I see this is not a new topic, but I need help indentifying this P08

bstrick1 · 11-30-2011, 05:32 PM

Good afternoon! I have come into a collection and one of them is a P08 Luger (from what I can gather). The item is chromed or nickled. I understand that it is a shooter and holds no real value in the collection world. One of my questions is “Why?” I have done some research and see it was common for soldiers to do this to the weapons that came back here and if we are talking 80+ years ago then to me it would be considered part of the history of the gun. The serial numbers are low and they are marked clearly and matching.

On this forum I have seen one other like it on here, but not much information was giving to help me out. So I thought let’s just ask the question everyone seems to ask when they first get on here.

What do I have?

The sad part is when I got it I did not like it much and almost gave it away. Then I looked into it a little better and thought twice about it. I have taken it to a pawn shop after I found out it was a Luger and was told it was worth $300. I felt insulted and left, figured I would just leave it in my safe for my kids.

The gun was my fathers and he bought 2 of them both chromed or nickled (one with gold accents and wood grips). Typically I know my father liked odd weapons and knew what he was buying, but these do not make any sense. He spent a good deal on them 20+ years ago and I do not see these dropping in value (custom or not). I have bought the Blue Book yesterday and nothing even mentioned about what I have. Came close to the serial number, but I am 27 higher than reported on this site (another post with serial numbers and production years). I tend not to trust anyone around here (where I live), as they might think they can get it for a steal.

This is why I am here.

Thank you!

bstrick1 · 11-30-2011, 05:33 PM

Sorry, pictures are not the best

lugerholsterrepair · 11-30-2011, 05:57 PM

Brett..consider a pistol that has been in a dark moist basement..it is rusted and pitted..that is part of it's history too but does not neccessarily make it more appealing to collectors.

Your pistol has been modified from it's original state..MOST collectors prefer to see a pistol that is all original.

Yours is not only chromed but is a commercial pistol, likely in .30 Luger. Even if it were in it's original state a .30 Luger commercial is a low dollar pistol.

I would say the offer of $300 in today's economy was somewhat low but not totally off the mark. I would say $450 might be closer to it's worth but not much more than that.

Being your Father's gives it much more value than a dollar amount.

Thanks for showing and welcome to the Forum!

bstrick1 · 11-30-2011, 06:19 PM

How would I tell if it is a .30 or a 9mm? I was told by one dealer it was a 9mm. Do any of the markings help me at all on value or is it just dead due to the chrome finish?

you for your quick reply!

sheepherder · 11-30-2011, 06:38 PM

Stick a #2 pencil eraser-first into the barrel...If only the eraser goes in, it's 7.65mm...If the whole pencil goes in, it's 9mm...

As to the chrome...Imagine if you will, that your pawn shop has one of Elvis' original guitars...(He had many)...but someone has sanded it down, and painted it in Barbie colors...with flowers...Would you say it is worth as much as one of The Kings unbastardized guitars???

Yes, you are correct about many servicemen having them chromed/nickled...and if it was your father/granddad/uncle who did it, then it has value to you...but not to anyone who collects Lugers...

There is a segment of the gun world who do seek out chromed or nickled guns...especially Lugers...If you were to sell it on GB, you might realize as much as an unchromed Luger...but you may have to wait quite a while...

Edward Tinker · 11-30-2011, 07:20 PM

Welcome to the forum, I moved this to the New Collector area. Actually, we see chromed or nickled lugers about every couple of months, sometimes more often.

I try to buy them for around $350-$400 and resell for around $450-$600, everything depends on what kind it was and if it was buffed or in nice shape and simply chromed or nickled over....
.
.

bstrick1 · 11-30-2011, 07:30 PM

Thank you for the comment. I get the fact that it is not original and that value is gone.

I am just trying to figure out why anyone much less why a lot of people would do this to a gun, unless there was a particular reason for it. If they were trophies of our prior servicemen, then why are they not treasured. After all, it just means that one of our own came home alive and secured our right to pass these items along for future generations.

I might seem hardheaded / pigheaded about this and I do not wish to be. I am just trying to figure these guns out. Not the prettiest things ever in my opinion, but they seem to be sought after a lot.

Thank you all for the comments and the warm welcome to the site.

Curly1 · 11-30-2011, 07:48 PM

They did not see them as collector pieces just shiney souveniers to mark their passing thru history during a bad time.

A lot of them never saw the light of day after they came home until the Vets passing and family members discovered them.

