Height: 9"
Width: 11.5"
Thickness: 1.25
Weight: 3 lbs. 10 oz.
Pages: 317
Number of Photos: Hundreds
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Despite being the first book published in the series,
The Wartime P.38 Pistols: Vol. 3 - 1945 Military and Volkssturm Pistols is the final chapter of this three-tome magnum opus to the P.38. In it, Dave Shike covers many of the late war pistol variations that have become some of the most controversial among collectors due to the chaos under which they were manufactured during the closing months of the War. As time has passed, however, and more information surfaced, many of these weapons are now well-established P.38 types. This book helps further codify the various late-War variants and how they can be identified.
Chapter 1 covers specific Walther pistols made from December 1944 to April 1945, providing examples of instances that typify the versions collectors will encounter. Chapter 2 does this in a similar fashion for Mauser pistols made between January 1945 and March 1945. Chapter 3 documents various Spreewerk pistols manufactured in 1945 by covering them in extensive detail. Chapter 4 delves into "Volkssturm: Assembled, Recycled, Repaired P.38s," which breaks down further into: "The Walther Volkssturm, Late War Zero Series Pistols,"; "The Spreewerk Grottau Volkssturm Pistols"; and "Volkssturm and Other Emergency P.38s."
The fourth chapter on Volkssturm pistols is particularly interesting. These were guns ostensibly manufactured under a special program to arm German citizens at the end of the war, who would present the last line of defense if the German armed forces were unable to perform the task. In theory, an armed populace would provide the final resistance against invading armies of the various nations marching on Germany. Although the variant has been known to collectors and enthusiasts for many decades, it was not until the arrival of Russian-captured P.38s after the collapse of the Soviet Union—providing corroborating examples—that these pistols gained a legitimate foothold as their own variation. Shike devotes 117 pages and newly-discovered documentation to help decipher this enigmatic P.38 pistol type.
In Chapter 5, the Spreewerk double zero series pistols are discussed, accompanied by extensive photographs of pistols with the serial numbers 0062 and 0081. Considered the rarest of known P.38 pistols produced during World War II, the two examples covered here are exhaustively documented with nearly two dozen thoroughly captioned photos.
Additionally, at the end of each chapter, a "Collector Tips and Observations" section is included that provides insights and guidance to those looking to collect the P.38 pistol types covered on the previous pages. It is a bulleted list of useful facts and details unique to the variation that highlights important historical anecdotes and draws attention to notable identifying marks.
To round everything off, appendices include: A) documents showing that Walther-Werke plant at Neuengamme* was demolished, B) Neuengamme maps and photos, C) disassembled P.38, D) glossary, and E) quick reference to P.38 pistol manufacturers and parts suppliers. And finally, a bibliography.
* Neuengamme concentration camp near the village of Neuengamme in the Bergedorf district of Hamburg.
