Height: 9"
Width: 11.5"
Thickness: 1"
Weight: 2 lbs. 5 oz.
Pages: 269
Number of Photos: Hundreds
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In Dave Shike's
The Wartime P.38 Pistols: Vol. 1 - 1939-1942 Military P.38 Pistols, a wide breadth of information on the very earliest days of the P.38 is covered. The author delves into the first military test pistols and subsequent variations as the P.38 project ramped up at Walther, Spreewerk, and Mauser during the early-War period.
Part One of the book focuses on Walther military-manufactured pistols. Chapter 1 to Chapter 3 is an extensive review that begins with one of the earliest known Walther Zero Series prototype pistols—going over it with a fine-tooth comb both textually and photographically. Other Zero Series are then covered in sequence. Code 480, ac No Date, Heeres Pistol (HP), ac 40, ac 41, and ac 42 are next documented in minute detail, providing a plethora of information about these earliest models. Chapter 4 is dedicated to Walther military-manufactured P.38 magazines. Chapter 5 analyzes a damaged and rebuilt ac 40 P.38 in order to give the collector a unique view into how proof marks and components from various manufactures can make their way into a legitimate variation that falls outside of the norms.
Part Two chronicles the Spreewerk Grottau military-manufactured pistols. It starts with cyq 72, then continues to cyq 177, cyq 189, cyq 276, cyq 419, cyq 2630, and to the mystery cyq 0. The author covers the varied types of Spreewerk P.38's produced from July to the end of 1942. The six pages in Chapter 2 documenting magazine production include a multitude of images highlighting the variety of these components supplied to this factory. Chapter 3 looks at a damaged and rebuilt Spreewerk Grottau P.38 marked cyq 5600 (November, 1942) in order to provide the collector with another example of a repaired and reissued 1942 P.38.
Part Three covers the Mauser military-manufactured pistols. In this third and final Part of Volume 1, the painful transition from Luger production to P.38 manufacturing is documented in the opening pages of Chapter 1. The reader learns how the production kickoff deadline of Spring 1942 slipped to late December of 1942. Well-illustrated is the fact that the vast majority of the earliest Mauser P.38's, marked byf 42, were actually made in 1943. A byf 42 with serial number 354 is the first sample presented, introducing the well-known "dusty slide" finish of the initial guns. A byf 42, serial number 699, is next featured as the ideal of this variation. Several other examples with byf 42-marked slides round out this chapter. Chapter 2, as in previous parts, is dedicated, in detail, to Mauser-manufactured magazines. And finally, Chapter 3 reviews the intricacies of a Mauser P.38 damaged and rebuilt during the War.
Chapters on magazines specific to each military manufacturer in each manufacturer section are extensive and represent almost a book within a book. The pages are replete with close-up photographs and fascinating anecdotes explaining the variances frequently seen throughout magazine production runs by, or supplied to, each manufacturer.
At the end of each of the three Parts is a "Collector Tips and Observations" chapter 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 section that highlights important historical anecdotes and draws attention to notable identifying marks. It also advises the collector on how to make the wisest decisions when embarking on the quest to acquire these fascinating firearms.
Finally, Appendix A, Appendix B, and Appendix C are devoted to a rare, complete, Walther Zero Series rig, an extremely well-preserved ac no-date, and an experimental HP holster respectively. All of these rarely-seen items are shown in extraordinary detail that allows the P.38 collector to fully experience the uniqueness of these pieces.
The Wartime P.38 Pistols: Vol. 1 - 1939-1942 Military P.38 Pistols is the beginning—a very apt and comprehensive one. It is a gateway to the addictive world of P.38 collecting. It covers the less often seen, and often missed, details of early Wartime P.38 pistols and magazines. This is the first in a sequence of books that are a gourmet banquet of information featuring Wartime P.38s. It whets the appetite for even more overlooked details as it follows a theme of "nothing can be wasted" in each subsequent volume of the series.
