Russian Capture DWM 1915 P-08

[raven11]

after a couple of years of joining I finally bought my first Luger.



as you see it is a 1915/1920 DWM. the numbers are non matching but in three specific areas
-lower frame, sideplate
-barrel,upper frame
-toggle, firing pin
-and the magazine

-i'm thinking it is a military luger due to the fact the only two marking are the proof and the eagle
-oddly enough for a russian capture the proof marks, eagle, and serial number are not X'ed out

-the grips are walnut but it has been coated with this black oil likely by the Russians


some questions i still have are:

the 1918/1920 stamp means it was rebuilt after WWI? or was it due to the Treaty of Versailles?

is it possible to get the black residue off of my luger or should I buy new grips?

the serial number on my lower frame is in the 80,000 and the upper frame is in the 4,000 with a cursive L , why would the serial numbers be as off as they are? two different factories?

is it common for Russian Captures to not have anything x'ed out ?

is there any parts of the pistol i should lube to ensure reliability?


thanks everyone for the help

[alanint]

Raven,

Your gun is a typical Russian capture of recent import. It was put together from several different pistols, thus the non matching serial numbers. If you do a search on this site you will find a wealth of information on removing the grease from your existing grips.
I own several of these guns that do not have the numbers "X"ed out, so it is not unusual. The older captured guns that came in seem to have more "X"ed out and force matched numbers. The newer guns I believe were a Russian program to generate foreign currency so they just cleaned out their parts stocks and assembled as many guns as they were able for export. This is why they are obviously mismatched with no attrempt to force match or X out older numbers.
These newer import guns are also more prone to mechanical issues since I don't think there were attempts to test fire or approve them in any way.
Have you fired yours with no issues?

[raven11]

Originally Posted by alanint

Have you fired yours with no issues?

yes , after i cleaned out the cosmoline and oiled the pistol. i went to the local range and fired 200rnds of Winchester White Box 115grain 9mm

I had one jam on the last round of the first magazine but the rest of the time I had no problems

[Ron Smith]

The double date has nothing to do with re-building or re-working. The "1920" is a Government Property mark to prevent theft and re-sale. The order to mark Gov't equipment was issued in 1920, so they merely used the year of the order as the mark.

[raven11]

thanks for the corrections, its my first Luger and I was having a rough time trying to find information on the markings

[Ron Smith]

Not intended as a "correction". Just as "enlightenment...

Russian Captures and VoPo's are cool Lugers, with a load of history. They've been halfway around the world and back again. The stories they could tell are the best part, IMO.