The Luger self-loading rifle is a prototype German self-loading rifle.
History[]
A patent for the weapon was filed by Georg Luger of Luger P08 fame on February 19, 1906 in England, as opposed to Germany; this is most likely due to the rifle being intended for export in addition to being adopted by the Kaiserreichsheer.
Unfortunately for Luger, the rifle failed to enter mass production or adoption of any kind, most likely due to a combination of being expensive to manufacture and arming militaries with a semi-automatic rifle of the time being practically unheard of. The idea of a toggle-locked service rifle would be explored again with the introduction of the Pedersen rifle.
At least one of these rifles is known to survive today; serial number 4.
Design Details[]
As implied above, the Luger rifle is a toggle-locked self-loading rifle. The rifle's action is remarkably similar to that of Luger's more famous pistol, although the rifle has a spring which puts pressure on the toggle action when closed; this is unlike the pistol, where minimal spring pressure is applied on the toggle action when it is closed.
The only known surviving example has a tang-mounted safety and a plain oil-finished walnut stock with a rather uncanny resemblance to the one on a Gewehr 98. The stock and handguard are secured by two bands with a blued finish. The rifle is also fitted with one sling swivel. The serial number of the rifle can be seen on the stock behind the safety.