An often-nostalgic thing to do is reminisce of the arms shops in the days of old. Those well-stocked dealerships. They were once a lot like Aladdin’s cave with large arrays of plentiful, but now hard-to-find arms on display and for sale, at extremely affordable prices by today’s standard. Luckily, we can occasionally encounter some remnants of these days in Pakistan where an abundance of now-antiquated firearms are still to be found in the arms bazaars of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa within places like the infamous town of Darra Adamkhel and to a lesser degree, in those within and close to Peshawar city.
Luger
5 Iranian Firearms Seen In December 2019 Rock Island Premier Firearms Auction Catalog
The last Rock Island Premier Auction of the year will take place on December 06, 07 and 08. As in the case of other premier auctions, the online catalog was published about a month before the auction starts.
Being one of the largest firearm auctions in the USA and perhaps in the world, its catalog is full of one of a kind lots including those related to the MENA region which is one of the focus research regions of Silah Report. We browsed the RIAC December 2019 auction catalog and found an interesting selection of Iranian firearms which we’ll take a look at in this article.
A German DWM Luger in Helmand Province
This guest post was written by Jeffrey Reardon, an avid reader and supporter of Silah Report.
In the past one hundred and eighty years, Afghanistan has been the target of multiple foreign invasions. From the British, (1839-1842, 1878-1880 and 1919) Soviet (1979-1989) and United States (2001-Present) involvement in Afghanistan. As such, we have a unique opportunity to see the small arms of yesterday back in action. Let’s look at one such example today.
An American Marine of personal acquaintance was assigned to a Police Mentor Team (PMT) apart of 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines. These units were responsible for mentoring and training the Afghan National Police (ANP). The PMT duty consisted of patrolling to different ANP checkpoints. The PMT would spend a few days at each checkpoint then move on to thier next scheduled checkpoint. This Marine also happened to be an avid military surplus collector. This assignment would give him many opportunities to meet new people and see a myriad of Curio and Relics (C&R) in Afghanistan. In 2010, while in Garmsir, Helmand Province, Afghanistan, that’s exactly what happened to this Marine.
While on patrol with the ANP unit, this Marine noticed the unmistakable silhouette, of a Luger pistol that one of the ANP members was carrying. Naturally, the Marine was curious and just had to have a look at this interesting piece of military history.
In this picture, we can clearly make out the DWM rollstamp. The Deutsche Waffen- and Munitionsfabriken (German weapons and ammunition factories) was created in 1896 by, Ludwig Loewe & Company. They combined their weapons and ammunition facilities under one company. Simultaneously, Loewe transferred all shares it owned in other weapons producing companies to the newly formed DWM. These included, lesser know production facilities along with the Waffenfabrik Mauser and Fabrique National(FN). This pistols date is a little obscure in the picture. However, I was told this example is dated 1916. Just during WWI, from 1914-1918, there were approximately 2,000,000 Luger pistols made.
In this picture, another Marine poses with Luger. Here, we can see clearly see the front sight is missing. We can only guess as to what happened and how long it’s been missing. This goes along with my theory that this particular Luger is more if a badge of honour and sign if rank. Although, it would certainty get the job done in close quarters. Not having a front sight at all will put you at a disadvantage for the Marine Corps 25 meter pistol qualification.
As evident by the pictures, there is absolutely nothing left of the original finish. Which would have been a very beautiful and high gloss blue oxide on the major components. With small pieces such as the trigger and takedown lever being strawed. This process turns the metal a soft, golden colour which closely matches that of dried hay or, “straw.” In all actuality, this is exactly what one would expect. After all, it is almost a century old. Very easily a veteran of two world wars and countless other conflicts. It’s current location in southern Afghanistan, with its frequent sand storms, certainly does not help.
The Marine function tested the pistol. On a Luger, this is accomplished by grabbing the top of the toggle link and pulling up. With an empty magazine in place, the slide will stay fully locked back in then open position. I was assured that it is in operable condition. Although, the Marine did not test fire it.
There are, by this point, more than a few things I’m curious about. One question I would love to know the answer to is, to know if the ANP had the holster and spare magazine? If he didn’t, what was he using for a holster? If he wasn’t in possession of the spare magazine, was he worried about the lack of capacity?
I was told that the ANP officer was very proud of his pistol. He made it known that he was not at all interested in selling it. I often wonder, by what route did that pistol get to Afghanistan? How did that ANP officer acquire it?
Sadly, we will never know the answers to these questions. We can only be happy that our beloved military surplus small arms are still serviceable after all this time.
*Special thanks and photo credit to Timothy Arndt