Unitmark on DWM 1912

[Don M]

Jes,

I am responding to your PM here to share this information with others who may be interested. Based partially on the marking you have presented, I am more convinced the position of the "reverse capital J" (subscripted or not) is just an artifact of the armorer's positioning of the die and not a deliberate variation of the marking.

If these markings are ever identified, the identity of the unit will have to fit the following evidence:
• The capture report for the P08 marked K.L.?.66. states it was captured by a U.S. soldier in Schorndorf, Bavaria, between Regensburg and Cham, in the spring of 1945.
• The recorded property numbers in these markings suggest this unit had about 150 members, about the size of a large police company (Hundertschaft). If so, this means that a rather high percentage of these pistols (almost 10%) has been recorded, all or most of which are now in the U.S. This is consistent with a unit location in an American-captured and/or -occupied area such as Bavaria.
• Several are complete or nearly complete rigs suggesting they were taken directly from the owners rather than obtained from a stockpile of captured weapons. Many postwar photos show that pistols and holsters usually were separated in such stockpiles.
• The P08s have many common characteristics suggesting they were all issued at the same time from the same source. All are Imperial-era military pistols with 1920 government (probably police) property stamps. They all are reported as having been fitted with Schiwy safeties. At least three apparently were reworked in the late 1930s by the government armory at Spandau (E/Su25 stamps on the barrels).

Where is the gun you presented located? Europe or the US? Does the barrel have a E/Su25 stamp on the barrel?