[Ron Wood]

Pete,
With respect to Erfurt continuing to machine the sight notch you are perfectly correct in thinking "It does not seem to make manufacturing-sense, in my opinion..." It doesn't have to make sense if it is a government arsenal and there is a directive, Nov. 1916, that says all receivers will be machined for the sight notch. That is certainly not the most notable example in history of mindless obedience to bureaucracy. Imagine you are civil servant Hans, responsible for milling the sight notch, and a government inspector walks up with the directive in his hand....all of a sudden it makes perfect sense. DWM on the other hand owned the patent rights to the Luger and being one of the most powerful industrial entities of the time could well afford to thumb their nose at silly govenment directives.