.30 Luger hanguns...

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whm1974

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So I just read the Wikipedia entry for the .30 Luger:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/7.65×21mm_Parabellum
Well I didn't know that the Ruger P series was available in this Caliber. Did the company sell a lot of them?

A few ammo vendors I checked has this for ~$.50 and round... I would stick to 9mm and .45 ACP thank you very much...

Anyone here own any pistols chambered for this?
 
whm1974 said:
Anyone here own any pistols chambered for this?
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Almost...

I saw a P89 at the LGS with both barrels for something like $250. The guy already standing at the counter attracted the employee's attention and asked to see it. Unfortunately, the "I'll take it" quickly erupted from his mouth...
 
NIGHTLORD40K said:
A handfull of early Sig P220s were chambered in .30 luger too, IIRC.

Some European and S.American countries prohibited civilians from owning 9mm handguns because it was considered a military chambering, so .30 Luger and .38 Super were offered for those markets.
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Yeah I gotten that from Wikipedia... A ~90 grain something grain bullet on its way at ~1200 fps doesn't look like a pipsqueak at all... How well does this do against an attacker with maybe a double tap?
 
IIRC, Ruger did not specifically sell guns in 7.65mm Parabellum / 30 Luger. What they did was sell guns with two barrels - one in 9mm Luger and the other in 30 Luger. The magazine could handle both calibers, and I forget if a different recoil spring was needed. Probably not.

I don't know why Ruger did this, because 30 Luger has never been a big deal in this country. I have a Benelli B-76 series pistol chambered for it, and it is very accurate, but the lack of hollow-point ammunition means it is not really useful as a defensive weapon for a non-handloader like me. (Fiocchi used to sell jacketed soft point 30 Luger ammo, but that doesn't help, AFAIK.)

PS - Fiocchi 30 Luger worked fine in my Benelli.
 
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I have a German Sig P220 in .38 Super +P and I would not swap it for one in .30 Luger.

7.62X25mm Tokarev is my handgun cartridge choice for < 100 grain bullets at > 1000 fps, with 7.63mm Mauser the first runner up.
 
whm1974 said:
Yeah I gotten that from Wikipedia... A ~90 grain something grain bullet on its way at ~1200 fps doesn't look like a pipsqueak at all... How well does this do against an attacker with maybe a double tap?
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It's not terrible, but you can do better with an ammo that doesn't cost as much.
 
whm1974 said:
That is a bit bit strange for well known ammo company offer ammo that is under-powered ti fail to function in a common pistol...
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I haven't had the chance to shoot this Luger yet and I do hope it will function with the Fiocchi I have (around 800 or so rounds came with the Luger), but should I run into issues as I've read about, I'll give PPU a try.
 
I have a P08 Luger in 30 Luger. The 30 Luger barrel looks pristine. It came wearing a 9mm barrel with non-matching number. I was a little skeptical about the 9mm barrel when I bought it at a gun show about 30 years ago but the seller assured me it would shoot 9mm without and problems. I got good vibes from the seller that he wasn't full of it. Sure enough it is very reliable in 9mm and I have shot hundreds of rounds of 9mm without issue.

Some day it would be fun to shoot 30 Luger out of it. The 30 Luger barrel number matches the numbers on the rest of the gun. According to the seller it is a simple matter of unscrewing the 9mm barrel and screwing in the 30 barrel. I would probably cut a block set for my barrel vise and some blocks for my receiver wrench if I ever decide to give the 30 barrel a try.
 
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Monac said:
IIRC, Ruger did not specifically sell guns in 7.65mm Parabellum / 30 Luger. What they did was sell guns with two barrels - one in 9mm Luger and the other in 30 Luger. The magazine could handle both calibers, and I forget if a different recoil spring was needed. Probably not.

I don't know why Ruger did this, because 30 Luger has never been a big deal in this country. I have a Benelli B-76 series pistol chambered for it, and it is very accurate, but the lack of hollow-point ammunition means it is not really useful as a defensive weapon for a non-handloader like me. (Fiocchi used to sell jacketed soft point 30 Luger ammo, but that doesn't help, AFAIK.)

PS - Fiocchi 30 Luger worked fine in my Benelli.
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They did for exporting to countries that don't their citizen to have current military calibers...

I wonder if HP are available in those countries?
 
whm1974 said:
They did for exporting to countries that don't their citizen to have current military calibers...

I wonder if HP are available in those countries?
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Sure, but Ruger sold them here too. Did they just make too many for the foreign markets?

I have to believe that if 30 Luger hollow points were factory loaded anywhere, they would be for sale in the US. We are the big market for that kind of thing.
 
