The first places to "wear" on Lugers are the sides of the barrel right at the muzzle and the raised portion of the side plate. These areas are in constant contact with the inside of a holster, and with enough time the side plate island can wear very smooth. You don't say what condition the finish of your Luger is in general, but even the most completely finished Lugers will show wear there--hard use will wear it considerably.
The other possibility is that your Luger has been refinished, and heavily buffed. Buffing wheels attack high spots and sharp spots, while having much less effect on larger, flatter areas. It is possible for an aggressive refinisher to make the side plate island almost completely round.
Go to the Auctionarms, Gunbroker, and Gunsamerica websites and look at all the pictures of the guns for sale there. You will see many exammples of buffed-out Lugers to compare.
A picture, in cases like this, is always more expressive than a description; if you can post some of your byf42 it would be very interesting.
--Dwight
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