The â??Artilleryâ?� Lugerâ?¦â?¦â?¦â?¦â?¦â?¦Why?

[renaissance]

The â??Artilleryâ?� Lugerâ?¦â?¦â?¦â?¦â?¦â?¦Why?

I have always looked curiously at the artillery Luger.
A super long barrel and long distance sight��.Why?
I always dismissed the question with a sort of: the same reason Wyatt Earp had his â??Buntline Specialâ?� I guessâ?¦â?¦â?¦â?¦..(Whatever that was)!
I know that longer barrel = longer sight base for more precision aiming, and that a longer barrel (up to a point) allows he pistol to make use of the full power of the cartridge charge, but really����

Then Last night.
I was watching Nova on WETA TV, a excellent historical on the â??Red Baron Richthofenâ?�â?¦â?¦â?¦â?¦ the famous German WWI Luftwaffen ace (81 killsâ?¦?...wow you got to respect).
They were explaining how in the early days the opposing aircraft were unarmed observation craft only.
Then the pilots and observers started to arm themselves with various small arms (pistols and Rifles) of the day, and began shooting at each other.

Then, there it was.
A vintage photo of a German two seater biplane aloft with the Observer bench resting a (Guess what â?? lets all say it now) Artillery Luger, over the edge of the rear cockpit lip.
Could this be the reason the Artillery Luger was born?
Ideal !
Easier to maneuver in the cockpit but with the advantages of a rifleâ??s longer barrel to more easily support upon and aim from within the cockpit.
Now the story went on to explain that before very long they had solved the problem of shooting a machine gun through the path of the propeller blade without shooting ones self down.
But in the interim my fantasy is that the mystique of the Artillery Luger had caught on and endured.
(Just through what year period were original (Genuine) Military Artillery Lurgers producedâ?¦. I donâ??t know)
Just a thoughtâ?¦.Seems reasonable to meâ?¦.
Can someone confirm or debunk my thory?
Got a better one?

renaissance wants to know..........

renman@concentric.net

[John Sabato]

the gun was already being produced for the Artillery and it WAS ideal for the purpose you illustrated...

You really need to visit Mauro Baudino's LP-08 website for a more complete picture of the history...

http://lugerlp08.free.fr/

For that matter, buy a copy of his book for a real treat... It's written in Italian but all the photographs have English captions... highly recommend it.

[Ron Wood]

renaissance,
When you were wondering why the artillery Luger had such a long barrel, did you also wonder why it was called an "Artillery"? Think about that a bit and perhaps you will reconsider whether it was developed for aircraft use and then remained because of the mystique, or if it was developed for another purpose and then found some use in early aircraft engagements.

Years of Military Artillery Luger production were 1914 through 1918.

[Navy]

Steamed Tac,

The submarine service MAY have used a few LP-08, but by far the bulk of the U-boats crews were armed with Marine Pistol '04. Likewise the torpedo boats and naval zeppelins. i am fortunate to have both a U-boat marked Navy 1906 (posted in the member gallery) and a Naval Zepplein marked rig.

The key to the issuance of the LP-08 was replacement for the Gew, as you so clearly state, but two other instances were LP-08s were specifically issued were for protection of crew-served weapons (artillery pieces and machine guns) and for Stoss Truppen, where the LP with the trommel mag was a precursor to the submachine gun.

Cheers,
Tom A.

[mauro]

Hello guys,
I guess that the most important use of the LP08 was done by the Sturmtruppen in the West Front. As you know, starting from 1915, the German Army Staff started to define a new Infantry employ. In this context the Sturmtruppen received the LP08 that was used in the trench fight in France.
I really think the LP08 the most versatile among the Luger model.