I have a J.P. Sauer with a scalloped box lock, serial #406300. I am told that the serial number places it around 1952. My seller believed it was likely work-in-process before WW II and then sold post-War. I do not know. It is a nice clean gun, but after I started to shoot it, a crack developed behind the scallops. My gunsmith, Abe Chaber in CT, repaired the stock. Abe told me that the quality of the inletting was very bad and that the recoil put metal parts in the lock in contact with the wood, resulting in the split. The metal work and mechanics on the gun are beautiful. It is surprising that the inletting was not what it should have been on an otherwise very nicely made gun. It occurred to me that, if it was work in process pre-War, it is possible that the shoddy stock work was done after the War and not up to pre-War standards. Anybody else have a similar experience with a J.P. Sauer from the immediate post-War era?
