Make: Spreewerk

Model: P.38

Serial Number: 5494a

Year of Manufacture: 1943

Caliber: 9mm Parabellum

Action Type: Single or Double Action Semi-Auto with Removable Magazine. This pistol has a de-cocker lever.

Barrel Length: 5"

Sights / Optics: The front sight is a blade dovetailed to a boss at the front of the barrel. The rear sight is a "U"-notch dovetailed to the slide.

Stock Configuration & Condition: The grips are brown serrated AEG production panels. The grips have some minor nicks, scuffs and scratches. The right panel has a crack in the rear edge at the corner of the backstrap. The serrations are well defined. Overall, the grips are in Good-plus condition.

Type of Finish: Blued

Finish Originality: Original. The slide, frame, barrel and locking block are serial-matching.

Bore Condition: The bore is gray with well defined rifling. There is scattered erosion and pitting in the bore. In this writer's opinion, the bore rates 5/10.

Overall Condition: This pistol retains about 85% of its metal finish. The finish is thinning at all edges. The grip areas show handling wear. There is infrequent other scattered more minor wear. There is some minor oxidation in the grip areas. There are scattered light nicks, scuffs and scratches. The action shows operational wear. The screw head is sharp. The markings are clear. Overall, this pistol is in Very Good condition.

Mechanics: The action functions correctly. We did not fire this pistol. As with all used firearms, a thorough cleaning may be necessary to meet your maintenance standards.

Box, Paperwork & Accessories: This pistol comes with a single 8-round eagle/135 Mauser production magazine.

Our Assessment: Walther's P38 occupies a significant place in history. It was the first locked breech pistol to have a single action/double action trigger. After the start of WWII, Walther could not keep up with the production required, and production was expanded in 1942 to Mauser and Spreewerk. During the war, the German code for Spreewerk appeared to change from cyq to cvq, and this has sparked much discussion as to whether not there was actually a code change or if the stamp was just worn out, and the tail of the "y" no longer present.

This pistol was made in early 1943, and has a properly struck cyq code. It shows the nicer finish and proper stampings typical production before the walls started to close in on the Reich. The pistol shows some wear in its finish, retaining strong mechanics and a decent bore. It has AEG production grips, proper for this early 1943 pistol. This is a neat find for the P38 collector, and would make a good addition to any collection of WWII P38s. Please see our photos and good luck!