Old Luger Articles

[Ron Wood]

Today was one of those days when you wish it could last forever. There is a used bookstore here in El Paso that I rummage around in from time to time. Today I went down into the basement where there are several hundred square feet of old books and magazines. Man, did I have a good time in spite of the nearly 100 degrees temperature down there! To make a long story short (yeh, right!) here is what happened.

I picked up the following magazines (partial list):
Guns & Ammo, April 1962 â?? A wonderful article by Harry Jones on â??The Worldâ??s Rarest Automatics â?? Whatâ??s Your Souvenir Pistol Worth?â?� How about a Luger Carbine for $175, or an Artillery for $65?!
Guns & Ammo, August 1973 â?? The first in a series of articles by Michael Reese on Luger variations (eventually became the basis for his book â??Luger Tipsâ?�). I think most of the series is still down there in the basement but I didnâ??t have time to look!
Guns & Ammo, October 1974 â?? Article by Howard French on a Presentation Luger Carbine brought back from Germany in 1945 by PFC John Elvin Jr. Serial number 10110. C. (Note the period after the number and the C).
Guns & Ammo, March 1977 â?? Article on the G�¶ring Krieghoff Luger, serial # 16999, by Randall Gibson

There were several more G&A articles just as good. But the real icing on the cake is Shooting Times. If you note in Kenyon and some other publications, the picture of the Baby Luger is credited to â??Shooting Timesâ?�. Down there in the musty confines of the bookstore basement I found not one but TWO copies of the September 1962 â??Shooting Timesâ?�! Both copies are in nearly perfect condition after exactly 40 years! The article is about Carl Wilsonâ??s discovery of the first known example of the Baby Luger together with photocopies of Herr August Weissâ?? letter of authentication and those of several other Luger authorities at the time. Great photos! And in advertisements in the back of the magazine, some of the prices are enough to make you cry. I know that for sale items go in the Classified section, but the first $50.00 takes one of the two copies I found (that is only 100 times what it cost in 1962!).

Like I said, this was a very good day.