Tell me about Baby Lugers

[MatthewVanitas]

Just some idle pondering. What's the deal with the Erma .380 and .32ACP Lugers?

They're 1960s or '70s invention, not an reproduction of any early Luger product, right?

Are they proper toggle-style pistols, or are they just blowbacks with a toggle-piece for show?

I once had a Stoeger .22LR "Luger", but it bore little resemblance to a Luger. It didn't even look or feel properly Lugerish, had strange proportions and balance, and was just a blowback in disguise. Sold it to a THR member who was apparently quite happy with it though.

Are these little Ermas a notably better product?

EDIT: While I'm here, does anyone have info on the various chopped/shortened Luger conversions, like the LugerMan convert done below? These run about $900 on your gun, so certainly not cheap. Cute little things though, provided they're made from mismatch or parts guns.

 

[Ric]

Neil Keller at Kustom Ballistics makes baby lugers. I highly recommend him.

http://www.kustom-ballistics.com/

 

[Michael Zeleny]

Lugers tend to work much better with longer and heavier barrels.

ERMA Luger information is here.

 

[MatthewVanitas]

Neil Keller at Kustom Ballistics makes baby lugers. I highly recommend him.

http://www.kustom-ballistics.com/

I've seen his site, as well as Lugerman's. Most cool, and both run about $1000 for a conversion.

Even a mismatching commercial parts Luger (which could also be modified with clean consience) would run around $600, yes? So it'd be a $1,500 project with even a basic black finish.

Not saying that I wouldn't ever do it, but not something I can do on a whim.

That's kind of why I was thinking of getting a .380 Erma (if I could find a good all-steel one) to "test the waters" and see how I like it.


EDIT: Man, somebody out there has way too much cash burning a hole in his pocket, and I salute him for his vision:



That's about as cool as the Hamilton Bowen conversion of a S&W 36 to .25ACP in moonclips.