krukster86
Well-known member
Another younger collector reached out to me to evaluate a potential VIS35 purchase he was interested in. He only had a couple of photos from the seller, but I wrinkled an eyebrow after looking at some of these and I wanted to get a second opinion.
From my understanding of German occupation (pre alpha) pistols, frame serial 00000 doesn't make sense from a serial number perspective (should be starting at “001”). Additionally I suspect that the frame is possibly sanded and refinished.
Slide seems to be serial number "10"? The format looks odd. There are no german WaA77 or firing proofs on the slide either which is odd.
I think it shouldn't have a lanyard loop for a pre-alpha.
Equally odd is that there was a 2012 RIA auction for a suspiciously similar serial:
www.rockislandauction.com
I asked the guy to ask seller for more detailed photos in natural outdoor lighting, as the indoor lighting leads to inconsistent photos (tough to tell if barrel is blued or not). The current owner is not a “gun guy” and is an older guy who inherited it from his dad, so I would not expect amazing pro photographer photos.
Anyway, my gut is telling me to tell this guy to walk away from this one. At seller’s asking price of $3,200, it is too much of a risk.
Additional thoughts/opinions?
From my understanding of German occupation (pre alpha) pistols, frame serial 00000 doesn't make sense from a serial number perspective (should be starting at “001”). Additionally I suspect that the frame is possibly sanded and refinished.
Slide seems to be serial number "10"? The format looks odd. There are no german WaA77 or firing proofs on the slide either which is odd.
I think it shouldn't have a lanyard loop for a pre-alpha.
Equally odd is that there was a 2012 RIA auction for a suspiciously similar serial:
Polish Radom Pistol 9 mm
Extremely Rare Polish Radom P35 Semi-Automatic Pistol Serial Number "00000"This pistol is certainly an enigma within the collector field for those of us that collect Polish VIS or Nazi Radom Pistols. Obviously the first and most distinguishing aspect of this pistol as noted is the serial number...
www.rockislandauction.com
I asked the guy to ask seller for more detailed photos in natural outdoor lighting, as the indoor lighting leads to inconsistent photos (tough to tell if barrel is blued or not). The current owner is not a “gun guy” and is an older guy who inherited it from his dad, so I would not expect amazing pro photographer photos.
Anyway, my gut is telling me to tell this guy to walk away from this one. At seller’s asking price of $3,200, it is too much of a risk.
Additional thoughts/opinions?
