1940 Code 42 Mauser (New Collector)
 

Well, I finally did it. After many years of just wanting a Luger, I bought one. Naturally, I had some questions, so I found this forum, and joined it.

What a wealth of fantastic information! I have read the new member FAQs from beginning to end, and I've spend hours wandering among the posts, seeking to learn more. I've learned so much. Things like: Lugers shouldn't be dry-fired and need a special de-cocking process. Who knew? (Considering that all U.S. military arms for the last 100 years have been designed to be dry-fired with no harm). I am gratified to be part of this forum, and will try to make sure my posts are up to its high standards.

I have attached some photos of my new Luger. I knew enough to buy from a reputable source, so I got it from Simpson Ltd. It's all matching except the mag and the grips. And the mag is, from what I understand from various posts, a "proper" mag, right for my pistol (122, e/37), and even within the same letter block. The wood grips are apparently real Mauser grips (e/655 stamped on the inside), but not original to this pistol (no serial number, just two letter marks inside each grip). As best I can determine, using serial number ranges I found, my pistol was likely made in May 1940. If I'm wrong, someone please advise.

I'm already looking forward to getting another Luger, when I can afford it.

Congratulations and welcome. A nice Luger, and given where you got it you can be sure it is the real deal re: finish and parts. It is interesting to see the import mark - they located it on the one place that nobody looks at when they handle a pistol (the best place for it).

On your grips, it's possible they are original to the pistol but were not numbered at time of manufacturer.

Welcome to the forum. There is a vast amount of Luger knowledge located on this forum. For your first Luger, it appears to be a very nice specimen. Do you plan to shoot it, or just fondle it??? Enjoy!!

rhuff, thanks for your welcome. As for shooting... good question. I have been pondering this. I recognize that shooting has it's potential downsides, (and I've read the FAQ discussion on this), but I feel that I should at least shoot it once to verify it's operability. Then, maybe I put it aside and look for a Luger "shooter." Thoughts?

Eagle, that is a good idea. I try not to shoot my matching firearms, except when I first purchase them. I verify they work and then mostly display them. A shooter grade luger is better for actually firing. If one of your parts break on an original matching one, the value drops significantly (to an informed collector). Shooter grade pistols surface on this forum from time to time, as well as the other forum

Good luck, and welcome!

On recently acquired nicer pistols, I typically examine the entire pistol under magnification and if everything looks good, shoot a few rounds to verify proper operation then "retire" it.

As a compromise strategy re: the risk of breaking a numbered part, some will fire collectible examples after swapping out some of the smaller parts and/or toggle train. I confess I've done this at times, although not recently as I now have several shooters.

Lately I'm finding that I consider any all-matching Luger "collectible", even those that have been re-blued. So I endorse the suggestion that if you want to shoot, buy a shooter.

In connection with shooting collectable Lugers I have read the FAQs and some posts about parts that tend to break, and replacing some of those parts to reduce risk of breaking numbered parts. I have looked at the Sales and Want to Buy sections. Some threads are very old. It is not clear to me if there are any current sources of original parts. Seems prudent to have a spare extractor, extractor spring, takedown spring, maybe a couple of ejectors, and a toggle axle, just in case. Any recommendations on good sources for these parts?

Find any post my LugerDoc and tell him via Private Message what you need. If he doesn't have it, he may know where you might find the parts you want.

Welcome to the Lugerforum

LugerDoc (Mr. Heller) would also be my first choice. If he doesn't have it, eBay and GunBroker often have Luger parts.