My NIB Mauser Luger

[American1776]

Just picked up my NIB Mauser Parabellum (Luger). I've wanted a Luger for a long time now, but I had a dilemma. The old WWI / WWII Lugers are basically collectibles if they are in great or new condition, and of course I would never carry or shoot it. I wanted a NEW Luger, and one that I could shoot regularly AND carry if it proves reliable.

Apparently Mauser (one of the original producers of the Luger) used Swiss tooling to produce the Pistole Parabellum Luger for a run in the 1970's, with Interarms importing them for sale in the US.

Mine came brand new (appears unfired), with the original box, two magazines, cleaning tool, and a tool to load the magazines.

First impressions:
1) It feels amazing in the hand. It balances unlike any pistol I've ever held.
2) The toggle-action is a mechanical marvel.
3) It fits pretty well in my Glock 30 thumb break holster.
4) Magazines are HARD to load!
5) The bluing is very well done.

Any advice from those who know the Luger? I'm thinking of getting some extra mags from MecGar. I've heard so many myths and mixed things about the 'Legendary Luger', I'm not sure what to believe. It seems like a very robust design; is it a durable, long lasting piece? Does anyone know for sure if it is safe to carry / keep a round chambered with the safety engaged?

Thanks.

[Noah_Zark]

Lugers tend to be picky about ammo. Stick to FMJ, with the parabolic bullet nose profile.

The thumb safety and grip safety both typically block the sear; you'll have to decide if a double sear block is safe to carry "condition one."


As an aside, did you sell the Walther or the Makarov to fund the Luger?

Noah

[Stooperzero]

dont the magazines for this have the little pad on the side like real ones????




Mec-gars are hit/miss. I bought a bunch for $5 each awhile back and they run perfect in my 1918 DWM.




i wouldnt carry one unless it was last resort just due to the fact they're picky on bullet types and most self defense ammo is loaded very stout.

[American1776]

Lugers tend to be picky about ammo. Stick to FMJ, with the parabolic bullet nose profile.

The thumb safety and grip safety both typically block the sear; you'll have to decide if a double sear block is safe to carry "condition one."


As an aside, did you sell the Walther or the Makarov to fund the Luger?

Noah

thanks for the info. Does that mean that condition 1 on this Luger would be equivalent in 'safety' to a 70's series 1911? I have no problem carrying a cocked and locked 1911.

The Makarov is going to have to be the sacrificial lamb on this one, unfortunately. As much as I like it, the ONLY reason the Mak is going and not the PPK is the size issue. The Mak is so close to being the same size as my HK P7, that it just didn't make sense for me to keep the .380 that is the same size as my full-size 9mm pistol. The 380 that I keep has to fill the role of 'carry gun when I can't carry a normal gun', and the PPK is sufficiently smaller than the HK P7 and the Mak, that the PPK is really the one for this role.

I'll miss the Mak, and I know you're a fan of that gun too. But I needed to make room and the Mak was just too big for its role.

[daschnoz]

Run 124gr ball in it. Back in the day when they were designed:

1. modern hollow points weren't on the radar. The feed angles are designed around the contoured shape of ball (FMJ) ammo, not the truncated cone shape that hollow points have.
2. 124gr bullets were the standard 9mm bullet weight. 115gr ammo may not generate enough of a recoil impulse and the toggle will short stroke. Some guns work fine with 115gr ammo, some don't. Your gun may run fine. It's worth a try. You're not going to break anything if 115gr stuff doesn't work.

[Stooperzero]

cheapo blazer alum cased 115 fmj cycles mine fine, BUT ... these are one of those guns where . Gun A: might run perfect with this ammo/mags VS Gun B : doing it's own thing.

[American1776]

Thanks for the comments.

The magazines that came with this pistol have the little knob on the side. This knob is for the mag loading tool, which acts as a wrench on the knob so that you can compress the strong spring and put rounds in the mag. Very cool.

[Maquis]

Cost? Didn't know they were still being made.

[American1776]

Cost? Didn't know they were still being made.

They were only made for a while by Mauser in the 70s. They are long out of production.

I won't say EXACTLY how much this one cost me, but I'll say this: In NIB condition, they typically SELL for well north of 1,000. The asking prices on these can be close to or at 2,000.

[American1776]

is it knurled like a real mag or flat like mec-gars?

The knob is knurled. Since these guns were made by Mauser, on the original Swiss Tooling and machines, I think they are as close to the original war-time Lugers as they can get.