Commecial Database Commentary (very long)

[Dwight Gruber]

Post 3 of 3

READING THE DATABASE

Some of the collector designations used in the database and these remarks may not be the ones collectors are used to seeing and using. I have chosen to use the designations as revised by Jan Still in Weimar Lugers.

The first thing to keep in mind while perusing this database is that it represents documentation and reporting. It is not, and cannot provide on its own, certification of authenticity of any particular Luger, especially those of rare or noteworthy variation.

Luger collecting as a serious endeavor began more than 60 years ago, and boosting, altering, and downright faking of Lugers followed almost immediately. As this database is assembled from information from 45 years ago to the present day, it is inevitable that some of the more exotic or unique variations associated with their serial numbers may not be authentic.

Occasional entries do include notation that a particular example is questionable, or in some cases an actual fake. These are the results of direct or photographic examinations which have identified bogus characteristics (pantographed application of markings which are properly found stamped, for example) or identification of rare examples which are clearly out-of-sequence or -date-range (such as model â??1903â?� barrels stamped Manufacture Fran�§ais d'Armes et Cycles de St. Etienne).

This faking becomes a particular problem with rare variations which do not fall into a single documented serial number range, a circumstance all too common with commercial series Lugers. Particular care must be taken when considering all Stoeger-marked guns, all 1902 variations, all carbines, Russian-attributed Lugers, Abercrombie & Fitch marked guns, Reichsmarine unit marks, unusual or exotic chamber marks, and all French variations. These are not the only variations to look at critically, but they are commonly and easily faked. Particular care should be taken with three-line Stoeger marked Lugers outside the recognized v suffix range, and 1902 Cartridge Counter Lugers outside the established sn 22401-sn 22450 range.

1906 Lugers sold by Manufacture Fran�§ais d'Armes et Cycles de St. Etienne are also commonly faked. This retailer stamped an inventory number on the grip strap toe of these guns. If the number or its absence is reported, it is included as a comment. Most reports of these guns, however, have not included a report of this feature; the corresponding notation only indicates the lack of report, not necessarily absence of the number. These pistols were only marketed 1909-1914, so any listings outside this time frame should be cautiously considered.

A new addition to this version of the database is a separate section for 1920 CARBINES. The detail cells of this variation are pretty scanty, as the main sources of information (dealer sales lists) do not go into too much detail. When considering 1920 Carbines, it should be remembered that they are not necessarily consistent in their characteristics, and are often found mismatched. This makes it easy to fabricate a fake, and there is no way to know if any individual entry in the database is in fact bogus. The 1920 Carbine section represents the beginning of an area of research, and I hope to gather many more examples and much more data to help establish the patterns of physical characteristics of these guns.

Another area for study, in which the database has only so far scratched the surface, is Lugers from South America. Entries in the database support other evidence that this was a thriving Luger market. There have been more than 300 Lugers registered with the police in Rio de Janeiro alone.

Language probably plays a part in scant reporting. A much larger role is certainly played by reticence of gun owners who participate in this hobby surreptitiously due to harsh gun control measures in South American countries.
The â??Notesâ?� category includes, among other things, associated characteristics of the pistolâ??whether it has Ideal grips or rig, a matching shoulder stock, an unrelieved frame, interesting or unusual markings, observed or reported mismatch, etc. These represent the conditions of the pistol at the time of report. As some of the reports can be very old this may not represent the condition of the pistol now.

Some database entries are noted as restored. This information comes from descriptions by owners or from sales list descriptions. Occasionally an example will be described as in poor condition. This comes from direct or photo observation, and will be useful in the future when a pistol whose condition is described as nearly new and original is compared to such a database entry.

The Swiss Military Lugers are numbered in their own serial number range, identical to the DWM Commercial number range. Many collectors and records of Swiss 1900 and 1906, particularly old sales lists, do not differentiate between Military or Commercial in their descriptions. With the exception of the Dave Soracco data list (which makes the distinction), I have not included 1900 or 1906 Swiss Commercial numbers which are not positively identifiable by the presence of c/BUG proofs. I am certain that I have passed up many Swiss Commercial numbers because of this.

Finland received a very large number of Lugers over a long period of time. The main contract order was delivered from Alphabet Commercial production, but Lugers of many descriptionsâ??some being earlier commercial pistolsâ??made their way there. The Finnish Army (Suomi Armejna) began stamping their SA mark in 1941. These guns are identified with a â??Finnish SAâ?� entry. Other guns identified as Finnishâ??police guns, prison guard guns, guns reported from Finnish Army documents, or otherwise identified as Finnish but without report of the stampâ??are identified with a â??Finnishâ?� entry.

I have noted many times that this database includes a very large database originally collected by Dave Rivera and Dave Soracco. The individual pistol characteristics are described by alphabetic code entries, for which there is no key. This has proved to be a matter of considerable frustration. As the database has grown, correlation between these alphabetic code entries and independently reported characteristics has become apparent, reinforced by the general patterns established by these reports.

Having lived with this database for awhile now, and given the matter much thought and consideration, I have included most of the deduced alphabetic-keyed information on a conditional basisâ??the entries are identified by being italicized, in grey type. I have come to be confident of their accuracy, but care should be taken in drawing conclusions based on these entries.

I am still looking for the alphabetic key, and I hope that owners of these guns will send along information which will confirm (or correct!) the entries.

Finally, this database has resulted from the transcription of huge amounts of information, often from secondary or tertiary sources. Each time a number is transcribed from one source to another the possibility for error creeps in. Although I cannot account for errors in the source material, I have made every effort to accurately transfer information into the database itself. Ultimately any errors in this transcription are my responsibility, and I will make factual corrections in future releases of the database as the information becomes known.

--Dwight