Nice 1941 high sheen P38
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Nice early Walther ac code P-38 Joe, Those early ones were high polish and as the war progressed like everything else & other countries all suffered the same production issues as quantity produced displaced quality in everything. Nice collectible rig.
All the WWII arms have been rising in leaps and bounds over the last few years. Hopefully you can pass this down to the next generation to enjoy
& cherish.
All the WWII arms have been rising in leaps and bounds over the last few years. Hopefully you can pass this down to the next generation to enjoy
& cherish.
Very nice example.
My Father brought back a Walther Banner Zero Series P38 from WW2 with holster, belt & 2 mags.
I don't remember the ser#. He crunched it up one day unfortunately.
I still have one ac44 P38 w/holster.
I sold off another ac45 and a BYF 42.
Should have kept the Mauser mfg, scarce pistol,
But it seemed like a lot of money at the time!
A Walther P1 gets alot of CCW use and range time. I really like it.
One of the few semiauto's I can still easily work the slide
My Father brought back a Walther Banner Zero Series P38 from WW2 with holster, belt & 2 mags.
I don't remember the ser#. He crunched it up one day unfortunately.
I still have one ac44 P38 w/holster.
I sold off another ac45 and a BYF 42.
Should have kept the Mauser mfg, scarce pistol,
But it seemed like a lot of money at the time!
A Walther P1 gets alot of CCW use and range time. I really like it.
One of the few semiauto's I can still easily work the slide
DWalt
Member
These P38s were dirt cheap 50 years ago, I bought and sold four of them, still have a byf 44 with what I think is its original soft leather holster. Also have two magazines which are not original to that P38. Doubt if one like it could be found today for under $500. Have not priced them recently, could be more.
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LVSteve
Member
Nice gun.
For nearly 20 years I've tried to get a P-38 or a P1 at what I considered a fair price. Trouble is, at auctions somebody with deeper pockets and the "gotta have it" gene always came along. Too many "For Sale" guns are priced like Lugers, which comes under the "not on my watch" statute. Now I have retired, I've stopped looking.
For nearly 20 years I've tried to get a P-38 or a P1 at what I considered a fair price. Trouble is, at auctions somebody with deeper pockets and the "gotta have it" gene always came along. Too many "For Sale" guns are priced like Lugers, which comes under the "not on my watch" statute. Now I have retired, I've stopped looking.
Nice early example OP. I've always liked the late-war AC45 USGI mis- matches and AC45 zero series guns.
Is either or both of your "correct" magazines numbered to the gun? I strongly suspect at least one isn't as I see only a single E/359 marking on its spine. I also have a "d" block ac41 that has retained one of the two numbered magazines with which it would have been issued.
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Engine49guy
Member
Nice early P38.
Iirc the early ones have a unique feature, well it's actually a weakness in that they found that ones that were heavily used on the Russian front showed that the trigger pivot pin did not have enough metal around it, I had one from 1942 that had the same straight frame below the pivot pin, IIRC they changed that around 1943 and if you compare a later one you notice the frame dips down just below the trigger pivot pin.
Another weakness that surfaced was that heavily used decockers could be peened to the point that it could discharge when decocked on a live round.
Dont think this would be addressed until the short lived P4 series which went to a spring loaded decocker that sprung back up as well as a system that seperated the firing pin from contacting the hammer face unless the trigger was pulled back.
The P38 is interesting to collect and compare as they had several wartime manufacturers and changes in design through the post war P38, then P1 ending in the P4.
Btw why it doesn't look it the P5 has its roots in the P1/ P4 as well.
On a final note, the P38, P1, P4, P5 other interesting feature is they all have the extractor claw on the left side and eject casings to the left as well.
Iirc the early ones have a unique feature, well it's actually a weakness in that they found that ones that were heavily used on the Russian front showed that the trigger pivot pin did not have enough metal around it, I had one from 1942 that had the same straight frame below the pivot pin, IIRC they changed that around 1943 and if you compare a later one you notice the frame dips down just below the trigger pivot pin.
Another weakness that surfaced was that heavily used decockers could be peened to the point that it could discharge when decocked on a live round.
Dont think this would be addressed until the short lived P4 series which went to a spring loaded decocker that sprung back up as well as a system that seperated the firing pin from contacting the hammer face unless the trigger was pulled back.
The P38 is interesting to collect and compare as they had several wartime manufacturers and changes in design through the post war P38, then P1 ending in the P4.
Btw why it doesn't look it the P5 has its roots in the P1/ P4 as well.
On a final note, the P38, P1, P4, P5 other interesting feature is they all have the extractor claw on the left side and eject casings to the left as well.
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