How well did the simplfied .22 LR Lugers sell here in the US when they were still being made?
 
Most of .30 Luger (7,65 Parabellum) pistols have been made or re-chambered for the italian market. The list is pretty long.
HK P9S
Browning HP35
Beretta 92
Beretta 52
SIG-Sauer P220
Bernardelli P One and similar
S&W 59 and similar
Astra 400
Steyr 1912
Tanfoglio T95 and similar
pre war and post war Lugers
Astra A80 and A90
Benelli B80 and similar
Walter P38
many Star pistols
Ruger P series
Lathi and Husqvarna
and the list goes on and on.
Virtually every 9x19 pistol made has been chambered in .30 Luger for the italian market until at least the end of the eighties.
 
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I have the Ruger and some Lugers in 30 Luger. Fiocchi sells soft points. I have an old box of Winchester with tiny hollow points. Both the Ruger and the Luger have two different recoil springs for 9 mm vs 7.65 mm. For some reason that baffles me, Winchester and Fiocchi both under load the cartridge. SAMMI specs it at lower pressure, CIP specs both 9 mm and 7.65 mm at the same pressure. Winchester claims 1220 fps from a 4.5" barrel, the original DWM spec. The air over my chronograph is VERY thick. I cannot get the Winchester up to 1200 fps for even a single shot, let alone an average, from a 6" barrel. The Winchester stuff will just barely cycle the Ruger.
 
I've got a 1923 Commercial Luger in .30 Luger, but I reload for it, so no help with commercial ammo.

Mine runs reliably on 90 grn Berrys plated .312 bullets at 1035FPS, which isn't particularly hot. Unfortunately no one's making 90 grain plated .312s anymore so I've got to find another bullet.
 
I find the .30 Luger fascinating which seems strange because the .30 Mauser/Tokarev does nothing for me.
I just tell myself that if I want a 93 grain bullet at 1250 fps, I should just load some .380 bullets in 9mm P. And don't look too closely at the advertisements.

I likewise get kind of goofy over 9mm Browning Long. I once saw an ad for barrels and thought about getting one to rehabilitate one of the FN or Husqvarnas munged up into .380 but the guns were already priced out of the plinker market.
 
I have a bit of a fetish for the 7.65 Luger, which predated the 9mmx19 . I have the same 1900 American Eagle one as shown above which I inherited from a long deceased uncle who got it from his cousin who with her husband took it down the coast from San Diego to Chile in a rather large Sea going Kayak they built for the two year long trip. I have the book they wrote about it some where , unless someone took it I have lost track. They used that Luger for foraging and defense in the mid 1930s and kept it wrapped in an "oilskin waterproof pouch" along with two extra magazines and three boxes of hollowpoint ammo . I have shot the gun, it is in NRA "fair" shape and I will leave it to my son when I am gone. I have an NRA Very good "commercial" .30 Luger with a short 3 1/2" barrel made after WW1 from left over DWM parts that shoot very well with the rather large stash of Fiocchi and reloaded Winchester ammo I have. I bought 3 new Mecgar magazines which feed flawlessly, my three total original mags are not flawless feeders the two with the family gun quite worn and the 1921 one also weak sprung , they have old wooden bottom pieces tho :)
I really like the .30 Luger because the bottle neck cases feed flawlessly with a halfway decent magazine, something my other Martial 9mm Lugers I had did not do with anything except some German ball. Yes I loaded hollow point and cast for my .30 Lugers and the bottleneck case just gobbles them all! I used to have a Broom handle .30 Mauser and a CZ52 and Tok 7.62, all sold off recently.They were fun but not mellow fun like the 7.65Luger is and not near as accurate ! Last Month I lost the bid on a pristine in box Model 39-2 S&W with German proofs in 7.65, I wanted that ! I quit bidding at $1099 , it sold for $1199 ! I do have an extra 7.65 barrel for Browning HP that fits my Practical very well and is more accurate than the 9mm barrel , yes I do put in a 14 pound recoil spring when I use it, but thats it ! I mentioned I keep my eye out for a P89 Ruger, and missed a few at a good low price.
For us old guys shooting the little pop gun .30 Luger is a hoot and they are extremely accurate from my experieces. I think a .32 on steroids like they are would work as defensive, my relatives thought so too :)
 
Snowdog said:
I haven't had the chance to shoot this Luger yet and I do hope it will function with the Fiocchi I have (around 800 or so rounds came with the Luger), but should I run into issues as I've read about, I'll give PPU a try.
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A drop of oil on top of a loaded magazine may help if recoil of these loads is insufficient to function the gun. Do not do it if the gun will function without it.
 
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