magazine restamp
 

What are some indications that a magazine has been restamped? I have searched through past threads and found little info,but that could just be my lack of computer skills.

Any tips most welcome

Jim

For me with aluminum bottom magazines it's-
1. The new number font does not match the original font style.
2. Signs that metal has been removed. There may be a flat area on the bottom where the old numbers were filed off. The bottom may be excessively shiny.
3. Questionable letter suffixes or acceptance stamps.

Tom

There are other characteristics that are not openly discussed (since it would help fakers improve their faking).

The best approach includes posting pictures like those above and asking for opinion from other Luger collectors.

Yeah, sure don't want to help out fakers by letting them know how to improve their counterfeiting. I guess it's just a matter of looking at many mags including restamps to learn how to spot doctored mags.
Thanks so much for the insite
Jim

That is a big part of it. Also, having good reference materials can help show the correct magazine for a given variation.

There are also some excellent threads like this one for Mauser magazines:

http://luger.gunboards.com/showthrea...ffix-Pictorial

Personally I find judging magazine originality, especially when the magazine(s) are purported to match the pistol, to be one of the most challenging aspects of Luger collecting. And therefore an area where the help of more experienced collectors is particularly valuable. The long way of saying "best to post pictures";)

Thanks so much for the info and the referral to the past thread. That was helpful. I guess my question stemmed from the fact that I see advertised with many dealers "matching mag" or "two matching mags" which to me seems like it would be an extreme rarity. They seem to charge big bucks for those "original matching mags". It seems a guy could easily get stung if you didn't know what to look for.

Thanks again, I am new to this forum and I thought this was the best way to further my education about Lugers, a subject I have been interested in since I was a kid. The years of knowledge and experience on this site is incalculable.

Respectfully

Jim

You are correct that people get stung by 'matching mags'. I consider myself a relative novice at judging magazines but even so I've spotted several fakes at gun shows.

At least one experienced collector on this forum has stated that matching mags used to be relatively rare but are more common now. There is only one way I can imagine that happening and it isn't good.