Appraising a Luger..... - Page 2

John Sabato · 10-21-2013, 09:24 AM

Let me add my welcome too MARTIN. We are grateful for your Dad's service... I am sure no offense was intended.

My Dad was just a couple of waves behind yours... but he managed to make it until January 1945 before a German machinegun interrupted his powerwalk from Utah beach to Berlin... He only made it as far as Winterberg and spent the next few months till the war's end in the hospital.

(NAME FIXED!)

mrerick · 10-21-2013, 09:36 AM

Hi Jack,

I also welcome you to the forum, and respect and am thankful for your father's service.

From the other pictures posted, I am also sure that it has been refinished. So... the good news is that you really don't have anything serious to lose by firing it.

Pick some normal power (never +P or NATO or surplus 9mm that might be a machine gun round) ammunition. The most common Winchester white box 115gn or 124gn 9mm Luger ammo should work fine.

These late Mauser Lugers have excellent metallurgy and were very precision made. My shooter Luger is a 1941 mismatch that performs well. These are fun to shoot.

1942 was the last year of German military Luger manufacture in Oberndorf. After that, the plant went over to making P.38 pistols.

wlyon · 10-21-2013, 09:38 AM

SOE
You have every reason to be proud of your father Eugene. I am sure that the statement made by Cap was not meant in a negative manner. Welcome to the forum and it's great for you to keep your father's memory alive. We thank him for his service. They truly are the Greatest Generation. Bill

John Sabato · 10-21-2013, 12:22 PM

I am curious about the makeup of the striped grip material.

Are the grips made of laminated plastic strips that contains each color, or is the color just paint in stripes on the inside of the grips?

If he purchased the gun in 1948, obviously the grips were not trench art... I have never seen anything like these grips before... very unusual...

saab-bob · 10-21-2013, 02:38 PM

Martin
Welcome to the luger forum.
I noticed your dads luger on the Cal-guns forum. Knew the gents on this forum would enjoy seeing it. Glad you posted it here as well.
Bob

Sonofeugene · 10-21-2013, 03:21 PM

Thanks all for your kind remarks. (FYI, my name's not Jack. Just for the record, don'cha know.)

In picking my user name, I figured that since it was my father's gun, that I'd just go by sonofeugene and keep some annonymity that way. Interesting that this other Eugene fellow is Russian. My father's parents were from Russia. They got the hell out of there around 1919 as the revolution spread then they fled further and further west. They finally settled in Sacramento, CA where my father was born. My grandfather, who was named Vasilly and later took the name William, I only have one faint memory of. My grandmother lived until I was in my mid 20's so I have plenty memories of her and her fairly thick Russian accent.

The grips are made of individual stripes of translucent but also colored plastic. I'm going to guess early colored Plexiglass. The back side of the grips are painted with a somewhat metallic silver paint which is likely what gives the yellow stripes a bit of a gold look to them. And yes, they're very unique. I thought about putting the original grips back on the gun, but my father went to a lot of trouble to make them so I've decided they'll stay. Especially if it's a shooter as it seems like it will be. (I'll be paying Krausewerks in San Mateo a visit in the near future.)

I did some exhausting seaches on the internet regarding sweetheart grips as well as colored gun grips and found nothing like the grips on my dad's Luger. I think it's safe to say they're one of a kind. Well made, too. And to make sure I don't damage them with some gun cleaning solvent, etc., I remove them when cleaning the gun.

I have another pistol of his (well, two actually) that has the more traditional sweetheart grips on them. He had a photo of his kid sister under one of the clear grips and it's possible that he made them while he was in Europe because I've got a military paper saying it and the 1934 Beretta are legal war trophies. The pistol with the sweetheart grips is a WWI Izarra in 7.65mm that my father said he'd never fire 'cause he was afraid the thing would blow up on him. In checking the gun's background, it was made by one of the better Spanish makers so it may be OK to fire after a thorough going over, but I have no plans to do so. It was one of the guns made for the French during WWI so I figure he picked it up while he was in France. And the Beretta he may have picked up just before the invasion of the south of France because his unit was stationed there in Italy in preparation for the invasion.

