Erfurt 1914 L P08 "Artillery"
 

Just received this one yesterday, took some photos last night.
Serial number is 7515a, blue fading to brown overall, has nice bright bore. Only 23,000 L P08s were produced by Erfurt, all in 1914; compared with about 151,000 by DWM from 1914 to 1918, with DWM producing only about 1,000 in 1914.

Thus only some 14% of the L P 08s were made by Erfurt.

Matching except for side plate and the magazine.
Now wearing a correct Erfurt inspected #15 side plate, thanks very much to a member here!

When it arrived it had a DWM #15 side plate that was also off in finish. So i think this is a closer finish match. The bluer side plate with just the "15" in the second from the bottom picture is the
DWM mis-match plate.

The magazine has no Erfurt inspections, I believe it should have 2 inspection marks and the letter suffix "a"; the font is very similar to that on the pistol itself. Perhaps it is a replacement or maybe just an added re-numbered mag.

Observations and comments welcome.

Looks like a great Arty, lots of character. And I admire your good luck with that side plate. I'm trying to do the same, but sort of in reverse. My DWM P.08 has an Erfurt take-down lever, the number on which matches. But the Erfurt proof mark gets my goat. It's a shooter, and it should really be no big hairy deal, but...

Thanks ithacaart
ist,
but you miss an opportunity to "name" you needed number!

Don

Your new Erfurt artillery Luger probably is more of a shooter than a collectible, 1914 Erfurts even had small proofs on the grip screws for instance, and if I'm not wrong only about 23000 of them were made and not many survived in 100% unmolested condition, buuuuuuuuuut it is quite a nice gun so congratulations indeed !!

Sergio

Thanks Luger.Parabellum,
yes, even the grip screws have the small inspection markings.

I'd like it to be "prettier", but it will do until a better one comes
along!:cheers:

That's the spirit Don, take good care of it, enjoy it while you own it, shoot it if you please, and pick up another one that excites you more when the opportunity presents itself.
I don't personally like to draw a firm line in the sand on what guns are collectable and which ones are relegated to the shooter category. One collector may place a high value on a buffed, plated, mismatched gun with sweetheart grips, whereas others demand perfect originality, right down to the dirt on the trigger spring.
Collectability is in the eye of the beholder...
dju

#50! I have posted in both WTB and WTS in hopes that someone will need mine, or have a mix-master with "mine". That reminds me, I should give each one a bump!

Don,

I agree with dju - It may not look great, but I think you put it back into collectible status when you found that sideplate! It matches the overall wear on the gun much better - I like it!

-Geo

Thanks David,
It "looks" like what I would expect a genuine 100 year old
pistol to look like.

Given the few Erfurt artilleries made, and the fact that they were
used through out the Great War, finding a pretty one will be tough.

Someone else posted here it took them 10 years to find a 98%
1914 Erfurt L PO8, I'm not sure I want to wait that long for one.:cheers: