1912 Erfurt Rig
I recently purchased this off of a friend who adopted a dog from me several years ago. It is complete and matching down to the magazines. There is a story behind it. My friend's grandfather was conscripted into the German Army sometime shortly before 1914. He saw what was happening in Europe (presumably after Archduke Ferdinand was shot) and decided to get out of Dodge while the getting was good. He brought his Army-issued P08 with him on the steamship which brought him from Bremen, Germany to the West Coast. He eventually found work as a machinist and settled in New Jersey, and returned to Germany after the war, where he married my friend's grandmother (who was a Czech) and returned to NJ and raised his family. My friend never knew him. He died in 1945. The Luger was passed down to her dad, and then to her brother (who I met several times) who passed away recently. She asked me if I wanted to buy it, and having admired them since I was a little kid and having a few others, I told her I did. The story didn't cost me anything, but it was cool to know about the man that it was initially issued to. The holster is dated 1912, and it has an unmarked take-down tool under the holster flap.1912 Erfurts didn't have a hold-open when they were originally manufactured. This is one that had one added at an armory in 1913. The bore is in almost perfect shape. I'm not much of a photographer, but the only real cosmetic wear on it is on the sideplate and the left side of the barrel from being stored in it's holster for over 100 years. The magazine in the pistol has a crack in the wooden floorplate. The extra (marked with a +) is crack-free. Those are the only issues that I can see. I spent all of one day last week taking it apart and "detailing" it inside and out. It was pretty dirty. Thought it might be of interest.
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