The replacement of parts with original and appropiately numbered parts would be impossible to police by a volunter group of monitors. But on a recent discussion on a navy toggle frightened a number of navy Luger collecters who have large amounts of money invested in original navy Lugers. The good news is that it is possible to distinguish the difference between an original and a counterfeit. The bad news is that I often travel 3 plus hours to a gun show and I am not at my mental best. On the forum, with my shoeless feet on my desk and an adult beverage in my hands, I was able to see the difference in two of the three differences. At a gun show, I may be able to see the checkering differences on the toggle. The forum sought and received permission to post pictures of these toggles. So now the German guy selling these toggles knows about this forum and may try to sell these toggles in the classified section of the forum. Other people on this forum may try to purchase, say twenty or more, of these toggles and sell them on the forum. I have been at gun shows where the seller got very mad at me when I showed him that his gun was altered.
I have seen Luger extractors that were cast instead of machined. Very difficult for a normal guy to tell the difference between the two. I am sure that the cast extractors would not have the same life expectancy as an original machined part.
"Cottage industry" individuals advertize that they have dies to reproduce ANY markings on ANY Luger. Actually, any decent machinist can do this. Should the forum help these counterfeiters profit on their evil deeds by allowing adverizing in the clasified section?
ON BOLSTERING
Many guys with children in the house has removed the side plate for safety sake from a prized Luger. The guy dies and the relatives don't know what the side plate is and throw it away. Is that prized Luger now junk because the side plate was replaced with an original side plate with the same two digit serial number?
A guy disassembles a prized and expensive navy Luger for cleaning. The rear hunge pin falls out and rolls into the furnace hot air duct. Is that expensive navy Luger now trash because it now has an original navy rear hinge pin bought on Ebay?
Its true that the forum can not edit all posts in the classified section. It is a valuable and free resource available for our members. But even newspapers edit their classified section. Many will not advertize guns for sale. I believe that all will not advertize meetings for the Klu Klux Klan. We should not allow blatant counterfeiters to cheapen our expensive and enjoyable hobby.
Big Norm
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