Value of 20 DWM

[RTinTX]

A friend gave me her father's Luger and holster that he brought back during his service in WW2 to do some research on. She's trying to value it for his estate.

The gun is in good working order. I wouldn't want to try but I'm sure it would still fire. So far I've determined that it is a commercial manufacture that ended up in WW2 somehow.

Thanks to this great forum, here is what I have so far:
1. Toggle Inscription: DWM
2. Chamber Inscription: 1920
3. Toggle Knob Type: Squared and Knurled
4. Grip Safety: Not Present
5. Stock Lug: Present
6. Caliber: 9mm
7. Grip Type: Walnut checkered w/o border or insignia
8. Thumb Safety: Rear position - "Gesichert"
9. Markings: On barrel and chamber is the German "Nitro" commercial proof #28 (Crown N). There is a letter at the base of the barrel just under the serial number that I cannot make out.
10. Barrel Length: 3.15in (8cm) Measured from front end of chamber to end muzzle. I measured wrong.
11. Markings on left edge of extractor: None
12. Description of front and rear sights: notched rear, front site is stamped with "P"
13. Magazine bottom plug material and markings: Wood with no markings.

All serial numbers match as far as I can tell. I broke the gun down to the barrel/receiver to dust off and surface clean. Everything seems to match up. The only thing I did not check was the firing pin.

The gun has not been reblued. I would guess the condition of the bluing and straw finish is 70-75%. There is some pitting on the ejector side.

The condition of the bore and grips are good. The bore is clean and smooth. The grips are dark with age but the checkered pattern is not worn down.

The holster has been cleaned and saddle soaped so the cracking is minimal. I might be looking in the wrong place but the only inscription that I found was the manufacturer's name on back that I couldn't quite make out. Also there is a stamp "1918" just under the manufacurer's name which indicates the holster and gun are from the same era.

I hope this is enough information for the experts. Let me know what you thing it is worth

---<Blane Balch>---
Houston, TX
In the gene pool of life,
there are no lifeguards.

[Edward Tinker]

Blane,
The 1920 usually indicates a property mark and not a date marking, but it could very well be a date marking also. Pictures would help very much.

9. Markings: On barrel and chamber is the German "Nitro" commercial proof #28 (Crown N). There is a letter at the base of the barrel just under the serial number that I cannot make out.

Commercial guns did make it into military usage during the Weimar era, and it sounds like you have military serial number placement. If you can provide a scan or pictures, that would be helpful. If all matching Lugers usually are worth $600 - $1100 (and up for specific models), but of course depends on condition, condition, condition, so with such a low bluing, it would be at the lower end of the value.

If you would like to send pictures to me, I would gladly post them here for you,

Ed

[RTinTX]

Ed, Thanks. I'll see what I can do about sending you some pictures to post. In as far as the bluing is concerned, I'm only guessing. It could be higher. I was trying to be conservative. Hopefully you or someone else will be able to enlighten me.

This site provided me a list of parts that should have serial numbers on them. I'm going to take the gun apart and document as many of them as I can. I hesitate to take it down past the barrel/receiver mainly because I don't have the tools or experiance to put it back together. It looks like the only numbers I won't be able to get to are the firing pin or the extractor.

---<Blane Balch>---
Houston, TX
In the gene pool of life,
there are no lifeguards.

[Edward Tinker]

The firing pin is actually fairly easy, you just push and turn and it pops right back out. Sometimes it seems like a major hassle to get the gun back together, I think that with experience it takes about 25 seconds for someone like Ted!

Some info from my FAQ:

What parts must be numbered on a Luger?
The following parts should have serial numbers on them:
Frame, full serial number with suffix
Under barrel, full serial number with or without suffix
Left side of the receiver, full serial number without suffix.
All the following parts should have the last two numerals stamped on them:
Firing pin
Extractor
Sear bar
Breechblock
Front toggle link
Rear toggle link
Locking bolt (takedown lever)
Side plate (with a few exceptions through the years, see comments on side plate)
Trigger
Safety lever
Safety bar
Hold-open latch
Grips (inside)
Note, that the rear toggle pin was not serial-numbered until 1932.
There were two "styles" of serial number marking, Commercial style and Military style. In commercial style some of the numbers, notably the side-plate and locking bolt, were stamped underneath in a way which did not affect the surface look of the gun--military serial numbers were stamped on the visible surfaces. If your mismatched parts are stamped highly visibly they likely come from military guns.

BTW, my brother in law lives in Houston area (The Woodlands), nice place.

Ed

[Frank]

Eduard, I can do it in less than 25 seconds!!

Thor is a bunch faster than I am!!

[Jim Keenan]

The 1920 "date" was used as a property mark by the Post-WWI Reichswehr and police units. The guns so marked were almost all military pistols that had seen service with the military in WWI. They were refurbished and re-issued. When Germany began to rearm and build its armed forces, those Lugers in service continued in service through WWII by the German army and police, and after WWII by the East Germans.

Jim

[RTinTX]

Here are some pictures of the Luger that I put together in a hurry. They are not the best quality but hopefully they'll give you an idea.

Luger webpage

---<Blane Balch>---
Houston, TX
In the gene pool of life,
there are no lifeguards.

[RTinTX]

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Arial,Helvetica,Geneva">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Arial,Helvetica,Geneva">Originally posted by Edward Tinker:
<strong>Note, that the rear toggle pin was not serial-numbered until 1932.
There were two "styles" of serial number marking, Commercial style and Military style. In commercial style some of the numbers, notably the side-plate and locking bolt, were stamped underneath in a way which did not affect the surface look of the gun--military serial numbers were stamped on the visible surfaces. If your mismatched parts are stamped highly visibly they likely come from military guns. </strong></font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana,Tahoma,Arial,Helvetica,Geneva">You are right on the money. Both the side plate and locking bolt have the same serial numbers on the bottom side as well as on the visible surface. I didn't notice them before. Also the rear toggle pin is stamped.

I took the gun apart as far as I was comfortable. I would venture to say that the sear bar, breechlock and firing pin would also have the same SN. But I'll let someone with a little more experiance determine that. So far the only place that I have not seen the serial number on are the insides of the wooden grips. There was nothing in the insides.

---&lt;Blane Balch&gt;---
Houston, TX
In the gene pool of life
there are no lifeguards.