My reborn Astra Terminator .44

[loc n load]

WPWarhawk

Nice photo's.....I think you will like your Astra....I remember when they came on the market.....have shot 44 mag's and 41 mag's over the years. Came across the 45 LC version I posted above....never seen a 45 LC Terminator before this one....Mine will hold it's own with any number of Smith 25's I own and Ruger Blackhawks in 45 LC....enjoy your revolver.

 

[WC145]

Don't let the lack of bluing on the crown lead you to believe Jovino's cut that gun down, if, indeed, it was cut down. One of the things that makes Jovino and Behlert guns so desirable is the quality of workmanship. Those guns looked like they could have been factory jobs.

 

[Tom K]

Here's a comparison that shows what the full-size guns looked like. It appears there were some frame profile changes over the years - my 6" gun has a rounded corner at the front as compared to the square corner of WPWarhawk's gun. http://smith-wessonforum.com/s-w-re...29-2-its-spanish-american-german-cousins.html

 

[BC38]

Here's an interesting article about the Astra Terminator written in August of 1985 shortly after Jovino started selling them...
Astra Terminator .44 magnum. - Free Online Library

 

[No Quarter]

Any information why the Astra's firing pin broke ?

Not sure why it broke. Perhaps a bit too much dry firing. The gun still fired just fine. If it had not been for the broken end of the firing pin getting stuck in the "out" position briefly, I would have never even noticed. Fora ll I know I fired hundreds of rounds through it like that.

Gun is still going strong and has claimed the life of many a feral pig since I started this thread...

NQ

 

[LC '92]

I see messages posted about the Terminator being attributed to Lew Horton. I emailed them about it, and am posting their response with their permission:

****************Start of pasted text***************************

Hello LC '92!

I occasionally get a question on these. I know there are posts in Wikipedia and on the S&W Collector's Forum that attribute the Astra 44's to us. I have no available documentation that supports the Wikipedia and Forum posts. It is possible that those guns were imported in the early 80's, prior to Lew Horton's installing our automated gun record system. My automated records go back as far as 1984. To research, we'd have to go back to our paper records, and that's a service we do not offer.

Sorry I could not be of more service on this one.

Earl Minot
Lew Horton Distributing
Ph: 800-446-7866, ext 230
Fax: 508-366-5332
[email protected]
Lew Horton Distributing Co. Inc.

***************End of pasted text************************************

Anybody for sure know when these were made? My serial number starts with an R3 but the Astra serial numbers chart doesn't list an A3 date. It shows R, R1, and R2 as 1947, 1973, and 2000 respectively.

I wonder if Jon Jovino imported these and sold them through his shop. He was already making them in house and had an existing market and an installed base of them. Wish I hadn't gotten rid of my old Gun Digests, I could easily have looked this up.

 

[BC38]

I see messages posted about the Terminator being attributed to Lew Horton. I emailed them about it, and am posting their response with their permission:

****************Start of pasted text***************************

Hello LC '92!

I occasionally get a question on these. I know there are posts in Wikipedia and on the S&W Collector's Forum that attribute the Astra 44's to us. I have no available documentation that supports the Wikipedia and Forum posts. It is possible that those guns were imported in the early 80's, prior to Lew Horton's installing our automated gun record system. My automated records go back as far as 1984. To research, we'd have to go back to our paper records, and that's a service we do not offer.

Sorry I could not be of more service on this one.

Earl Minot
Lew Horton Distributing
Ph: 800-446-7866, ext 230
Fax: 508-366-5332
[email protected]
Lew Horton Distributing Co. Inc.

***************End of pasted text************************************

Anybody for sure know when these were made? My serial number starts with an R3 but the Astra serial numbers chart doesn't list an A3 date. It shows R, R1, and R2 as 1947, 1973, and 2000 respectively.

I wonder if Jon Jovino imported these and sold them through his shop. He was already making them in house and had an existing market and an installed base of them. Wish I hadn't gotten rid of my old Gun Digests, I could easily have looked this up.

