Somebody Say "Grey Ghost" ? (P.38)

[somd_mustangs]

In the recent P1 SOG thread, Mawkie posted this:

WWII vintage P38s are steel construction and pretty bullet proof.... There are some post war P38s like the French built "Grey Ghosts" but they're very much in the collectors category these days.

which inspired me to dig out a few that haven't seen the light of day for a little while (left to right):

1) SVW46 "K" block (Interarms import)
2) SVW45 "K" block (Interarms import) with police "Circled Flaming Grenade" mark
3) SVW45 "H" block, non-import and a good example of finish, etc.
4) SVW45 "G" block, non-import, light German phosphate finish and late-war Mauser grips
5) SVW45 "D" block, non-import. This one is very interesting, technically not a "ghost" as it is all blued - which is pretty rare for SVW45's. It has all the proper Waffenamp markings (acceptance/proof), PLUS the French star on the slide, barrel & locking block. The French typically didn't over-strike the slide markings with the star when the German proofs were present.

For those wondering where the term "Grey Ghost" comes from, the pistol was an overall matte grey due to a heavy phosphate finish on all parts, including the stamped steel grips. These were assembled by the French (illegally - sacre bleu!) in the captured Mauser factory using existing parts (mostly leftover factory rejects) and new parts manufactured with the Mauser tooling. After much bitching and moaning by the Russkies that the French were illegally manufacturing firearms in Germany (which of course was true), the French grabbed all the tooling and machinery they could and beat feet to Manhurin. After destroying pretty much everything else. At that point they'd used up all the available parts and raw stock anyway (Buxton).

As Mawkie points out, the Grey Ghosts have become quite collectible recently and prices have skyrocketed ... $700-$900 easily for all-matching examples, regardless of whether or not they have import marks under the slide.

There is a bewildering array of markings and finishes for P.38's (maybe as many as Mosins? ); the Grey Ghost represents an interesting sub-set.

 

[Dan44]

I have an unfired h block no-import marked SVW45. Every P.38 collector should have one.

 

[somd_mustangs]

Sweet!
My H block looks unfired (it's French, after all) but has been banged around a bit. The third pic and in middle of 1st pic. The seller didn't know what it was

 

[mawkie]

Wow, you surprise me every time you post! What a great collection of Grey Ghosts. I only have one in my safe: a blued SVW46 L series built in the late 50s for the French police from spares.

 

[yellowsled]

throughly impressed at that collection. It must have taken you many years to gather that many grey ghosts together.... wow!

 

[somd_mustangs]

I only have one in my safe: a blued SVW46 L series built in the late 50s for the French police from spares.

Wow, that's the golden ticket with only 500 made! Bee-u-tee-ful.

I'd like to claim I spent countless hours scouring the countryside for these but they more or less fell in my lap all at once, three on GunBroker inside a couple of week window. They're rarely listed and all of a sudden there were something like 5 or 6 - one for $3K ! (and yes I took a pass on that one!). The other two I got from my P.38 "pimp" about the same time. Weird, just a planets aligned thing I guess.

 

[DennisCA]