Acquired yesterday a 1917 dated 1914 pattern Navy rig . SN 3353. Property numbered pistol and stock WK 17024,3 matching mags, 1917 dated and CM accepted holster and 1917 dated Mag pouch. Rod is period Navy,unproofed.Pics when I have opportunity (Am on the road.)
One of 5 property numbered 1917s of which I am aware. Anyone here have similar or know of SN/property number?
Thanks
Tom A.
This one appears to have been brought back, lightly oiled and then put away and forgotten about. Much old crud and goop present as illustrated in mag photos. It will be a great training aid in teaching others what to look for and how to spot the real thing.
Tom
Paolo,
According to Nico Van Jijn, interpreting from his famous collection of original Luger engineering drawings and patent records, the concentric ring magazine was produced to physically differenciate a 9 mm pistol from a 7.65 mm as a safety measure. They were not exclusively or particularly for the Navy.
But to me more direct in answering your question, there doesn't seem to be any definite cut over time frame or serial number range that I have observed. In fact, I have a 1920's era '06 commercial that has concentric rings and is marked "Germany".
My supposition, and it is pure speculation, is that as the demand for small arms and their accessories increased, numerous subcontractors were called upon to produce magazine bottoms. DWM, I would suppose again, simplified the design for increased producability and added additional subcontractors while continuing to receive and use stocks from the original subcontractor, thus achieving simultaneous usage of both styles. Again, all of this is purely supposition on my part.
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