What was the point of the Artillery Luger?

[garyed50]

Hey all Newbie here

I don't understand what any benefit was gained from the longer barrel?

Gary

[rhuff]

It is my understanding that with the long bbl. and a shoulder stock attached, one had a short bbl rifle that was more accurate and functional at distance than a 4in bbl. handgun. The whole unit could be broken down for easy storage/carrying, and then assembled quickly when needed. To me, it was between a service rifle and a handgun that was developed for certain personnel.

[Edward Tinker]

A 8 inch luger shoots a lot easier than a 4 inch, I can hit a lot more with it

[Arizona Slim]

Originally Posted by Edward Tinker

A 8 inch luger shoots a lot easier than a 4 inch, I can hit a lot more with it

I agree completely Ed, I had just gotten out of the service when I purchased my first Luger, a 1917 Artillery and I was amazed at the accuracy of that pistol. While in the Military I had easy access to as much ammo as I wanted in everything from .22LR to .45, 12 gauge, .30 carbine, 30-06 and 7.62 Nato so would go out shooting at every opportunity. I had a collection of firearms that were chambered in all those calibers so really had a blast but never had anything to compare to that Luger.

Lon

[Mac Cat]

Yep, it should be pretty obvious, the longer barrel allows for better accuracy, particularly at longer ranges. Most Lugers are tested on a 50 meter range, but the artillery was designed to shoot further with more accuracy. That's why it has the optional shoulder board extension. The navy versions usually had a longer barrel, too.

I also have a 1917 artillery for a shooter. It's so natural to point, aim and shoot.

I used to shoot a 4" colt python, which was fairly accurate at 25 and 25 yards. When I tried out a 6" trooper, I could shoot the pattern at 50 yards with the same ammo. That's how I earned my marksman qualification, when I was in the service. The length of the barrel just makes it easier to to hit your target.

[mrerick]

Longer sight radius and slightly higher muzzle velocity...

The short barrel rifle was more appropriate for ground troops guarding artillery installations.

Less than a carbine... more than a pistol.

[Dwight Gruber]

The LP08 was designed to serve instead of carbines for point defence use by machine gun and artillery support troops for whom a carbine might prove to be cumbersome or awkward during the performance of their duties. It also proved to be effective as a light assault weapon in the hands of sturmtruppen (storm troopers) when coupled with 32-round snail drum magazines.

And yes, when used with a board stock it is accurate as all heck at ridiculously long range. They are even startlingly accurate even without the stock. One of the reasons for this accuracy is a rear sight which biases itself horizontally as you raise it for increased range, to compensate for the gyroscopically curved path of the bullet.

--Dwight

[cirelaw]

As pointed out by Dwight, you can attach a snail drum, adjust the sight and increase your capacity from 8 to 32!!!!! A bid advantage and very deadly!!! Eric~

[MikeP]

Ii must be getting old.
The substitute carbine angle for engineer and artillery NCOs and others and adaption for trench sweeping used to be basic required knowledge for Luger enthusiasts.

[Mac Cat]

OK I have question about the snail drum.
Did it only work on artillery Lugers ? Is there a special link or fitting ?

[mrerick]

It should work on all of them. Balance may be more the issue.

[Ice]

The snail drum wiill fit and function in all Lugers

Charlie.

[Dwight Gruber]

It does, however, require a specialized loading tool.

--Dwight

[danielsand]

Artillery crews have their hands full, every time the crew changes position. Not to mention the operation (loading, aiming, firing, cleaning) of the weapons during (or after) the barrage. In the battle scenarios they are often protected by machine gun crews, but that's not always possible. Having a full size battle rifle (K98 or such) for personal protection can be very cumbersome, and get in the way of artillery crew's performance.

If they are issued with only 4" pistols, they are very vulnerable to attack by the enemy infantry that can pick them off from the range not reachable by the handgun. And that's where LP08 came into play. It allowed the crew to defend itself out to the greater distance, and offered easily transported, and maneuverable "short rifle" (carbine), with even greater capacity (with the snail drum) than the battle rifle of the time.

This concept has to be viewed in the historical setting of the "Great War" (WW1), where intermediate range automatic weapons (submachineguns) didn't exist yet. In the way,......"Artillery Lugers" were "submachineguns" of their time. Add to that the "Schnellfeuer", and you can clearly see where the tactical development thinking was heading. With the adoption of MP40 (and much earlier than that!), this artillery crew protection tool went down in history.

Some "old school" officers even had them during the invasion of Poland (September 1939), as a "status symbol" of sort, much like some ranking officers still carried the sabers in the Great War. Artillery Luger is a fascinating piece, and the first weapon I ever laid my hands on as a toddler. My Mother brought one from the war, and as a toddler I was allowed to play on the couch with it (unloaded of course). And since I was born ten years after the Second War, political correctness didn't prevent me from developing a healthy fascination toward ALL historical weapons, and history in general.

[garyed50]

thanks Everyone



Gary

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by garyed50

I don't understand what any benefit was gained from the longer barrel?

When I first read of an "artillery Luger", I immediately thought of the platform vehicle that my class in Schools Battalion trained on [briefly] in 1970. It mounted a 106mm recoiless rifle, and had a co-axially mounted single-shot 50 cal spotter rifle. It was called an M274 'Mule'. The 50 cal spotter rifle was used to target the recoiless rifle. This was what popped into my head when I heard 'artillery Luger'.

I thought maybe the 'artillery Luger' was used to spot artillery fire.

Obviously a false assumption, but the Mule was a cool vehicle. The steering column unclamped and could be swiveled in a 360º arc.

We had an instructor demonstrate this by un-clamping the column, lying on the ground, and letting the vehicle drag him around in a figure-eight while he steered it from the prone position...

[Don M]

I'm surprised no one has mentioned use of the LP08 by aircrews to take pot shots at each other. I thought that was one of its main uses.

[kurusu]

Originally Posted by Don M

I'm surprised no one has mentioned use of the LP08 by aircrews to take pot shots at each other. I thought that was one of its main uses.

Because it wasn't. By middle 1915 the Germans were already firing a machine gun through the propeller arc.

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by Don M

I'm surprised no one has mentioned use of the LP08 by aircrews to take pot shots at each other. I thought that was one of its main uses.

I thought that was one of the great surprise endings to the movie "Flyboys", when the German 'Falcon' draws his finger across his throat, and the American pilot shoots him with his French revolver...

[Don M]

Originally Posted by kurusu

Because it wasn't. By middle 1915 the Germans were already firing a machine gun through the propeller arc.

Guess I'd better stick with the police!