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Doubs · 10-21-2003, 12:09 AM

<blockquote>quote:<hr />Originally posted by saxman:
Doubs; Would you expand a little on the Weimar 1920 property mark? I have a 40xxh DWM with the 1920 mark, and would like to know more about it, such as at what point in processing the pistol it was put on.

<hr /></blockquote>Saxman, there are several pages in Jan Still's "Weimar Lugers" devoted to the Lugers used by the Weimar Republic and there's quite a bit on the 1920 property stamps. A footnote on page 25 indicates that Jan Still considers the simple application of the 1920 property mark to be a "rework". While I've always thought of it more along the lines of a unit marking, I respect Jan's opinion and expertise and accept his definition. That, I suppose, answers my own question in my earlier post.

If your Luger has a suffix of "h", then it is almost surely an Imperial Luger that has had the original date removed and the 1920 property stamp added, judging from your picture. The stamp is neater than most I've seen but not as evenly spaced as a factory date stamp. Some early, undated Lugers, were also stamped 1920 and will show no evidence of having an earlier date removed. Other Lugers of Imperial manufacture will show the original date plus the 1920 in front of the original date. These are the "Double Date" Lugers and there are some showing "1920 1920" or "1920 1921".... Weimar era manufacture with a date stamp plus a property stamp. Lugers with an actual manufacture date of 1920 or 1921 are not too common.

The Weimar Republic had a problem with civilians stealing military or government property so they devised the property stamp of "1920" as a means of identifying Weimar property and preventing theft.

The 1920 stamps were applied in the field by unit armorers and that's why the marks were often crudely stamped and font sizes vary. The marks were applied beginning in August, 1920, at the direction of the Reichsweir, or German Armed Forces. They were sometimes applied to guns manufactured during the early Nazi period and Jan's book shows a "G" date Luger so stamped. This, however, is very rare and not the norm.

You may want to buy a copy of Jan's book for the full story.

10-21-2003, 12:09 AM	#13
Doubs User Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Byron, Georgia Posts: 1,735 Thanks: 819 Thanked 1,767 Times in 584 Posts	</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Arial,Helvetica,Geneva">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Arial,Helvetica,Geneva">Originally posted by saxman: <strong>Doubs; Would you expand a little on the Weimar 1920 property mark? I have a 40xxh DWM with the 1920 mark, and would like to know more about it, such as at what point in processing the pistol it was put on. </strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Arial,Helvetica,Geneva">Saxman, there are several pages in Jan Still's "Weimar Lugers" devoted to the Lugers used by the Weimar Republic and there's quite a bit on the 1920 property stamps. A footnote on page 25 indicates that Jan Still considers the simple application of the 1920 property mark to be a "rework". While I've always thought of it more along the lines of a unit marking, I respect Jan's opinion and expertise and accept his definition. That, I suppose, answers my own question in my earlier post. If your Luger has a suffix of "h", then it is almost surely an Imperial Luger that has had the original date removed and the 1920 property stamp added, judging from your picture. The stamp is neater than most I've seen but not as evenly spaced as a factory date stamp. Some early, undated Lugers, were also stamped 1920 and will show no evidence of having an earlier date removed. Other Lugers of Imperial manufacture will show the original date plus the 1920 in front of the original date. These are the "Double Date" Lugers and there are some showing "1920 1920" or "1920 1921".... Weimar era manufacture with a date stamp plus a property stamp. Lugers with an actual manufacture date of 1920 or 1921 are not too common. The Weimar Republic had a problem with civilians stealing military or government property so they devised the property stamp of "1920" as a means of identifying Weimar property and preventing theft. The 1920 stamps were applied in the field by unit armorers and that's why the marks were often crudely stamped and font sizes vary. The marks were applied beginning in August, 1920, at the direction of the Reichsweir, or German Armed Forces. They were sometimes applied to guns manufactured during the early Nazi period and Jan's book shows a "G" date Luger so stamped. This, however, is very rare and not the norm. You may want to buy a copy of Jan's book for the full story.