Do all Erfurt magazines have one or two Crown-over-Old-German-letter stamps in their wood bases, including ones with no serial numbers?
In several of my reference books, I read that Erfurt magazines have flattened pyramid points on their loading buttons and that DWM magazines have sharp points (at least earlier DWM ones with wood bottoms). I have several totally bank wood bottom magazines whose buttons have flattened pyramids. Are these DWM or Erfurt?
Besides the flat dicing-points on the follower buttons as you have already mentioned, the "crimp" on the metal tube on Erfurt magazines are a rectangular shape. See my photos below. On DWM magazine tubes, the "crimp" is a smallish "D" shape.
I will let the Erfurt guys chime in about proofs in the wood...
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That just reminded me....I was looking for something to indicate if the one proof/two proof stamps were done according to certain years or if they appeared simultaneously or what?
I am curious as I would like to find a magazine even CLOSER to the serial number of my 1914 Erfurt LP.08 3602a someday. I would like to improve on the one I have now if the opportunity presents itself...
I currenly have "3104 + with a single crown/letter proof" on it above the serial number which could be from other years during WWI to the best of my knowledge. Mine is worn to the point I can't tell which letter is under the crown so I wonder if there is even a certain selection of letters that were used in 1914 Erfurt Artilleries I should be on the lookout for?
According to Jan's "Central Power Pistols" PO8 Erfurt had 2 stamps until Mid or so 1916 when they went to one. Erfurt LP08 had two inspection stamps on mag. 1914 Erfurt LP08's suffix none,a and b. Bill
This has allowed me to re-classify two blank magazines I have as DWM instead of Erfurt magazines, even though the button points are somewhat flattened.
Chuck,
I have a 1912 Erfurt P.08 (SN 3457) with two matching magazines that have two Crown/Letter stamps on the base of each magazine, one at the top and one at the bottom, which matches W. Lyon's comment on this thread.
Magazines with no numbers on them came from an Armorer's parts kit as field replacements for lost or damaged mags. The Erfurt ones still had the inspection stamps on them, the DWMs were blank.
I have all my magazines sorted out but one. I thought it was an Erfurt, but think it may be a DWM in spite of flattened pyramids and very rough cuts in making dicing since it has no inspection stamps on the wooden base. It has neither a "D" shaped crimp on the tube nor a thin rectangle. Instead of a thin rectangle it has a fat rectangle, but with one end of the ends cut at an angle. Photos are included. Sorry I don't have a better close up lens.
I have also noticed that the Erufrt magazines I have held in my hands have more of a "greenish" under-tone tint to the nickle plating of the metal tube (as compared to DWM tubes).
Not sure if this is consistent with all Erfurt tubes...but thought I would mention it in passing.
I checked the magazine that is in my Model 1904 DWM Carbine (which has the short slot and very sharp points on its loading button) and found that its crimp is indeed a trapezoid, but not as easily seen as in your pictures since the crimp tool came in at an angle and did not leave such a clearly defined shape. I used a hand held microscope to check it out and could then see it was a trapezoid.
I appreciate your and all the other help I got on this question. I am now quite certain that the magazine in question is a DWM that has the long loading slot, trapezoidal crimp, somewhat crude/flattened button points (in spite of what a number of my references say), and the large tube tip radius. Using "the Borchardt & Luger Automatic Pistols" as my reference, this would make it a transition magazine (trapezoid to D shape for the crimp and short to long slot for loader travel). Since trapezoids ended in about 1911 and long slots started in about 1912, this magazine must have been made during the 1911 to 1912 transition period.
The vast majority of Erfult P.08 that so far I have seen had the wood bases worn out, and the only thing to notice them among other DMW magazines is the "crimp" on the metal tube that on Erfurt magazines has got a distictive rectangular shape.
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