1914 DWM value? Help!

John F. · 05-29-2004, 12:23 AM

Howdy, folks, there is a really nice 1914 DWM Luger that was just put on consignment here in a local shop, that has been keeping me awake at nights. I am a budding Luger enthusiast and not up on the values, so was wondering if you could offer a ballpark estimate of a fair price, with the understanding that not being able to see it makes this an approximate guess at best?

The gun appears to be all original, with all parts matching and no evidence of tampering anywhere. Straw is strong, with only slight wear on the trigger and a little on the magazine catch. The blue is near perfect, with only a trace of wear on the left side of the muzzle, about 1/3 missing at the right side of the muzzle on the cylindrical portion from holster wear, and blue is light, but not missing, along the narrow rib of the frame on the right side of the frame from holster wear. There is a little bit of blue wear at the stock lug, but not bad at all -- very minor.

The grip screws have faded to patina; other than that, the blue is all intact with no pitting whatsoever, and perfect blue even on the grip straps. It looks to have been wonderfully taken care of. The grips are dark but not oil soaked and the checkering diamonds are reasonably crisp with a few handling marks, but nothing bad at all. The bore is good, with slight darkness in the corners of the grooves where they meet the lands, but overall bright bore. It shows very little use, and I'd rate the finish percent at 90-95% depending on how harshly one wanted to grade it and whether the bore condition counts against "finish." The nitre blue (correct term? brilliant blue) on the small parts is strong.

The magazine is silver metal with a wood bottom and shows no marks anywhere. The wood bottom is crisp and does not show wear. The follower spring is weak for a Luger magazine, and when operating the toggle, the toggle is locked to the rear by the empty mag tripping the hold-open device only about 1/3 of the time. To me, that suggests a magazine problem, most likely, but any advice is helpful. I do know that original magazines for these pistols are expensive. Should the magazine on a Luger of this vintage be marked or numbered to the pistol?

The gun is grossly overpriced ($2000!!) but the shop manager has said the owner is open to offers. Any suggestions as to a fair value would be very helpful. Thanks very much!
John

George Anderson · 05-29-2004, 07:59 AM

John, I feel that a 1914 dated DWM P08 in the condition you describe would have trouble bringing $1000 unless the magazine is numbered to the gun. On the other hand, a 1914 dated Erfurt P08 in the same condition can command a $2000 price.

John F. · 05-29-2004, 09:29 PM

Hi, George,
Thanks very much for the good information!! I took a good magazine to the store and checked the operation of the hold-open device, which worked perfectly with my magazine. So, as I suspected, the problem is with the magazine that comes with the 1914 DWM, not with the pistol itself. I will make an offer and see what happens. I sure appreciate your help!
John

05-29-2004, 12:23 AM	#1
John F. User Join Date: Aug 2003 Posts: 37 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	1914 DWM value? Help! Howdy, folks, there is a really nice 1914 DWM Luger that was just put on consignment here in a local shop, that has been keeping me awake at nights. I am a budding Luger enthusiast and not up on the values, so was wondering if you could offer a ballpark estimate of a fair price, with the understanding that not being able to see it makes this an approximate guess at best? The gun appears to be all original, with all parts matching and no evidence of tampering anywhere. Straw is strong, with only slight wear on the trigger and a little on the magazine catch. The blue is near perfect, with only a trace of wear on the left side of the muzzle, about 1/3 missing at the right side of the muzzle on the cylindrical portion from holster wear, and blue is light, but not missing, along the narrow rib of the frame on the right side of the frame from holster wear. There is a little bit of blue wear at the stock lug, but not bad at all -- very minor. The grip screws have faded to patina; other than that, the blue is all intact with no pitting whatsoever, and perfect blue even on the grip straps. It looks to have been wonderfully taken care of. The grips are dark but not oil soaked and the checkering diamonds are reasonably crisp with a few handling marks, but nothing bad at all. The bore is good, with slight darkness in the corners of the grooves where they meet the lands, but overall bright bore. It shows very little use, and I'd rate the finish percent at 90-95% depending on how harshly one wanted to grade it and whether the bore condition counts against "finish." The nitre blue (correct term? brilliant blue) on the small parts is strong. The magazine is silver metal with a wood bottom and shows no marks anywhere. The wood bottom is crisp and does not show wear. The follower spring is weak for a Luger magazine, and when operating the toggle, the toggle is locked to the rear by the empty mag tripping the hold-open device only about 1/3 of the time. To me, that suggests a magazine problem, most likely, but any advice is helpful. I do know that original magazines for these pistols are expensive. Should the magazine on a Luger of this vintage be marked or numbered to the pistol? The gun is grossly overpriced ($2000!!) but the shop manager has said the owner is open to offers. Any suggestions as to a fair value would be very helpful. Thanks very much! John __________________ John

05-29-2004, 09:29 PM	#3
John F. User Join Date: Aug 2003 Posts: 37 Thanks: 0 Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Hi, George, Thanks very much for the good information!! I took a good magazine to the store and checked the operation of the hold-open device, which worked perfectly with my magazine. So, as I suspected, the problem is with the magazine that comes with the 1914 DWM, not with the pistol itself. I will make an offer and see what happens. I sure appreciate your help! John __________________ John

05-29-2004, 07:59 AM	#2
George Anderson Lifer Lifetime Forum Patron Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: VA Posts: 3,592 Thanks: 1,773 Thanked 2,527 Times in 786 Posts	John, I feel that a 1914 dated DWM P08 in the condition you describe would have trouble bringing $1000 unless the magazine is numbered to the gun. On the other hand, a 1914 dated Erfurt P08 in the same condition can command a $2000 price.