yes,i have one.i suppose i know a little bit about them.
over the years my collection has grown and then been thined out,grown again and thined out again and through it all,i never once wished to get rid of my beloved star ultrastar.the reason why is very simple.it has an incredible grip that fits my hand perfectly,a unique feeling polymer,a natural pointer,has been 100% reliable and when i say 100%,i mean it,has been extremely accurate and i have a certain amount of sentimental attachment to it.
imo,the ultrastar seems to have been developed to originaly have a 13 round mag capacity but was caught-out during the magazine ban and modified for the 9 round mag.however,that's not all bad and in fact,it actually gave the ultrastar a possitive attribute.inside the grip frame,you'll find six heavy ribs,the center two of which are very thick and wide.they are thicker then any other i have ever seen on any polymer frame.this was done to center the single stack mag but had the effect of making the strongest polymer grip i have ever seen or felt.the bottom of the ribs are tapered to form a mag well effect.....very nice.
the polymer itself feels and looks very unique.todays modern service polymer wonders,all feel like plastic,even the best of them.i personally have no problems with that and like them but the ultrastar is different.i honestly don't know what words to use to discribe it,except to say that it feels like very comfortable metal with outside temperature having no effect on it......very solid and very smooth.i'm willing to bet the ultraster will resist crushing more than most or all of the other polymers out there.
most of the lock-work is in the removable steel backstrap assembly that runs almost the entire length and is easily visible with fairly aggressive checkering similar to those on the polymer.the checkering along the sides and back does not interfere with comfort at all(unlike some others) but offers an excellent non-slip grip.the thick steel backstrap also supports the polymer.if you need to know how to remove the backstrap,let me know.
the ultrastar follows the design of the cz-75 and sig 210 by having the slide ride on rails inside the frame but with the chamber area block locking lug of the sig p226/229 etc.the slide moves inside four steel inserts.the two front measure about 1" long and the two rear about 7/8". an additional flat steel insert in the grip supports the trigger bar and there's additional steel wraped around the entire dust cover.as you can see,it's a unique combination of steel and polymer....did i mention it was very solid? it sort of reminds me of a cz-75 compact but a bit more unique.
it handles similar to the star model 28/30 or megastar but the safety/decocker is different.instead of this lever facing forward(ala beretta)it faces rearward.....down(level)is off(ready to fire),flip it up and the safety is engaged,move it further up and it decocks.when you put the safety "on",it also draws the firing pin into the slide and out of the way and locks it,which is great for dry firing,although i still put a small thick rubber o-ring in the hammer notch when doing this and always use a snap cap.there's also a passive safety should you drop the pistol that you can't bypass unless you pull the trigger. there is no magazine safety and the mags are forcibly ejected when using the mag release.the mag catch is reversible,for either hand,and the mags are slotted on both sides to accommodate this.if you need to know how to reverse the mag release,let me know.
sights are the three dot system and the rear is adjustable for windage with a screw in the frame and there is supposed to be a supplied key.mine came with it.the rear sight also serves to retain the passive safety,so try not to move it too far to the right.
the disassembly is exacty like a cz except there's no notches to align.just move the slide back a bit to release tension and knock out the pin. never,ever round off this pin on the ends or lubricate the very ends,in fact,just leave it alone. the recoil spring guide rod has a shaped,flat metal piece on the end that acts like a buffer.you need to place this piece in the correct dirrection,if not,you won't be able to put the slide back on.you also need to push gently down on the ejector to finish moving the slide back on.
lubrication points should be the four steel inserts,slide rails,all around the barrel muzzle and the inside of the camming lug underneath the barrel.i use a modern type of lube,not simply old fashion gun lubes.
for the 9mm,the length is about 6 7/8",the height about 5" flat,the width about 1 1/16" at the grip a tiny bit more right at the slide release lever,the weight about 27 oz. the barrel length is 3.5". it should come with the blue plastic case,spare mag,cleaning rod,brush and the key for the rear sight.(i think basically a small allen wrench,if i remember correctly,i'm not looking at it right know)
unfortunately,it has a trigger similar to the standard cz,so take that for what it's worth.mine has smoothed out since i've put 4000 plus rounds through it(i don't have my log in front of me),but it's STILL a cz type feel on the trigger.i bought mine used and the previous owner said it had about 500 rounds but i feel the number is MUCH higher,so who knows exactly how many rounds has gone through,probably 5000-7000 with a recoil spring change right before i got it because the spring is still very strong.i've had mine for many years and it's never given me any problems....not one.(well,maybe 2 or 3 with some very poor or weak ammo,umc mega packs i think,i don't remember)
....and now for the bad.because of the parts situation and because i have many others to use that are still in production or parts are available for,i have relagated my ultrastar to secondary use,in fact,no use at all except taking to the range,when i'm going to practise with something else,and just put a few rounds through it occasionally for function testing.the way i see it,if your going to use an ultrastar for anything serious and permanent,you should invest in getting a few more to have extra parts...OR,contact the guys/guy in spain to get many extra parts. yes,they are still around but i don't have the link right now,but you can find the link on previous THR threads.he also sells star parts on e-bay.....OR,you need to manufacture parts.despite this,i will never get rid of it.
my mag springs eventually became weak and started to cause failures to lock back.however,i experimented by putting mag springs from my h&k p7m8 and it worked,but i did notice that with the last round going in,the spring would bind because it has more wounds.i studied some more and concluded the mag spring from a s&w 909 would be better(exactly the same number of wounds).i ordered the 909 mag springs from wolff and it has been perfect ever since,absolutely no problems what-so-ever...don't get the extra strength ones or it will have an extra wound.
it's a shame.star pistols were always very underrated but in reality were fine pistols.sure,some of todays models have it beat on certain dimensions and take-down(although it would still look normal in a cz catalog today)but they were very functional,reliable,accurate,etc. and mine carries very well. i have an uncle mike's sidekick ambi hip holster,size 16,that works very well with it and believe it or not there are many holsters out there that fit it perfectly.
....and don't believe all the myths that are out there about star firearms,like they having used soft or poor metal,that's all BS.study the ultrastar carefully and you'll know what i'm talking about.
