DWM P08 Commercial 1920

Sergio Natali · 09-16-2013, 02:39 PM

A local gunshop has recently acquired several DWM P.08 "commercial" 1920 10 cm barrel, 7,65 Para. like the one in the photo that is one of them; they are more or less all in a very good condition, I searched for more information about this sort of Luger, but while I already found a lot about 1900/06 commercial pistols, so far I've not read much about these P.08 DWM Commercials, apart from reading that they were called "sneek luger" as they were not marked Germany or Made in Germany for export, instead these guns were hidden to equip a new german army, but I'm not sure about this...

Somewhere else I found: quote: " ... Luger pistol that was manufactured by DWM during WWI and subsequently reworked and sold as a Model 1920 Commercial Luger. Following Germany's defeat in WWI, the Treaty of Versailles strictly limited the number of handguns the German military could retain. In order to generate revenue, thousands of WWI surplus Luger pistols were reworked and resold into the commercial market. .. " unquote

I wonder if among our Luger friends there is somebody particularly expert about these P.08 that could give me some advice.

lugersrkewl · 09-17-2013, 07:56 PM

not an expert but..Ill throw you a bone
the gun pictured is an alphabet commercial made 1919 to 1929ish for commercial export in 7.65 because of treaty. most mass produced model made. least desirable. they did rework alot of guns for export/commercial sales in the 20;s. They commercially sold alot of models in the 20's artys carbines navys...sneaks are foggy for me I know I read someone explain it but I think sneaks are a certain time period and they dont have manufacture logos on the toggle ?? you have an early luger with an ideal stock why do you care for these?

mrerick · 09-17-2013, 08:06 PM

I think Skye has it right...

Except for the cracked left grip, this one looks to be in good condition.

If interested, you should look it over carefully to determine if it's in original finish. Look for halos on any barrel serial number. Top inside the frame in the white and the toggle axle retaining pin in the white.

These are not particularly highly valued (as are the military Lugers). I bought one in great shape with original magazine a few years ago for $675. Today, perhaps $750 or so.

The .30 Luger round is great to shoot, but more expensive than the more common 9mm Luger.

Realizing that you are in Italy, there was probably no Italian requirement to import mark them at that time.

Marc

09-16-2013, 02:39 PM	#1
Sergio Natali User Join Date: Feb 2013 Location: Somewhere in Northern Italy Posts: 2,646 Thanks: 1,082 Thanked 1,783 Times in 1,007 Posts	DWM P08 Commercial 1920 A local gunshop has recently acquired several DWM P.08 "commercial" 1920 10 cm barrel, 7,65 Para. like the one in the photo that is one of them; they are more or less all in a very good condition, I searched for more information about this sort of Luger, but while I already found a lot about 1900/06 commercial pistols, so far I've not read much about these P.08 DWM Commercials, apart from reading that they were called "sneek luger" as they were not marked Germany or Made in Germany for export, instead these guns were hidden to equip a new german army, but I'm not sure about this... Somewhere else I found: quote: " ... Luger pistol that was manufactured by DWM during WWI and subsequently reworked and sold as a Model 1920 Commercial Luger. Following Germany's defeat in WWI, the Treaty of Versailles strictly limited the number of handguns the German military could retain. In order to generate revenue, thousands of WWI surplus Luger pistols were reworked and resold into the commercial market. .. " unquote I wonder if among our Luger friends there is somebody particularly expert about these P.08 that could give me some advice. Attached Thumbnails __________________ "Originality can't be restored and should be at the top of any collector's priority list. Last edited by Sergio Natali; 09-17-2013 at 05:02 AM.

09-17-2013, 08:06 PM	#3
mrerick Super Moderator - Patron LugerForum Life Patron Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Eastern North Carolina, USA Posts: 3,900 Thanks: 1,372 Thanked 3,094 Times in 1,503 Posts	I think Skye has it right... Except for the cracked left grip, this one looks to be in good condition. If interested, you should look it over carefully to determine if it's in original finish. Look for halos on any barrel serial number. Top inside the frame in the white and the toggle axle retaining pin in the white. These are not particularly highly valued (as are the military Lugers). I bought one in great shape with original magazine a few years ago for $675. Today, perhaps $750 or so. The .30 Luger round is great to shoot, but more expensive than the more common 9mm Luger. Realizing that you are in Italy, there was probably no Italian requirement to import mark them at that time. Marc __________________ Igitur si vis pacem, para bellum - - Therefore if you want peace, prepare for war.

09-17-2013, 07:56 PM	#2
lugersrkewl Patron LugerForum Patron Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Ussr Posts: 425 Thanks: 198 Thanked 75 Times in 58 Posts	not an expert but..Ill throw you a bone the gun pictured is an alphabet commercial made 1919 to 1929ish for commercial export in 7.65 because of treaty. most mass produced model made. least desirable. they did rework alot of guns for export/commercial sales in the 20;s. They commercially sold alot of models in the 20's artys carbines navys...sneaks are foggy for me I know I read someone explain it but I think sneaks are a certain time period and they dont have manufacture logos on the toggle ?? you have an early luger with an ideal stock why do you care for these?