I caught the "Spanish Flu"

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Redcoat3340

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I had my Star Super B out the other day (along with my Beretta 1951 and an S&W 38/44HD) and had a ball with it.

So when I was look'n around in my LGS on my weekly 'inspection' and saw an Astra A-70 and played with it a bit...it followed me home (I left a Smith model 30 I wasn't shooting behind as part of the deal).

So I had it out to the range and got a big kick out of shooting it...and decided I needed another Spanish gun. Did some research, found a Star model 30MI on Gunbroker...and it should arrive next week.

There's a whole flock of Spanish pistols around...and now I have a wish list that includes (if my money tree in the back yard ever bears fruit) a Star m43, Astra 600, and even though I don't really need another .22....saw a cute little Star FM. Anyone have any experience with one of those...know what they are going for....any issues, besides parts and mag?

Aside from the Super B's anyone have a favorite I should be looking for? I was thinking of a BS, just need to be alert to those the Russians worked on. Also an Astra 100. Any suggestions.

Range report when the 30MI arrives.
 
Star made some damn good guns, sir. I had a Firestar years ago, and an Astra A-70. People who put down Spanish guns are only remembering the cheap knockoffs of Smith revolvers back in the day. Star and Astra made some nice stuff.
 
Some of the Llama pistols in the last years were, well, less than perfect. Most were well finished and looked good, but were trash inside.

Jim
 
I've sort of ruled the Llamas out. I should have mentioned I right after I purchased the Astra A-70 a member of a gun forum I belong to in NY listed his Astra A-75. My timing wasn't too good as I prefer DA/SA pistols to straight single action.

If anyone has a B or BS I'm wondering how differently it shoots compared to the Super B. I'd like to have both, but if they are virtually the same gun, I'll pass on the BS and look for something different, such as the Star 28PK, with its double stack and DA/SA action. Anyone have any experience with one of those?
 
Just traded away my 43 Star on a Ruger Mark II. Was a fine shooter(heavy) but sat in the safe too long. Man, that felt good in the hand, but always worried about parts. Hope to not regret the change.
 
I have a Llama "Especial" in 45 ACP that has been a fine shooter since I got it circa 1965. It even takes JHPs without complaining.

A 1911 style gun with a ventilated rib on the slide looks a mite odd, but it's always run just fine. It mostly sits in the safe but it takes up very little room, doesn't need food or medication and is always as happy to see me again as I am happy to see it.
 
I stick more with the Stars and Astras but the older Llamas are very reliable. Have a 22lr, three 32acp, and one 380 that have no issues.
 
I have several, super B, modelo B, some astra's. Quality seems pretty good and they shoot better than I can.
 
You need a Star PD 45. First pistol I ever bought, wish I still had it.
Got this one, it's a tack driver.
8029d53d-8d77-4107-8ddc-58862b65a454.gif
 
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I have 2 Star PDs and 4 Star BMs:)uhoh:).

When I first read about the PDs in the '70s I couldn't find one locally. About 30 years later I managed to find 2 of the early-mfr versions in great shape on Gunbroker a couple of months apart; $205 & $245, IIRC. Since then I have carried a PD on many occasions.

My first BM:)uhoh:) inspired me to buy a second (IIRC, they were $145/ea). They are on the heavy side but they are well-built, accurate and reliable. For years, they were my chosen "glovebox guns".

A couple of years later, after the prices on the BMs:)uhoh:) had almost doubled, I took a chance with a couple of them that were, in effect, advertised as having been "rode hard and put away wet" ($140/ea, IIRC). They were a bit rough, but I was able to clean & repair (had to craft at least one replacement part) & reblue them on the back patio. I would still like to find some decent replacement grip panels, but that is not a necessity.

Fine little solid-steel 9x19 pistols. :)
 
A friend from college and the Army had an Astra A-80 in .45acp. He picked it up from the U.S. Cavalry Store outside of Ft. Knox during the brief time they sold guns. It was a nice pistol, accurate and reliable.
 
I've got a Star Super Model A in 9mm Largo. After opening up the breech face slightly to accept a 38 Super's .405 rim, I replaced the recoil spring with an "extra strength" one from Wolff.

Since Supers are loaded down to 9X19 pressures these days I have a great shooter without having to scrounge for Largo ammo. I think some of the milsurp largo ammo is loaded hotter, anyway. The supers just dribble out the side and land about three feet away. Some of the Largo ammo I have shot lands fifteen feet away. It was not subgun ammo, either.

The gun has a very high degree of fit and finish, and even has a few custom touches The magwell is nicely flared. The back of the slide and the frame have been matched. It has a loaded chamber indicator and the top of the slide is sandblasted for a matted finish. The sights are white dot.

I think Star built the best Spanish pistols, with Astra very close behind. LLama,s are a few rungs down the ladder, but a good one is a very fine arm indeed.
 
