How Hard Is My Luger...?

[Dwight Gruber]

A practical slant on the topic, I recently talked to an engraver about engraving a Luger. He told me that he (and some other engravers) won't work on Lugers, because the steel is too hard. The frame may or may not be engraveable (he suggested that there are hard and soft spots), and that engraving tools just scratch the toggles. He also revealed that some engravers get around the problem by heating the steel up enough to reduce the hardness, and then re-harden the steel when they are done He also related a scary story where an engraver of his aquaintance put the toggles back together and into service without bothering to re-harden them.


--Dwight