I've never thought much about Lugers. It seems they're always in the "If you have to ask, you can't afford it" cabinet.

But a couple of days ago, I saw this one, in the "normal" side of the case. Refinished obviously but all the numbers I can see from the outside match up (SN 6570). It's was made by DWM, and is marked on the top of the receiver as "1916."





I don't recall any other markings, because I don't know enough to know what to look for. I did notice three little "crowns" for lack of another term on the left side, just above the trigger IIRC.

They're asking $550.00 for it, which is about the least expensive Luger I've ever seen. I got no real idea why I want it, other than it's there, and I've never owned a Luger before.

I've got it on layaway, but I can just put it back on the shelf if I change my mind.

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John 3:16 .

I am far from a Luger expert, but did once own a DWM Luger that was at best a semi-reliable shooter. For what it's worth, if you really want one, I would buy it.

The refinish job has killed any collector's value. It would be strictly a shooter. If its reliable, you will probably enjoy it. If not, you can probably sell it for about what you paid. Mine was at its best shooting 124 grain ball ammo. From what I have read, a lot of the reliability issues can be fixed with spring replacements, and decent magazines.

There are so many variations and markings in Lugers that books have been written, and the difference between a $500 shooter, a $1000 specimen, and a rare $5,000.00 gun can be subtle. Most I have seen are parts guns, with mis-matched numbers. It looks like they re-blued EVERYTHING on that gun....lol

Larry

I owned an "arsenal refinished" DWM Luger that I bought years ago for $400.00. It wasn't a collector grade but it shot very well and was reliable, even with hollow points.

These guns have lots of history attached and I'd rather have a gun that I can shoot and enjoy rather than a gun that never leaves the safe for fear of reducing its value.

As an aside, I have a friend who was in his late teens, in Germany, in 1945. With the Russians approaching, he carefully wrapped up a Luger and hid it in rock ledges near his home before fleeing the Russian onslaught. Years later, he returned but was unable to find its hiding place. That Luger is probably still in hiding, waiting to be discovered.

Agree with fishinfool. About the cheapest one I have heard of in many years even refinished with replacement grips. Just a shooter now but for the price if ya really like it go for it. Local LGS near me had a matcher on consignment for $1800 and that was 3 years back.

Some Lugers came to the USA from East Germany after the Berlin Wall fell. I have seen those with the same type of grips. A local dealer had quite a few of them for sale back in the early 1990s, but I didn't buy one. Possible it is one of the East German police (VOPO) guns, and refinished by them while in police service. So there may be a little more cold war history attached. I'd recommend you buy it.

See this:VOPO

If you've always wanted one I would say buy it! The price is fair for a shooter grade gun, I have one similar that is fun to shoot. The toggle action seems to produce a different feel to the recoil and it shoots quite well. Many of these came out of the former East Germany after the wall fell. Many of those were reblued and the that style grip is common on them.

I had never heard of the VOPO's until yesterday, but it seems that's what it is. I don't recall any importers marks on it, but I can't say I really looked it all over really closely. I was just noting that all the S/N seemed to match, which is about as far I knew what to look for.

I'm pretty sure I'll go ahead and get it, just not sure when but it's safely in the layaway bin for now.

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John 3:16 .

In my opinion ~ $550 fora any cool quality shooter is worth it, and a Luger is just one of the coolest guns ever made. It has mystique that is only approached by the COLT 1911 and the S&W Registered Magnum. It is super cool, and for that price, you can shoot it as much as you want. Mild factory 9mm ammo will not break that gun. I say get it and enjoy it. If you decide to move on from it, I think you will be able to move it quickly and get most, if not all of your money back, and enjoy it for as long as you have it.

You can't really say that about a lot of things in this day and age.

I've got a couple of WW2 era Lugers that I get out once in a while and
fire a few rounds through. Neither has been refinished although one
had those same grips on it when I got it. They have been replaced
with original wood grips found at a local auction. Most likely you will
find an import mark on that Luger if you look. And as you realize
there's no collector value but the price of Lugers has risen to the point
that $550 is about as cheap as you're going to see any functional
Luger. Two things to consider if you expect to shoot it. As with any
used auto loader the bore condition is important and many of the
old DWM Lugers are .30 caliber, not 9mm and ammo is scarce and
expensive compared to 9mm. Know what you're getting before you
spend your money, not after.

