[Mauser720]

kpolak -

If your Luger is indeed a "1916 matched#" there will be members of this Forum who will advise you not to shoot the gun. The reason for this is that having all the numbers matching greatly increases the collector value of the gun. And if you break just one of these numbered parts, you will have automatically greatly reduced the monetary value of the gun. The actual amount of decrease in value due to a broken serially numbered part is subjective; however, the reduction will be in the neighborhood of 1/3 to 1/2 depending on whose opinion you want to adopt as your own. And there have been numerous heated discussions on this Forum about whether to shoot an all matching gun, with even some "name calling" going on. I happen to be one of the big chickens who does not shoot my all matching guns, but it is left up to the individual to make that decison. In the stock market they would call this "risk tolerence." So I may be answering a question you have not asked; however, please be aware that if you break a serially numbered part on that old gun, you will be sorry. And it does happen sometimes, as reported here on this Forum. One of the most common breaks seems to be the extractor, for example.

Mauser720 - Ron