The Star Super B

[Petrol & Powder]

Did you ever buy a gun because it was just too good of a deal to pass up? Several years ago, I was in a tiny gun shop and spotted a Star Super B chambered in 9mm. It was made in 1972 and it had a few minor issues, but it didn’t look abused, and it was all there. It was priced right. A deal was made, and I left with a new toy.

Spanish firearms have always been a bit of a mixed bag. Sometimes they are a decent value and sometimes not so much. If you go into the arena with your eyes wide open, you can find good deals.

After a new recoil spring and some repairs, the pistol turned out to be completely reliable and very accurate. During the height of the panic, I considered selling it. I probably could have tripled my money. But it had grown on me, and I decided that it would stay.

The Star model B and Super B had long production runs. They were never cutting-edge pistols, but they were solid designs. Hollywood loves them because they look like a 1911 on screen but function well with blanks. They were common on the import/surplus scene for many years and often priced well below other similar pistols. It’s good to know that our hobby can still bring a smile without spending a fortune.

 

[fiver]

I used to pick up some oddities from time to time.
oddly most of the ones that are now worth some pretty good dough were the ones I managed to let slip away or butchered to hunt and just shoot with.
the swiss 98/11, and one of the K-31's got chopped, back before ammo was anywhere to be found.
[but at 25 bucks for them and a 6.5 Carcano who cared?]
the real minty Chileano model 98 is still only half finished and can't be put back to original.
[paid all of 75$ or so airc]
I had at least a half dozen 49 dollar Moisin's come and go without ever firing any of them.
a pair of real nice model 95 Mauser's got sold when I left Utah, doubt I paid more than 1hundred dollars for either of them.
I still have a pretty good K-31 I gave 95 Bucks for.
I regret passing on that nice 6.5 X 55 I could have got for under 300$ some, but not so much since I passed on it for a little 25-20 model 92 rifle for another hundred.

 

[smokeywolf]

Friend of mine (ex-partner) latched onto a Star PD back in the late 1970s. Fit and finish was better than I would have expected, but not a gun I would bet my life on.

 

[RicinYakima]

My issue with Spanish pistols has always been durability. They were not made to have a firing life that most American gun enthusiasts use them. There you are expected to shoot one magazine and then almost never fire it again until your life is on the line. 500 rounds is usually the life of the slide stop notch, rails and magazine lips.

The exception appears to be the export military pistols, that can be very good; the 1930 Astra's and C96 clones are good examples.

 

[Petrol & Powder]

The Spanish firearms industry was odd back in the day. There was everything from full blown factories, to little shops, to one household firms. It was hard to put them all in one category. I've met people that had old Spanish made shotguns and they believed they had something valuable. Most of the time they had an inexpensive double barrel that they saw as exotic when in reality it was just a cheap shotgun. However, there are some high quality ones as well. You really had to know what you were looking at.

Some of the lessor known Spanish pistols used soft steel and they wouldn't hold up. Same was true for thier shotguns.

I've played with my share of old Mausers, Lee Enfields, and former Eastern Block stuff. If you keep everything in prespective, some of that stuff can be a lot of fun.

My Star Super B is completely reliable but it wouldn't be my first choice for a carry pistol. Not because it's bad, just because there are better options. But as cheap toy - It can't be beat.
I've used it with new shooters when we are working through semi-auto pistols. After introducing them to a Ruger MKII, I move them to the Star.
Almost everyone can score hits with it right out of the gate.

 

[oscarflytyer]

Have a Star BM I really like. Don't shoot it a lot, but shoot it very well. Carry it occassionally. Been very reliable.

 

[Petrol & Powder]

I had a Star Firestar in 45 ACP for a while. Solid pistol, tight and it was a decent shooter. The safety had a nasty habit of moving on its own. I never trusted it and that one went done the road.

 

[Ben]

I've read that many Spanish firearms had soft steel in them.
I've always avoided them ? ?

Ben

 

[L Ross]

I've read that many Spanish firearms had soft steel in them.
I've always avoided them ? ?

