1920 commerical DWM
 

I just bought a 1920 commercial Luger its 7,65 its ser. no. is 8354 l it is stamped made in Germany on right side where proofs are normally its got the crown N on barrel receiver and lazy one on toggle all numbers match except for the mag. which is marked p08 bottom left and Fxo eagle 37 bottom front and eagle 37 top left side it has a black bottom with no markings I'd like some info on the mag. and what mag. is the Luger supposed to have nickel or blue This is considered a 1920 commercial? anything will help John

Pictures would help, although your description is good. There should be a crown N on the left where a military serial number would be (so naturally no acceptance and proofs on the right).

The newer term for these are alphabet lugers as they were not made or designed in 1920.

You have a commercial luger made for the US market as it has the Made In Germany, which was required by the USA.

The mag you have is a WW2 military mag - you should have a blank, wood base, tin or nickle body

Ed

Your FXO magazine will be of interest to late WW2 Luger owners, as it would be universally correct for some models. You can get $150+ depending on condition and then pick up a magazine that is correct for your Luger.

Fxo mag.
 

I have some pictures of the mag.its not marked on the bottom and one of the lobes on the bottom is worn quite a bit but it has no dents or rust or pitting.

In a few lines Edward has already given you all the main info on your alphabet Luger, but it would be nice to see some pictures of it.

Sergio

DWM alphabet
 

Here are some pictures of the DWM alphabet luger. It seems to be in too good shape I think it must have been re-blued whats your opinion and the approximate worth. It came with a holster but I think its a generic one.

more pics
 

the holster

Hard to tell, it looks a bit smudgy but all the edges and markings are sharp and I'm not seeing any sure signs of reblue. Maybe $1000-$1200? Overall it looks pretty good. Holster is of little value.
dju

If the inside of the frame is blued it's refinished for sure. But your pictures don't show us that.

The inside of the magazine well and the hole for the takedown lever appear unblued. How about the muzzle?
I hate to say it, but more photos will help.
But regardless, this is not a rare collector's gun. It is a nice run-of-the-mill commercial. So does anyone really care if at some point it had been reblued if the numbers and markings aren't all buffed out?
I'd say to enjoy it and don't sweat the little stuff.
dju

I can tell from the fit, that your extractor is a replacement. The original would have had the last 2 digits of the serial stamped inside. TH

thanks for the input I plan to use as a shooter so I guess the bluing and numbers real don't matter

Does it work smoothly in range?

I test fired my only Luger and it jams a lot. So I lost some confidence. The design is sensitive on many factors. Ordered an Interarms Luger for shooting, that one should work. Will arrive soon.

You have lots of help here. Get a list of likely problems and work on them beginning with the easiest first.
I would check the magazine first. second the shells; next the springs, etc.
You have lots of pistol savvy. Let some of it work for you.
Jack

You can NOT just try one and say they all jam?

I have a 1914 Erfurt Artillery that feeds and shoots everything.

Back to the original question on bluing. I think its been
(pretty darn sure) cold blued, thus why smudgy.

Alvin,
I don't want to discourage you, but Interarms and other "post war"
made lugers are not as reliable as the originals.

I've been working on them for years, and some of the "modern"
ones just can't be fixed. The workmanship and materials are just not up to the originals.

I do hope yours is the exception!;)

I had one Interarms in the past. It worked fine. I fired more than one thousands rounds from it. The only problem that I experienced was the front sight falling off. No other issue.

Will try this one soon. The seller just shipped it out. It's on road now. Missed last long weekend.

I own an 06/73. I purchased it new to use as a shooter. It looks wonderful, but had a few "quirks". I had to do a bit of "tuning", but now have it running very well. I want all of my Lugers to run as reliably as possible, so I take them on as a challenge and strive for perfection, knowing full well that I may never achieve it.

My Mauser Parabellum was not nearly the challenge of my numbers matching 1921 Alphabet Luger......it nearly drove me crazy(not a long drive for me).:p

A challenge in what way, please be specific about your issue's with both of the Lugers, I have a Mauser Parabellum and 1923 commercial and they run great, please explain the quirks and tuning you had to do, I am curious. I do realize that they have issue's but mine worked great, I had a 1921 Police that had me pulling my hair out.

I've never had a "modern" Luger so I can't really say from first hand experience, yet it's true that apparently modern Lugers sometimes do not work so well as many original ones still do.

Sergio