DavidJayUden · 11-30-2011, 08:51 PM

I can not rationalize "why" things are the way that they are, but sometimes we have to accept that is how it is. The stock market teaches us to "never fight the market". And so goes the collector Luger market. And these things do change over time. VOPO Lugers are starting to draw a collector contingent. GI modified souveniers may be next.
Now about the grips, what do you suppose they are made of? Some old world materials may be worth a bit.
Welcome aboard.
dju

hgreer2 · 11-30-2011, 09:10 PM

Sometimes reality is a cruel mistress.

Harry

bstrick1 · 11-30-2011, 11:33 PM

The ones on my avatar are wood. The ones on the gun in question appear to be a pearl type material it is not plastic.

Greg B. · 12-22-2011, 10:01 PM

Brett,
Back in 1972 I bought a 1937 S/42 with matching numbers except for the mag. In small town Western Canada there was only one kind of Luger and that was the German Luger. We didn't have to worry about Mausers, artillerys, Erfurts, collectors etc. so you bought the one in the best condition you could for the best price and hoped it was accurate. Mine was in decent shape but I have spent the last thirty years fighting with it to get it to stop jamming and now thanks to the guys on this forum I am making progress. Anyway the point I am trying to make is you have what looks like a DWM with matching numbers (?) and nickel plating. It has its its place in history and it also belonged to your dad. I have only seen three Lugers at the range and one of them was mine. The other two were 1916 DWM's and they both were very reliable. Since I won't collect anyithing I can't shoot assuming your gun is in good condition I would enjoy packing that one to the range. You can bet the guy next to you isn't going to have one like it. I expect your dad bought that gun because he liked it and the guy who was selling it wasn't going to let it go until he got what he paid for it including the cost of the plating. I think it would look very nice in one of those fancy Mitchell's Mausers polished wood boxes. I can see having nice collectables but I have to be able to shoot it. Just my .02 cents worth.

Greg B.

lugerholsterrepair · 12-22-2011, 10:23 PM

Brett..I get the fact that it is not original and that value is gone.

The value is still there..it's not all about the money. It was your Fathers. My Father left me a few guns and I have most of them 20 years later. He didn't have an interest in Lugers and I was only mildly interested in the Colt revolvers he liked. I still see a lot of value in them because he did.

zombeer · 12-26-2011, 11:22 PM

I'd say keep it for sentimental value. But if you're desperate to sell, I'd recommend doing a private sale rather than a commercial one. When you sell to a dealer, you'll get about 50-70% of the value because they intend to resell your gun for a profit. With a private sale, you could easily get closer to your asking price by selling to an enthusiast who will more than likely keep the gun. I'm not sure what the laws are in your state. In NH we can sell to "known individuals" without doing an official transfer, but NH is great for gun laws.
Good luck with whatever you decide!

hansfischer007 · 12-27-2011, 09:49 AM

Im showing my age here....(born in 1941)....however i remember when I was a small boy.....seeing and hearing some of the WW2 Vets talking about having their "war souvenir pistols"...CHROMED....it seemed to be a popular thing to do back in the early 50s.....especially with .45 Automatics..........my youngest sons father in law has a Beautiful WW2 .45 automatic.....but alas...it was "chromed".....so as I said....back in the day.....a lot of the Vets apparently thought it was "the thing to do"....just my $0.02 worth of old memory

11-30-2011, 05:32 PM	#1
bstrick1 User Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 5 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	I see this is not a new topic, but I need help indentifying this P08 Good afternoon! I have come into a collection and one of them is a P08 Luger (from what I can gather). The item is chromed or nickled. I understand that it is a shooter and holds no real value in the collection world. One of my questions is “Why?” I have done some research and see it was common for soldiers to do this to the weapons that came back here and if we are talking 80+ years ago then to me it would be considered part of the history of the gun. The serial numbers are low and they are marked clearly and matching. On this forum I have seen one other like it on here, but not much information was giving to help me out. So I thought let’s just ask the question everyone seems to ask when they first get on here. What do I have? The sad part is when I got it I did not like it much and almost gave it away. Then I looked into it a little better and thought twice about it. I have taken it to a pawn shop after I found out it was a Luger and was told it was worth $300. I felt insulted and left, figured I would just leave it in my safe for my kids. The gun was my fathers and he bought 2 of them both chromed or nickled (one with gold accents and wood grips). Typically I know my father liked odd weapons and knew what he was buying, but these do not make any sense. He spent a good deal on them 20+ years ago and I do not see these dropping in value (custom or not). I have bought the Blue Book yesterday and nothing even mentioned about what I have. Came close to the serial number, but I am 27 higher than reported on this site (another post with serial numbers and production years). I tend not to trust anyone around here (where I live), as they might think they can get it for a steal. This is why I am here. Thank you! Attached Thumbnails