I have never seen anyone attribute the Terminator to Lew Horton, but if you click on the link I posted above you'll see an article from August 1985 when the Terminator (both gun and movie) were pretty much new on the scene. That article is just one of the MANY sources I've seen stating that they were a John Jovino creation.

P.S. And just for giggles, here's a picture of mine...

 

[Pisgah]

Many years back I had a Terminator, and it's one of those "wish I'd never sold it" stories...

 

[WPWarhawk]

I had mine out today, the S/N is R3941xx

I still need a rear sight assembly, my local gunsmith did not want to attempt a welding job.

 

[2152hq]

Nice looking revolvers..
I've always liked the Astra semi auto pistols and have owned several of those but no revolvers.
Astra like STAR were under rated by most IMO.
Astra had a tremendous revolver market in South America at one time.

Astra went out of business,,bankrupt in '97. STAR the same fate on the same day.
The Spanish Gov't tried a revived combined effort backed w/ gov't funds (sounds familiar) called ASTAR, but that only lasted a year or so.

Astra has been gone since that time.


The current revival of Astra by the Swiss company was a purchase of the name only and the rights to mark and market under it.
Probably won't see many Terminators or Model 400 pistols from them. They don't seem to be the type to mfg good olde days types of guns, but they do make a 1911. Then again who doesn't.

Parts will always be the problem with Astra and also STAR.

 

[BigBill]

I'd purchase extra firing pins if I were you.

 

[OLDSTER]

Pretty darn neat. I'd never seen one. They do look impressive

 

[jhnttrpp]

I had mine out today, the S/N is R3941xx

I still need a rear sight assembly, my local gunsmith did not want to attempt a welding job.

I'm not sure what you need to be welded but if it is very fine detail find a jewelry store that makes jewelry or repairs jewelry. They use tig welders of a very small nature.

 

[gregintenn]

My father had a 6" stainless 44 mag astra. As far as I could tell, it was every bit as high quality as a pinned and recessed s&w. I wish I'd have bought it from him when he decided to sell it.

 

[august1410]

On the 1980s TV show "Hunter", the title character used a Terminator in seasons 2 and 3. Quite unusual for an LAPD detective, but television is television.

The Terminator also makes an appearance near the beginning of "Lethal Weapon" during the Christmas Tree/Drug Bust sequence. Bad guy holds his Astra Terminator to Mel Gibson's head.

 

[WPWarhawk]

On the 1980s TV show "Hunter", the title character used a Terminator in seasons 2 and 3. Quite unusual for an LAPD detective, but television is television.

The Terminator also makes an appearance near the beginning of "Lethal Weapon" during the Christmas Tree/Drug Bust sequence. Bad guy holds his Astra Terminator to Mel Gibson's head.

Looney Clooney also uses one in FROM DUSK TIL DAWN

 

[crazyphil]

I think that bead blast job is very attractive. I bought my model 67
(no dash) a long time ago. It had been abused. I had it bead blasted
and I think it turned out well.

 

[DWalt]

I think that bead blast job is very attractive. I bought my model 67
(no dash) a long time ago. It had been abused. I had it bead blasted
and I think it turned out well.

It's not mentioned very much, but one of the most economical means of refinishing a gun which needs it is to bead blast as the surface prep, using fine ceramic beads. It can be done very quickly, and not a whole lot of skill is necessary as would be needed for hand polishing. Followed by a dunk in the hot blue tank. I have done numerous handguns and shotguns that way. It produces a satin finish, about like most of the postwar S&W revolvers had.

 

[DWalt]

"Wish I hadn't gotten rid of my old Gun Digests, I could easily have looked this up."
You can buy a DVD set of all of the GDs published from 1944-2010 (maybe beyond 2010 now) in PDF format. Good to have for reference.

 

[gwpercle]

ATTABOY !
Awesome save, love it !
With a name like "Terminator" I would be tempted to have the infamous line from the movie engraved on it ..." I'll Be Back "
Great save ,
Gary