The serial number is 3975 n. According to LTC Joel Johnston, (Ret), US Army, who has a website (www.olarmyjoel.com) giving values for various P.38 military variants, the 'cvq' was a 'Last ditch P.38 after 'cyq' die broke, assembled in Munich from parts.' He also gives this variant a higher dollar value than the standard Walther and Mauser types. Guys, I have a cyq (Spreewerke) P38 pistol that I'd like to date. The serial number is 3341t. I wouldn't mind adding a Walther made example to the collection at some point, but German guns aren't really a focus for my collection (prices are too crazy), so I doubt I'll go out specifically looking for one.

Thats why I gave the apprasial of the amount. Before the plant was captured all records of serial numbers were destroyed. In reality the numbers were based on the PP in 1929 and the PPK in 1931. Most of the prewar numbers on both handguns were in the same proximity with numbers only a few thousand apart.

1. The serial number is 3341t. I wouldn't mind adding a Walther made example to the collection at some point, but German guns aren't really a focus for my collection (prices are too crazy), so I doubt I'll go out specifically looking for one. Walther Serial Numbers By Year; Walther P38 Serial Numbers Lookup.
2. When Is my Walther P38 Serial Number 197182 Made? Hi Hank, welcome from Sitka, Alaska. Your alloy framed P-38 was manufactured post-war, between 1957 and the early '60s, and in German military or police service would've been referred to as a Model P1.
3. CYQ very early gun serial number 21. CYQ 2nd variation with e/359 small parts serial number range 50-500 - 208. CYQ 3rd variation with rare e/18 accepted locking block- (Eight known examples 2514, 2596, 2630, 2678, 2852, 2853, 2894, 2933). CYQ 3rd variation with matched numbered holster serial number range 500-1565d. 41,000 produced - 3842c.

By 1931, the German army had already began their search for a new standard service pistol to replace the aging and costly P08 Parabellum, better known as the 'Luger'. Fritz Walther saw an opportunity for his company and immediately began working on a series of designs that would ultimately lead to the success known today as the Walther P38. Fritz Walther knew at once that only a design in 9mm Parabellum would be successful. He also decided that the design and construction of the new pistol would have to improve upon the negative factors of the P08 Luger. Those factors were: cost, reliability, and fewer parts.

The first design in this series of pistols was the Walther PP. This pistol was very successful; it was a blowback action, with a double action trigger. Walther thought first that they simply needed to enlarge the dimensions of the PP in order to have a successful 9mm Parabellum design. The blowback design was the key, and was much cheaper to produce than any locking systems. The first unlocked military pistol was known as the Walther MP (militarpisole). This pistol had a very high weight, and recoil spring was difficult, and not reliable. Only about a dozen of these pistols left the factory, and only about 6 are known to still exist! Walther decided that they needed a locking system. However it needed to be simple, cheap, and still reliable. They found one developed by an American named Pederson, who developed it for the Remington pistols. Once they had this design, the weight and dimensions of the MP were changed. This oversized PP had a locking system with a rotating barrel. However all of these designs were rejected, because of the high prices, as well as weight.

The Walther PPK was another design in this series which influenced the later P38. The main design feature of the PPK was its' cost savings. The PPK frame used far less materials to make it, since it did not have a back strap. The backs trap was performed by the plastic wrap around grips. This saved materials, weight, time, and cost! This would eventually be used on the P38 as well.

Walthers' next design incorporated an enclosed hammer, as well as a free floating barrel (the army demanded a free floating barrel for reliability). This new pistol was known as the Walther AP (armee-pistole). This pistol had a take down lever like the P08, and also had the double action trigger system of the PP. It also had a locking system, but it differed from the MP with only having a single locking block rather than two. The AP was the building block to Walther next design - the HP, or Heeres-Pistole. Walther made a few minor changes to come up with the Walther HP. The HP had an external hammer, which the army preferred, and had a single case harden locking block, which prevented it from cracking. By late 1938 the Walther HP was in production, for commercial sales. Serial numbers ended at 1025. With a few more minor changes, the pistol finally was accepted by the German army, and 'P38' became the official model name!

The army initially ordered 800 pieces on April 1, 1939. Many of these pistols had mixed parts between the HP and P38 and be marked with the commercial proof. All of these were manufactured by hand! The first really genuine P38 were known as the Zero-series. These started with the serial numbers 01-013000, and below is pictured an example of one of these Zero-series P38s. These were the very first military P38s, and only 13,000 were made between April 1939 and March 1940.

