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  #1  
Old 12-06-2017, 03:50 AM
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VOPO P38 or What Is It?? VOPO P38 or What Is It?? VOPO P38 or What Is It?? VOPO P38 or What Is It?? VOPO P38 or What Is It??  
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Default VOPO P38 or What Is It??

P38 (P1?) with the slide scrubbed on both sides...only markings are this "flower?" sunburst? something else? on the trigger guard, serial number 218116 and the circle with dot in middle.

Wondering what this is. Clearly a cobbled together something....or Russian scrub, East German scrub....or is that a lotus flower ala the Indian flag?

Anyone have any ideas?
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File Type: jpg p38 2.jpg (19.6 KB, 114 views)
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Old 12-06-2017, 04:01 AM
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Made by Manurhin in France after the war.

Someone scrubbed the french markings off the slide

Last edited by Kurusu; 12-06-2017 at 04:08 AM.
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Old 12-06-2017, 06:49 AM
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Aluminium frame? The circle and dot are a post war quality mark, fit for police or military standards, as far as I remember. A VOPO sunburst looks a little different, making me wonder....
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Old 12-06-2017, 10:15 AM
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I think the 'flower' is what the collectors (of which I am not one) call a Berlin Star.
Property/Use mark of the post-war Western Sector Berlin Police. The early marking had a (very!) tiny P inside the center circle. Later the P was dropped.
It's on other small arms of different types handed out to arm them after the War.
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Old 12-06-2017, 10:33 AM
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I would need a larger close up but would say it is a Vopo sunburst
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Old 12-06-2017, 12:28 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Weimar View Post
I would need a larger close up but would say it is a Vopo sunburst
It looks to me like the West Berlin police sunburst/star. The serial fits in the block of P1’s delivered to the West Berkin police around 1963/64, too. The pistols were shipped to France in the white and stamped, finished and assembled at Manurhin due to Allied restrictions for weapons issued in Berlin. Either the slide was scrubbed or is a replacement.

Attached photo shows confirmed West Berlin P1.
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File Type: jpg p1.jpg (50.8 KB, 36 views)

Last edited by Absalom; 12-06-2017 at 12:56 PM.
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Old 12-06-2017, 06:18 PM
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Show the entire gun, please. I've seen Vopo grips on Lugers. Never seen one of their P-38's. The black plastic Luger grips have the circle emblem.

They're checkered, not the grooved grips seen on some Russian-reworked Lugers.
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Old 12-07-2017, 02:14 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Texas Star View Post
Show the entire gun, please. I've seen Vopo grips on Lugers. Never seen one of their P-38's. The black plastic Luger grips have the circle emblem.

They're checkered, not the grooved grips seen on some Russian-reworked Lugers.
The VOPO bakelite grips with the bullseye are dark brownish, there are black bakelite grips with a coarse checkering without a bullseye.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg GEDC0047.jpg (218.5 KB, 16 views)
File Type: jpg P.08 42.jpg (117.2 KB, 16 views)
File Type: jpg P.08 1937.jpg (122.5 KB, 15 views)
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Old 12-07-2017, 03:58 AM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Texas Star View Post
Show the entire gun, please. I've seen Vopo grips on Lugers. Never seen one of their P-38's. .....
It's not. I happened upon the source. Here are a few more enlarged snips.

It is quite clearly a post-war alloy frame, with standard P1 grips.

The Manurhin slide stampings were applied relatively deep as such stampings go (see different gun picture for comparison), and looking at the surface structure of the gun discussed, my vote would be for an unmarked replacement slide.

The effort of a "scrubbing" and refinishing to achieve this degree of consistency would be completely out of proportion to the almost-scrap value of the gun.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg p1 3.jpg (61.2 KB, 7 views)
File Type: jpg p1 2.jpg (40.6 KB, 7 views)
File Type: jpg p1 1.jpg (50.0 KB, 7 views)
File Type: jpg p1 4.jpg (48.8 KB, 7 views)
File Type: jpg M p1.jpg (59.7 KB, 7 views)

Last edited by Absalom; 12-07-2017 at 03:59 AM.
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