German Nitro Luger Valuation

[Ron Wood]

Jerry,
It is quite possible that it is an original barrel since a witness mark is not essential for barrel alignment. This would entail a long-winded discussion on the role of witness marks and the evolution of their use from earliest production to the late Mauser and Krieghoff builds.

In the case of this gun, it is of 1920s manufacture/assembly as evidenced by the vertical Crown/N. The low serial number doesn't fit in with anything produced after 1900, except for a few special contract runs...and this isn't one of them. So the gun has either been made up from a blank frame or renumbered. I believe the 1920 era guns still retained the witness mark, so this one should have one. It does appear that there might be "half a witness mark" but I lightened up the photo to check and there isn't one...it is just a photographic artifact. If it is a lunchbox gun as I surmise, it could well have been assembled without a witness mark.