The Luger may have had a phosphate finish, but certainly not a Parkerized finish. Parkerize is the trade name for a phosphate finish developed by the Parker Rustproof Co. of Detroit, Michigan. The U.S. started applying a phosphate finish to the Model 1903 Rifle in 1918 and used it on virtually all weapons in WWII. The Model 1911A1 was one of the last weapons to have a phosphate finish, as Colt changed from an oven blued finish to the phosphate finish in mid 1941. Basically there are two different types of phosphate finish, manganese and zinc, which accounts for a difference in color of the finish. The color is also affected by the type and hardness of the steel it is applied to.
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