Please Excuse Erics' More Ignorrance

[Don M]

Eric, the term "sneak" was coined by collectors years ago to refer to the Lugers manufactured by DWM/BKIW in 1928-29 that do not have the DWM logo on the toggle. These Lugers fall in the s, t and u suffix ranges that Jan Still calls "29 DWM." Most went to the police. The apparent reason for the name was the belief that the lack of a manufacturer's logo indicated they were being "snuck" past the Allies. That theory was largely discredited but the name has stuck. The truth has recently been published in Hallock and van de Kamp's book. These guns were originally manufactured for the Riff Tribe in North Africa in 1927-28. The toggles were left blank because of political sensitivity about Germany supplying guns to this tribe. Ultimately, the sale was decided to be too risky and the guns ended up being sold to the police instead. I guess the term "sneak" is still appropriate but it was for a different reason.