11-30-2011, 05:57 PM	#3
lugerholsterrepair Moderator Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Arizona/Colorado Posts: 7,763 Thanks: 4,868 Thanked 3,106 Times in 1,429 Posts	Brett..consider a pistol that has been in a dark moist basement..it is rusted and pitted..that is part of it's history too but does not neccessarily make it more appealing to collectors. Your pistol has been modified from it's original state..MOST collectors prefer to see a pistol that is all original. Yours is not only chromed but is a commercial pistol, likely in .30 Luger. Even if it were in it's original state a .30 Luger commercial is a low dollar pistol. I would say the offer of $300 in today's economy was somewhat low but not totally off the mark. I would say $450 might be closer to it's worth but not much more than that. Being your Father's gives it much more value than a dollar amount. Thanks for showing and welcome to the Forum! __________________ Jerry Burney 11491 S. Guadalupe Drive Yuma AZ 85367-6182 lugerholsterrepair@earthlink.net 928 342-7583 (CO & AZ) Year Round 719 207-3331 (cell) "For those who Fight For It, Life has a flavor the protected will never know."

11-30-2011, 06:38 PM	#5
sheepherder Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: ...on the 'ol Erie Canal... Posts: 8,182 Thanks: 1,398 Thanked 4,440 Times in 2,328 Posts	Stick a #2 pencil eraser-first into the barrel...If only the eraser goes in, it's 7.65mm...If the whole pencil goes in, it's 9mm... As to the chrome...Imagine if you will, that your pawn shop has one of Elvis' original guitars...(He had many)...but someone has sanded it down, and painted it in Barbie colors...with flowers...Would you say it is worth as much as one of The Kings unbastardized guitars??? Yes, you are correct about many servicemen having them chromed/nickled...and if it was your father/granddad/uncle who did it, then it has value to you...but not to anyone who collects Lugers... There is a segment of the gun world who do seek out chromed or nickled guns...especially Lugers...If you were to sell it on GB, you might realize as much as an unchromed Luger...but you may have to wait quite a while... __________________ I like my coffee the way I like my women... ...Cold and bitter...

11-30-2011, 07:20 PM	#6
Edward Tinker Super Moderator Eternal Lifer LugerForum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: North of Spokane, WA Posts: 15,917 Thanks: 1,996 Thanked 4,508 Times in 2,082 Posts	Welcome to the forum, I moved this to the New Collector area. Actually, we see chromed or nickled lugers about every couple of months, sometimes more often. I try to buy them for around $350-$400 and resell for around $450-$600, everything depends on what kind it was and if it was buffed or in nice shape and simply chromed or nickled over.... . . __________________ Edward Tinker ************ Co-Author of Police Lugers - Co-Author of Simson Lugers Author of Veteran Bring Backs Vol I, Vol II, Vol III and Vol IV

11-30-2011, 07:48 PM	#8
Curly1 User Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Upstate New York Posts: 1,231 Thanks: 115 Thanked 704 Times in 366 Posts	They did not see them as collector pieces just shiney souveniers to mark their passing thru history during a bad time. A lot of them never saw the light of day after they came home until the Vets passing and family members discovered them. __________________ Laugh hard and often. Gary

11-30-2011, 05:33 PM	#2
bstrick1 User Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 5 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Sorry, pictures are not the best

11-30-2011, 06:19 PM	#4
bstrick1 User Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 5 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	How would I tell if it is a .30 or a 9mm? I was told by one dealer it was a 9mm. Do any of the markings help me at all on value or is it just dead due to the chrome finish? you for your quick reply!

11-30-2011, 07:30 PM	#7
bstrick1 User Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 5 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Thank you for the comment. I get the fact that it is not original and that value is gone. I am just trying to figure out why anyone much less why a lot of people would do this to a gun, unless there was a particular reason for it. If they were trophies of our prior servicemen, then why are they not treasured. After all, it just means that one of our own came home alive and secured our right to pass these items along for future generations. I might seem hardheaded / pigheaded about this and I do not wish to be. I am just trying to figure these guns out. Not the prettiest things ever in my opinion, but they seem to be sought after a lot. Thank you all for the comments and the warm welcome to the site.

