There is only ONE commercial serial # range. It is CONTINUOUS, beginning in 1900 and ending in 1942. It includes plain commercials (like yours), American Eagles, Swiss commercials, Test Eagles, Alphabet commercials, Mauser Banner commercials, etc. Yours was the 3406th gun made in the commercial serial # range. The first American Eagle in the SAME commercial S# range was #2000. For example, US Test Eagles are approximately #6100 - #7100 in the same commercial serial range. The commercial range is (#1 - #92000)(2000i - ????z). In 1921, the numbering was switched to the (military style) beginning with #2000i, which is equivalent to #92000. It continued into the z suffix. It began in 1900 with #1, produced by DWM to #????z in 1942 produced by Mauser . If the numbering hadn't been changed to the military style, the commercial range would have reached serial #250000+.
Commercial production pretty much followed Military production. When there was a military model change, for the most part, commercials did too. The Military contracts of course had separate S# ranges.
Kenyon and others really made the commercial range difficult to understand because of the "1920 - 1923 Commercial" classifications , which are backwards/out of sequence.
Time line of the commercial S# range...
1900 - DWM - #1
1921 - DWM (then BKIW) reached #92000
1921 - DWM/BKIW - switched to military style numbering #2000i (equivalent to #92000) the first of the Alphabet commercials.
1930 - The 'v' suffix was reached. DWM Luger production was moved to Mauser. Mauser continued the commercial S# range.
1942 - The 'z' suffix was reached.
PS. Krieghoff put together and finished a few DWM Alphabet commercials in the 'i' suffix which were marked on the rear frame and are part of the commercial S# range.
Krieghoff also made a few commercial Lugers, with Krieghoff toggles, which are not part of the commercial S# range.
Neither Erfurt nor Simson made commercial Lugers.
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Mike C.
Last edited by MFC; 03-09-2015 at 11:35 PM.
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