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DATING YOUR GUILD 1952-1960 YEAR APPROXIMATE LAST SERIAL NUMBER PRODUCED 1953 1000-1500. JET STAR BASS SD101 to 108 SD109 to 327 SD328 to 343 N/A N/A MARK I CA101 to 110 CA317 to 996 CA997 to 1973 CA1974 to 2156 N/A., model and last serial number produced for each instrument during that period.
The Star Model BM is a single-actionsemi-automatic pistol that firesthe 9 mm Para pistol cartridge. It was producedby StarBonifacio Echeverria, S.A. in Spain. Although its external appearance resemblesthe classic M1911, its design is different in severalrespects. For example, the Star does not have the 1911's gripsafety. In addition, the thumb safety on the Star disengagesthe sear, whereas it blocks the motion of the trigger on a1911.
History
A total of 217,682 Star BM pistols were made between 1972 and1992. BM serial numbers ranged from 1,226,501 to somewhere around1,942,445. The pistols were made without mechanical variationthroughout that period, but there may be a lot of differentcosmetic variations depending on agency issue and commercial sales.In general, earlier pieces were more highly polished and later oneswere more of a matte finish. After serial number 1,560,901 in 1981,all BM pistols were fitted with a ramped and serrated front sight.At approximately this same serial number a few other shortcuts wereused to expedite production – a shorter rollmark/slide legend,coarser polish limited to side of the slide and frame, and all thesmall parts were given a bead blast matte finish. The slide cockingserrations are also reduced in number on these later pistols.
There have been three importers of ex-Spanish BMs to the UnitedStates; Garcia Sporting Arms, Interarms, and most recently Century(CAI). Most of what we see in the US are arms that were traded backin by various Spanish military branches to Star for exchange fornewer model 28/30M and 28/30PK pistols. For the Interarms imports,Star reworked all these trade-ins prior to selling them toInterarms. Spain's Guardia Civil used BM's up through about 1990 orso as did many other police agencies in Europe and Latin America.Importers like Interarms got a hold of them when the agenciestraded up to more modern designs.
The US-based gunsmith Timothy F. La France, the principal ofLaFrance Specialties (formerly of San Diego, California) used the Star BMpistol as a basis to manufacture a sub-compact custom pistol calledthe NOVA 6-Pack, basically a Star BM shortened topocket-size; the NOVA 6-Pack was manufactured only undercustom order in a very small number of samples, and was, at onetime, the smallest 9mm handgun in the world.
Users
- South Africa: Used bythe South African NationalDefence Force.[1]
References
- ^http://www.army.mil.za/equipment/weaponsystems/infantry/9mm_STAR_Pistol.htm
Externallinks
- A Critical Look at the StarModel BM