If I had a Star Super, I would take the slide to an engraver and have General Franco's famous quote emblazoned on the side "As always, history (and God) will be the only just Judge."
 
I love all of my Llama .380's all with locking breech and still the only good small 1911 type. Many of the .22's made in the past few years use zamak, which many regard, for good reason, to be garbage material.

I was very excited about the RIA's new BabyRoc pistol until I found they didn't even make it a locked breech gun. I told the guy in "Chat" that it broke the deal for me.

I also own two Star model S guns and they are very very nice. Also a model A which is chambered in 9MM Largo of course, a great handgun!

The firearms industry in Spain went the way many want ours to go some day soon, all closed their doors against growing political pressure, this is cause by the wish to refrain from blaming people for bad deeds, blame an inanimate object for the evil instead.
 
I thought they went away because they weren't selling enough guns, because of a slump in worldwide demand and competition from China and South America, HisSoldier. Certainly that is what I read in Antare's books about Astra and Star.
 
Your right. Astra and Star evolved into each other as an attempt to stay in business, and became "Astar", still going I think. They do not export apparently.

But in a larger sense how many people want to buy guns from a country that won't allow any but police and the extremely wealthy have any? How must it have been to be a near retirement age armorer making beautiful guns he couldn't legally own? I think about that also when I buy automatic knives from Italy, where carrying or even owning them is illegal I hear. It's too sad.

I see these kinds of stories as prophecies for America. The UN is working very hard to make sure no country allows their citizens to have guns.
 
Llamagrips.jpg

Here is a Llama .380 made in 1943 that someone gave me too much money for, or I thought so at the time. I wish I still owned it. There's a lesson in that.

In doubt now that this is the one made in 1943. I'll keep looking, they didn't have the stupid raised rib later ones had.
 
Llamaknob2.jpg

A Llama .380 from 1943, not pristine because of what is either a repair of the safety or an early form, if it was a gunsmith's handmade replacement it was well done. Oh, and notice there isn't any grip safety either.
All my Llama .380's function well. One Llama I worked on seemed to have very soft steel, it bent with hardly any pressure. I haven't made any Rockwell tests on any though.
 
Thanks to all for sharing your Spanish pistol experiences. I'm still on the hunt for one or two more. (Now I'm sorry I sold a nice Star BM a year or three ago).

Would like to find a model 28 and then a model 31...I like "collecting" the guns in a series ala my P38/P1, Beretta 1951, Beretta 92s and 92 afs and my S&W model 39's and 59's.

Anyone with any other suggestions of "series" type guns I should be on the lookout for (and no, I have no interest in a series of Glocks) chime in. As I sort of stay in the 9mm realm, Colts are out and Rugers don't seem to have quite the romance of say Star or Beretta. I keep being tempted by .380 but hate to introduce another caliber and in terms of carry my Shield and S&W 908 are as compact as any .380.

Again, thanks for all the comments.
 
His Soldier, the early Llamas used a thumb safety with a nob on it rather than the style on the 1911. Your photo depicts a proper safety for that vintage. I have a small collection of Star pistols (80+) that cover most models through the Super series and a pile of Llamas with small frames mostly made during the forties and fifties. Even though i have some fairly rare pistols all are shot occasionallly, no safe queens here.g
 
Redcoat 3340, by all means get your hands on a later production Astra 400 or a 600. I have extensive experience with the 400s

Quality is superb either way but the later production guns have much improved metallurgy. A quick search on the net will tell the difference. It has something to do with the Astra logo stamped on the top front of the slide.

I have had my 400 for over forty years. It is the only firearm I have ever owned that has NEVER EVER malfunctioned on me. I have fired probably ten thousand rounds through it. But that isn't the most astounding thing about it. Hundreds of those rounds were lead, flat nosed, and even WADCUTTERS!!! The bloody thing will even feed empty cases! Try that with your Glock, or 1911!

With extra strength Wolff springs in it, it has fired (sparingly) .38 supers, although I firmly believe some of the Largo ammo out there is loaded hotter. A mix of Supers and Largo ammo will result in no one able to tell the difference. Having said that, I still like to pull the bullets on Super ammo and drop the charge 20% and reassemble.

The real fun is shooting creampuff loads for the kids. I have a worn out recoil spring I keep on hand, for those. I load two grains of Bullseye with a 158 gr lead bullet meant for a 38 Spl. The gun functions beautifully and the kids appreciate the low recoil. The gun doesn't seem to care if the bullet is a couple of thousands oversize.

BTW, this is an unscientific method, but it has some value in talking a seller into a discount. And it is true. If the recoil spring on a 400 is shorter than the bottom of the slide, it needs replacement. If shorter than the top, it is wasted. That's the one to use for creampuff loads.
 
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