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Between 1909 and 1915, the huge French mail-order firm of Manufacture Francais d’Armes et Cycles de St Etienne (later called Manufrance) sold Luger pistols (as well as many other types of firearms). They were enough of a substantial customer that DWM was willing to roll-mark their pistol barrels with the company name. In total, the company would sell 236 Luger pistols during the period, approximately evenly split between 9mm and 7.65mm. They cost 110 Francs each, equating to about $2500 in today’s US dollars – not cheap guns! Manufrance also sold C96 Mauser’s and 1905 Mannlichers during this period, and it is interesting to note that Mannlicher and Luger sales were roughly equal, which C96 Mauser’s sold twice as well as either.
The Lugers being sold with the St Etienne retail mark were standard 1906 commercial models, with serial numbers in the upper 40,000 and lower 50,000 range. There is no specific listing of serial numbers, as they were simply pulled from normal stock when an order was placed. This example also has a pair of numbers in the bottom of the grip, the significance of which is not clear.
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