 185. Would that be a bad purchase?

Look for Browning High Power holsters. Your holster will pop up. Does your cracked mag match the pistol?

No, magazine does not match. I am wondering what a correct magazine looks like? I keep searching and finding different magazines - black, stainless, stamped, etc. with aluminum, plastic, wood, etc. bases. I don't know what to look for to replace the one we have. Also, guess I need to try to find the proper holster.

Purchasing the magazine with that number would be a good idea IF, and only IF, it includes the full number and the same letter suffix, (v or u) that is on the frame under the barrel. Proverbial needle in the very large haystack.
Aluminum base magazine would be correct, and probably the same body style as the one that you have. The wood base mags are too old, the plastic base mags too new.
A very nice Luger I might add...
dju

An aluminum based magazine with the E/63 inspector mark would be correct for your Luger. The serial number includes the "v" suffix letter sn "185v" if I read it correctly.

A 1939 Mauser Luger is too late for a wooden based magazine, and too early for a plastic based magazine. (I see David also just posted this...)

Your magazine looks like it could be a plated milled FXO E/37 magazine made by Haenel Schmeisser.

Thank you for all your knowledge and assistance. I know I am pretty ignorant on Lugers so far. Would a correct magazine be stamped, extruded, or ? Should the color be black? I have seen pictures of magazines that appear to be sheet metal stampings with just a couple of tack welds. What is the "v" you refer to? There is a small mark under the serial number above the front strap that looks like a cursive "u" or is that a "v"? I read that those are block numbers. Did they restart every year of production? Thank you.

1 to 10,000 a 1 to 10,000 b 1 to 10,000 c and on ..every 10,000 had a small cursive suffix and at 10,000 they started another run with the next alphabet suffix.

As Jerry said, there are block numbers of 10,000 guns each differentiated by a suffix, (or no suffix). The suffix block roll mark is one of the first put on guns and magazines

In answer to your question; no; they did not restart every year. They ran through the entire cycle of "No suffix" through Z.

If there was a crossover of a year, then a portion of the block would be in one year and the balance in the next year as indicated by the date roll mark on the top of the chamber. chamber. This was the LAST roll mark on the pistol.

Hope this helps.

John

Here is a 1939 magazine that recently sold on Ebay. Not very good pictures but it has the "v" suffix just like your gun. It has a higher serial number than yours with same letter suffix which means it was produced shortly after yours.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-WWII-GE...vip=true&rt=nc

The magazine is a machined magazine produced by Haenel Schmeisser. Probably a police issue magazine and not German Army. That doesn't mean they didn't serve together only that it is not the type issued with that pistol.