Thanks again for all your feedback and after I get an expert to look at the gun in person, I'll let you all know what they said. And I'm thinking he'll likely say what you guys have been saying.

Cheers!

John Sabato · 10-21-2013, 03:53 PM

BTW, Martin (in case you didn't know, anyone can learn a member's first name simply by clicking on the username and selecting "public profile". I should have checked before responding. Fixed my post above...

Your last name, however, is available only to moderators and admins... and will never be made public, neither will your email address unless you publish it publicly in a message thread... many do, but most do not.

Sonofeugene · 10-21-2013, 05:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Sabato

BTW, Martin (in case you didn't know, anyone can learn a member's first name simply by clicking on the username and selecting "public profile". I should have checked before responding. Fixed my post above...

Your last name, however, is available only to moderators and admins... and will never be made public, neither will your email address unless you publish it publicly in a message thread... many do, but most do not.

'Forgot about that.

That name came from my maternal grandfather. His father was also a Martin and was, at various times, police chief of Gettysburg and marshall of Escondido. 'Wish I had his service revolver.

K.Wilhelm · 10-21-2013, 05:41 PM

Sonofeugene- thanks for sharing the photos and stories about your father's WWII service & pistol. I'll bet your Luger will be a fine shooter- enjoy! Bill

saab-bob · 10-21-2013, 06:47 PM

Martin
Here is a link to some pics of my luger with "sweetheart grips"
Not as colorful as yours.

Bob

http://forum.lugerforum.com/showthre...ght=sweetheart

kzullick · 10-21-2013, 06:55 PM

Welcome to the forum Martin, and thanks for your Fathers service in the war.

Sonofeugene · 10-21-2013, 08:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by saab-bob

Martin
Here is a link to some pics of my luger with "sweetheart grips"
Not as colorful as yours.

Bob

http://forum.lugerforum.com/showthre...ght=sweetheart

Very nice!

Sonofeugene · 10-21-2013, 08:08 PM

The only thing I have any concern about with respect to firing it is that the magazine seems a little sticky as the follower nears the top. And there's some buggering of the top edge of the magazine as well. It does hold rounds just fine, so I guess the only way to find out if it works is to take it to the range. However, if one of you gentlemen could look at the earlier photo I posted where the top of the magazine can be seen, and give me your opinion (based on that photo, of course) of whether or not the magazine may or may not be a problem, I'd appreciate it. Thanks!

Tony Min · 10-21-2013, 09:22 PM

Try to find a Mec Gar magazine. Everyone has been out of stock but maybe you can find a used one. Check with G.T on this forum. They are supposed to start shipping them again soon.
I will be shooting some guns including my Luger at the Livermore range on Sunday and if you want to show up at 10am I will be glad to look over the pistol and let you use one of my mags to try it out.
You could also send the mag to G.T for rebuilding with a new spring. But even if you do that an aftermarket mag is what you want for shooting.

Sonofeugene · 10-22-2013, 03:13 AM

Thanks for the offer, but I can't make it. But, yea, I thought I might get a mag from Mec Gar. Good authentic ones are pricey and I just don't see the point.

alanint · 10-22-2013, 06:53 AM

Martin, the magazine problem may also be the mag follower dragging on the inside of the home made grips. There should be a channel on the inside of the grips where the magazine follower buttom travels. Check it for drag marks. Uf any are present, gentle sanding and buffing of the channel may solve your problem.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sonofeugene

The only thing I have any concern about with respect to firing it is that the magazine seems a little sticky as the follower nears the top. And there's some buggering of the top edge of the magazine as well. It does hold rounds just fine, so I guess the only way to find out if it works is to take it to the range. However, if one of you gentlemen could look at the earlier photo I posted where the top of the magazine can be seen, and give me your opinion (based on that photo, of course) of whether or not the magazine may or may not be a problem, I'd appreciate it. Thanks!

