While buying out the remains of a family run gunsmithing operation over 20 years ago I found enough loose parts to almost assemble a Walther P1. It was missing about six items, including the grips and barrel, so I shelved the rebuild for over a decade. I lucked into finding a reasonably priced barrel and grips a few years back and decided to assemble the Frankengun. Low and behold, it actually worked.

"Look it up before you Frick it up" Words to live by!! I will have that posted in my shop before long!!

Sherman T Potter: if it were a horse we could shoot it. Mark: hold my walther

13:35 "This is the simplified version of the Luger?" lol

Saving a P38 is public service, that is.

Had a dejavu. In the late 70s our club P38 decided to jump some parts, slide cover , loaded round indicator, rear sight and springs during shooting at our outdoor range. Actualy we did find most parts back in the dirt….. and having an little stash of itty bitty springs to saved the day. Did a complete strip at that time, P38 was not serviced since it was liberated…..did all that with no pics….no fancy phones in the 70s. Took several days but got it running again. At that time I just started reloading, we had buckets old german 9 mm ammo, sintered iron bullets, steel case…. Luckely I could convince my fellow club members in not using that ammo. We did got some Canadian 60 round boxes and later surplus Swedish Norma. Loaded them empties later on. Think a lot lately off those days.

Glad to see I'm not the only person who has a tub of springs. I actually have bins and containers full of all kinds of parts, pieces, materials, etc. I'm the "hey, can you fix this?" guy for my entire family, friends, and the neighborhood. Tearing down old appliances, household goods, etc, and salvaging useful parts has been so helpful in fixing other items, especially older firearms that you can't get springs for anymore. I've used tiny stainless rods out of old printers to pin and glue splintered stocks. I've used springs from CD/floppy disk units to repair old hand guns. I made a AR-15 safety detent from an old needle bearing. Some carb valve seats are pretty close to the shape of AR detents.

I’m beginning to think Lawrence of Arabia didn’t own any firearms…

By my estimate, that was about a thousand dollars worth of labour you put into that firearm, and I hope the owner appreciates it... but, even more importantly, you've given your viewers at least the same value in information, should they ever encounter one of those beauties in a similar condition. Thank you, Mark!

I’d watch Mark restore a lawnmower

I am always in awe when you take a firearm down to parts and then reassemble it because you know how things have to work.

This guy is the man. Intelligent and funny. Firearms are my passion and this channel is an absolute gem. The thing that amazes me most is he learns as he goes. Taking pictures for reassembly. Brilliance. "I have a p38 thats been in a fire. Can you restore it. Are you familiar with the platform?" Sure send it in. Ill figure it out. Lmao

One more fascinating trip down the rabbithole and it was thoroughly enjoyable. Thank you Mark and Bruno!

3:36 am, sees new Anvil, well I can sleep when I'm dead

The video ended six minutes ago and I've just been sitting here smiling.

I have a beautiful P-38, blueing is great, the grips don’t have any chips or cracks. It’s in a P-08 holster and has two magazines. It looks like the day my grandfather “found it” during Market Garden.

I inherited the same gun, in a fire, same thing melted grips, the bullets never went off were still in the gun. Did pretty much the same thing but not as elegant as the master.

It may not be the first time that was used in an execution.... Thanks for the video and for saving that beautiful piece of history.

Finally , The Novak Secret is revealed! Mark has 'The Thing'! After a life time of service now in gentle retierment as a Gunsmiths Assistant :-)

You monster! you shot all the patina off that lawnmower!

Down the rabbit hole boy and girls. You are one of a kind. First thought was soaking it in acetone, but I'm sure you will do it the right way.

Part of me was really upset that you shot that mower, but if anyone had their reasons, it's Mark.

I dont even own a gun, and probably never will but its is just satisfying to whatch you restore those beautiful machines and bringing them back to life. Its been a pleasure greetings from Austria

I have a 1944 P-38 and this was a great lesson on how this weapon breaks down and operates. Well done Mr. Mark, well done, Thanks.

Perfect video for a Friday evening and a couple of wobbly pops. Cheers Mark, fascinating video as always.

