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P38 Steel frame vs lightweight
Henry0Reilly
Member Posts: 10,892 ✭✭✭
Gee, it didn't occur to me that guns might be made of something other than steel...
http://forums.gunbroker.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=229472
quote:Originally posted by K
A bit more info is needed!
Any import marks? Do ALL the numbers match (inside and out)? Has it been refinished? Is this a Vet "Bring Back and if so any "Capture Papers"? Condition,,,any pitting, rust etc.????
Any one of these factors can make the difference between a $1500 collector and a $400 shooter.
quote:Originally posted by tsavo303
you mean $250 shooter
quote:Originally posted by K
I confess I have not seen a P38 (War time steel frame) "Shooter" in the $250 range in some time! Most "Beaters" in P38s (IN my area) fetch in the $400 + range.
Have I over bid on This P38?
http://forums.gunbroker.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=229472
quote:Originally posted by K
A bit more info is needed!
Any import marks? Do ALL the numbers match (inside and out)? Has it been refinished? Is this a Vet "Bring Back and if so any "Capture Papers"? Condition,,,any pitting, rust etc.????
Any one of these factors can make the difference between a $1500 collector and a $400 shooter.
quote:Originally posted by tsavo303
you mean $250 shooter
quote:Originally posted by K
I confess I have not seen a P38 (War time steel frame) "Shooter" in the $250 range in some time! Most "Beaters" in P38s (IN my area) fetch in the $400 + range.
Have I over bid on This P38?
I used to recruit for the NRA until they sold us down the river (again!) in Heller v. DC. See my auctions (if any) under username henryreilly
Comments
The seller is incorrect concerning where this gun was made. The Walther factory at Zehla Mehlis was destroyed during WWII; post war guns were made in a new factory at Ulm Donau (W Germany). The gun being sold was probably made in the 1950's or 1960's; by the end of this period they were being imported by Interarms. They can be found with or without the Interarms marking.
The market price for these has been depressed by the recent sale of the nearly identical W German police trade-ins, which were marked "P1". The P1 also has an aluminum frame. They have been sold in the $240-300 price range.
However, I would not have bid on the gun without additional information. Note that he doesn't describe the bore, & is selling it "as is". It could have a pitted bore, & you would be stuck with it.
Neal
It can be a very confusing situation as in many cases they both carry the "P 1" slide marking.
To make a long story short, the one your bidding on in the auction is the early version. It doesn't have the frame reinforced with the hexagonal steel bolt above the trigger. Or the reinforced ( thicker ) slide.
The West German Army had a lot of reliability troubles with this early version. They stopped it's production in the early 1970's. My 2?, is that if you intend to do a lot of shooting with it, it won't hold up.
Impact guns has them for $340 and $370
http://www.impactguns.com/store/waltherp1.html
Aim Surplus has them for $240!
http://www.aimsurplus.com/acatalog/Walther.html
Sarco is listing one for $380 http://www.sarcoinc.com/handguns.html#misc
Impact guns has them for $340 and $370
http://www.impactguns.com/store/waltherp1.html
Aim Surplus has them for $240!
http://www.aimsurplus.com/acatalog/Walther.html
The pistol shown in the Aim Surplus add is the second version of the P 1, that I was referring to. The Hex bolt above the trigger is quite visable. The pistols in the other two adds are the earlier unreinforced version without the bolt.