DavidJayUden · 10-22-2013, 08:48 AM

Doug raises a good point. Take the grips off and cycle the mag. in and out a few times. Does the problem go away?
dju

alanint · 10-22-2013, 09:20 AM

To further add; The photo of the top of the magazine does make it look like the lips are a bit buggered. I would send this magazine to G.T. here on the site for an expert reshaping and contouring of the mag lips for proper functioning.

ithacaartist · 10-22-2013, 12:10 PM

Doug has a good eye. The rear lips appear splayed apart as far as the front, sides look wavy and bent at the top. This is a recipe for misfeed.

Sonofeugene · 10-22-2013, 01:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alanint

Martin, the magazine problem may also be the mag follower dragging on the inside of the home made grips. There should be a channel on the inside of the grips where the magazine follower buttom travels. Check it for drag marks. Uf any are present, gentle sanding and buffing of the channel may solve your problem.

I noticed the drag with the magazine out, so the grips would seem to be a non-issue. And the grips have the appropriate reliefs on the back side just like the originals.

If it turns out to be a shooter, I'll likely just get a couple Mec Gar magazines and be done with it. Though maybe I might have someone rework the original mag. Thanks again!

10-21-2013, 09:24 AM	#21
John Sabato Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: The Capital of the Free World Posts: 10,156 Thanks: 3,003 Thanked 2,308 Times in 1,098 Posts	Let me add my welcome too MARTIN. We are grateful for your Dad's service... I am sure no offense was intended. My Dad was just a couple of waves behind yours... but he managed to make it until January 1945 before a German machinegun interrupted his powerwalk from Utah beach to Berlin... He only made it as far as Winterberg and spent the next few months till the war's end in the hospital. (NAME FIXED!) __________________ regards, -John S "...We hold these truths to be self-evident that ALL men are created EQUAL *and are endowed by their Creator* with certain UNALIENABLE* rights, and among these are life, LIBERTY, and the pursuit of happiness..."*

10-21-2013, 09:36 AM	#22
mrerick Super Moderator - Patron LugerForum Life Patron Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Eastern North Carolina, USA Posts: 3,920 Thanks: 1,377 Thanked 3,135 Times in 1,518 Posts	Hi Jack, I also welcome you to the forum, and respect and am thankful for your father's service. From the other pictures posted, I am also sure that it has been refinished. So... the good news is that you really don't have anything serious to lose by firing it. Pick some normal power (never +P or NATO or surplus 9mm that might be a machine gun round) ammunition. The most common Winchester white box 115gn or 124gn 9mm Luger ammo should work fine. These late Mauser Lugers have excellent metallurgy and were very precision made. My shooter Luger is a 1941 mismatch that performs well. These are fun to shoot. 1942 was the last year of German military Luger manufacture in Oberndorf. After that, the plant went over to making P.38 pistols. __________________ Igitur si vis pacem, para bellum - - Therefore if you want peace, prepare for war.

10-21-2013, 09:38 AM	#23
wlyon Lifer 2X Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: May 2005 Location: Somewhere in Montana Posts: 2,656 Thanks: 3,212 Thanked 2,620 Times in 972 Posts	SOE You have every reason to be proud of your father Eugene. I am sure that the statement made by Cap was not meant in a negative manner. Welcome to the forum and it's great for you to keep your father's memory alive. We thank him for his service. They truly are the Greatest Generation. Bill __________________ Bill Lyon