On April 26, 1940 official test were completed, and the army ordered 410,600 P38s. Production was very slow at first and although Walther was projected to complete 175,000 pistols by June 1940, only 9,750 were completed and delivered. Finally on April 1, 1941, Walther was able to achieve its' monthly goal of 10,000 pistols. However, Walther still needed help to meet with the armies' needs. By the end of the war 1.2 million P38s were produced, of which Walther made only about 580,000.

Because the Wehrmacht needed more than 10,000 pistols per month, they looked for other manufacturers to produce the P38. In June, 1940 the Army issued orders to the Mauser, Obendorf to cease production of the P08 Luger, and begin to produce the P38. The leadership at the Mauser plant was not in favor of this change, and the production of the P08 Luger continued up until 1942. Finally in November 1942, the production of the P38 began at Mauser. At the end of December 1942, Mauser delivered its' first 700 pistols with the code byf 42. By the end of the war Mauser produced about 300,000 P38s.

The Spreewerke Factory at Berlin-Spandau was the third manufacturer assigned to produce the P38. Production began in September 1941. At the end of June 1942 they delivered 50 pistols for testing, which were rejected. In August they delivered another 300 for testing, and these were finally given the long awaited acceptance proof, (eagle 88). The army now demanded 10,000 pistols per month from Spreewerke, although this amount was never obtained. By the end of the war Spreewerke produced around 285,000 P38s.

Maker production codes, years, and proofs

Walther-

'Zero Series' - As stated earlier, the first production P38s were part of a Zero-series, which have the Walther banner, and serial numbers from 01-013000. Below is pictured an example of the Zero series P38 produced by Walther.

480/AC- After the Zero series Walther was assigned the maker code of '480', and the Walther banner was removed, and this number code put in its' place. Approx. 7,000 pieces were made with this code. Later this year the '480' code was changed to 'AC' The serial numbers of these will be between 7150-9850. Some pistols will even have both the 480 and the 'AC', or be marked '480' with the date '40'. These are known as the '480' '40' added pistols and will be serial numbers up to 3000.

AC40- This became the standard code and year. Serial numbers began at 9999a, and ended with 9999b.

AC41- In 1941 The serial numbering started again at 1. Until the end of that year, which ended at 9999j. In this year several changes can be noted. The 'AC' stamping on the left trigger guard was omitted. Also the high polished commercial finish was replaced by a matte military finish. Total production this year was around 112,795.

Walther Serial Number Chart

AC42-Serial numbers started again at 1 and ended in December 1942 at 9999k. No longer were all parts proof marked. Only major assemblies were acceptance proof marked, such as, frame, slide, barrel, and locking block. Total production this year was around 98,600

AC43-Serial numbers start at 1 and go to 9999n. The two line coding 'AC' over '43' was changed to a single line 'AC-43'. Total production this year was 135,000

Walther Serial Numbers By Year

AC44- Serial numbers start at 1 and went to 9999l.

AC45- Serial numbers start at 1, but no continuous numbering occurred this year, and I'm not sure what was the last serial number produced. Total production was around 40,000 this year.

Mauser-

Byf42- Only about 700 of these pistols were produced, and they are quite rare.

Byf43- No major changes. Serial numbers not known.

Byf44- no changes, serial ranges not known.

Byf45- very few of these were produced, and later Mauser code was changed to 'svw45'. This code can also be seen on several thousand post war French assemble P38s.

Spreewerke-

Cyq- This is the maker code assigned to Spreewerke, no year of manufacture was used on these guns.

Cvq- this code is seen on very late war P38s. These were assembled by Jos. Rathgeber, Muchen 54, made of parts by Spreewerke. All of these guns will have a prefix rather than a letter suffix. The prefix will either be a '0', 'a', or 'b'. These guns were produced between January - March 1945. No year will be on these guns as well.

Other makers were assigned to make parts for the P38, such as magazines, slides, and grips. Below is a listing of a few known makers of P38 parts.

Fabrique Nationale d' Armes (FN)- Manufactured slides which were marked with the code 'FN'. Most of these slides went to the Walther firm.

Ceska Zbrojoka (CZ)- In Brunn, Czechoslovakia, CZ produced locking blocks. These will be marked with the code 'fnh'. Privni Severoceske- Produced grips, and other parts with code 'dov'.

Walther P38 Serial Numbers Lookup

One other Czechoslovakian sheet metal producer made magazines for the P38 which will be marked with the code 'jvd' and also WaA706. There were also plans to increase P38 production by adding other makers. These included: J.P. Sauer, Erma, BSW, and Krieghoff. However this never happened.

