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Old July 22, 2012, 08:08 PM   #1
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Mauser 1914

Does anyone have any information specific to a Mauser 1914? I have found a few sources of info on the google net but any additional info would be awesome. I currently have in my possession one that was made WW1 era between 1914 and 1923. It is chambered in 7.65 (32 acp) and has the original mag with it. I am looking for any/all info I can get on it (value, production dates, ect.) and this piece is not and will not be for sale.
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Old July 22, 2012, 08:37 PM   #2
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We need pics of it, including the markings. Little can be said without that. You also did not give the SN, so little can be said except they are fun little guns.

Mine is a rig with a police marking


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Old July 22, 2012, 09:13 PM   #3
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In my 2011 Standard Catalog of Firearms it values around 300 in Very Good condition. It is a later model of the run because it does not have the "Mauser" banner on the side plate but it is not stamped "Germany" like on the export models.

SN 187247

It has the crown over the letter u marking behind the rear sight and is marked "L.K. 271" on the right side of the frame above the grip.

Pics to follow
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Old July 22, 2012, 09:14 PM   #4
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Also, it was a war bringback by my Great-grandmothers brother.
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Old July 22, 2012, 09:18 PM   #5
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Also, it was a war bringback by my Great-grandmothers brother
Do you happen to have any bringback paperwork to go with the gun? Having the bringback papers would definitely increase the value of the piece.
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Old July 22, 2012, 09:26 PM   #6
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Dont think so. But it is the original mag with matching serial number. No holster that I know of either though.
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Old July 22, 2012, 09:34 PM   #7
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531359_505655432785015_1026598211_n.jpg

394673_505655736118318_260604406_n.jpg
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Old July 23, 2012, 12:42 AM   #8
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According to Mauser Pocket Pistols 1910-1946, by the late Roy G. Pender, your gun falls neatly into the "early postwar commercial" block. He documented serial #186703 given as shooting prize in 1919, and, since your s/n is higher, it is most likely going to be an early post WWI gun. Your gun has the heavy one line address on the slide, which ws later replaced around the end of the series by a two line address.

The "L.K." probably indicates police issue during the Weimar Republic period, especially since the mag is numbered to the gun which, as far as I know, was not done at the Mauser factory. (Someone else may chime on on what "L.K." means; I'm not up on German issue markings.)

Anyway, unless your great grandmother's brother served in WWII, it is unlikely that it was a bringback.

One note of caution about Mauser 1910 and 1914 pistols: Inserting the magazine is the correct way to allow the slide to go forward. Some users attempt to pull the slide back and release it rapidly without the mag inserted. This results in wear on the internals, making the pistol potentially dangerous. Also, be aware that when a fully loaded mag is inserted, it will automatically chamber the first round; Make sure the pistol is pointed in a safe direction when chambering a round as these designs become prone to ADs when worn.
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Old July 23, 2012, 05:28 AM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by gyvel
Anyway, unless your great grandmother's brother served in WWII, it is unlikely that it was a bringback.
Yes, as I wasnt specific earlier, it was brought back from WWII.

Quote:
Originally Posted by gyvel
Make sure the pistol is pointed in a safe direction when chambering a round as these designs become prone to ADs when worn.
I havent tried loading it yet for this reason. Maybe I will make it to the range in the next few days.
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Old July 23, 2012, 08:41 AM   #10
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I havent tried loading it yet for this reason. Maybe I will make it to the range in the next few days.
It is a little disconcerting to insert a loaded magazine into a gun and have it automatically chamber a round. I have never personally had an AD with a Mauser, but I did have one with a Webley & Scott .38 automatic, which had a similar system. It was a test fire on an unproven gun, so I had it pointed straight at the bullet trap.

Your Mauser looks to be in very nice condition, so I doubt that you will have any problems, but better safe than sorry.
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Old July 23, 2012, 05:03 PM   #11
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So does anyone have any more info as to the "L.K. 271" marking?
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Old July 23, 2012, 09:53 PM   #12
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FWIW, that pistol has been reblued and the grips sanded, seriously hurting the value.

L.K. could stand for Landjaegerei (rural constabulary) of the Prussian Koeslin district.

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Old July 23, 2012, 10:10 PM   #13
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So does anyone have any more info as to the "L.K. 271" marking?
http://luger.gunboards.com/showthrea...-1914-humpback

Also, that site, the Jan Still forum is a great place to learn about pre WWI, WWI and WWII pistols.
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Old July 24, 2012, 01:22 PM   #14
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Thanks for the link. They were able to identify the marking.

http://luger.gunboards.com/showthrea...ht=mauser+1914
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Old July 24, 2012, 01:23 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Don Maus
Landjäger-Korps (rural police) of Württemberg (HWIS pp. 253-4).
That explains the "L.K. 271"
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Old July 24, 2012, 01:38 PM   #16
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Originally Posted by James K
FWIW, that pistol has been reblued and the grips sanded
What gives that away? From what I can tell it appears to have similar wear to other pistols I have seen from the era but I am by NO means an expert.
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Old July 24, 2012, 04:51 PM   #17
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What gives that away? From what I can tell it appears to have similar wear to other pistols I have seen from the era but I am by NO means an expert.
Compare your grips to mine. See the checkering on mine?

