P.38
The P.38 itself was introduced as a direct replacement for Germany's then somewhat obsolete P.08 "Luger" pistol. While the Luger was a fairly nice handgun, it did have a tendency to not perform as reliably as one might like in less-than-ideal battlefield conditions. Before we really get into things, though, let's take a look at the P.38 as it would appear when holstered.
Here we see a black, leather holster. Though it looks quite similar to the original that housed the firearm we'll be taking a look at, I should make note that this holster is a reproduction. Very good quality on its materials, however: it has gone on hunting trips before and has held up quite well. Anyway, let's take a look at it and see what's inside.
Upon opening the holster, we see two things. The first is the grip of a handgun, and the second is a little pouch sewn into the front. That pouch holds a magazine, so we'll take a quick look at it before moving on.
As stated, the pouch for the spare magazine is sewn right into the holster itself. There are two ways to put the magazine in its pouch. The first way is by having the floorplate facing "in" the holster, thereby making the floorplate of the magazine sit a bit lower in the pouch. The second method is having the floorplate facing "out" of the holster. This is preferred as it lets you drag your finger up the side of the pouch, snagging the front of the floorplate. This, in turn, enables you to pull the magazine up and out of the pouch, position it in the hand as needed, and perform a reload of the pistol. Speaking of which, let's see the handgun that's in the holster.
Here we see what was inside: that P.38 handgun we've been discussing. We also see the magazine that was in the pouch outside of it and now laying by the handgun. I will make note that that particular magazine is a post-war P1 magazine. As you can see, it has witness holes (as do war-time) showing the number of rounds present. Its capacity is eight rounds. You will also notice that the P.38 has a "heel" release or "European" magazine release located at the bottom-rear of the grip. This is simply pressed back while pulling down on the magazine to remove a magazine from the firearm. To put a magazine into the firearm, complete a subtle "rocking" motion with the magazine to push the release button/floorplate catch out of the way before inserting said magazine.
What's the easiest way to check the P.38's chamber? Take a look above the hammer. What we see here is a loaded chamber indicator. When a cartridge is present in the chamber, it presses rearward on a long, spring-loaded pin that serves as our visual indicator. As you can see, the firearm has a round in the chamber.
It is also worth noting that the spring on the LCI can sometimes bind. I have had mine do so before, giving a "false positive" on a loaded chamber: the pin was always showing the weapon as loaded. To correct this, you have to remove the top plate of the slide. It is quite a chore in itself, and there was no way I was going to perform that task outside. I recommend doing the task indoors where you will not lose any parts or springs, and also take note of how it's done multiple times before attempting. If installed incorrectly, the slide cover can launch itself off of the handgun when fired.
It is also worth noting that the spring on the LCI can sometimes bind. I have had mine do so before, giving a "false positive" on a loaded chamber: the pin was always showing the weapon as loaded. To correct this, you have to remove the top plate of the slide. It is quite a chore in itself, and there was no way I was going to perform that task outside. I recommend doing the task indoors where you will not lose any parts or springs, and also take note of how it's done multiple times before attempting. If installed incorrectly, the slide cover can launch itself off of the handgun when fired.
Here now we see the firearm with its slide locked to the rear. You may also note that the safety is in the "on" position. As you can tell, regardless of safety location, the slide can be manipulated. Let's move the slide back forward, but for the purposes of this album, we'll do so slowly.
What happened here? The slide stopped moving forward, but the gun looks a little "off." Here's why: the P.38 utilizes a drop-hammer/decocking safety. The safety, when rotated, moves a firing pin block into place and also disengages the sear from the hammer, allowing it to fall forward. If you ride the slide forward, you can get an out-of-battery slide, as seen here.
If that happens, simply push the slide forward with your thumb, being careful not to get it in the way of the hammer. However, do keep in mind that this is very old technology, and, in the case of many models, very old materials. If your firing pin block breaks at some point, the drop-hammer safety can become one of the least-safe parts of the handgun. If you drop the hammer on "safe," and the firing pin block is broken, you will basically get the handgun equivalent of a slamfire. Since the hammer falls forward each time with the slide due to the safety being on, you will empty an entire magazine in this fashion. Easiest way to avoid this rare but dangerous occurrence is as follows: chamber the weapon on "fire" and keep your thumb on the hammer when placing it on "safe." You can then ride the hammer home. It is also worth noting that, at least on this model, the safety is very hard to turn "on" with the hammer back in its natural resting position and you have to hyper-extend it slightly and hold it with your thumb while manipulating the safety.
