So, how long did it take to make one of these?
 

A comment in my 1917/18 Erfurt discussion has made me realize that I am missing a crucial bit of information.

How long did it take to make a Luger during WWI production, start to finish?

It strikes me that I may have read the answer some time in the past, but I couldn't begin to imagine where. Anybody who knows, I'd really appreciate hearing about it.

--Dwight

The closest thing I found, was a reference to the number of man hours it took to make one, 2.5...

Johnny, where did you find that, because it sounded familar to me, although, I'd never have found it again... :D

Ed

Dwight & Ed,

"THE LUGER PISTOL", by Datig, p305-309.According to August Weiss, former Luger production head at Mauser/Oberndorf, in his conversations with Datig:

"The number of machine operations necessary in producing a military Luger of normal specs was (In 1939) 642. Each group of 642 operations averaged an elapsed time consumption of 78 minutes. Of hand operations for a given pistol, the total was 136 which required an elapsed time of 1 hr & 12 mins. Consequently, it required a total elapsed time of 2 1/2 hrs in which to perform the 778 combined machine and hand operations necessary to produce the finshed product. It is also interesting to note that the costs of materials needed to produce one Luger pistol were (1939) 11.50 Reichmarks or at approx. 1 M=$.40, $4.60. That figure did not include the magazine and spare magazine (sub-contracted) which raised that figure by 6.3 RM or another $2.52. This made a total of $7.12 (17.80RM). (The same figures for the P38 were 5.60RM + 3.80Rm for one mag, no spare, or a total of 9.40 RM $3.70. The selling price of the P38 is not known but it is obvious from the above figures why the Luger was replaced by it, costs being slightly more than half!) The factory selling price of a complete Luger pistol with spare magazine was approx. 40.00RM or $16.00. The weight of the materials for one Luger pistol was 1,800 grams at the start and 300 grams after the last operation; the ratio being 83.4% on the frame and 6.6% on the other component parts. (1 gram=.0353oz.") <img border="0" alt="[thumbsup]" title="" src="graemlins/bigok.gif" />

Hugh, if only they had the right union lawyers representing them right at the start, they could have demanded the "retire on the South Coast of France" wages... but then, we would have never had the Luger...

That's an amazing testimony to workmanship, to get that much done in that much time, with that much machining and hand-work...

Frank H. in L.A. (Soon to be Oregon!)

Hugh,

Thanks very much for the complete reminder.

--Dwight

Hugh,

Not to nitpick, but I just had time to re-read the pages from Datig, total elapsed time is 2.5 hrs.

--Dwight

Dwight; :p picky! picky! picky! so I left out a sentence! That print is pretty small to my tired old eyes. I have corrected my entry to make you happy. <img border="0" alt="[thumbsup]" title="" src="graemlins/bigok.gif" />