New collector pitfalls

Kyrie · 02-11-2001, 03:35 PM

Hi Bob!

Alas, while the views I've expressed are my opinions, they also reflect the economic reality of Luger collecting and you will hear much the same from most established Luger collectors. Value is determined by originality, variation, and condition pretty much in that order. Making any Luger look like something it is not, whether this is done by creating a false image of originality (by parts swapping or some other method), or a false image of variation (again by parts swapping or altering the markings), or a false image of condition (by rebluing or other things) are all equally frowned upon.

Concerning the presence of importation markings, this is really a separate question. The requirement that newly imported firearms must be import marked has created a two-tier market. An all original Luger that is import marked is worth less than the same Luger that is not import marked. But both of these Lugers would be worth more than yet another Luger that is exactly the same as both of these, but is not all original.

There are actually a third and a fourth question lurking here and I'm a bit surprise no one has brought it up. How about the case where a Luger has two mismatched parts and one replaces only one with a part that appears to match? And how about a replacing a mismatched part with a part that has the "correct" number, but the number itself is obviously incorrect (obviously too large, too obviously too small, placed incorrectly, and so on)?

In the first case the Luger has not been made to look like something it is not and it's a "no harm no foul" situation. The second case is more murky. What is "obviously" too large or small is a subjective thing to some degree. A green as grass Luger collector may not know the number on a small parts shouldn't be an inch high, or so small it takes a microscope to see it.

In the end this all comes down to the question, "Would I reasonably expect this alteration to fool anyone into thinking this Luger is something it is not?" If the answer is "yes", then the alteration will have malign consequences and should not be done. If the answer is "no" the alteration is benign.

Did this help?

Best regards,

Kyrie

02-11-2001, 03:35 PM	#30
Kyrie User Join Date: Jun 2002 Posts: 757 Thanks: 0 Thanked 212 Times in 101 Posts	Re: Question for Kyrie Hi Bob! Alas, while the views I've expressed are my opinions, they also reflect the economic reality of Luger collecting and you will hear much the same from most established Luger collectors. Value is determined by originality, variation, and condition pretty much in that order. Making any Luger look like something it is not, whether this is done by creating a false image of originality (by parts swapping or some other method), or a false image of variation (again by parts swapping or altering the markings), or a false image of condition (by rebluing or other things) are all equally frowned upon. Concerning the presence of importation markings, this is really a separate question. The requirement that newly imported firearms must be import marked has created a two-tier market. An all original Luger that is import marked is worth less than the same Luger that is not import marked. But both of these Lugers would be worth more than yet another Luger that is exactly the same as both of these, but is not all original. There are actually a third and a fourth question lurking here and I'm a bit surprise no one has brought it up. How about the case where a Luger has two mismatched parts and one replaces only one with a part that appears to match? And how about a replacing a mismatched part with a part that has the "correct" number, but the number itself is obviously incorrect (obviously too large, too obviously too small, placed incorrectly, and so on)? In the first case the Luger has not been made to look like something it is not and it's a "no harm no foul" situation. The second case is more murky. What is "obviously" too large or small is a subjective thing to some degree. A green as grass Luger collector may not know the number on a small parts shouldn't be an inch high, or so small it takes a microscope to see it. In the end this all comes down to the question, "Would I reasonably expect this alteration to fool anyone into thinking this Luger is something it is not?" If the answer is "yes", then the alteration will have malign consequences and should not be done. If the answer is "no" the alteration is benign. Did this help? Best regards, Kyrie