Lugers for Self Defense?

[HerbZ]

Thanks Jim for starting this here!

To just sort of bring the discussion up on things; under Off Topic & Other Firearms, we'd digressed from favorite revolvers to choices for a self defense weapon. Several 9 mm automatics were mentioned. Having worked in several independently owned service stations back in my college days, I remembered that just about every one was owned by a WW II vet who kept a pistol someplace, several were war trophies like a Walther P38, but never a Luger. That's when I asked, "would anyone choose to have a Luger for such circumstances, a really nice shooter (or at least nothing too collectible), say with a Mec-Gar and Wally's white box ammo?"