Unusual Marking
 

I posted this same picture in the "military" section and, though I don't think this is a unit marking, I'm hoping someone can tell me what it represents. The pistol is a 1916 DWM I purchased recently and has "24" stamped into the very top of the grip strap where it begins to curve into the bottom of the trigger guard. The "2" is partially double struck. It appears contemporary with the other markings on the gun, I've just never seen this type of mark before and have not seen it discussed here... Any ideas?
<img border="0" alt="[cheers]" title="" src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" />
http://boards.rennlist.com/lfupload/grip.jpg

Thanks in advance for any help in figuring this one out. <img border="0" alt="[cheers]" title="" src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" />

Tim,

The top of the numeral "4" is normally open on stamps of this vintage... and since this one isn't open, but closed, I think this stamp was applied at a much later time than the time of manufacture...

just my http://boards.rennlist.com/lfupload/twocents.jpg

I beg to differ; the only unit marked gun I have whose mark includes the numeral 4 is a 1910 DWM. The mark is 11.G.M.G.34. The four is closed at the top.

Unit markings were done in the field, with dies supplied by the government for that purpose. Serial number stamps were for use, and I would speculate probably made, in-house. Therefore, there is every liklihood that the number styles will be different.

I think it is reasonable to conclude that the number was not stamped on this gun at the time of manufacture, but there is nothing that prohibits it (from the evidence at hand) from being contemporaneous.

--Dwight

Sorry George... I should have been clearer in my posting... I was speaking in general terms of serial number stamps on the guns parts... I have always taken them to be representative of the stamps of the period.

I don't own any Unit Marked guns, I have only examined those owned by others and of course, photographs... There is a wide disparity in the number stamps used for unit markings...

I guess the point I was trying to make was that in my opinion, this particular stamp and it's location doesn't resemble other unit marks that I have seen and I feel that while it may indeed be a military type "rack number", and I agree with Dwight, ...I don't personally know of any evidence that this type of mark could be verified as being placed there at any particular time frame.

Sorry if I confused things... <img border="0" title="" alt="[Frown]" src="frown.gif" />

John, I agree that it is not a unit number from the Imperial period. Probably is a "rack number" or property number of sorts. Who knows, could even be some kind of Freikorps marking. By 1919 things in Germany were so chaotic that all sorts of wild things were going on.