[quote]Originally posted by Heinz:
<strong>Doubs, I just read Stills again and it says "This provided for" which does not exactly sound optional. I thought it was an optional notch but what is quoted does not sound that way.
regards, Heinz</strong><hr></blockquote>
As I understand it, you would be correct in that the provision was in reality a directive. I believe Still also notes that most Erfurt Lugers dated 1917 and 1918 will have the notch. Many 1916 dated Lugers will also have the notch but the directive was issued late in '16 so many 1916's will be found without it. I've also seen 1917 and 1918 Erfurt Lugers without the notch but they are not as common as those with it. (I, in fact, own a 1917 Erfurt without the notch.)
The Royal arsenal at Erfurt was closed after the war and the machinery for manufacture of the Luger was shipped to Simpson. There is a lot of missing information where Erfurt is concerned and it would be nice to have answers to a whole host of questions. Perhaps records exist in a warehouse or archive somewhere that will one day be uncovered. We can only hope.
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