Erfurt 1917 for review

[Geo99]

Nice pistol but don't pay too much:

Rear toggle axle is an obvious replacement part.

Extractor is an unnumbered replacement part.

Toggle train looks possibly reblued to me, but it could just be the quality of the pictures, which have a lot of glare. The "ERFURT" stamp & crown just look a little shallow to me, and the tiny toggle axle retaining pin has a strangely shaped reflection around it, as if the area has been flattened out a little and reblued/touched up.
This could have been done when converted to Weimar Army pistol.

Two things to check -
1. are there any halos around the barrel SN or diameter marking?
2. are the grips marked inside with matching numbers and Erfurt stamp?

- Geo

[ithacaartist]

Originally Posted by Geo99

Nice pistol but don't pay too much:

Rear toggle axle is an obvious replacement part.

Extractor is an unnumbered replacement part.

Toggle train looks possibly reblued to me, but it could just be the quality of the pictures, which have a lot of glare. The "ERFURT" stamp & crown just look a little shallow to me, and the tiny toggle axle retaining pin has a strangely shaped reflection around it, as if the area has been flattened out a little and reblued/touched up.
This could have been done when converted to Weimar Army pistol.

Two things to check -
1. are there any halos around the barrel SN or diameter marking?
2. are the grips marked inside with matching numbers and Erfurt stamp?

- Geo

I think the photo series is quite comprehensive, but I'd like to see it taken down. Photos could be lighted better simply by using the old standard of "outdoors on an overcast day". I think I can see the reflection of a fluorescent bulb, which would account for the glare in all the shots, and the washed-out appearance of what remains, or not, of the straw color. I'll bet it looks much better in person!

George, I see the stuff you're talking about, but what I can't shake is my first impression, looking at the pics. There is a hint of a certain softness... Clicking on an individual pic, it seems to show a slight overall frostiness, except for the trigger and safety lever. In the back of my mind, there is the concept of an old refinish which was prepped by media blasting. The evidence for this can be seen with 10X magnification or 1080 resolution close-ups, you'll see individual craters doinked into the surface of the steel from where each tiny bead hit, and this extends all the way down into all the markings and any scratches that were there and not smoothed off sufficiently before blasting. There is a definite tone variation in the rear toggle link in the pic of the top, rear of the gun. It might lend credence to something's being re-done, but since the link is bluer than the rest, maybe the toggle train is original and it's the frame and upper that got the old doll-up. Ron Wood , what say you, sir, to these observations? It's late, and I could be hallucinating!

[John Sabato]

Originally Posted by Geo99

Nice pistol but don't pay too much:

Rear toggle axle is an obvious replacement part.

Extractor is an unnumbered replacement part.

Toggle train looks possibly reblued to me, but it could just be the quality of the pictures, which have a lot of glare. The "ERFURT" stamp & crown just look a little shallow to me,

I have to opine that I also believe that this gun was refinished at some point in its history, perhaps when the fit of the toggle was repaired with the oversize axle pin. That is not to say that the gun is not genuine, only that repairs changed it from its original state. The bevels on the sides of the forward toggle link where the ERFURT is stamped appear uneven to me and fit with George's comment that the stamping looks shallow.

With all that said, I think this is a fine Luger and the value is dependent on the value placed on the gun in this trade.

Just my $0.02