Larry, I'm a newbie too and have just asked basically the same question. From what I can see, it's a tough one to answer. We have to narrow down a few things first, because Lugers range wildly in cost and value.
If you're like me, you want to possible start a collection, but don't want to dump tons of money into it on a whim. So you need to ask yourself a few questions first.
1) Do you want to shoot this gun or do you want to collect it? You might want to collect it but shoot it only occasionally (that's me).
2) Assuming you know little about Lugers and therefore have no preference on codes and years, etc, you have to decide on what price range you're willing to spend. Shooters are relatively cheap but you can spend any amount of money you want on a collector piece.
3) I've been advised to buy my first Luger from a fellow collector. They're less likely to be interested in making a living off of the sale of a gun and more likely to help you out with questions. So far, this seems like sound advice.....
So, from one newbie to another, good luck.... :-)
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Keep your knees in the breeze and your iron in the air.
~Steve
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