Death Head Lugers
 

Are Nazi Death Head Lugers authentic or are they just a way to sell a mixmaster?

I saw one on GI months ago and it looks like it's still there.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/albums/t...?dl=1602887288

Some of the finest minds in Lugerdom have been debating that very question for years. The consensus was, maybe yes, maybe no.
Norm

What do you consider 'authentic'??? :rolleyes:

I do not think they are Nazi guns...my opinion is that they are Weimar era Freikorps flamethrower unit guns. There are several variants of the marking and, of course, a lot of fakes to do exactly what you suggest, sell mixmasters. For the ones that I think might be legitimate I believe they were from the flammenwerfer platoon of the Freikorps "Minenwerfer Heuschkel" detachment. The sleeve badge of the detachment featured a skull and crossbones. It is my thought that the guns carried by the flamethrower platoon were marked with a "lazy S" surmounting the skull and crossbones, the lazy S representing the pattern of the sweep of the flamethrower.
Ron

Did they really exist with the skull engraving during WW2?
That is my definition of authentic.

http://forum.lugerforum.com/album.ph...pictureid=3864

Datig has a picture of a Totenkopf Luger in his book published first in 1955. Mine is the 1958 revised edition with the pic on pg 259.

I would imagine that they existed somewhere during WW2, but not necessarily with the Wehrmacht (or SS)..

I am a member of the camp that believes in the Freikorps explanation, as expressed by Ron Wood. Again, photos exist of the post-WW1 Flammenwerfer Totenkopf insignia/logo painted on their trucks.

I also believe there were some excellent copies made. :thumbup:

Ya pays yer money and ya takes yer chances. :D

Is it reasonable??? If you have one, you're not obligated to 'authenticate' it. That's up to the doubters. There's no real way to disprove a Totenkopf Luger. Unless the rest of it is really poorly done. Or it's a WW2 Totenkopf. Then you know it's a fake. ;)

I'd buy one, if the price was right and it looked 'authentic' (your word). I'd even buy a known fake if it was well done. :D

This topic has been debated here so many times, and in addition to what Ron said :bowdown: I would only say that in order to capture unwary buyers, counterfeiters have been faking SS markings and skull-heads on a lot of Lugers for yonks, so buyers beware! :(