I know the collectors go ga-ga over the Lugers, but I've always liked the P38 pistols and for a long time you could get them pretty reasonably. With the prices I'm seeing these days, that's long past.

What a beautiful example of German simplicity.

What a fantastic show this is. Well done Mr. Novak, well done indeed.

I kinda like P38's. Walther, Lockheed, doesn't matter. 😉

I knew a gunsmith who bought a colt peacemaker that had been through a fire. He took it apart, reheat treated it, refinished it, and then reassembled it. I would not be afraid to shoot that gun today. He built Stevens 44 1/2 totally in house.

I recently finished a M1911 mfg 1918 that burned in a fire long ago, it was loaded at the time, shells were 1942 so it burned after that date sometime, the bullet lead soldered the slide in place. Replaced springs, pins, bbl & misc parts. Just got it blued. I tested it then replaced the bbl bushing (it bent) now Life is good & so is this 45.😊

Sehr gute Arbeit, es ist immer schon zu sehen das sie sich um so alte Stücke gekümmern. Greetings from Germany👋

I'm absolutely hooked on your videos, I want that P38 in its jacked up form id have so much fun.

This video is really a repair manual for P38... thanks

Ahh, the perfect Friday night relaxer before I go to bed. The brain cells are now in a beautiful zen state. Also, I need to get a copy of the sign on his shelf in the background.

As always, it's a pleasure to watch you do the condensed version of what it takes to bring a mechanical device back from the brink of no return! I still say a valuable asset was lost when you retired from the USN!

One more beautiful machine saved from the tyranny of entropy!

Almost like Christmas when a new “Anvil”pops up in my feed.

You really love your trade. An artist at work. Thanks for the video.

During WWII my uncle was with troops that occupied a factory that was making P-38's. They immediately started selling them as souvenirs. When they ran out of assembled pistols, they started assembling them from parts. Not knowing what parts went where, or how to assemble, a lot of the pistols just looked like a P-38. But, they sold the same as a factory assembled and inspected pistol- "Taken off a dead Nazi".

Mark, I am not sure if you have it in your tool box, but there is another option for non marring scraping. Autobody supply shops have plastic razor blades for removal of graphics, emblem tapes/adhesives. There's different hardness levels(by color), and they're cheap. I've tried them on oiled wood and they do not damage if used properly. I figure you'll probably not see this with all you have going on, but thanks for another great video! I enjoy following down the rabbit hole.

You sir are a puzzle master as well as a craftsman. I have no idea how you solve so many non standard problems.

It has been a pleasure watching you work.

Great to see someone taking the effort and good skills to save these pieces of history 👍 And I love how you go about keeping to keep it to the point of the work done👏

I've been binging your videos all day, and you are quite the chatacter! Love your wit and sense of humor.

Always a pleasure to watch your craftsmanship, sir !

Since I can't afford a P38, it's fascinating to see Mark working on one; giving a close-up of how it functions. Much better than just looking at an exploded diagram! Thanks, Mark!

Nicely done and a pleasure to watch you work!

Amazing, fascinating video. First one I've watched from you, Mark, and it sure won't be the last! Quite a display of mechanical understanding as you disassembled and later reassembled that P 38's intricate small parts assemblies in the overall machine. Thank you for filming this for us!

Mark, another fantastic video and problem solved! You're truly the master!

Beautifully done restoration for a beautifully restored pistol! Amazing work as always Mark!

When you start looking closely at a P-38, it becomes VERY obvious where S&W got a lot of their ideas for the Model 39. So inspired were they that the magazine bodies are remarkably similar; to the point a P-38 mag will plug into a 39 (interesting how those numbers progress; 38, 39), but not latch. Then there is the "lock-work". Engineering a reliable magazine is probably one of the toughest gigs in the game, so......

I didn't know that a group of assembly pins are called a confederation You learn something every day

Watching you wrestle with that P38 makes me feel a lot better about my wrestling with bike parts. We're all idiots just figuring things out as we go.

This guy is unreal. Makes It all look so easy.

