Original Item: Only One Available. Recently purchased at a military show, this is a very nice lightly used WWII production black pebble grain finished leather holster for the standard issue Walther P-38 pistol in 9mm. It is nicely marked CXB / 4 between the belt loops, indicating likely 1944 manufacture by Moll, Lederwarenfabrik, in Goch, Germany. This was a known maker of holsters and other military accouterments during the war, according to GERMAN MILITARY LETTER CODES 1939-1945 by John Walter. We cannot find a Waffenamt inspection mark on the holster, but it is likely there somewhere.

We can see a faint P38 stamping on the upper right rear, which can be seen by reflecting light off of the surface. Pebble grain leather is much harder to stamp than smooth leather, so it looks that the stamping did not really take, as we often see.

The holster definitely looks to have seen some use during the war, and possibly afterwards. We can definitely see that a pistol was held inside for some time due to wear marks and staining, however the exterior still shows very little wear. The black color is well retained, with some finish cracking along the top flap. The leather is still nice and supple, just how we like to see them.

A perfect addition to any WW2 Walther P.38 pistol in need of an excellent condition original holster.

The Walther Pistole 38 (P.38) pistol was first introduced in 1938 as a replacement for the P.08. The P.38 was more cost-efficient and more reliable in war conditions such as mud and rain. The P.08 was a typical prewar German gun, over engineered to perfection, with a sensitive toggle breech system that would malfunction when dirt was involved. The P.38 was a workhorse that did just what it was meant to do. It could handle most harsh battlefield conditions and as such the closed hardshell holster was discontinued later in the war and replaced for a partially open softshell holster. During the War’s close around 900,000 were produced, so the holsters were also produced in large quantities.