1921 (26?) DWM Military/Police

[mystical_tutor]

Sam Costanzo p.77 notes a Waffen Amp Office proof "WaA 4" for lugers accepted by the Military/Police in 1926.

His position is that pistols were dated 1921 to "fool the Versailles Control Commission"

This is the only information I have found about these and would like more such as aprox. number known and value.

My library is far behind the times I think and I have only been able to find generalizations in Datig, Walter and Kenyon.

BBoGV seems to lump all 20 + into one batch.

Any information on the subject will be appreciated.

Gary

[Don M]

Gary, the 1921 date was genuine. That was the last year that DWM was permitted to manufacture Lugers with bores greater than 8 mm and barrels longer than 98 mm. You can update your library with a number of more recent books on this era including Still's Weimar Lugers, Tinker & Gruber's Police Lugers and my History Writ in Steel.

[mystical_tutor]

Thanks much Don, I will check those out but my need for a library is deminishing. Do you know if any of those are available for dl to a Kindle?

So Sam was just speculating on the fake dates? If so the Waffen Amp Office must have been in business before 1926 as he understood.

I have wanted to get Still's Weimar Lugers as I think this must be one of the most difficult periods of arms history there is to research, with the loss of records in the war and the dedicated attempt of a government and an industry to confuse investigators and cover their tracks...

Thanks again for the input.

Gary

[mystical_tutor]

As a PS Don, I noted that you have updated the information as receintly as this last July. Hats off to you.

Gary

[Don M]

Gary, to my knowledge, none of the relevant books is available for download.

I don't know the basis of Costanzo's speculation but a lot of period information has been discovered since his book was published. Waffenamt 4 was formed from Ausrustungsamt 4 in 1921.