11-30-2011, 08:51 PM	#9
DavidJayUden Patron LugerForum Patron Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 4,047 Thanks: 578 Thanked 1,414 Times in 887 Posts	I can not rationalize "why" things are the way that they are, but sometimes we have to accept that is how it is. The stock market teaches us to "never fight the market". And so goes the collector Luger market. And these things do change over time. VOPO Lugers are starting to draw a collector contingent. GI modified souveniers may be next. Now about the grips, what do you suppose they are made of? Some old world materials may be worth a bit. Welcome aboard. dju

11-30-2011, 09:10 PM	#10
hgreer2 Banned Join Date: Nov 2010 Posts: 309 Thanks: 1 Thanked 29 Times in 20 Posts	Sometimes reality is a cruel mistress. Harry

11-30-2011, 11:33 PM	#11
bstrick1 User Join Date: Nov 2011 Posts: 5 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	The ones on my avatar are wood. The ones on the gun in question appear to be a pearl type material it is not plastic.

12-22-2011, 10:01 PM	#12
Greg B. User Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 34 Thanks: 1 Thanked 9 Times in 8 Posts	Brett, Back in 1972 I bought a 1937 S/42 with matching numbers except for the mag. In small town Western Canada there was only one kind of Luger and that was the German Luger. We didn't have to worry about Mausers, artillerys, Erfurts, collectors etc. so you bought the one in the best condition you could for the best price and hoped it was accurate. Mine was in decent shape but I have spent the last thirty years fighting with it to get it to stop jamming and now thanks to the guys on this forum I am making progress. Anyway the point I am trying to make is you have what looks like a DWM with matching numbers (?) and nickel plating. It has its its place in history and it also belonged to your dad. I have only seen three Lugers at the range and one of them was mine. The other two were 1916 DWM's and they both were very reliable. Since I won't collect anyithing I can't shoot assuming your gun is in good condition I would enjoy packing that one to the range. You can bet the guy next to you isn't going to have one like it. I expect your dad bought that gun because he liked it and the guy who was selling it wasn't going to let it go until he got what he paid for it including the cost of the plating. I think it would look very nice in one of those fancy Mitchell's Mausers polished wood boxes. I can see having nice collectables but I have to be able to shoot it. Just my .02 cents worth. Greg B.

12-22-2011, 10:23 PM	#13
lugerholsterrepair Moderator Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Arizona/Colorado Posts: 7,763 Thanks: 4,868 Thanked 3,106 Times in 1,429 Posts	Brett..I get the fact that it is not original and that value is gone. The value is still there..it's not all about the money. It was your Fathers. My Father left me a few guns and I have most of them 20 years later. He didn't have an interest in Lugers and I was only mildly interested in the Colt revolvers he liked. I still see a lot of value in them because he did. __________________ Jerry Burney 11491 S. Guadalupe Drive Yuma AZ 85367-6182 lugerholsterrepair@earthlink.net 928 342-7583 (CO & AZ) Year Round 719 207-3331 (cell) "For those who Fight For It, Life has a flavor the protected will never know."

12-26-2011, 11:22 PM	#14
zombeer User Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: New Hampshire Posts: 36 Thanks: 16 Thanked 3 Times in 3 Posts	I'd say keep it for sentimental value. But if you're desperate to sell, I'd recommend doing a private sale rather than a commercial one. When you sell to a dealer, you'll get about 50-70% of the value because they intend to resell your gun for a profit. With a private sale, you could easily get closer to your asking price by selling to an enthusiast who will more than likely keep the gun. I'm not sure what the laws are in your state. In NH we can sell to "known individuals" without doing an official transfer, but NH is great for gun laws. Good luck with whatever you decide! __________________ Illegitimis nil carborundum

12-27-2011, 09:49 AM	#15
hansfischer007 User Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: Sunny Tennessee Posts: 233 Thanks: 509 Thanked 96 Times in 48 Posts	Chromed & Nickeled pistols.. Im showing my age here....(born in 1941)....however i remember when I was a small boy.....seeing and hearing some of the WW2 Vets talking about having their "war souvenir pistols"...CHROMED....it seemed to be a popular thing to do back in the early 50s.....especially with .45 Automatics..........my youngest sons father in law has a Beautiful WW2 .45 automatic.....but alas...it was "chromed".....so as I said....back in the day.....a lot of the Vets apparently thought it was "the thing to do"....just my $0.02 worth of old memory