10-21-2013, 12:22 PM	#24
John Sabato Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: The Capital of the Free World Posts: 10,156 Thanks: 3,003 Thanked 2,308 Times in 1,098 Posts	I am curious about the makeup of the striped grip material. Are the grips made of laminated plastic strips that contains each color, or is the color just paint in stripes on the inside of the grips? If he purchased the gun in 1948, obviously the grips were not trench art... I have never seen anything like these grips before... very unusual... __________________ regards, -John S "...We hold these truths to be self-evident that ALL men are created EQUAL *and are endowed by their Creator* with certain UNALIENABLE* rights, and among these are life, LIBERTY, and the pursuit of happiness..."*

10-21-2013, 02:38 PM	#25
saab-bob User Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: So Cal Posts: 459 Thanks: 774 Thanked 143 Times in 87 Posts	Martin Welcome to the luger forum. I noticed your dads luger on the Cal-guns forum. Knew the gents on this forum would enjoy seeing it. Glad you posted it here as well. Bob __________________ "I think,therefore I own guns" Last edited by saab-bob; 10-21-2013 at 06:26 PM. Reason: correction

10-21-2013, 03:21 PM	#26
Sonofeugene User Join Date: Oct 2013 Posts: 157 Thanks: 1 Thanked 118 Times in 64 Posts	Thanks all for your kind remarks. (FYI, my name's not Jack. Just for the record, don'cha know.) In picking my user name, I figured that since it was my father's gun, that I'd just go by sonofeugene and keep some annonymity that way. Interesting that this other Eugene fellow is Russian. My father's parents were from Russia. They got the hell out of there around 1919 as the revolution spread then they fled further and further west. They finally settled in Sacramento, CA where my father was born. My grandfather, who was named Vasilly and later took the name William, I only have one faint memory of. My grandmother lived until I was in my mid 20's so I have plenty memories of her and her fairly thick Russian accent. The grips are made of individual stripes of translucent but also colored plastic. I'm going to guess early colored Plexiglass. The back side of the grips are painted with a somewhat metallic silver paint which is likely what gives the yellow stripes a bit of a gold look to them. And yes, they're very unique. I thought about putting the original grips back on the gun, but my father went to a lot of trouble to make them so I've decided they'll stay. Especially if it's a shooter as it seems like it will be. (I'll be paying Krausewerks in San Mateo a visit in the near future.) I did some exhausting seaches on the internet regarding sweetheart grips as well as colored gun grips and found nothing like the grips on my dad's Luger. I think it's safe to say they're one of a kind. Well made, too. And to make sure I don't damage them with some gun cleaning solvent, etc., I remove them when cleaning the gun. I have another pistol of his (well, two actually) that has the more traditional sweetheart grips on them. He had a photo of his kid sister under one of the clear grips and it's possible that he made them while he was in Europe because I've got a military paper saying it and the 1934 Beretta are legal war trophies. The pistol with the sweetheart grips is a WWI Izarra in 7.65mm that my father said he'd never fire 'cause he was afraid the thing would blow up on him. In checking the gun's background, it was made by one of the better Spanish makers so it may be OK to fire after a thorough going over, but I have no plans to do so. It was one of the guns made for the French during WWI so I figure he picked it up while he was in France. And the Beretta he may have picked up just before the invasion of the south of France because his unit was stationed there in Italy in preparation for the invasion. Thanks again for all your feedback and after I get an expert to look at the gun in person, I'll let you all know what they said. And I'm thinking he'll likely say what you guys have been saying. Cheers!

10-21-2013, 03:53 PM	#27
John Sabato Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: The Capital of the Free World Posts: 10,156 Thanks: 3,003 Thanked 2,308 Times in 1,098 Posts	BTW, Martin (in case you didn't know, anyone can learn a member's first name simply by clicking on the username and selecting "public profile". I should have checked before responding. Fixed my post above... Your last name, however, is available only to moderators and admins... and will never be made public, neither will your email address unless you publish it publicly in a message thread... many do, but most do not. __________________ regards, -John S "...We hold these truths to be self-evident that ALL men are created EQUAL *and are endowed by their Creator* with certain UNALIENABLE* rights, and among these are life, LIBERTY, and the pursuit of happiness..."*

