How to remove extractor from Star Firestar M43

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L

Lobster Hunter

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Hello, I recently acquired this old compact single stack 9mm Spanish beauty and I really like it.

Unfortunately, I'm having a failure to extract malfunction in about 1 out of 5 shots. The fired case gets extracted from the chamber about half way and gets stuck, making contact with the round next in line in the magazine. The gun has been cleaned and lubed and the extractor looks fairly healthy and sharp.

I suspect the extractor spring may be weak. I bought a couple of replacement extractor springs and a extractor axis but I'm not sure how to disassemble the thing. I'm a newb at gun maintenance. Any advice will be greatly appreciated.
IMG_4715.jpg
 
I imagine it's held in by the pin it pivots on, the end of which is just visible above the extractor, at the top of the slide. (Part 49... gunpartscorp.com is your friend.) I would try poking it partway out from underneath with a pin punch, just far enough to clear the extractor... which will then be held in place by the punch instead. So wrap the slide in a towel or a tee shirt when you pull the pin punch out, as the extractor and spring will want to fly out.
Screenshot from 2022-05-01 06-19-57.png
Incidentally I question the idea that contact with the underlying cartridge is the issue... that shouldn't happen until the slide has completely uncovered it. Does the extractor still have a grip on the empty case? If so, your ejector is the trouble spot; if not then either the extractor is badly worn or the spring is weak as you suggest. Or those are some really hot loads you're using.
 
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Nice grips on your Star!! I have three Stars - a Super B and two BM's and they all have extraction issues. Perhaps 25% of the time they extract the fired casing only part way and then of course the action jams. So the extractor is pulling the casing out of the chamber but losing its grip when the casing encounters the friction of the next round in the magazine (ie never makes it as far as the ejector). The extractor claw "looks" OK (but I'm no gunsmith) so my diagnosis is weak extractor spring, too, but I haven't gotten around to finding them and replacing them. Soooooooo .... please do yours and let us know if it solves your problem!! Thanks.....
 
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The ejector is visible in the OPs first pic and sure looks good (from this angle anyway).

I would also start by looking at the extractor spring and for any gunk buildup behind the extractor. Also look very closely at the chamber itself for heavy fouling, rough machining, or even cracking or bulging. A good clean and polish of the chamber never hurts.

If the ammo is on the light side, powerwise, it may be short-stroking. Try a couple different brands and bullet weights to find one it likes, or at least determine that there are types it doesn't play well with.

Lastly, the smaller the pistol, the more tightly it must be gripped- also to avoid short-stroking. Make sure you're not limp-wristing it. Im guilty of it occasionally myself and my pocket pistols will remind me in short order to tighten it up.

And yes, those grips are fantastic!
 
Col. Harrumph said:
Does the extractor still have a grip on the empty case? If so, your ejector is the trouble spot; if not then either the extractor is badly worn or the spring is weak as you suggest. Or those are some really hot loads you're using.
Click to expand...

When the action jams, the extractor has lost its hold of the rim and the slide is locked back. The ejector seems to be in good shape. Its loosely fitted to the frame so it can wobble a bit but I think that's how it's supposed to fit. I'll follow your instruction on extractor disassembly. Thanks, Col. H.
 
wiscoaster said:
Nice grips on your Star!! I have three Stars - a Super B and two BM's and they all have extraction issues. Perhaps 25% of the time they extract the fired casing only part way and then of course the action jams. So the extractor is pulling the casing out of the chamber but losing its grip when the casing encounters the friction of the next round in the magazine (ie never makes it as far as the ejector). The extractor claw "looks" OK (but I'm no gunsmith) so my diagnosis is weak extractor spring, too, but I haven't gotten around to finding them and replacing them. Soooooooo .... please do yours and let us know if it solves your problem!! Thanks.....
Click to expand...

Yup, sounds like you're having the same issues as me. I'll keep you posted.
 
NIGHTLORD40K said:
Lastly, the smaller the pistol, the more tightly it must be gripped- also to avoid short-stroking. Make sure you're not limp-wristing it. Im guilty of it occasionally myself and my pocket pistols will remind me in short order to tighten it up.

And yes, those grips are fantastic!
Click to expand...

I suspected that I may have been limp-wristing my shots. The muzzle does like to climb. I gave it the grip of death and it seemed to help a bit but then it would still jam the same way no matter how steady it was.

I got these walnut grips from grips4u.net and gave them about 10 light coats of Tru oil. They fit perfectly and feel much better than the stock rubber ones.
 
It's probably not the extractor. I have both the M43 and the M40 firestars. If you are reloading your ammunition then I would look at the crimp. The case being extracted is catching on the fresh rounds case mouth bumping off the extractor before it can reach the ejector. Increase the crimp and the problem will go away.
 
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The Bushmaster said:
It probably not the extractor. I have both the M43 and the M40 firestars. If you are reloading your ammunition then I would look at the crimp. The case being extracted is catching on the fresh rounds case mouth bumping off the extractor before it can reach the ejector. Increase the crimp and the problem will go away.
Click to expand...

I've been just using factory ammo. Plain old FMJ Remington, Sellier&Bellot, Aguila, American Eagle... etc. I don't think it's an ammo issue.
 
And I don't think it's Firestar issue. If the case is still partial in the chamber and the case head is resting on the next round near the case mouth. It's a crimp problem.
 
Okay, I managed to punch out the extractor axis pin and replace the extractor spring.
IMG-4716.jpg
As you can see, the old spring on the left has lost some of its spring and is shorter than the new one on the right.
IMG-4717.jpg
The extractor would barely hang on to a case before. Now it's holding it very securely.
IMG-4731.jpg
I think this will do the trick. I'll report back after test firing.
 
Where did you get your springs? Numrich was out of stock when I was looking, but that was some time ago.
 
wiscoaster said:
Where did you get your springs? Numrich was out of stock when I was looking, but that was some time ago.
Click to expand...

I got them from Sarco Inc. for $2.25 each. I wonder if the Star BM uses the same extractor spring as the M43? I know it's not ideal but if you can't find a replacement spring, maybe try stretching out your old spring a bit?
 
Once you get that thing up and running you're going to love it! I've got an M40 and my Ex has an M43. They are just darn fun to shoot. Too heavy to carry though. LOL
 
Larry in wyoming said:
Once you get that thing up and running you're going to love it! I've got an M40 and my Ex has an M43. They are just darn fun to shoot. Too heavy to carry though. LOL
Click to expand...

Yeah, they're dense little guns. There's something really nice about these old Spanish all steel guns. I just test fired 3 different ammo in 3 different magazines. All ejected flawlessly. Extractor spring was the culprit. Thanks, folks!
 
Hummmm... Well anyway. Glad that did the job.

Well darn Larry. I carry M40 daily (sometimes the M43). I prefer a heavier gun (easier to steady). The M40 and the M43 fit my hand perfectly and I can use the same holsters and magazines.
 
Carried my m40 for a couple of years. For the weight, it just doesn't offer the firepower. Still love the gun though.
 
OP, glad to hear that you got it fixed.

I can tell you from personal experience that the FireStar M43 and M40 do not like weak/under powered ammo. I own both and have had problems in the past with weak ammo. My M40 would absolutely choke on Remington/UMC ammo. I was able to buy my M43 cheap because the previous owner was using cheap ammo along with weak reloads. He complained of failure to eject and failure to extract issues. All I did was clean it well and use good ammo and have never had a problem with it.
 
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