I have a 1916 DWM with military writing on the front strap.
Regiment# gun#. I only shoot 124 gr ball(American Eagle)
after I taper crimp them. The luger was designed around 121gr bullets, but 124 was settled on. 115gr are mostly too hot and it will jam. After You get it, go to Youtube and watch some videos on field stripping and cleaning. You will enjoy years of shooting one of the most interesting guns around.

I paid a bit more than that for mine, and I love shooting it. It's one of the .30 Luger variety. Very fun to shoot and as reliable as a clock. I'd totally be up to get another one if the chance arose at that price.

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1st smiles,lies.Last,gunfire.

I think at that price,you can't get hurt.Take it home,play with it,learn about them and when (if?) you move on,you get your money back out.

That pistol will make a really nice shooter. I have owned and shot a number of Lugers over the years and have found most of them to be reliable shooters with factory ball ammo. In my experience, it is a good idea to change out all the old springs with a new set from Wolff for reliable performance.

I had one years ago and it was a very good shooter. Enjoy!

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Even older, even crankier....

Grips are definitively VoPo, the price is fair

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Attitude is everything...

I got this one for my wife on her birthday only because it was made in 1937, the year she was born.




She shot it once and just sit's in the book box now....

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Only difference Fool/Mule-ears

I had a rare Luger - it worked.

Parts gun - numbers didn't match, so it wasn't worth much. Fun to shoot, though.

That looks like an East German VOPO to me, correct grips and correct force matching technique.Note the dished out then re-seriral number on the barrel extension right above the takedown lever, to me this is a sure sign of VOPO. If the barrel is not shot out go for it.

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Thank you
Penmon AKA Jim

My eyes are poor but I can recognize these two gun from a mile away, they are just so distinctive and the Luger also looks 'futuristic" to boot. Any Luger would be worth having to me. Nazi era would make it more interesting to me but I'm not picky.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"

Gone are the days you could go into any pawn shop in America and walk out with a nice Luger or P-38 for $25, with no import markings. I bought my first several that way. I don't know what possessed me to sell my last remaining Luger about 20 years ago. I still have one minty P-38 with original holster and mags which I will keep.

Now here's one that doesn't get shot!!
Jim

I paid $125 for mine 20 years ago. Don't shoot it much, but I am glad to own it.

I already have one and another gun is not in the budget right now, but if i saw that one I'd have it on a mastercard and home that same day.

I'm not an "expert", but I know quite a bit. Send pics of the front and backstrap, and of course the top of the frame. I can try to give you more info.

Aftermarket walnut repro grips are pretty cheap and would dress it up nicely. Aftermarket magazines would also solve any feed problems. Mine shoots like a dream with anything I feed it.

I bought mine about 15 years ago for $400. Its in the same date range and was also a police gun. I just saw one almost exactly like it at a gun shop, and they were asking $2900.00.

That is a good deal for a vopo.They generally go for close to a grand now.Here is a matching G date my uncle brought home from ww2 and was left to me

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Here's my two from WW2, both bought on an auction site several
years ago when prices were still fairly reasonable. Neither is import
marked. The top one had the plastic grips that I replaced. The bottom
one with the fine pitting is all matching except for the takedown lever.
It was being sold right out of an estate and I figured that it might
have been a battlefield pick-up due the uniform finish issues all over
the gun. They both get shot occasionally.

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I'd buy one in a heartbeat at that price. I figured I'd never find one I could justify buying so I bought a Stoeger Luger in 22lr just to have one to play with.

You can't go wrong at that price. I commissioned two restorations from Lugerman and i am having buyers remorse. Nice find.

I am an old-time fan of the Luger. Not an advanced collector, but I have a few. The collectible ones stay in my safe. I have shared a couple of my safe queens on these forums.

http://smith-wessonforum.com/firearm...le-7-65mm.html

http://smith-wessonforum.com/firearm...rcial-9mm.html



One I have is an import that came in after the Iron Curtain fell. As I understand it, this one is a Russian capture and not an East German police gun. Mine got a new hot-dip finish, but no polish or buffing at all. Two small parts are "force matched": the holdopen and the toggle pin. Otherwise it matches. It lives in my range bag, and I shoot it often. There is an advantage to having one that is not a "safe queen"!

