Starfire M43 Info.
- Thread starter Doublet
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Zebulon
Member
You would have a better chance of getting input if you asked for info on a FIRESTAR M43....Zeb
Mine has been great. 100% reliable with everything from ball to hollowpoints.
Overall though, I'd say you're better off passing on it. Most of the others that own or have owned one give them a big thumbs down. That, coupled with the fact that they are no longer being imported (i'm not sure if they even make them anymore?), and parts are going to be very tough to find, make it a no go.
I will say though, that for a cheapie, the thing shoots like a house-a-fire, and the trigger breaks in very nice.
Overall though, I'd say you're better off passing on it. Most of the others that own or have owned one give them a big thumbs down. That, coupled with the fact that they are no longer being imported (i'm not sure if they even make them anymore?), and parts are going to be very tough to find, make it a no go.
I will say though, that for a cheapie, the thing shoots like a house-a-fire, and the trigger breaks in very nice.
fecmech
Member
The company is out of business and parts are tough to come by. I just sold the one I had for that reason, it's a shame cause I liked the size of the gun. M&M Gunsmithing in Alexandria Va. has some parts and used to be the Warranty gunsmith for Star. Nick
outofbattery
Member
- Joined
- Apr 14, 2004
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- 874
I have never had a single problem with my Firestar and wouldn't hesitate to buy another .
Mordoc
Member
I had one and found it to be accurate and reliable as long as factory mags were used. I found after market mags to be a disaster. I had a USA mag dump its base plate at the range once. Mine was a 9mm. Be aware that Starvel will rust and quickly if not maintained. All in all a good gun.
petro
Member
I was just going to post
that I too have an option ona Firestar M-43, but mine is NIB, Never been fired. bought 8-10 years ago. I have not seen it yet, and will have to check for the rust issue. What's a good price for one in this condition?
that I too have an option ona Firestar M-43, but mine is NIB, Never been fired. bought 8-10 years ago. I have not seen it yet, and will have to check for the rust issue. What's a good price for one in this condition?
Johnny Guest
Moderator In Memoriam
Not my favorite model pistol - - -
I'd handled several but never owned one until a few years ago. Another officer needed some cash and put up a notice on the board at work and I took a look. It was a Firestar with Star's proprietary frosty nickel or hard chrome finish. StarVel? Something like that. Near new-in-box with papers and spare mag, plus a nylon holster. Kinda sub-Commander size. I didn't care too much for it but I had some spare cash, and the guy needed the money, so I gave him his price for it.
The more I looked at it and handled it, the less I cared for it. Too heavy for its size, and for 9mm power. Subjectively, it felt as if it weighed as much as a Browning High Power, without the "good feel" of the HP. Safety was very stiff, and needed two hands to put "on safe." Too many sharp corners, and it seemed very wide.
Still trying to like it, I took it to the range and put perhaps 50 rounds of factory ball and another 50 of JHP handloads through it. It functioned flawlessly, but was stiff to operate. I feel a decent pistolero can accomodate to about any handgun with practice, but I just didn't feel this one was worth the trouble to me. Accuracy was decent. Trigger was both gritty and too heavy. It was uncomfortable in Mexican carry, even for a few minutes - - all those sharp corners.
Groping for nice things to say about it: Well, about all I come up with is that it seemed VERY sturdy. There is very little perceived recoil for a fairly small pistol. It would do well as a car gun or home defense pistol, for someone who did not demand a lot in the way of ergonomics from a pistol. The extra magazine would make rotation possible without additional investment. The plated finish would require little or no upkeep. (I thought, anyway, Mordoc's comment notwithstanding. I really didn't subject mine to any sort of corrosion exposure. BTW: I don't believe I've EVER seen a USA brand magazine, of ANY type that functioned well.)
I took the little Star home, cleaned it up well, and put it in the safe. I figured it MIGHT make a boot on a deal some time. I was so unimpressed with it, I didn't even want to give it to a family member for home defense. A few months later, I finally swapped it to a dealer on a .40 High Power. Because it was so nearly new, with box and such, I got all my money out of it, and had a pistol I liked very much with little extra money invested. A decent all-around experience.
If 'twere me, I'd pass on the pistol, unless it was (1) a fantastic bargain, AND (2) you just wanted the experience with a different type handgun.
I hasten to state: This pistol was NOT a piece of junk. It just did not suit me AT ALL.
Best regards,
Johnny
I'd handled several but never owned one until a few years ago. Another officer needed some cash and put up a notice on the board at work and I took a look. It was a Firestar with Star's proprietary frosty nickel or hard chrome finish. StarVel? Something like that. Near new-in-box with papers and spare mag, plus a nylon holster. Kinda sub-Commander size. I didn't care too much for it but I had some spare cash, and the guy needed the money, so I gave him his price for it.
The more I looked at it and handled it, the less I cared for it. Too heavy for its size, and for 9mm power. Subjectively, it felt as if it weighed as much as a Browning High Power, without the "good feel" of the HP. Safety was very stiff, and needed two hands to put "on safe." Too many sharp corners, and it seemed very wide.
Still trying to like it, I took it to the range and put perhaps 50 rounds of factory ball and another 50 of JHP handloads through it. It functioned flawlessly, but was stiff to operate. I feel a decent pistolero can accomodate to about any handgun with practice, but I just didn't feel this one was worth the trouble to me. Accuracy was decent. Trigger was both gritty and too heavy. It was uncomfortable in Mexican carry, even for a few minutes - - all those sharp corners.
