A lesson in humility................

[DaveinTN]

Iâ??ve just learned a valuable and embarrassing lesson about Lugers first-hand.

When I bought my first Luger a few months ago and learned to take it apart, I felt pretty comfortable about participating in the forum. I even allowed myself to think that I knew something about Lugers.

In hindsight, I guess I appeared to some of the more senior members of the forum like a kid in the shallow end of the pool, splashing around and making a lot of noise but not doing a whole lot of swimming. In my last profession (which lasted 26 years), we â??old timersâ?� had the same attitude about people who were new to the field. Patiently, we let them bang their drums and blow their horns. We didnâ??t try to discourage them, but rather we watched as they learned valuable lessons about the ups and downs of business life for themselves. Those who couldnâ??t hack it left. Those who stayed became more reflective and a lot less noisy.

This afternoon I received some parts I had ordered for my Luger. My intention was to replace some of the more fragile numbered parts on the pistol with ones that wouldnâ??t decrease the value if they were to break while at the pistol range.

The first part I tried replacing was the extractor. The un-numbered replacement installed very easily and I reassembled the gun. That was when I noticed that the front of the extractor was not fitting into the recess above the breech. It was keeping the breech block about 1/16â?� away from going all the way forward. That in turn put compression on the toggle joints which made the rear axle really difficult to install.

So, out came the Dremel. At least I wasnâ??t foolish enough to start hogging out the top of the chamber! Carefully and slowly, I started removing material from the front of the extractor until it finally fit into the recess.

I then tried to install the ejector. The original came out easily enough, but the replacement wouldnâ??t go in at all. Comparing the two parts side by side, I was able to see that the three â??protrusionsâ?� didnâ??t line up exactly. Out came the file and again I slowly and carefully began to remove material from the center and forward protrusions. I left the cylindrical one alone. Finally, it too clicked into place.

Then, I tried to put the gun together but found that when I tried to install the breech and toggle assembly into the frame, the front portion of the ejector wasnâ??t engaging the groove on the side of the breech block. After a good bit of fiddling around, I finally got the pistol reassembled.

I put the magazine with five snap caps into the pistol and pulled the toggles up and back smartly and released them. Major jamâ?¦.. The bullet was in the chamber but the extractor wasnâ??t engaged. I got that bullet out and tried it again. Another jamâ?¦. Also, I had noticed a grinding sound which later turned out to be the front protrusion of the ejector scraping on the side of the breech block. Too many things were going wrong at the same timeâ?¦.. I was out of my element and the pistol was out of tune!

Now really frustrated, I removed the ejector and extractor and reinstalled the original parts. With those in place, the snap caps cycled flawlesslyâ?¦ every-time-smooth-as-silk.

Some of the lessons Iâ??ve learned during the past two and half hours:

1. I may have an aptitude for things mechanical, but Iâ??m no gunsmith. I can clean and oil a gun, but thatâ??s about it.
2. Lugers may look similar, but they arenâ??t clones. Major components may be interchangeable, but it appears to me that small parts need to be individually fitted to the pistol by an expert.
3. I need to read and learn a whole lot more before I put in my two cents next time.

Itâ??s now about 10:40 PM and thatâ??s about as much soul searching as I want to do for now.

Iâ??m going to keep the old parts as a reminder for the next time I start feeling like a know-it-all.

Dave in TN.

[Edward Tinker]

Did I ever tell you about the time I couldn't get my C-96 mauser together.... It never has worked right since




Ed

[shadow]

Dave,

I never saw you as a know it all.

One of the 1911 forums had a subtitle under the "home gunsmiting" forum, I think it was "How to destroy your pistol by pretending to be a gunsmith".

You did get your Luger back together in the same condition it was when you started. So nothing was damaged but a few extra parts.

Peraps one of the experts here can give you some guidence.

Chris

[DaveinTN]

Chris,

Thanks for the kind words.

"Know it all" was perhaps the wrong phrase for me to use.

Thanks to your videos, I've really enjoyed getting "familiar" with my pistol.

Unfortunately I made the assumption that swapping out parts would be just as simple. This wasn't inferred by your videos at all..... it was a conclusion I came to on my own.

I didn't stop to consider the effect of different years of manufacture, different companies, subtle design improvements, 90+ year old technology (CNC milling machines hadn't been invented), etc. I've learned first hand that these things aren't the same as my son's Legos..... All of these factors add up to the probability that the part won't fit!

It's just frustrating..... thats all...

And you're absolutely right. I didn't screw up my pistol! Whew.....

Have a great rest of the week,

Dave in TN.

[pipeman45]

Shoot, thats nothing to be ashamed of. I've taken modern guns apart and then couldn't get them back together. I'll bet a coke most here have done the same.

[Steinar]

I'm in there splashing around as well, even after some years of Luger collecting.. so you are not alone

Some of the tings I have learned is
1) Changing barrel in a regular wrench is a very bad idea
2) Storing the cleaning rod with the Luger inside the holster is also a bad idea
3) Shooting/purchasing old ammunition.. bad idea
4) Think twice and cut once when fitting grips and stock
5) Gravity does work on wooden magazines
6) It is worth the time to look at the description on the spay box, thick black greece does not have the same effect as light wood oil

..list is long, and will be a lot longer

[policeluger]

ain't we all just human....and it wonderful.

