Unspellable, yes, it is conceivable that a gun can lose a lot of its bluing through wear but not suffer pitting. I see these kinds of lugers fairly often. They have little finish but are not pitted. They make good candiates for refinishing and there are people who actively seek these out. At a collectors'show, one will typically see that well-worn lugers with no pits sell for more than those with pits because of this.
It is easy to prepare a smooth surface for rebluing by simply acid-dipping the pistol. At least one restoration person I know follows that method routinely. The surfaces do not need to be polished and it is undesirable to do so if there are no serious pits. Polishing will result in too smooth a surface and will weaken markings.
It should also be noted that markings may gain a "halo" from post-bluing stamping OR from wear because the edges of the marking have raised above the surface when stamped thus making the edges more exposed to friction during use. That is what physics suggests. I would like to hear others'comments regarding this.
Dave from Iowa
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