P38 byf

I just received a gift via a relative on a piece that was originally my grandfathers'. It's a Walther P38 with byf 43 and 8090 above the trigger and left case. I have been reviewing some earlier threads so it looks like a 1943 model outsourced to Mauser for the manufacture? The right side has markings of what looks like war eagles with the numbers 135 right below the eagles. This also appears above the trigger. The holster is in good shape and has P38 stamped very large with a war eagle and swastika with the number WaA869 plus and extra clip. I realize that these are common guns but can any competent gunsmith clean this up a bit? It is in good shape but I would like to get in the best shape possible. Another forum warned me that this gun is unstable and not to fire it as the workmanship is unreliable, especially a soft firing pin. Any experience with this piece?

[Thor]

The flat firing pins were subject to stress concentrations due to the sharp corners of the flat pins and the way the safety holds the pin and the hammer drops on it! I have replaced some of these, easy work! You need to make sure the disconnector pin moves freely also. In good shape these guns are super to fire. If you have a collecton grade piece I would recommend not redoing it as it would reduce the value. I am going to be redoing one for me in a couple of months when the dust cloud settles on my Luger business along with a PPK. Walther and Mauser and Spreewerke all made P.38s at their respective plants, and some parts were made in CZECH. (barrels for sure) The factory codes were "ac" for Walther, "byf" for Mauser and "cyq" (sometimes "cvq") for the Spreewerke weapons. If it is in good condition and all original, I might have a gun smith check out the firing pin, diconnector and other moving parts for wear and/or cracks and shoot it sparingly. If mismatched or in poor condition you might hae it reworked, reblued, or just cleaned up as you said. They really are neat guns. Have fun! Thor



Ted's Luger Strawing Service

Thanks, Thor. I have dropped the unit off for a cleaning and inspection. I wouldn't dream of re-bluing it as the holster and 2 clips all match the serial numbers on the gun. (I am surprised at the number of places the serial numbers are stamped!) This particular gunsmith has been in business for 30 years and recognized my gun immediately. I assume they would recognize a weak pin, other faults, etc.

[Marvin]

Scott,


The P.38 is one of the finest combat pistols that has ever been manufactured. The indication of this is the Eagle over the 135 stamps located in several spots on the pistol. These are Government inspection stamps and germany had the highest quality standards of any manufacturers in the world. Germany would not provide their troops with any second rate weapons! Pistols that were picked up by occupyings troops in the factory were one source of these false statements about bad quality. They were not assembled properly or rejected parts were assembled into them. The ne staement made on the other Forum about the soft firing pin is one I have never heard of before. This is another part that had to pass the Waffenamt inspection and if it was "soft" it would not have used.


Now, with this said, the last couple of weeks of the war, anything could have happened during assemble. Butm most of these were not waffenamt inspected either. The finish did go down on weapons as the war progressed, but that is normal during any war. The US and Britain finish quality dropped during this same time. The Germans tested and made a number of copies of the British Sten gun in an attemtpt to make a cheap submachine gun. The quality of these was so bad, the Germans rejected the manufacture of this gun because it was not reliable and they would not give them to any troops.


The "byf" 43 you have is a very good pistol of the highest quality build by Mauser. Mauser was another contractor to supplement the Walther firm. Spreewerk also produced this pistol in Czechoslovakia. The Spreewerk pistols never had a good outside finish except the very early ones, but they are good pistols also.


The negative item most so called P.38 experts talk about is the safety shattering and allowing the pistol to fire. What could cause this is the repeated dropping of the hammer on the rotating safety which protects the firing pin. By repeated dropping of the hammer, the steel could become fractured from the "hammering" and could crack. The same thing could happen in 50+ years to the similar safety drops on todays pistols too. Remember, you don't know whow many of these pistols have been treated in the past years by their numberous owners. Always treat a pistol as loaded and keep it pointed in a safe direction regardless of what it is.


If you are familiar with the P.38 enough to disassemble the pistol, take it to a gunsmith in your area and have him take it apart, clean it, check the parts, and then show you how to field strip and clean after firing. the pistol will give you years of service and enjoyment. If it is in excellent condition, fire it, but remember to take very good care of the finish, clean it, lubricate it and protect it from damage as they do increase in value over the years.


To me, the P.38 is as modern as they get even today! The current Beretta used by the US forces is just a "take-off" and upgraded P.38. The locking system, slide return system, and I think the double action system is just a slightly modified copy of the P.38. Don't worry about the P.38, I would trust my life to one anytime!


Marvin

Be careful about what gunsmith you take your P38 to. Many of today's gunsmiths don't understand military surplus and can damage the collectible condition of the pistol. These are less guns and more museum pieces. For a shooting iron, try a modern pistol. This is a piece of history and should be handled so as to preserve its condition. That so, this is a strong and reliable weapon that in its day (and would likely be so today) was excellent.

[Aaron]

It certainly behooves one to be leery of many so called "gunsmiths". We tend to give too much credit to anyone who claims the title. In years gone by, especially in rural hunting areas, the typical old time gunsmith could replace firing pins and small parts, or polish the heck out of a gun and give it an ugly hot dip reblue, or maybe repair a cracked stock. However, most gunsmiths today are no more capable of servicing a precious collector piece than a witch doctor is capable of performing brain surgery. Where I live, even a mediocre gunsmith has a six month waiting list for repairs, and a really good one has a two or three year backlog.