Safety Issue - Y E S !

[Luke]

This might be boring to most members, but I have discovered a true safety issue with a middle toggle link I had purchased.

The link appeared to be in excellent condition when I received it with good blue, no rust, pits, dings, etc. The interesting thing about this part is that someone had, very professionally, polished off the manufacturer's identification (DWM, Erfurt, byf, etc. - whatever had been on there) and in the process had reduced the thickness of the part, but not noticeably so.

When I integrated it with a breechblock and a rear toggle link, I found that the pin drops out of the connection between the breechblock and the modified middle link. At first I thought that I just needed a slightly larger pin. Not so. The real issue was the fact that the holes in the two sides of the front fork on this middle link were elongated, an amount easily measurable with digital calipers. In fact the holes were both elongated and slightly widened. It appears that the metal is fairly soft and something (probably extensive shooting) had elongated and widened the holes on either side.

As I mentioned, the metal seems to be fairly soft, and it is my belief that continued shooting would eventually have caused metal failure with unpredictable consequences.

Figuratively speaking, I suspect that I may have dodged a bullet.
I have removed the part and will not ever use it in a shooter again.

Shame, because it looks nice mounted on a Luger with the shiny unmarked top.

Conclusion: When something doesn't fit properly there could be a hazardous reason.

Luke