You might find it a challenge to get yours shooting reliably. Start with a reliable magazine. The MecGar magazines are high quality and do run well. I've not had to replace any springs in my Lugers, but others do mention this. Lubrication is important. Mine likes Break Free CLP. With the new finish on yours you probably will experience a break-in period. That new finish must wear in to get smooth. In the end you will have a great piece of history and a fun shooter. Lugers always draw attention at the range. The price is right also. Go for it!

Here is a Mauser BYF41 Vopo that I picked up in the late 80's/early 90's. This one came from Sarco and I requested one that was dated 1938 to 1942 so that I would at least get one that was proper in the sense that it would be all blue(not a date that would have strawed small parts). This one has all original numbered parts, was only dip blued and was heavily oiled and sealed in a plastic bag.

Nice find Brings back memories of the "good-old-days" when we could sit down with an issue of "Shotgun News" and order any Luger, even the Artillery and Navy model for less than $100 delivered by the postman to our door No paper work, FFL, CR, ATF worries. Just like buying a pair of socks. I know of only one local gun nut who assembled a beautiful Luger collection back in the day. He had the wisdom and the knowledge to hang on to his collection, which today must be worth well into 6 figures

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John

I earlier mentiond the local dealer who had a number of VOPOs in his shop back in the early 1990s. I think he was asking around $150 for them at that time, and I seem to remember he had holsters also. It was an interesting place - a transmission repair shop in the back with a gun shop as part of the front office. It's still a transmission shop, but changed ownership some time ago and no longer doubles as a gun shop.

Your's was not forcematched and the Mauser frames used better metallurgy. I have three Vopo Lugers left and they are different grades, one is all original like Ours and shoots as well as my P210. It got the Mauser ring on the spent shell and is a charm.

If a Vopo Luger is tight and has a good barrel it will usually be a good shooter and VOPO Lugers are starting to get collectors interest lately.

This is one that was exported out of Germany back about 25 years ago. It was easy to find original grips and a couple of magazines that were correct for the gun. I think I paid around $300 for it. It's what I call a high end shooter. It would take $1200 to get it away from me today. It is a Nazi gun. . .1939. . .the more common date. I actually found the correct period holster for it a few years back. It is all matching except the magazines (of course).

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Dr. B

Hey, that must be the one Federalis friend hid in the rocks...you found it!

This has been a long time ago, but we once hosted a British high school kid from London as an exchange student. He liked to talk about guns, and told me that he knew of many Lugers brought back from WWI and WWII hidden away there despite the British gun laws. Just think of how many nice (and rare) Lugers (and everything else) the British authorities probably confiscated and melted down.

Buy it!!! its the kind of shooter gun we all dream about. Imagine getting a reblued 3.5 27 at that price? You'd shoot and carry the hell out of it and not worry. Plus if you dont like it some ww11 reenactor/collector would probably fall over backwards if you resold it or traded it at the same price/value you got it for.

Lugers are very cool guns. If you want a nice one for shooting and for a conversation piece that probably has some history behind it, go ahead and buy it at that price. These guns will not be around forever. None of the original manufacturers will re-tool up for production of Lugers ever again (Kreigoff makes Lugers in VERY small quantities, and they go for over 15,000 dollars each). The hand fitting required in the Luger is just too labor and cost intensive to ever justify its existence again.

Here's my brand new in box (with all tools, mags, and papers, including the factory test target) Mauser Parabellum made circa 1971 by Mauser. I fired 75 rounds through it---100 percent, flawless reliability.

Lugers MUST have magazines with springs in them so strong that you cannot load even the first round manually. The toggle action is so fast that in order for the next round to load, the mag spring cannot be too strong.

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True - mags must have a strong spring for reliable functioning. I believe that there originally was some sort of tool that aided in pulling down the follower to load magazines. One of my original Luger purchases malfunctioned a lot. A replacement mainspring solved the problem, as the original was very weak.