Groping for nice things to say about it: Well, about all I come up with is that it seemed VERY sturdy. There is very little perceived recoil for a fairly small pistol. It would do well as a car gun or home defense pistol, for someone who did not demand a lot in the way of ergonomics from a pistol. The extra magazine would make rotation possible without additional investment. The plated finish would require little or no upkeep. (I thought, anyway, Mordoc's comment notwithstanding. I really didn't subject mine to any sort of corrosion exposure. BTW: I don't believe I've EVER seen a USA brand magazine, of ANY type that functioned well.)
I took the little Star home, cleaned it up well, and put it in the safe. I figured it MIGHT make a boot on a deal some time. I was so unimpressed with it, I didn't even want to give it to a family member for home defense. A few months later, I finally swapped it to a dealer on a .40 High Power. Because it was so nearly new, with box and such, I got all my money out of it, and had a pistol I liked very much with little extra money invested. A decent all-around experience.
If 'twere me, I'd pass on the pistol, unless it was (1) a fantastic bargain, AND (2) you just wanted the experience with a different type handgun.
I hasten to state: This pistol was NOT a piece of junk. It just did not suit me AT ALL.
Best regards,
Johnny
Walt Sherrill
Member
The Firestars to get are not the steel-framed guns, but the alloy-framed guns. The things that detract from the Star Firestars -- weight and capacity -- are solved by the alloy versions.
(I've had several, and they're all good guns.)
Look for a Star Firestar Plus.
(I've had several, and they're all good guns.)
Look for a Star Firestar Plus.
Zebulon
Member
Doublet....No need to be defensive....There are a lot of people here who have'nt heard of the Firestars...I suspected that was the reason you were'nt getting any responses. I meant no ill will, just tried to be of some assitance....Zeb
Stephen A. Camp
Moderator In Memoriam
- Joined
- Dec 24, 2002
- Messages
- 2,430
Hello. I owned a Firestar M43 with the electroless nickel finished called "Starvel" by the company. It didn't seem particularly sensitive to the elements, skin oils, etc, but I cleaned it regularly as I have "acid fingers," it seems.
The pistol was reliable and possessed decent accuracy.
In my opinion, it was heavy for size, but I overlooked this as it handled any 9mm ammo I fed it from std. pressure to +P and in bullet weights from 88-gr. to 124.
The sights were "on" for windage, but be aware that if such is not the case, adjustments are made via the dovetailed front sight. The rear sight screw does not simply tension the sight to the slide, but is mated to a threaded hole in the slide.
If you opt to purchase the pistol, understand that spare parts are getting problematical to find and Star magazines frequently can be pretty pricey.
Firing pins can break on these if you dry fire, so snap caps would be recommended.
The pistol has a magazine "safety" that prevents free-falling magazines, but is easily removed if desired. Others will recommend against this, usually for expected civil liabilty problems so you be the judge on what's right for you.
I didn't find the gun uncomfortable, but neither was it in the top 2 or 3 that I rate "very comfortable." Recoil is not great and I found it an easy pistol to shoot.
Best.
The pistol was reliable and possessed decent accuracy.
In my opinion, it was heavy for size, but I overlooked this as it handled any 9mm ammo I fed it from std. pressure to +P and in bullet weights from 88-gr. to 124.
The sights were "on" for windage, but be aware that if such is not the case, adjustments are made via the dovetailed front sight. The rear sight screw does not simply tension the sight to the slide, but is mated to a threaded hole in the slide.
If you opt to purchase the pistol, understand that spare parts are getting problematical to find and Star magazines frequently can be pretty pricey.
Firing pins can break on these if you dry fire, so snap caps would be recommended.
The pistol has a magazine "safety" that prevents free-falling magazines, but is easily removed if desired. Others will recommend against this, usually for expected civil liabilty problems so you be the judge on what's right for you.
I didn't find the gun uncomfortable, but neither was it in the top 2 or 3 that I rate "very comfortable." Recoil is not great and I found it an easy pistol to shoot.
Best.
AndyM
Member
Just as a point of reference, I picked one up about 7 months ago for $230 and that included 3 extra 7 rnd mags.
I have seen prices vary from a low of $200 to a high of $300.
Most that I've seen seem to include an extra mag. I think I got lucky with my 3 extra factory mags.
If you search this site, you'll find a posting by me that complained that my slide locked back incorrectly. The last locking ring was catching on the very top of the barrel.
This was due to the slightest burr on the lip of the barrel. That was smoothed out with a file and the slide works fine now.
As people have mentioned, it is a heavy gun for its size. However, this extra mass does help soak up some of the recoild felt by shooting 9mm in a gun that size.
I bought mine because it fit my hand well and the price.
andy
I have seen prices vary from a low of $200 to a high of $300.
Most that I've seen seem to include an extra mag. I think I got lucky with my 3 extra factory mags.
If you search this site, you'll find a posting by me that complained that my slide locked back incorrectly. The last locking ring was catching on the very top of the barrel.
This was due to the slightest burr on the lip of the barrel. That was smoothed out with a file and the slide works fine now.
As people have mentioned, it is a heavy gun for its size. However, this extra mass does help soak up some of the recoild felt by shooting 9mm in a gun that size.
I bought mine because it fit my hand well and the price.
andy
CDNN has factory mags in stock, they bought out the importer I believe. The prices are not bad, but the alloy frame Firestar Plus, you cannot find 13 rounders for less than $75 at gun shows, by the way, my USA mags work great on my Plus, guess I have a good gun or a couple of good mags...
gulogulo1970
Member
I had a M-45, basicly the larger 45ACP, big brother of the M-43. I loved it. It routenly out shot my Colt Double Eagle and my Colt Officer's ACP. A little heavy(even the M-43). I sold mine because I heard some of the parts were fragile and I figured I could get more for a working one than a broken one.
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