DWM was not very consistent in their early i suffix artillery Luger assembly configurations, as pictured are two other early i suffix Artillery Lugers, 45i assembled with a 2-line Stoeger AE crested spare receiver and 497i also with a 2-line Stoeger AE crested spare receiver. In both guns, regarding the adjustable rear sight, the opposite machining approach was taken, where a step has been added to the receiver, rather than modifying the underside of the adjustable rear sight, such as 246i to accommodate the artillery barrel rear sight, with both receivers being pre ww1 war spares. This difference is very unusual considering/assuming these guns were assembled, by DWM, within months or weeks of each other. The provenance of 246i is impeccable, being part of a DWM Stoeger marked, cased importer assembly.

Also attached is a photo of the rear sight of three-line Stoeger lP.08 1183v, which has similar 2 digit serial number markings on the leaf and bed as 94182, but which has a stepped (blank) Artillery spare receiver and unmodified rear sight.

In review of the complete configurations of 45i, 246i and 497i, it is determined that the only original artillery Luger part of the complete assembles is the barrel with Stoeger 2-line stamped AE chamber crested receivers, being 45i and 497i or plain crested 2-line Stoeger receiver 246i. No original artillery blank chamber receivers have been identified with the forward chamber step in the early two and three-digit serial number i-suffix range, which tend to be 2-line Stoegers. This is also the case with early two and three-digit i-suffix, non-Stoeger Artillery Luger blank chamber, no-step receivers. All of the cited Artillery Lugers used modified P.08 rear links. Included in this mix is the subject 94182 Gesichert/Geladen Artillery Luger and perhaps 90715 Safe/Loaded Artillery Luger pictured in Luger Variations by Harry Jones on page 289, although it appears to use a plain, no chamber stepped receiver.

An explanation for the configuration for the above described early i-suffix 2-line Stoeger artillery Lugers, plain or AE chamber stamped is obvious, with pre WWI AE chamber stamped receivers, being made-up by DWM for Stoeger using standard, new manufacture Safe/Loaded P.08 frames and toggle link assemblies. Later circa 1925 vertical C/N commercial proofed Artillery Lugers did use the three unique Luger parts made specifically for the military Artillery Lugers, that is the stepped receiver, the special rear link without the integral “v” notch rear sight and the obvious 200mm long artillery barrel. Even then the rear link can be a GERMANY import stamped spare as in vertical C/N proofed Artillery Luger 2504h.

Sturgess states: I think this tends to confirm that 94182 was made up with the modified sight and proofed by DWM as a two-line gun around the same time as the -i suffix was introduced into production ca 1922, but retained by the factory and not shipped to Stoeger until the mid-1930s by Mauser. The serial number would appear to be an irregular number out of the production sequence, as is 246i, allocated by DWM to Stoeger guns during the changeover period (from 5 digit to -i suffix, probably at 92000 - 2001i) for unknown reasons, though this may be linked to concealment of production date as the Versailles restrictions were being enforced, since several of the Stoeger guns in this irregular range are of then illegal calibre or barrel length.

Evidently, for unknown reasons, the full number was not applied to the frame and barrel until the gun was finished with the third-line of the Stoeger inscription and shipped by Mauser, as shown by the "pantographed" style numerals introduced by Mauser in their military and commercial production in 1936.

I have no doubt that the gun is genuine despite its evidently convoluted production history, all the curious features being explicable by comparison with other pistols of the period 1922 - 1936, and is fairly typical of the mixed characteristics found in many of the Stoeger pistols which are not standard production 7.65/98 mm variants.

The frame has been identified to be a spare, manufactured in 1917 based on the forward lug well factory inspection marks as identified in The Borchardt & Luger Pistols by Görtz/Sturgess, Chapter 9 – Proof and Inspectors’ Marks, page 576, titled; Table 9/11 Internal Inspection markings and additionally by the coarse, wire brush finish of the rear cam ramp Thumb Safety recess, typical of the declining machining quality of 1917 – 1918 manufactured Lugers, DWM and Erfurt, although the early 1930s overall quality bluing of the 94182 stamped frame is superior to the war time finish.  The vertical C/N toggle link assembly is original to the frame, based on the identical font size and style of the last 2-digits of the breechblock, the rear link, trigger, frame and barrel serial numbers.

In addition, since the 82 stamped rear link originally had an integral “V” notch fixed rear sight,the original assembly was for a standard 98mm 30 Cal barrel and not an LP.08 or P.04 assembly, furthermore, since the application of the serial numbers are the last steps of assembly, prior to bluing, the gun was a total in-the-white, vertical C/N nitro proofed assembly, assuming a spare original, non-Stoeger marked receiver and probably new, 98mm 30 Cal barrel, both serialized to the 94182 frame, which is possibly a contradiction, assuming the third-line frame rail stamping was applied to the frame rail, prior to bluing. To make this scenario work, the frame serial number and frame rail stamping would have had to be applied to the frame prior to bluing, and based on the frame rail stamping, 1930 or later. Furthermore, both the original receiver, barrel and small parts, it has to assumed, would have had to have been also un-serialized^[2] to maintain the integrity and originality of the original unassembled components.

A very small font size 82 is located on the top rear of the graduated sight and on the sight bed, coincidently, being the last two-digits of the five-digit serial number 941(82), mentioned earlier, apparently, original. The 94182 serial number is 2377 numbers above the highest noted serial number of 91805, which is not unusual for this last series of five-digit serial numbers as there are other wide gaps or blocks of missing or unreported serial numbers above 80000, being 83508 – 85291 or 2233 and 83058 – 85291 or 3415. Published in a 2008 Luger Forum data base of serial numbers 94182 is identified with, incredibly, two other higher serial numbers, being 96069 and 96080.

Additionally, the bizarre configuration of 94182 with a spare DWM 1917 P.08 frame and spare 1917 – 1918 DWM Artillery barrel, both with a DWM/BKIW applied vertical C/N proof, is not that unusual when compared against an early 2061i-suffix gun, purportedly, only 61 guns after the end of the 5-digit post-war commercial series, again purportedly assembled after 94182 in the 1919 – 1922 time frame, yet using a pre-war long frame grip safety frame with a long frame, lazy C/N proofed Swiss crested receiver and lazy C/N proofed 3-⅝-inch, 30 Cal barrel. Interestingly, The Luger and Automatic Pistols by Görtz/Sturgess states on page 531 that; The commercial crown/N proof marks continued unchanged, though the mark on the bolt,(receiver) if present, was frequently applied vertically to –i suffix guns. This not always the case as the initial application of the vertical C/N proof was random and not necessarily sequential as demonstrated by 74i and 2061i, as with two other identically configured long frame Swiss commercials 2381i and 2751i having a vertical C/N receiver proofs.