You may have also noticed in the previous photo that the trigger was rearward. That is not its usual resting place. When the firearm has been cycled and placed on "safe," the hammer drops, but the trigger does not reset. Anyway here we see the firearm on "fire." As you can tell, the hammer stays forward as the weapon can be fired in double-action. This made the P.38 the first locked-breech design that was DA/SA, and was also the first full-sized DA/SA semi-automatic handgun to be issued to any military.
Here we see the hammer back, safety set to "fire." This shows the weapon in single-action: take note of the trigger's position once more. As you can see, it has moved back from the double-action position as one might expect.
Now we turn the safety "on." As you can once again see, the hammer is forward, but the trigger has remained in the rearward position. When in this position, the trigger cannot be pulled further rearward and the hammer is stationary. However, if you flick the pistol over to "fire" and then back to "safe," thereby resetting the trigger, you can do something else with the handgun.
I, personally, return the weapon to "fire" after decocking, and then back to "safe" as to reset the trigger. I'm not a big fan of having the trigger be in two different spots while manipulating the safety after drawing the weapon from the holster. Doesn't make a functional difference, of course, but it's something I do. I have also noticed something else you can do while the weapon is on "safe" with a reset trigger: you can pull it. When pulling the trigger on "safe" from the DA resting position, the hammer moves. However, you can only pull the trigger back to just in front of where it would rest in single-action. This also places the hammer just shy of the double-action sear's disconnect, so no matter how hard you pull the trigger, what you see here will be the end result. Trigger back, hammer back, but nothing is being fired. As you release the trigger, the hammer will fall forward at the same pace.
Moving on from the safety, we see the sole control on the frame near the firing hand's thumb. It is the slide stop, and it's actually placed in a great location. It is very easy to manipulate with the thumb of the firing hand whether you be release the slide or manually locking it back. It shares a pin with the trigger, and it is spring-loaded.
While on the topic of the slide, I'll go ahead and point out two things. Here we see the pistol's extractor, and as you can see, it is on the left-hand side of the pistol. This causes the P.38 to eject spent casings to the left of the firer. What you'll also notice is a peg in the face of the slide itself. This peg is the spring-loaded chamber indicator. When a round sits in the slide/chamber, it has pushed this pin behind it. When pushed rearwards, we see it extending from the rear of the slide, just above the hammer.
Since every firearm is made to be shot, let's take a look at the sights. This is the front sight of the handgun, and it is what is used to zero it. Since it sits in a dovetail, it can be adjusted for windage. To adjust for elevation, front sights of varying heights (numbered) were produced. The pistol was then given the appropriate front sight and zeroed before being issued.
The rear sight is pretty basic, however. It is also is held in place by the slide cover. In order to remove/replace the rear sight, you will need to disassemble the slide. You'll also want to have eye protection, most likely, as there is a spring underneath the rear sight.
Here's a photo of the sight picture as you'd see the handgun in single-action mode. The sight picture is pretty basic, but not too hard to pick up. Some individuals have painted the rear sights yellow and the front sight red (Walther did this with some of its PP/PPKs), but for the most part, I have had no problems with the sights as they are. The P.38 was my first 9mm handgun (still is, as far as 'x19mm is concerned), and was also the first handgun I showed some accuracy with naturally. Now that I am practiced in firing a handgun, I imagine it would perform better for me now than it did before. That said, my P.38 has a tendency to shoot low, and to my understanding, most do. Since this is more of a collection piece than it is a shooter (even if it is mismatched), that doesn't bother me enough to worry about fixing it.
Since we haven't seen it yet, here is a photo of the handgun from the right-hand side. The only things worth pointing out, honestly, are the proof stamps on the slide. Since this is a Spreewerk piece, you will noticed it has two "E/88"s (Eagle over 88) and a standard "E/S" (Eagle over Swastika). This was the inspection code for Spreewerk, while the E/S was found on all P.38s in Nazi German service, regardless of manufacturer.