Sometimes you gotta play Sherlock Holmes / Columbo etc with this stuff. The gun has most of its finish, but the checkering of the grips is completely gone on both sides? Something is fishy there. It would take a heck of a lot of use to naturally wear the checkering like that, and being that they don't bear any other wear, the grips being sanded down is very likely.

As far as the refinish of the metal, I don't see any obvious signs of that but ol Jimmy K has a good eye for this stuff.
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Old July 24, 2012, 05:13 PM   #18
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What gives that away? From what I can tell it appears to have similar wear to other pistols I have seen from the era but I am by NO means an expert.
The outline of the previous checkering is still visible on the grip panels.

Although I'm no expert either, IIRC every original Mauser pocket pistol I've examined had a straw-colored trigger and bluing with a dark brownish grey color rather than a plum or deep black color. Although Win73's pistol is missing much of its finish, it illustrates these characteristics.
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Old July 24, 2012, 05:33 PM   #19
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Although Win73's pistol is missing much of its finish, it illustrates these characteristics.
Hey now! Actually its a bad pic. Some of the "wear" is a light reflection, and there is some thinning of the bluing with a little patina too. The gun is pretty nice IMO for being a police pistol.
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Old July 24, 2012, 07:27 PM   #20
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Those pistols were originally rust blued, and the finish I see is hot caustic blue, which did not come into use until around 1936. In addition, Mauser simply did not polish those guns that well. Few factories did, as it was too costly in terms of time. Also the surfaces show rounding at the edges and at the joint between the frame and the sideplate. No, the rounding is not a light trick; it is there.

FWIW, here is a refinish spotting "tip of the week". It isn't always true, but it is a good bet that when a sideplate of a quality gun is involved, the factory polished the plate and the frame together, leaving a very close fit and often a nearly invisible seam. But rebluers normally take the plate off and polish it and the frame separately, leaving the edges of both rounded so there is a "dip" at the joint and sometimes a gap.

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Old July 24, 2012, 07:38 PM   #21
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Thanks James and Winchester. I noticed that the grips were noticeably smoother than others but the bluing didnt stand out to my untrained eyes.

The wear on the left side slide serrations did jump out at me and there is obviously holster wear on the front of the slide so I just assumed the smooth grip was from wear and not from sanding.

Thanks for the input and tips. By the way, the reason I currently have this piece is to correct a function issue in the near future. When I have this in the shop are there things to look for or that I should be aware of that would effect the value? Non original parts, ect
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Old July 24, 2012, 08:32 PM   #22
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When I have this in the shop are there things to look for or that I should be aware of that would effect the value? Non original parts, ect
Yes. I actually asked the same question here a year or two ago before I bought my first one below. The SN should be on the frame, slide, barrel, side plate, and the inner sear piece (the part to the left of the trigger - I have seen them without this part numbered). Sometimes when the guns were issued in the weimar era, other parts could be numbered. Each numbered part should either have the last 3 or last 4 of the SN. Anything not matching the frame SN is not original to the gun.

Disassembly is rather easy. You can google directions for it.

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Old July 25, 2012, 03:01 AM   #23
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I'm not sure about the gun being reblued; The significant wear on the front gripstrap belies the fact that it was reblued. It's pretty hard to tell since lighting, etc. can alter tha appearance of a gun significantly when pics are being taken. The fact that there is quite a bit of wear on the slide serrations might indicate that it has been reblued, however.

Also, Mauser grips did not have typical diamond checkering with peaks. The scored lines are more of a crosshatching than true checkering. The grips do have quite a bit of wear, but, if they were sanded, why wasn't all the crosshatching obliterated?

Winchester 73, your Mauser has a 1934 magazine.

Last edited by gyvel; July 25, 2012 at 03:06 AM.
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Old July 25, 2012, 03:09 AM   #24
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Although I'm no expert either, IIRC every original Mauser pocket pistol I've examined had a straw-colored trigger
Actually, the triggers were heat blued, as were the extractors. The extractor in this gun still appears to be heat blued, indicating that it was either removed if the gun was refinished, or that the gun was not refinished.

Removing these extractors is a tricky proposition and often results in a broken extractor.
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Old July 25, 2012, 05:12 AM   #25
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Great info. And thanks for the exploded view Winchester. I will try and dig up an actual camera and try to take some better pics (partially for my own use anyways) and post when I can.
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