I recently purchased what was described as a WWII German made Astra 600 holster on eBay. The holster is maker code stamped bdr 44 with a WaA stamp.
I am not an Astra collector. I do not own an Astra pistol, but thought that it would be a good idea to secure an original WWII German issued Astra holster before attempting to locate a matching WWII German issued pistol. From my limited knowledge, surviving WWII German issued Astra holsters must be regarded as quite rare by reason that only 10,000 or so model Astra 600 pistols were shipped into Germany before the Normandy landings closed off further supply route from Spain.
When the holster arrived I was surprised to find that the holster fitted my P38 perfectly and the P38 magazine also fitted perfectly into the spare magazine compartment.
After searching the Internet the only other WWII German issued Astra 600 holster (and pistol) I could locate (which was marked dkk 44) looked quite different from the one that I had bought from eBay.
That made me wonder whether my Astra holster was not in fact a P38 soft-shell holster.
I have the following questions which I would appreciate the input of members:
1. The only two material differences that I can observe between my Astra holster and two P38 soft-shell holsters that I have are: firstly, my Astra holster is not marked with any “P38” stamp on the outside of the back of the holster near the belt loops; and secondly the maker code bdr 44 and WaA stamp on my Astra holster are stamped on the inside of the holster flap and not on the outside between the belt-loops which is normally the case.
Question: Are all P38 soft-shell holsters stamped “P38” on the back near the belt loops? Is it possible for a P38 holster not to be stamped with a “P38” stamp on the back near the belt loops?
2. The Astra 600 holster that I managed to locate on the Internet looks to be a semi hard-shell with what appears to be a molded flap. The holster appears to be approximately 30% shorter in overall length than compared with a P38 holster. That seems to suggest that while an Astra 600 pistol will easily fit into a P38 holster, a P38 pistol could never be fitted into an Astra 600 holster.
Question: How many models of WWII German Astra 600 holsters were there? Is it possible to fit a P38 pistol into a WWII German Astra 600 holster?
I must say that I have serious doubts that my Astra 600 holster is merely a P38 holster, but I would very much appreciate the opinions and comments of fellow members.
I am not an Astra collector. I do not own an Astra pistol, but thought that it would be a good idea to secure an original WWII German issued Astra holster before attempting to locate a matching WWII German issued pistol. From my limited knowledge, surviving WWII German issued Astra holsters must be regarded as quite rare by reason that only 10,000 or so model Astra 600 pistols were shipped into Germany before the Normandy landings closed off further supply route from Spain.
When the holster arrived I was surprised to find that the holster fitted my P38 perfectly and the P38 magazine also fitted perfectly into the spare magazine compartment.
After searching the Internet the only other WWII German issued Astra 600 holster (and pistol) I could locate (which was marked dkk 44) looked quite different from the one that I had bought from eBay.
That made me wonder whether my Astra holster was not in fact a P38 soft-shell holster.
I have the following questions which I would appreciate the input of members:
1. The only two material differences that I can observe between my Astra holster and two P38 soft-shell holsters that I have are: firstly, my Astra holster is not marked with any “P38” stamp on the outside of the back of the holster near the belt loops; and secondly the maker code bdr 44 and WaA stamp on my Astra holster are stamped on the inside of the holster flap and not on the outside between the belt-loops which is normally the case.
Question: Are all P38 soft-shell holsters stamped “P38” on the back near the belt loops? Is it possible for a P38 holster not to be stamped with a “P38” stamp on the back near the belt loops?
2. The Astra 600 holster that I managed to locate on the Internet looks to be a semi hard-shell with what appears to be a molded flap. The holster appears to be approximately 30% shorter in overall length than compared with a P38 holster. That seems to suggest that while an Astra 600 pistol will easily fit into a P38 holster, a P38 pistol could never be fitted into an Astra 600 holster.
Question: How many models of WWII German Astra 600 holsters were there? Is it possible to fit a P38 pistol into a WWII German Astra 600 holster?
I must say that I have serious doubts that my Astra 600 holster is merely a P38 holster, but I would very much appreciate the opinions and comments of fellow members.
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