10-21-2013, 05:41 PM	#29
K.Wilhelm User Join Date: Jun 2013 Location: South Central Colorado Posts: 215 Thanks: 45 Thanked 109 Times in 66 Posts	Thanks for sharing Sonofeugene- thanks for sharing the photos and stories about your father's WWII service & pistol. I'll bet your Luger will be a fine shooter- enjoy! Bill __________________ NRA Endowment Life member Proud veteran of the Naval Security Group

10-21-2013, 06:47 PM	#30
saab-bob User Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: So Cal Posts: 459 Thanks: 774 Thanked 143 Times in 87 Posts	Martin Here is a link to some pics of my luger with "sweetheart grips" Not as colorful as yours. Bob http://forum.lugerforum.com/showthre...ght=sweetheart __________________ "I think,therefore I own guns"

10-21-2013, 06:55 PM	#31
kzullick Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Aug 2012 Location: East Berwick, Pennsylvania Posts: 239 Thanks: 683 Thanked 104 Times in 85 Posts	Welcome to the forum Martin, and thanks for your Fathers service in the war.

10-21-2013, 08:08 PM	#33
Sonofeugene User Join Date: Oct 2013 Posts: 157 Thanks: 1 Thanked 118 Times in 64 Posts	The only thing I have any concern about with respect to firing it is that the magazine seems a little sticky as the follower nears the top. And there's some buggering of the top edge of the magazine as well. It does hold rounds just fine, so I guess the only way to find out if it works is to take it to the range. However, if one of you gentlemen could look at the earlier photo I posted where the top of the magazine can be seen, and give me your opinion (based on that photo, of course) of whether or not the magazine may or may not be a problem, I'd appreciate it. Thanks!

10-21-2013, 09:22 PM	#34
Tony Min User Join Date: Jul 2013 Posts: 169 Thanks: 0 Thanked 21 Times in 14 Posts	Try to find a Mec Gar magazine. Everyone has been out of stock but maybe you can find a used one. Check with G.T on this forum. They are supposed to start shipping them again soon. I will be shooting some guns including my Luger at the Livermore range on Sunday and if you want to show up at 10am I will be glad to look over the pistol and let you use one of my mags to try it out. You could also send the mag to G.T for rebuilding with a new spring. But even if you do that an aftermarket mag is what you want for shooting.

10-22-2013, 03:13 AM	#35
Sonofeugene User Join Date: Oct 2013 Posts: 157 Thanks: 1 Thanked 118 Times in 64 Posts	Thanks for the offer, but I can't make it. But, yea, I thought I might get a mag from Mec Gar. Good authentic ones are pricey and I just don't see the point.

10-22-2013, 08:48 AM	#37
DavidJayUden Patron LugerForum Patron Join Date: Nov 2008 Posts: 4,047 Thanks: 578 Thanked 1,414 Times in 887 Posts	Doug raises a good point. Take the grips off and cycle the mag. in and out a few times. Does the problem go away? dju

10-22-2013, 09:20 AM	#38
alanint User Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Marco Island, Florida Posts: 4,867 Thanks: 1,685 Thanked 1,917 Times in 1,193 Posts	To further add; The photo of the top of the magazine does make it look like the lips are a bit buggered. I would send this magazine to G.T. here on the site for an expert reshaping and contouring of the mag lips for proper functioning.

10-22-2013, 12:10 PM	#39
ithacaartist Twice a Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Atop the highest hill in Schuyler County NY Posts: 3,377 Thanks: 7,452 Thanked 2,613 Times in 1,380 Posts	Doug has a good eye. The rear lips appear splayed apart as far as the front, sides look wavy and bent at the top. This is a recipe for misfeed. __________________ "... Liberty is the seed and soil, the air and light, the dew and rain of progress, love and joy."-- Robert Greene Ingersoll 1894