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Star-Boni Facio Echeverria SA, Eibar, Spain Star Bonifacio Echeverria, S.A. was a manufacturer of small arms (principally handguns and sub-machineguns) in the Basque region of Spain from about 1905 until 1997. Bonifacio Echeverria and the ancestry of Star. The Eibar region has been a center of weapons development and manufacture for centuries, with "Spanish Steel" historically being a selling point with its reputation for quality and durability. When firearms came into being, Eibar retained its edge as a weapons manufacturing center. The oldest known ancestor of the Star lineage is José Cruz Echeverria, who made muzzle-loading firearms in the 19th century. His two sons, Julián and Bonifacio, entered the firearms business about 1905. They produced the model 1908 pistol, substantially a Mannlicher Model 1900 in 6.35 mm (.25 ACP) caliber. Around 1910 Julián left the business and Bonifacio expanded and began improving their current offering. The model 1914 was released with much the same mechanism as the 1908, but with further improvements to the ergonomics, Gabilondo Ruby Pistol As is often the case with weapons makers, a government contract secured the success of the company. The firm was a sub-contractor to Gabilondo y Urresti in producing a version of the Gabilondo Ruby pistol for the French military during World War I. Additionally, Bonifacio Echeverria was directly contracted for a version of the 1914 Model pistol. The "Model 1 Militar" was a 7.65 mm (.32) caliber version of the Model 1914 designed for the French military, who referred to them as the Pistolet automatique, type Star. The beginnings of Star as a brand In 1919, Bonifacio formally registered the Star trade name, and all subsequent weapons were marked as such. Note that although some references say that the Basque and Spanish equivalents of Star are also registered (Izarra and Estrella), they seem to have never been marketed as such. The classic era Originally, Bonifaco had planned on producing a still more improved version of the model 1914, initially to meet a French follow-on contract for 50,000 pistols. However, the end of World War I led to the cancellation of the contract, and Echeverria decided that clones of the Colt M1911 were more commercially viable. Development moved rapidly from pistols that looked like Colts to ones that operated on the Browning tilting breech method. The line was rapidly expanded to cover a broad range of pistols in all popular western calibers, as well as the almost uniquely Spanish 9 mm Largo. Additionally, a line of .25 ACP caliber vest pocket pistols were developed, including a series of popular .22 Long Rifle target pistols. These are all straight blowback models. The modern era In 1983 production of the classic models was largely ceased in favor of a new series of pistols taking most of their features from the Charles Petter SACM style of pistols (also seen in the SIG P210 and CZ-75). Namely, these all had inverted slide rails and closed cam path locking. Many also had modular (removable) trigger assemblies. Most were double-action, though some retained the classic style single-action lockwork. The end The 1990s were bad for defense companies all over the world. For the most part, companies in smaller markets either found their niche and flourished, or slowly perished. In Spain alone Star, Astra and CETME met their end. The final years at Star saw a relative flurry of new models, and court challenges over restructuring plans and massive layoffs. Star filed for bankruptcy protection in late 1993 after taking out loans to invest in new CNC machinery. They were indirectly affected by the Asian economic crisis; Spanish banks tried to cover Asian investment losses by more aggressively collecting outstanding debt and renewing loans with less favorable terms for domestic companies. Star and Astra began cooperative investment and discussions of mergers in the mid 90s, but Astra was not in much better shape, so this eventually dragged both companies down. Although rumours abounded that a large foreign company, like Beretta, would snap them up (as they indeed did with Sako) this was not to be. Employees of both companies, through their unions, tried to set up a cooperative to take control of the companies. They planned to upgrade operations again, but also ran into trouble overextending themselves financially, and eventually these organizations also sought protection under bankruptcy laws. On May 27, 1997 both Star and Astra closed their doors, and were placed in the Spanish equivalent of Chapter Seven bankruptcy, under the control of a Basque regional judge. Eventually, an agreement was reached that settled sufficient outstanding debt, and allowed some of the machinery and the intellectual property to be resurrected in two new companies. Much machinery was also sold at auction to pay debtors. Apparently all unassembled or unsold barrels and frames were destroyed by government order when the company closed. Unregistered parts were retained and purchased by a custom smithing operation known as Ipar Guns. Star and Astra combined into one company under the ASTAR name, with a new factory, which manufactures a range of new firearms with distribution in Spain and some South American countries. The Firestar pistols, also known as models M-43, M-40 and M-45, were designed by Company Star Bonifacio Echeverria SA. These pistols were announced early in the 1990s and are sold worldwide for the civilian market The Star Firestar is a series of single-action semi-automatic pistol consisting of four models that received the 1991 Handgun of the Year Award from Guns & Ammo magazine. The Firestar was available in 9 mm Para (M-43), .40 S&W (M-40), and .45 ACP (M-45) calibers, all having a single-stack magazine. A double-stack 9mm version (M-243) was also available and was commonly referred to by the unofficial name "Firestar Plus". The Firestar was produced by the now defunct Star Bonifacio Echeverria, S.A. in Eibar, Spain until 1994. The Firestar was imported into the United States by Interarms of Alexandria, Virginia. The Firestars are compact, steel-framed semi-automatic pistols. Firestar pistols are recoil operated, with Browning cam locking and short barrel recoil. Barrel muzzle is externally cone-shaped to achieve the best fit into the slide for improved accuracy. 9 mm firestar, M-43 is a hammer fired, single action pistol with a frame mounted, ambidextrous safety lever. 40 S+W, M-40 and .45 ACP M-45, with similar frame mounted ambidextrous safety that allows for ‘cock and lock’ carry (hammer is cocked and safety applied). Although its external appearance resembles a compact M1911, the Firestar is different in several respects. For example, the Firestar does not have the 1911's grip safety. All Firestar featured automated firing pin safety and magazine safety. Single column magazine holds 7 rounds in 9 mm or 6 rounds in .40 S+W, M-40 and .45 ACP, M-45 pistols. 8 round capacity magazines are available for 9 mm M-43 guns At the time of manufacture, Firestar pistols were claimed to be one of the smallest guns in their respective calibers, but obviously not the lightest ones. The solid steel construction makes these guns extremely sturdy and reliable, and additional weight greatly improves recoil control and makes shooting quite comfortable, despite the powerful ammunition and small size of the guns The 9 mm Firestars are designed similar to the very popular FN Brownings and manufactured to sell to the people who favours these pistols. They are not very popular is SA, but are well made. (Ref. ‘Pistols of World War I’ by Robert Adamek, http://star-firearms.com/firearms/guns/d/ , https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Bonifacio_Echeverria )

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