Receiver rail guide.

[Sieger]

Originally Posted by postino

It's not all dependent on the ammunition. A weak recoil spring could cause excessive pounding on what I call the 'abutment'. Here's the areas I am referring to - yours compared to my commercial...

It looks like yours has taken a bit more hammering than the commercial...And yes, being hammered from both sides could cause that 'fin' to work-harden/fatigue and break...

There really isn't any other stress on these 'fins'...Under normal operation...

If it were my Luger, I would be concerned about the breech block cracking...

But everything is relative! If you're happy with the way it functions, then that's all that matters!

Hi:

The frame on the right looks like the springs and ammo have been properly matched, as their has been no breach block slap. The Luger was not designed to absorb a regular pounding at this point, and as previously stated, this pounding is a major cause of mechanical failure with this design.

The Luger with the missing fin looks like it has taken quite a lot of pounding here and has failed. I agree with you that weak springs and/or too hot of ammo is the cause of this condition.

Original DWM military ammo for the 9mm, circa WWI, was 123 gr bullet at 1,076 fps, a rather middle of the road load by today's standards. The much vaulted Commercial Winchester white box is 115 grs at 1,190 fps (according to the Winchester web site) or 11% over original specs. The current U.S. Army Nato load is 121grs at 1,260 fps or 17% over original specs. I believe that regular use of the "hot stuff", even with springs in spec, will eventually lead to problems.

Now days when I'm shopping for a Luger, I'll try to examine this area for ususual wear. If it has taken a battering, I'll usually pass on the pistol and find one that hasn't.

I handload for all of my shooting with my Lugers, and handload to the original specs. These loads are also extremely accurate.

The Wolff #38 is the standard weight spring, but with "hot stuff", I'd try the 40 pounder.

Sieger