refinish my chrome P08?

[esbloefeld]

First, I'd like to say this is a great forum. Lots of information that I've barely scratched the surface of reading. Also, I apologise for registering with such a clearly fake name. I try to maintain a bit of privacy and I don't understand why many people online seem comfortable telling the world what valuable stealables they keep in their homes. Fine for those who do that and I don't want to criticize anybody, I just choose not to do so myself. Hopefully you see my choise of name as being clearly false and not trying to fool anybody. I am not in fact a villian from a Bond novel, I'm just borrowing his name.

OK, to my question. I have one and only one Luger and I don't know much about Lugers. It was a gift from my father who got it as part of a small collection he bought to get one piece in it. The Luger and a PPK were chromed. The guns originaly belonged to a WWII vet who brought them home from Europe. Both guns had matching numbers and original holsters. The vet had long since passed on and his son had no recollection of the guns ever not being chromed. Why these guns got the dip is anyones guess.

The Luger looks to have been in pretty good condition under the chrome. No real pitting I can see and it's not all buffed and smeared. It doesn't appear to have been shot since it was chromed.

Should I get the chrome stripped and the gun refinished? It would still be a refinished gun, not 'original finish'. It would, however, be a matching number gun with the original holster. It would be a good looking piece and I'd be putting it back more 'as it should be'. Would stripping the chrome require the metal to be buffed down, removing some detail of the original surface? Can I get it chemicaly removed with minimal damage? Or, should I leave well enough alone? Since the gun was a gift, I feel like I could put a few bucks into it if doing so would make it a better piece. I'm a way off from being into it more than it's worth. If anything, I feel like I'd be showing apreciation for my father's gift by putting resourse into imroving it. That is, IF I'd be improving it.

If the Luger is worth refinishing, maybe I'll consider offering to have his PPK done for him.

Any input is apreciated.