Astra 600: How shootable? Good/bad?

I keep toying with the idea of picking up an Astra 600 in my quest to collect German Police Guns (knowing I'll never be able to really afford a Sig P210, H&K P7, and substituting a Sig 230 for a Walther PP).

But I really like shooting what I own. I've read a bunch of stuff saying the 600 is a beast to shoot with pretty bad recoil (9mm blowback) and I worry that racking the slide will be tough in the future if arthritis weakens my hands.

So I guess I'm asking for insight from them whats owns one.

It clearly won't be an everyday range toy, I'll probably shoot it, at best, one out of five or six trips, like I do my Swedish "Lahti." But I don't want to be so turned off by shooting it that it just gathers dust in the safe.

If I don't buy one I'll probably use the money to help finance an H&K something, either a USP or USP compact, even though my Walthers cover the same territory as the H&Ks. Also, if I may ask, what's the story on Sauer 38H? I know nothing about them (gonna be me and google tonight I guess). Shootable? Pricey? Available?

Thanks in advance.

I am recoil averse and don't mind shooting mine. They do have a hefty spring. I have found more challenge in reassembly after a field strip (compressing the spring) than in racking the slide.

These pistols are very shootable.

The recoil is very modest.

The springs are tight, but no worse than many of today's small pocket pistols.

The old one I got back in the 1970's was always pleasant to shoot. It will shoot about anything with a .357 bore diameter. I think I used to shoot 38 auto in it some. I do remember taking it apart. That spring sent gun stuff flying halfway across the house. I wouldn't take one apart again.

I can tell you from hard learned experience that the Astra 600 is a hoot to shoot and can drive a recoil spring all the way threw a suspended celling.

I think a couple of you guys may be getting the Astra 600 mixed up with the 400. The 600 is 9mmP...

I just bought a 600 at the gun show last weekend but haven't had chance to shoot it...I hope to do so this weekend.

I launched my 400 bushing and bushing lock in the garage last weekend bounced off the vaulted ceiling, bushing recovered. Bushing lock ordered. Gun is fairly soft shooting with Largo surplus ammo, but that spring and extractor launch empties into the next county.

Nothing really exciting about shooting the 400 or 600 Astra. Poor sights, weird recoil and a poor trigger pull.
Nazi marked ones are collectible

I've had 400s & 600s. Found them to be dependable, but never
Hit much with them at any distance. The recoil is what I would
call a double shuffle, similar to firing a Rem 8 or A5 Brn shotgun.
A fun gun, no harder to rack than a Shield.

Here's a couple of pics of the kind of rig that Redcoat3340 is looking for. Most of the Astra 600's that were never delivered to the Nazis remained in storage until about 1951 and then were sold to the W. German police. When Walter started producing the post war alloy framed P38 known as the P1 Sam Cummings of Interarms bought up all the surplus Astras and sold them in the US. A complete rig like this could be mail ordered for around $29.95 prior to the GCA68.

Astra 600 is the later 9mm Luger caliber pistol. \
The Model 400 is the earlier 9mmLargo caliber pistol that can be stuffed with a few other 9mm's and still work most of the time.

They are pretty much the same design and straight blowback operation. The Mod 600 didn't come out till during WW2 (43),,the production at the request of the Germans and the first 10.000+ were shipped to them and marked by them. But the rest of the production didn't make it to the FatherLand. Production stopped at the end of the War.
Astra 600's w/ fake WaffenAmt marks are out there. But the ser# range of the shipment originally sent to Germany and marked is well documented and available in books and online.
Those German marked 600's bring a big premium so the fakers are all in.


Excellent, strong 9mm Luger cal pistol. Strong recoil spring of course and heavy all steel construction. The slide takes quite an effort for some to rack because of the springs (recoil and mainspring). Internal hammer so you can't pre-cock the hammer to lighten the job.

Simple TD with the use of the slide lock and then twist the bbl a 1/4 turn to lock it in place and release it and the slide w/ recoil spring from the frame. No flying springs launched and that is as far as normally needed to clean it in normal use.
The recoil spring takes a ride when you release the end cap on the slide (push 'in' and turn) and it then releases the compressed recoil spring much to many owners surprise. It can do some damage flying out of the slide for sure.
The 300, 400 and 600 are all pretty much the same in construction as were their updated models the 3000 and 4000.

Comfortable to shoot w/ standard FMJ 9mmLuger ammo due to their weight, they are reliable and accurate. Very well made.
LAst shot hold open,,
Most of the Astra contract that didn't make it to Germany during the War were sold and W.Germany ended up with most of them, Austria also. Many are Police and Gov't Security agency marked from those countrys, cities & agencys within.
A couple of small contracts to other countrys. Portuguese Navy contract and a contract to Chile for a relative small number.
I bought one of the Chilean marked pistols (I think I'm remembering it right,,maybe it was a Port.!) when they were bought up sold by Hanson & Hanson in CT in the 90's. It was like new.

The 600 (and the 400) were favorites of mine. If I could still pull the slide back on one they'd still be in my hands. The last 600 I had was a W/German Police used pistol complete w/it's holster and 2 magazines.
I bought it at a gunshow from a dealer for $100

FWIW,,the 600 magazines are different from the 400 and don't interchange.

I have a 600 in the 13000 ser. number range. So it is not Nazi marked. it is one of the best shooting pistols of all my WW2 German guns. Shoots a very tight group at 20 yards. recoil is no more than a p38 not near as much as a 1911 45 ACP . Great gun just born ugly.

I had a 400 back in the 80's. Shot well enough, but the Largo ammo was hard to find back then, I found a few boxes at an LGS and bought it all.

Unfortunately, that pistol was stolen around 1988 or so, and I never got it back.

Still have a box of that '50s surplus Spanish ammo.....