Hi,

Picked up a restored 9mm P08 shooter at the gunshow over the weekend and I'm having a problem with it.

When you fire the gun it will eject the fired casing into the lower atmosphere and re-cock it's self. but it won't strip, or feed the next cartridge. Next trigger pull is a click instead of a bang.

The pistol never stovepipes or jams. it always ejects the fired case. It will never pick up the next round in the magazine.

It strips and feeds fine by hand. I've cycled a full magazine by hand through the gun with no problems.  

The main spring has 19 coils on it, and the firing pin spring has 18 coils.

The magazine is a post war East German magazine with a good spring in it.

I've fired 115 gr Perfecta ball, 115 gr MKE ball, 115 Tul Ammo (made by Fiocchi) ball, and a single round of 135 gr +P Hornady Critical Duty  

I have pushed up on the magazine while firing the gun and pulled down on it. Nothing changes it's behavior.

I've taken it apart, and cleaned it well. Mechanically I see no reason that it isn't stripping the next cartridge out of the magazine or locking the toggle back on last round.

Any ideas?

Try a Mecgar magazine and report back.

I'm wondering if the recoil spring needs to be replaced. Strikes me as consistent with ejecting empties into the lower atmosphere. May be cycling too fast to pick up a new cartridge.  

There's a trick where you put a piece of masking tape on the back of the Luger just above the lanyard attachment loop. If the toggle leaves a mark on that piece of tape under recoil the spring needs to be replaced.

If your recoil spring is weak you risk cracking components of the toggle.

AND get a Mecgar magazine as already mentioned.

Got a Mec-Gar on order.

And I think you're on to something because it's left a scuff on the metal under the toggle at the rear. no other luger I've ever had has done this.

Is Wolff still the go to for springs? and how do I change it out? I've never had the main spring out of a Luger before.

Changing the recoil spring on a Luger is best done with a specialized tool. Personally I'd have it done by someone who knows what they're doing. If you're committed to doing it yourself look on LugerForum and similar sites for instructions.

And that scuff does indeed make it look like a new spring is in order.

I keep hoping Thor340 will see your thread and weigh in. Thor really knows his Lugers, I'm just faking it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PjIXIielj8Q

Doesn't look too difficult. Almost looks like he made the tool out of an old Awl.

I feel confident that I can get it in and out myself.

My WWII wartime Luger had the same problem with one of it's two magazines.  After disassembly the problem became obvious, the magazine spring was in backwards.  Not top to bottom wise, but front to back.  The spring is built to put the open end of it to the front.  Since this pistol looks like it has seen little use and the magazine did not look as though it had even been taken apart, I can only conclude that perhaps a little manufacturing sabotage by slave labor took place trying to help the allied cause.

That's what I would write in the auction listing too!