Luger Info
 

Hi All,

I just picked up my first luger the other day and have been trying to do some research to find out what exactly it is. The auction I purchased it from stated it is a Mauser 1934 commercial in 9mm. After getting it home I discovered it is in fact a 7.65x21 so I don't trust anything else they said. As far as markings go, it appears to be all matching. Serial 5195 L suffix on front of frame above trigger guard as well as the underside of barrel. Crown N mark on the left of the chamber, underside of barrel and left side of bolt. DWM toggle marking. MADE IN GERMANY marking on the left side of the barrel. Appears to be original finish as the entire gun shows similar wear throughout. Markings on barrel show haloing around the stampings. Any help or info would be appreciated! Happy to finally have one as this has been on the list for a long time.

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Here are the pictures.

It’s an alphabet commercial DWM Luger. Made in the 1920’s and the Made in Germany stamp means it was meant for export to the US market. Not made by Mauser. These are quite common in the US and yours shows a fair bit of finish wear. But it does seem original and matching as far as I can see in the photos. Welcome!

@HerrKaiser thank you for the info! Any estimate on value for this?

Assuming all matching or unnumbered parts (the commercials, and especially 1920’s commercials like these, were not always numbered as rigorously as military guns). I would say as an alphabet it would be worth something in the $1200-$1300 range or so.

Well I definitely overpaid for this one lol! Guess I should have done more research. It will still be one of the highlights of my collection. Thanks!

These were made during the Weimar era between WW-I and WW-II in Berlin Charlottenburg at DWM's factory for commercial export. The "l" block would have dated it to about 1923.

The .30 Luger caliber pistols and commercial version pistols are less in demand than the military ones in 9mm because they are more costly to shoot, and are perhaps less collectible than the ones used in military contracts.

Perhaps think of it as buying it too early, since values keep rising over time.

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I bid on one at Gunauction.com that looks very similar (condition-wise) to yours except no "Germany" mark and made in 1928, near as I can tell.

It was listed as 9mm all matching, and I got it for $1075 shipped, but when it arrived it was in 7.65 caliber and had a mismatched breech block. The price was reasonable enough that I didn't kick about it, and the bore was excellent. You pays fer yer larnin'.
-Bob