Just finished the video. You turn junk into (or back into in this case) art. Thanks for the education.

Glad brother Mark is part of our Fraternity. I too have had a few of this to pull out of Harms Way and save for prosperity.

Wow! Mark, that is an incredible piece of work. Well done.

As always...interesting, informative, funny and real....thanks!

This is the best cooking show ever!

You’re a brilliant content provider Mark, I always get a good laugh from you. I wish I knew more about the art, I’m an Australian in his 20’s who only knows his guns from video games but when it comes to the real thing, I am completely lost but that amplifies the beauty and the mystery of your art and I appreciate it more with every video 👍 keep up the great work!

Cool to watch you do this. One of my first commissions was refurbing a Walther P38 (along with about 20 other various weapons) that were damaged in a fire. I got lucky. My jobs were in a “fire proof” safe. Well done sir.

Mark, I truly love your videos. You do the kind of work I love to do and wish I could more often. I love working on firearms.. I’d love to learn and do more. Thanks for taking the time and doing these videos.

I had a similar project with a Colt 1911. After getting it all apart, getting it all cleaned, replacing all the springs, and putting in a new barrel, it was fully refinished and now it fires great once again !

Mr Mark your videos are great, thank you so much

Its a pleasure to see you work and explain how guns work !

I really enjoy the Walther P 38 .It was probably the first hand gun I ever shot. A sibling still owns that particular piece. It is very reliable and accurate.. Very nice work. God bless you and your loved ones Godspeed

beautifully narrated as usual thank you great work

A true pleasure. Great to watch,easy to listen to and you learn something new every time. Fantastic work Mark. G’day from Australia mate.

May your friend see Greener pastures now that he has been retired!!! LOL.. Outstanding information and great to see an oldie brought back to life.

Mark you always do magical work. 💯thanks

I remember drawing at CST you brought back a memory . Nice work ANVIL

Always a pleasure, thanks for sharing!

Always like the P38. I had several fire damaged rifles given to me many years ago. One a Win '94 and the other a bolt action, don't remember the make or model. Both of the the wood stocks were completely gone, only a small charred piece here and there. They were very badly damaged and I was concerned that even if I had gotten them apart and moving, if they would have been safe to shoot. Thanks for sharing. Really great work.

Thank you for saving this classic Walther pistol.

Reminds me of Col. Potter and his jeep after the tank squashed it. 🤣🤣

Such a good show!!! Thx mr.Novak

That was an excellent restoration. Well done. Greetings from Arizona.

the execution at the end is perfect

Thank you Mr Novak.

And a pleasure to watch and listen

Beautiful gun. Great effort

Loved the video, absolutely enjoy this type of content. Hope you do more like this.

Beautiful work Mark!

Thanks for helping me understand a bit of the clockwork that is still present in the new stuff. I'm looking at you ppq. And ppk of course.

excellent video! nice to see that even the masters sometimes figure out things as they go.

Nice job bringing it back to life again. I’ve been wanting a p 38 for a while now but every one I come across is asking a ridiculous price for it. Hopefully one day I’ll come across one that’s a decent price

Thanks for giving an old soldier a second chance....

I wish having a man like Mark as my neighbour !!!

Lovely piece of kit two thumbs

The conventional wisdom says it was trash. I’m glad you pulled it back

Another piece of history pulled back from the abyss. :-)

Awesome work man. I do this to houses for a living. Excellent slow steady de mucking. My granddaddy had one as a GI bring back. Nice pistols. Complicated though. Excellent.

I think it might make sense to mention - "ersatz plastic" is based on phenolic resin, so there's no real way to painlessly remove it using a solvent. It's only partially charred, so it wouldn't help to use weak acid (citric, oxalic) or heavy alcohol as well.

Thanks mark keep the videos coming

Yees! A P38! Thanks for the content sir!

Thanks for sharing Mark ur a great guy.

RIP Mark... his videos live on in 2024... its like he is still here with us.

Good day, I just like to tell you I really love your content.

Always informative and helpful. Master craftsman. 👍☕😎