Star 9mm Largo

[policerevolvercollector]

I've seen several of these 9x23mm pistols for sale lately. How does the round rate on the power continuum? More potent than the 9mm Luger? Are magazines available? Is the ammo hard to find?

I believe the model designation is the Super Model B.

 

[Big Cholla]

I don't know anything about the handgun, but I do know a little about the 9x23 Largo ammo. Wanting to get more practice in than usual I investigated using the really cheap 9 Largo in my 38 Supers. I found that if I re-seated the bullet to shorten the OAL a little that I had one Colt 1911 in 38 Super that would digest the Largo round just fine. I then found a 9x23 barrel in my parts bin and tried that with the standard round. It worked just fine. I did use up some of the re-seated bullet rounds and found that they were much more accurate than the untouched rounds. I think that by re-seating the bullets a tad the neck tensions became much more uniform. I also found that while most of the 9 Largo available here in So. Nevada was non-corrosive, there was a little of it was in fact corrosive. So, I just make a habit of doing a very good cleaning and lubrication job after a practice session. I'm sure that the energy developed is right up there with really hot 9 Luger. I also like the fact that I don't have to pickup the brass because it is not reloadable under normal circumstances. .........

 

[Redcoat3340]

I've seen several of these 9x23mm pistols for sale lately. How does the round rate on the power continuum? More potent than the 9mm Luger? Are magazines available? Is the ammo hard to find?

I believe the model designation is the Super Model B.

No. The Star Super B model is a 9mm 1911 look alike (very different on the inside and no grip safety.) It is NOT the Largo and shoots a regular 9x19 Parabellum/Luger round.

I've had three model B's...one Super and two "regular" B models (the BS model has a magazine safety). They are very nice guns, my Super has a great trigger and ammo is easy to find. Largo ammo, when I considered buying one in that caliber was much harder to find and a lot pricier.

If it were me, I'd do the Star Super B (and as I have five other Star 9mm pistols I'm partial to the brand). They are still readily available online both at dealers and Gunbroker (although do a thorough "shop" and compare prices before you buy) or check your local gunshow.

In addition to some internal mechanics the big difference between the regular B and Super B model is the ease of takedown on the Super B. There's a handy little lever on the right side, turn it down and presto, the gun field strips. You don't have to drive the slide release thingy out like on 1911s or the regular B.

If you have a C&R 03FFL you might look for a C&R regular B, which would save you the FFL fees most folks have to pay. The Super B doesn't qualify for C&R status.

I really like that gun. I've become recoil adverse and gave my .45s to my sons....but I still have a 1911 looking piece that shoots well.

 

[Redcoat3340]

Oh, and here's a great website with everything you'd could want to know about Star pistols and the many fine models they made.

Star Firearms: Chart of all Firearms by Caliber

Caution: Stars, like many pistols, are both addictive and they get lonely in the safe, and you can hear them crying out for their brothers. They cry in Spanish, but the message comes through loud and clear. Mas. Mas. (More, more)

 

[policerevolvercollector]

Thank you both for the great info!

 

[DWalt]

The 9mm Largo aka 9mm Bergman-Bayard is much the same round as the 9mm Steyr, but slightly longer in cartridge OAL, and a little weaker. Ballistically it is a little below the 9x19, and close to the .38 ACP. It will be a little too long to fit into a .38 Super/.45 ACP magazine. The 9mm Steyr will, and is a little hotter than the Largo. The Largo and Steyr cases are essentially rimless versions of the .38 ACP/.38 Super cases which are semi-rimmed. My experience is that .38 ACP cartridges will function OK in pistols designed for the 9mm Largo and 9mm Steyr. That is true for at least Astra and Llama pistols. Starline makes the brass in several forms, including the 9mm Super Comp and 9x23 Winchester. Likewise, .38 Super pistols will handle 9mm Largo and Steyr rounds, except for the OAL problem with the Largo cartridge. You can reload Largo with .38 Super reloading dies. At one time both 9mm Largo and 9mm Steyr ammunition was abundant on the surplus market, but I haven't seen any for many years.

 

[jmace57]

Yes. Noticeably more powerful. I had a Star Super B and an Astra 400. Surplus corrosive ammo was readily available CHEAP until a couple of years ago - 8 cents per round. I found them unpleasant to shoot but I am really a wimp when it comes to recoil. I sold them to my brother in law, who absolutely loves them.

 

[DWalt]

The Astra 400 has noticeably more felt recoil than most other pistols of similar caliber due to its blowback operation requiring a heavy slide. Disassembly is something you really don't want to perform on an Astra 400 or 600 unless absolutely necessary.

