My reborn Astra Terminator .44

[No Quarter]

I was not pleased to find that my .44 Mag Astra Terminator had a broken firing pin a couple years ago. I searched high and low for years for a replacement.

Well, I decided to see if I could find something that would work. After looking at the exploded drawings of an Astra .357 and comparing them to an Astra .44, it appeared that many of the parts are compatible. I took a chance and ordered a firing pin for the .357 from Numrich.

To my surprise, it fits and more importantly, WORKS! So, this gun was treated to a full break down and cleaning and a bead blast finish.

I think it looks AWESOME. These were great guns back in the day and certainly led the charge of snubby big bores. Championed by John Jovino and distributors like Lew Horton, it is a little part of handgunning history.

Here she is:

 

[WC145]

The Terminator was a quality piece and you've got a fine looking example there. Astra is to be credited with being one of the first manufacturers to come out with large frame/short barreled big bore revolvers when the factories began to recognize that there was a market for such guns that was being filled by gunsmiths like Austin Behlert and shops like the John Jovino Co..

As far as the Terminator being championed by John Jovino and Lew Horton Distributing, I've never heard before. Care to elaborate?

 

[Walkalong]

I am glad you got it back in service. I am a fan of the Astra revolvers. If I stumble upon one in .45 Colt at a reasonable price, I'm gonna buy it.

 

[No Quarter]

Sure! John Jovino customized S&W big bores and Astras as well to the short barreled configuration. After a while, Astra started to manufacture these big bore snubbies by themselves to Jovino's specifications.

Lew Horton distributed the Astra Made, Interarms-imported Terminators during the 80's.

Google "Astra Terminator Jovino" and you will lot's of other information about these and other large bore snubs of the era.

NQ

 

[WC145]

I'm very familiar with the work of the Jovino Co. gunsmiths on S&W N frames and knew that they were a distributor for Astra back in the day. I was not aware that the Jovino Co. had modified Astras as well, the only Terminators I've ever seen were factory guns.

Jovino Co. modified Astras must be few and far between, are they identifiable as such? They didn't mark their shorter barreled S&W N frame snubbies, hard to tell their work from Behlert's and other 'smiths of the era without some sort of provenance. Their slightly longer barreled versions were stamped "Effector" on the barrel, and are easily identified.

 

[1KPerDay]

That is a sexy gun.

 

[No Quarter]

WC145,

I would LOVE to get my hands on an Effector!
Here is a link to some additional info:
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Astra+Terminator+.44+magnum.-a03875301

I have been looking for any markings that might be particular to Jovino guns.

 

[scaevola]

That turned out great; you did a very nice job on that Astra.

I really enjoy my Terminator and the information about finding replacement parts is helpful.

 

[Nathanael_Greene]

Nice! Too bad the Spaniards don't seem to be making many handguns anymore.

 

[kBob]

Yep Jovino had some of those made up. When I was working for a gun rag in the 80's the publisher was a friend of Jovino's and got one sent to us. I generally liked the gun and did a fairly positive review. The one I tested did have an issue though. For some reason if one turned the gun sort of upside down so the sights were at the seven o'clock to eight o'clock position it sometimes failed to fire. I never could figure out why and that was the only test sample. Before you ask was working on an article about firing from the ground if knocked down and happened to have the Astra in the range box and a box of .44 Special on hand when I discovered this.

-kBob

 

[MagnumDweeb]

It's amazing how much manufacturers like Astra and Llama had an influence on today's American gun manufacturers. If it wasn't for Llama we wouldn't have Colt's Mustang.

Damn shame both companies went belly up.

 

[kBob]

The Mustang seems closer to the Star S series to me and really close to a gun imported by Firearms International (not FIE) and called the Pony which I have been told was actually manufactured by Star.

I believe the Star PD came before the Colt Officers ACP (Or Colt Officers model as it is called) that was itself developed from work done the USAF OSI folks in San Antonio for a better undercover arm. The Star B series have always seemed the best feeling of the 1911-ish 9x19 mm pistols to me.

Not a few of us here abouts on THR rather liked Astras constable in one caliber or another. You have no idea how much I once lusted after an Astra Condor.

Llamas always seemed second fiddle to those other two Spanish firms products to me. The autos seem more roughly finished and seem to have sharp edges. I saw more than one that seemed to be peening itself. Some folks swore by them while some of us swore at them. I will say the little 1911-ish .22LR seemed about the best of the Llamas to me and I would not mind havig one at all. Perhaps better than one of the new zinc o matics being marked on the .22LR market now in 1911 guise. A friend while I was in Europe bought one of the Commanche .357 which If I remember correctly had a 6 inch barrel...... it was a long way from a S&W 19. Still it was a .357 mag DA revolver a lower enlisted guy could afford and it worked.

-kBob

 

[Panzerschwein]

Looks a beut!

Hows she shoot?

 

[No Quarter]

Nice trigger in SA and DA. Accurate. The porting makes the recoil more of a straight back push and the porting is like a cool laser-light show from a Pink Floyd concert in a dimly lit range.