[Guest]

This is on the right side of a 9mm 1920 DWM pistol. This is the only stamp on the right side, the left side has a crown with an N under it. Any help would be great. The SN is 7991. All the parts are stamped with 91 even the small ones. This pistol was a gift from my uncle who told me he took it from a german at a supply depot in germany in 1945. I have had it for about 25 years my self and just took a new intrest in it. Thanks for the help.

 

[Ron Smith]

Hello, Welcome to the forum. That is a Third Reich acceptance stamp or Waffenamt. It was applied when your luger was drafted into military use. Shows that it passed inspection and approved. Post more views of the pistol. Especially the top and any other markings.

Ron

 

[Edward Tinker]

Hello "G" as that is how your first name is on the profile, welcome to the forum!

Pictures of the left would be good. I am guessing it is marked 1920, as you said it was a 1920. Many times the 1920 is not a date, but a property marking, although most were made or reworked at this same time period.

Ed

 

[Dwight Gruber]

This mark could be an HZa.JL.16, the 1928 military Heereszeugamter (Army quartermaster) early supply proof. Costanzo on p.94 lists this mark (with a swastika) as circa 1928, before the swastika came into use. If you look very closely the cross-pieces in the figure in the circle apppear to be vertical and horizontal, rather than diagonal, as is characteristic of the hakenkreutz. Its unfortunate that the subscript is partly illegible. Discussion of a similar marking occurred a while back on the Luger Forum http://forum.lugerforum.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=5031 .

With c/N Commercial proofs one would expect this pistol to be in .30 cal. However, WaA (or HZa) accepted pistols were for police or military use, and in 9mm. It would be useful to see all the markings on the barrel (inclusing the witness mark) as they may tell more of the tale of this Luger.

--Dwight

 

[Guest]

What is a "witness mark" and where do I find it? I will take some more pics of it tonight and post them. Thanks for all the help.

Gerald

 

[Dwight Gruber]

Witness Mark is a line on the bottom of the receiver, struck across the juncture of the receiver and the barrel. Do a search on the topic here, you'll see a number of examples.

--Dwight