Quote:
Originally Posted by Vlim
It all depends on your views.
To me a 1920 mark on a WW1 era gun is a bonus, not a devaluation. I like to be able to follow and document the 'life' of a gun when possible. Part of the fun. A nice example is a first issue P08 that can be traced throughout 20th Century German military service from 1909 to the 1970s.
Import markings can be applied in a sublte way or by bubba with a blunt chisel. The way they are marked has impact on the desirability. You see this with mandatory reproofing in certain EU countries as well. Some are decent, some afwul but it also depends on the rarity of the gun. I noticed that nowadays certain EU auction houses like will have guns reproofed prior to auction in order to increase the audience. Not ideal.
But it shouldn't be too hard to find a decent straightforward WW1 example.
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I agree that a 1920 adds to the history for me personally, as I can only really afford 1 gun, but I also understand the 'as 'original' as possible. I keep looking at a 1913 / 1920 which meets my criteria, but, I suspect it was refinished at some point, likely pre WWII. Top of my budget though, and I suspect a bit overpriced.