 

[BigBill]

9mm Largo Webpage

 

[2152hq]

The Model B and Super B were in 9mmLuger
The Model A and Super A were in 9mm Largo

Model should be on the bottom of the butt behind the magazine well.

Many of the A and Super A pistols imported were X Spanish AirForce pistols and will have the Crest still on the slide. Others were Security & Police issues with a Spanish Military inventory # on the side (different from the Ser#),,though many imports through CAI were logged with the inv # as the ser#.

The Super A has the quick TDsystem and loaded chamber indicator, Browning HP bbl cam lock.
The A has the Colt 1911 swinging bbl link and TD.

9mmLargo is a decent cartridge. Load with 9mmLuger dies.

 

[Arik]

Less powerful than the 9x19. Not the same as 9X23 WIN, ammo is not cheap nor plentiful

 

[ky wonder]

I have an old model B , 9x19,

that I brought back from Europe in the mid seventies, it was a personal weapon that I packed in a shoulder rig while on duty,

it was lighter and more accurate than the old shot out 1911a's that we had in the arms room at that time,

however it does not like most hollow point ammo but handles ball with ease and it hit where I wanted it to,

so after 40 years of riding around in tractor tool boxes, or in a metal ammo can in the jeeps and farm trucks here on the place for the last 4 decades with little love and attention it still shoots where I aim, sure is not pretty anymore, but well worn and everybody needs a truck gun

 

[robertrwalsh]

Finding good magazines is a challenge these days. Cheap Largo ammo is by and large unavailable now also. They are, however, well made weapons and quite serviceable except for the typical crappy military sights.

 

[italiansport]

SARCO at one time had loads of 9MM Largo ammo available but perhaps that isn't the case anymore.
Jim

 

[DWalt]

I once had the Llama "Extra" in 9mm Largo, very, very similar in appearance and design to the Colt Government Model. It looked to have been arsenal refinished. I don't remember what I paid for it back in the late 1960s, but somewhat less than $100. I shot it mainly with .38 Super ammunition, many thousands of rounds without a hitch. It's one of those many guns I sold but later wished I hadn't. I had a real love affair at the time with the .38 Super.

 

[Drm50]

I just sold a Star in 9largo and a Spanish Destroyer carbine in
same. Old gent I bought them from told me he bought from
Kliens, mail order in early 60s. I got a couple boxes of military
ammo with them, Berdan primed. I reloaded 38 Super brass
which had rims thinned, but wasn't necessary to reduce Dia.of
rim, worked fine in both guns. Magazine from Star was suppose
to work in carbine, but mine didn't. Found pistol to be accurate
and dependable.

 

[2152hq]

Aim Surplus just sold a number of STAR Model B-Super pistols (9mmLuger) for just under $250 dealer price. That was a decent deal IMO.

In the late 90's they and others sold the same pistol with 2 magazines, cleaning rod, manual and box for about $120.
I had bought a half dozen or so at the time. You'd think I could have hung on to at least one!
I had several of the early Model B pistols too that used the narrow base magazine. They were also all over the surplus market,,some being marked with a dummy WaffenAmpt.
Trying to deceive customers into believing they were part of the WW2 contracts.
In fact they were Bulgarian contract & just part of the emptying of the arsenals in the Eastern Bloc in the 90's.

The Model A and A-Super (9mmLargo) can be converted to use 9mmLuger like a ModelB & B-Super.
A BBl change is necessary. Or you could use the 60's and 70's garage gunsmith method of bushing the chamber of the Largo bbl.
That works very nicely but you should have a 9mmLuger reamer handy to complete the conversion anyway. Not somethings rolling around in most peoples tool box.
For a while in the 90's there were a couple companys making bbls for these and other odd caliber pistols to complete conversions on. Quality greatly varied!

The 9mmLargo magazine will work with the 9mmLuger round. The two mags are the same except for a very slight difference in the length of the feed lips between the two. The 9mmLuger mag of theMod B and B Super being a bit longer than the ModelA mag.

At the time it was just as easy to find a ModelB to shoot if you wanted the 9mmLuger caliber gun. The guns were certainly inexpensive too.
But people being the way they are, me included,,we just couldn't leave some things alone.

 

[BigBill]

I have a stash of 9mm largo for plinking. It was cheap.

 

[DWalt]

Many folks fired 9x19 ammo in 9x23 chambers as a regular thing. For several good reasons, that is not recommended, but it usually works.