Ticked off another bucket list item: MAB D

-The bucket list got another item struck off of it last weekend with the acquisition of a German issue French MAB Model D in 7.65mm. Had almost given up hope of finding a decent example at the same time that prices for this neat little French pistol started to take off after nearly a decade of languishing in the $400-$500 range.
-Found it in a Florida auction where chaos was the word of the day. But in-house bidding was weak and online competition was mostly dealers. There were two killer deals that stood out in my memory. A Kriegsmarine marked Mauser 1934 that hammered @ $550. Condition was a bit weak at 80-85 points but it was genuine and selling for nearly 60% of market with the stiff 18% vig. The other item that got my attention was another slightly rough WWII German issue Steyr Hahn that hammered for the same $550.
-The MAB ended up selling to me for about $100-200 under market so I'm very pleased. And condition is very good. Esp. the plastic grips which have a well earned reputation for shrinking and cracking in the process. SN on this one puts it in the last thousand built under German occupation (SN range approx. from 47000 to 97000). Probably explains the better than normally found condition. I found a photo of a MAB that JTD sold a dozen yrs ago over on Gun Auction that shows off the WaAD20 German inspection mark.
-While waiting for the MAB to ship I started to poke around for a holster. Spent hours searching with no luck when I got the idea to head for the holster bin. I had a dim memory of buying a lot with two German holsters back in 2013. One was a HSc holster but wasn't able to ID the 2nd holster at the time. Paid only $75 for the lot so I wasn't too concerned at the time. Pulled out the mystery holster and bingo, it's a proper German issue MAB holster! The WAA020 inspection mark is all but worn away, you really have to look hard for it. But it's the right mate for the MAB. Damn, I've been on a crazy streak of luck with holsters lately.
-Auction photos for now as the FFL handling the transfer and shipping sounded like it'll be weeks before I'll see it.

Wow, that looks awfully nice... that's a great deal even after the onerous vig.
You almost never see intact grips nowadays!

An E/L Steyr Hahn at $550 is crazy low, unless it was boogered up (see a lot that have been force-matched or butchered post-war)

somd_mustangs said:

Wow, that looks awfully nice... that's a great deal even after the onerous vig.
You almost never see intact grips nowadays!

An E/L Steyr Hahn at $550 is crazy low, unless it was boogered up (see a lot that have been force-matched or butchered post-war)

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Actually the worst of it was finish wear and even that wasn't all that bad. I feel like a doof because I passed on making a play for it because a nicer example was coming up in a Central PA auction the following weekend (yesterday to be exact). That example blew out the door at over $1K with the vig. A nice Belgian pre-war tangent sight Hi Power sold at the same PA auction for $2K OTD. I was considering driving up to attend live, mask and all, but when I saw pre-auction online bidding levels I decided otherwise. Glad I did because that auction was a blood-bath. I can usually ID dealers and in this auction there were none coming out on top when the hammer dropped. The online bidding service used has a neat feature in that they ID the city and state of a bidder so I'm able to get a good feel for who's who. That auction had a lot of local PA bidders online. Not the usual lineup.

Very nice MAB! You sure did luck out with the grips being so nice, as you said most are pretty bad. I have an earlier WaA251 Model D and the grips are so warped I only have the grip screws in about 1/4 of the way out of fear of them cracking if I tighten them any further. You don’t see the later WaAD20 marked examples like yours pop up all that often so that is a great find, and icing on the cake that you already had the correct holster!

Great find! I’ve been meaning to move mine to make some more room. Good to know there is still a demand for these pieces


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Looks good! I’ve been looking for a German Issued one since I sold my post-war example.

Nice pistols to shoot.

Nice specimen!

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-She finally arrived today after nearly a month (FFL screw-up). Even nice than the auction photos showed. Found a spare German issue mag up on Evil Pay to fill up the holster, which BTW is a perfect fit so it's the right leather indeed.

Jolly good show!

tough to find one of these in such good shape, glad it turned out so well.

Very cool find Sir!