John,
Welcome to the Forum.
Lugers are indeed terrific to shoot, and you have asked a question to which you will receive a variety of answers. Here's mine.
Go for a gun in 9mm. Ammunition for .30 Lugers is just plain too expensive and hard to come by.
Look for a Mauser-made (WWII) P-08--toggle designations will be S/42, 42, or byf. Do not seek out a pristine sample. Exterior finish which is only fair--worn, pitted, scratched or dinged, poor or replaced grips--will not harm the gun's shooting qualities. If you want a superficially better-looking Luger to shoot, find one which has been reblued. A WWI DWM which meets these qualifications will suffice as well.
Oddly enough, barrel condition is not a primary concern for shooting--Lugers are inherently extremely accurate-shooting guns, and very often barrels which are worn or pitted will still shoot accurately.
Do try to find a gun with all-matching parts within the confines of the recommendations above. This will give you the greatest assurance of owning a Luger which will operate properly.
Lugers have a reputation (mostly not deserved) of unreliability and jamming. The simplest solution to this problem is to use only modern, after-market magazines. I use Mec-Gar with complete reliability. When you shoot, be sure it is with a firm hold--Lugers respond very poorly to 'limp-wristing'.
The goal should be to find the best-condition, not-collection-worthy Luger you can, while spending less than about $600. When you locate a candidate gun you can count on the correspondents on this Forum for good advice. You might post your want on the "Lugers Wanted" forum here.
You will probably find a lot more good information by reading posts in the "Shooting and Reloading" forum, and perhaps doing a search on "shooting" and "shooters".
One additional thing you should look for is a good, Luger-savvy gunsmith in your neck of the woods. Lugers are a unique design, and a gunsmith who is not particularly experienced in their care and operation and repair can do more harm than good.
Good hunting, and good shooting.
--Dwight
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