[c3006]

One of my past fathers favorite sayings was"people who never screw up aint doin nothing" Play with parts instalation on a shooter dave,dont be scaird clint

[lew1]

There was the time a few years ago when I was trying to get my computer working faster, so I was eliminating some of the programs.

Caution - never eliminate any part of 'DOS"

It does not help.

[Steinar]

..just be glad you didn't put it together like this

[shadow]

Originally posted by lew1
There was the time a few years ago when I was trying to get my computer working faster, so I was eliminating some of the programs.

Caution - never eliminate any part of 'DOS"

It does not help.

Back in the eighties I accidently formatted the hard drive on my computer. It wasn't my greatest moment.

[Steinar]

That's a classic one! Been there myself.. "format C:" followed by the "y"

..have also learned that laptops is nor beer or milk resistant (yes, I have done it twice.. within ONE year!).

..the parking brake can be VERY useful when parking in hills (after going 50m on it's own, it hit exactly 100% straight on my front door! naturally, the car was wider than the door and stopped there).

This brings brings back a childhood memory. When I learned the hard way that clutching down a hill to increase speed on a tractor is a very bad idea. The mekanical brakes didn't slow it down, but our barn did it very effectively

This could become an amusing thread with stories.. Bring'em on!

[davidkachel]

DaveinTN,

I wish I could tell a story like that and say it's the dumbest thing I ever did with a gun.
Your snafu barely moves the needle on the "dumb-o-meter". I on the other hand, have slammed the needle against the peg several times and have the screwed up guns to prove it.

[Chuckc]

Never chamber a live round in a tight chamber, and a very light trigger pull while talking on the phone.

Fortunately, I was pointing the rifle at a piece of plywood leaning against the basment wall. Result, hole in the plywood, crater in the cement, and a ringing in my ears that lasted a couple of months. Never did that again. I was younger and much more impatient than I am now.

[Edward Tinker]

Glad to see I am in good company...


Charlie, did the same thing, for the work computer, gosh all these stupid programs are sure taking up memory..... wham, there goes the word processor we used daily **circa 1990 or so**

My laptop is giving me some problems, so I decide to do a complete format. I do. I back up everything except my last college paper... Luckily I had computer tools to retrieve it, but it took HOURS **circa 1999**



Ed

[c3006]

I vote not to EVEN get into tractor storys

[vtwoodchuck]

Back in the late 60's I thought I was Luger smart. I took my girl friend to a gunshop to look at a Luger. I was showing her how fast I could take it apart and put it together. I released the toggle to slam shut but neglected to remove my thumb from the action hence, a sore bleeding thumb and a red face. She still married me. Doug

[LugerVern]

I just read this post, very funny, I can relate also. As a one time gunsmith my shop use to be in a cold basement, so in the winter I would sometimes migrate upstairs to the warmth.
At that time we had this very thick shag carpet. It is just amazing how small parts especially small nearly irreplaceable ones can get lost in a carpet. I never did lie to my customers however all I ever said was that â??the parts are difficult to find and that it would be a little longer than I originally told them to complete repairsâ?�. That shag carpet is long gone but that very large magnet still comes in handy.

Please be extremely careful playing with your Lugers, if that extractor and ejector are not functioning perfectly your worst problem isnâ??t feeding itâ??s the ejection of the fired round. It may not show up for several rounds but a sticky extractor or bent ejector can rip the top off your breach blockâ??not a good thing.
If you go to a longer barrel, replace your springs with it. Your frame could get damaged otherwise because of the increased chamber pressures.
Always use the correct ammunition, +Pâ??s or even some regular ammunition with the wrong bullet weight can damage your guns in a very short time.
If your shooter is worn you may want to have over sized pins installed to tighten up your toggle action, all that free play is death to a luger shooting modern ammunition. Always verify head spacing after messing around with your toggle train and barrel.
I have seen people place a little synthetic grease on the ramps to help reduce damage as the toggle recoils.
Do not be tempted to make your toggle go back further to enhance feeding by filing away at the rear of the toggleâ??donâ??t laugh --I have seen this more than a few times. This may seem to be a good idea but extreme internal damage will result to the back of the frame.

Somewhere I read an article about placing padding on the back of the firing pin to help reduce damage, maybe one of the other collectors can explain it in more detail.

Be careful chambering live rounds with the gun disassembled; remember, lugers donâ??t need the trigger to be fired

Lugers are like old sewing machines, something else I use to do, keep them clean and properly lubricated, donâ??t try to do something they were not originally designed to do, and they will go on almost forever. Changing a partâ??changes everything, tread lightly.

One last thing, from experience, I can tell you, donâ??t fix something thatâ??s not broken.

Of course no one ever listens, why, because God knows that gunsmiths and parts salesmen need to make a living too.

Vern

[MikeP]

I joined the old forum back in the 90's.

I had fooled with lugers for years and had owned quite a few.
It didn't take long for me to learn to keep my yap shut and learn from a few folks here who have some legitimate expertise.
I'm glad I was mature enough in my old age to catch on.
There are still some who are primarily interested in upping their post count, but by far this is where to learn about lugers.

[Edward Tinker]

Originally posted by MikeP
I joined the old forum back in the 90's.

...
There are still some who are primarily interested in upping their post count, but by far this is where to learn about lugers.

hmmm, I wonder if me or others should take this as we are babble mouths?


Those that don't post, aren't helping others. And it doesn't make much of a forum of discussion when many folks Just "lurk"...