Ben

I had a sexy looking .357 that looked like a Model 19 with a vent rib, can't remember what off brand it was. It shot loose so fast I couldn't believe it. No hot loads either. The ratchet and hand took a crap in no time. Never again, Colt, Smith, Ruger or FA for this guy. And the Colt is mostly about the nostalgia.

 

[fiver]

heh,,, yah.
I bought a pair of 45 colt revolvers once but don't remember the maker.
they both bound up tighter than tight before the first cylinder full of win super-X cast bullet loads.
probably the best thing to ever happen to me since they went right back to the store, and I walked out with a Pair of USFA's.

 

[RicinYakima]

I had a sexy looking .357 that looked like a Model 19 with a vent rib, can't remember what off brand it was. It shot loose so fast I couldn't believe it. No hot loads either. The ratchet and hand took a crap in no time. Never again, Colt, Smith, Ruger or FA for this guy. And the Colt is mostly about the nostalgia.

Llama.

 

[oscarflytyer]

I've read that many Spanish firearms had soft steel in them.
I've always avoided them ? ?

Ben

Not heard that. Do know mine had a ding in the slide that bulged some proud metal, and I decided to grind it down/smooth it out. That metal was hard as hell! I finally gave up after removing the real high rough edges! And I used a dremel and stone - as they tell you to NEVER do with a gun! lol!

 

[CZ93X62]

I've had only slight experience with Spanish-made arms. Both were Star pistols, a PD in 45 ACP that I had use of for about a month and a BKM 9mm that belongs to a friend.

The PD impressed me at the time (~1980). Back then, compact 1911-series pistols tended to be balky, scarce, and quite expensive. The PD was none of those things, and it fed Silvertip HPs, 185 target SWCs, and 230 grain castings without a bobble. The deputy I borrowed it from would not sell it, and the dealers in my area could not locate a new one for me. IIRC, this course of events prompted me to apply for and secure my first Type 01 FFL in March 1981, which In retained until 1993. Thanks a ton, Cal-DOJ.

It was during my dealer days that a hunting buddy that worked as a facilities supervisor for Cal-NG brought over his BKM, and asked about finding magazines for it. Easy enough, Triple K magazines was 100 miles away, with a 3-day turnaround on phone orders. I bought three mags, and they all ran fine for the guy. He went away happy. I told him that since the frame was aluminum from a foreign country to limit shooting to standard-pressure USA-made ammunition.

Did he listen? Of course not. He got hold of some surplused 9mm NATO ammo from work and ran 200+ rounds of that stuff through the gun, and suddenly the slide stopped locking back. He brought it over to look at, and explained about the milsurp ammo adventure. The slide stop holes on both sides were peened. "Lead a horse to water......."

 

[Petrol & Powder]

There's a tendenacy to lump things together, sometimes unfairly.
Not all Spanish handguns are bad and not all are good. You just have to go into the adventure with your eyes open. I've seen some guns that I wouldn't buy even if they were nearly free. I've also seen guns that were priced low and I was willing to take a chance on.
And there's a difference between buying a gun for serious work verses buying one for a project.

 

[CZ93X62]

Agreed. I darn sure didn't buy the 1916-made refurb Nagant revolver contraption for any serious purpose. One can only wonder what NCO and officer ranks in the Imperial Russian using services thought when their beloved S&W 44 Russian top-break No. 3s got cashiered for these Nagant contraptions.

 

[Rushcreek]

I'm not sure of the model, but I'd love to get one of the rare older full size .45 ACP Star pistols. The PD .45 compact, the Firestar 9mm, the BM and B Super 9mms were among the best pistols I've ever owned. I've been trying to buy the B Super back for ten years now!
With my PD, I could run the bowling pin table almost as fast as my friends with their Gold Cups and Clark Pin guns- with the reloads that their guns rejected hahaha.

 

[Mitty38]

Had a Star Bm that was worse for wear. Had to replace the firing pin and the Barrel link. Was a fairly accurate pistol. Had some kind of steel alloy frame that would just not take bluing, cold or hot. Magnet would stick to it so I knew it was ferrous. But what was mixed in it, who knows.
Was a fun gun to shoot. Decided I wanted something else and sold it. Kinda miss that one.