Very well made, all machined. Easy TD and full disassembly is not bad either.
Most small parts that held in place with pins, the pins are 'L' shaped and the longer leg is a slip fit. The Short leg is for simply getting a hold of and pulling the pin from the frame or slide to disassemble the part.
Yes the TD for Field strip is easy but a lot of people instantly think the knurled ring at the front of the slide should be unscrewed for some reason. They often show plier marks from the attempt.
The ring is for further disassembly but you are working against the recoil spring and it's disassembly when removing it so care must be taken.
Heavy recoil spring as they are a straight blow-back action and a heavy pistol overall.
But they are generally accurate and reliable. Most have a decent trigger pull.
They were originally all Rust Blued. That left the inside surfaces 'In the White' which is/was the classic way of finishing for European firearms.
Many of the 600 Model went to the W German Police and Security forces after WW2. Some have markings on the frame from that service and the issue holsters from their post WW2 service included.
The 400 is the 9mmLargo cal. The old marketing scheme was that the gun was designed to fire everything from 380acp, to 9mmLuger, to 9mmLargo and others.
Old ads sometimes included the Italian 9mm Glisenti round as well. A near copy of the 9mmLuger in case specs but loaded to less pressure IIRC.
Well,,they will very often fire using the assortment(s). But you have anywhere from a few .000 to nearly a 1/4" of excess headspace when doing so.
The only thing that makes the magic work is the pistols extractor. The extractor holds (hopefully) on to the rim of the mongrel 9mmcaliber round and keeps it tight or reasonably so against the breech face.
If it doesn't, the shorter 9mm's can slip down into the chamber in front of the extractor hook. Some will still fire as the Astra's firing pin is very long. If it can reach one of those that's in front of the breech face and extractor,,it can fire it.
But the case will then kick back upon firing and strike the claw of the extractor, If that happens, the extractor can break off or sometimes the extractor is blown from the slide.
Sometimes nothing happens.
Safe to say the pistols were not designed to fire the entire line of all 9mm pistol rounds.
But it made a good marketing plug in the 50's and 60's to get these things sold for the $12 they were asking for them.
There's never been a real good reliable supply of Largo ammo around till the 1990's when the flood of Star pistols came in that were surplused by the Spanish Police , Military and Security. Even then is was somewhat elderly ammo and most corrosive.
If you find one marked '38' on the slide it's had the breech face ever so slightly opened up so the 38ACP round will function in the gun.
38acp,,not the 38Super though they use the same case
Being a semi rimmed rd, the slight extra rim dia space is generally needed, but some guns function just fine w/o the mod.
You'll see the marking on other 9mmLargo caliber pistols as well.
Some done by the importers, many done by the mfg'r for surplus sale when they were destined for the USA. Star did many like that.
38Super in a blow back Astra 400?
Sure it will 'work'. Many will tell you about the success of doing so.
But the pistol was just not designed for the 38Super rd. The spring balance/slide weight/hammer spring resistance is all that is in play.
It's always made me wonder when people say it's a 'must' to have all new springs installed in a Luger, P38 or other vintage locked breech pistol before shooting the caliber ammo it was designed for. But then will cheerfully stuff 38Super ammo into a blowback Astra 400. and say ..
'See,,It works!'
But it's alot like the shoot/don't shoot back and forth over Low# 03 Springfields or Damascus Bbl'd shotguns.
The 9mmLargo is a 9x23 metric designation.
Winchester & Colt came out with a 9x23 pistol caliber back in the 90's.
These Winchester/Colt 9x23 factory rounds run the pressures in the 50K to 55K psi range.
Way more than any of the old 9mmLargo pistol were ever meant to handle.
9mmSteyr pistol round will work in the Largo guns and is pressure wise right in the same range as the 9mmLargo.