I just bought my first Walther. It is a PPK 9mm Kurz, blued. No box, 1 magazine. The pistol is, I believe, in 95-98% condition. Can you guys help me out with the age of this pistol? Serial number on the frame is 242892A.

P38 Presentation Grade P38 includes French-Fitted, Velvet Lined, Walnut Presentation Case serially numbered to match the P38, with serial numbered Knights Cross and Owner’s Manual matching the P-38 serial number. Walther: The AP-serie. The ArmeePistole (army pistol) was the very first prototype/predecessor of the P38 and was already produced in 1935 by Walther in small quantities (highest serial number known is 55). This pistol had a concealed hammer and extractor.

The serial number on the slide is the same without the A suffix. Is the letter at the end of the serial number significant This seems to be a really well made pistol and I am looking forward to shooting it this Saturday. What are your opinions of the PPK, since I am a Walther neophite.

Info and feed back on this site is usually very good. I am anxious to get all the info I can on this pistol. Regards, Gary. Programma dlya vzloma igr odnoklassnikov. Gary, can't help with the serial number, but if it was proof tested in Germany there might be a proof mark and date code on the pistol. On the SIGs and HKs the date code is two characters (A-K).

I have an Interarms US made PPK/S which I really like. I can get 3.5' groups at 25 yards with it, which is pretty impressive for such a small sight radius.

I have a CZ 83 that is even more accurate, but a lot bigger. The.380 is a lot of fun to shoot.

It is cheap and the blowback guns recoil like a bigger caliber. Hi Guys, Thanks for the response. The markings on the left side of the pistol are as follows: Carl Walther Waffenfabrik Ulm/Do. Walther Banner Modell PPK Cal. 9mm Kurz Made In W. Germany Right side of pistol: Slide Serial Number 242982 Interarms Alexandria Virginia Some kind of bird with an N beneath it (please pardon my ignorance) Frame Bird with N again IA and something that looks like a toothed sword (?) Serial number 242982A Barrel has the bird with N also You folks are very kind to take your time with this subject. Hope this is helpful.

I have a pre-1968 ppk, post 1968 ppk (both 380) and a ppk/s in 22lr. They are an absolute joy to shoot. I admit I don't shoot the pre-68 at all. I have had no modifications to them and they function just fine.

If I could I would get a suppressor for the 22 lr. I saw one in Las Vegas and it was sweet. But I live in California so its a no go.

Anyway, enjoy the purchase. One of the USPSA clubs I shoot at had a pocket pistol side match.

It was a blast to shoot and try to reload quickly. Spare mags, parts, holsters are all over the place. There is a Walther forum somewhere you could join as well.

Walther and Luger were the handgun providers to the German Army in World War II. Designed by Fritz Walther, Walther pistols were well-designed, reliable 9-mm firearms that were cheaper to produce than the Luger P08. Although Walther designed and manufactured the P38, Mauser and Spreewerke also produced them to keep up with wartime demand. Production of the P38 ended with the war. However, in 1957, Walther manufactured a similar pistol, called the P1.

Walther Pp Serial Numbers Lookup

Although there are specifics to look for, depending on the manufacturer, the P38 is an easily identifiable firearm. • Examine the P-38. With the pistol pointing to your left, look at the main metal assembly holding the barrel, with the trigger directly underneath. On the extreme left, 'P38' is stamped into the metal. On the first issue, or '0' series, the trademark Walther banner is found at the extreme left, immediately followed by 'P38.' • Locate the manufacturer codes.

Walther Serial Numbers Lookup

After the P38 designation, an alpha, or alpha-numeric stamped designation is found. All Walther-produced P38s are designated AC, followed by the final two digits of the year manufactured.

A 1943 Walther P38 is identified by AC43. Mauser-produced P38s were stamped BYF. Followed by the date, while Spreewerke models were stamped either CYQ or CVQ. Artistic anatomy by dr paul richer pdf.

• Measure and weigh the P-38. Using a machinist's ruler and a small scale, measure and weigh the P38. According to Wehrmacht-Awards, the P38 is 216 millimeters long, with a barrel length of 125 millimeters.

An unloaded P38 should weigh 800g, or 1.76 pounds. • Identify the serial numbers. After the manufacturer stamping, the serial numbers are stamped to the right of the pistol, above the handle. Each year and manufacturer had a different serial number system. The first-issue P38s in 1940 had serial numbers that ranged from 01 to 01000. However, 1943 models ranged from 1 to 9999n.