"New" old Star Firestar in .45 ACP...

dogngun · July 25, 2007, 07:18 AM

I read about 15 pages of old posts here about these pistols, and found a lot of you owned and liked this gun.
I just found a like-new old one for sale and I want to know if anyone still has and shoots these little pistols. I have owned Star pistols before and I have never had any problems with any of them, except the .22. I think it's a real shame they are no longer in business.
Who still has one ? How is it working?

Thanks.

Mark

dbgun · July 25, 2007, 07:24 AM

I bought a STAR 30MI (9MM) at a Houston Gun show about 15 years ago. It's never given me any problems. One of the reasons I haven't bought another 9MM. They are easy to clean, but the magazines are kind of expensive.

Musketeer · July 25, 2007, 07:36 AM

I have a 9mm Firestar (designation M-43) that is a real workhorse. Accurate and Dependable with the mass and hardness that only comes from steel which allows it to double as a hammer for driving nails! I do not reccomend actually doing carpentry with your Firestar but it is tough.

The 9mm is a Single Action only pistol, I believe the 45 was DA/SA but I may be wrong.

JR47 · July 25, 2007, 09:32 AM

The Firestars in 9mm, .40 S&W, and .45 ACP were all compact, steel, and single-action. There were some later, larger, variants, like the Firestar Plus, that were of different actions.

The Medic, now retired, of whom I spoke in a number of these threads, still has her .45 ACP Firestar M45. She still shoots it. After nearly 18 years, it's only repair has been the replacement of the recoil spring. It's still her bedside weapon.

sholling · July 25, 2007, 10:41 AM

Musketeer

Quote:

The 9mm is a Single Action only pistol, I believe the 45 was DA/SA but I may be wrong.

I used to own the 45 and it was a good solid, if heavy single action pistol. The only reason I sold mine is I have plenty of .45s (and most everything else) and a good friend really needed something reliable for his store.

Musketeer · July 25, 2007, 11:35 AM

Thanks, I must have been confusing the Firestar Plus with the Firestar. Again, I love mine.

Ranger61 · July 25, 2007, 03:45 PM

My Firestar in 45 ACP has been very reliable and scary accurate. Its a bit hefty but in 45 that's not all bad. It always surprises me how well it shoots since I don't like the sights with the dots on them and I have lots of guns with better triggers but the thing shoots great anyway. Never had a jam and all I've shot through it is semiwadcutters and hollow points. Everytime I start to think of getting an officer or mini size 1911 I just get out the firestar shoot a 100 rounds through it and the feeling goes away.

Shooter 973 · July 25, 2007, 04:03 PM

I have 3 of these fine handguns. A Starvel 9mm and 2 of the 45acp's. One Starvel and one Black. The Black one is my carry gun. The Starvel is the back-up gun if the Black one gets seized or breaks. I really like these handguns and have NEVER had a minutes trouble with any of them. I'm always on the lookout for another one to pop up on the used market, but I know I don't need another one.

They shoot my handloads and cast bullets with out any problems and are pretty dang accurate for me.

dogngun · July 25, 2007, 08:22 PM

Thank you all. I will look at this gun Saturday morning.

Mark

railroader · July 25, 2007, 08:23 PM

I use to a firestar 45. It was very accurate and reliable. Parts can be a problem but if you do a search on "thehighroad.org" for a guy named "Star" he had parts and would ship from spain. The reason I mention parts is the slidestop broke on mine and I was lucky enough to find a replacement from a guy in virginia. Mark

Ilovea45 · July 27, 2007, 08:19 AM

I owned an M-45 Firestar with Starvel finish for 14 years. I just sold it to a coworker last month. It was like selling a family member.

I didn't sell it because I didn't like it, I simply have other .45's that I am carrying and it was just sitting in the gun safe.

I found the M-45 to be extremely reliable, very accurate, cost effective and easy to conceal. I never had a problem with mine.

GK

dogngun · July 27, 2007, 01:46 PM

Got to the gunshop today, but I found the prices on the Firestars were way too high.($390 for the .45)
I did find 2 other Star pistols I had them lay away; a commercial Interarms imported BM, unfired and still in the factory grease, and a M30 in excellent condition. Very happy with these guns...the BM is one of my all time favorite single action pistols.

Thanks for all your input...great to see other Star fans...it's a shame they are no longer in business.

Mark

drifts1 · July 28, 2007, 01:13 AM

I had the Firestar Plus in 9mm with the Starvel finish. It was a great single action, aluminum framed, 100% reliable shooter that fit my hand perfectly. Regrettably I sold it to a friend a few years ago. He kept hounding me to sell it to him. At the time I figured, hey, I get a friend into shooting(it was his first gun), extra mags were expensive, and replacement parts werent easy to some by. Bought it NIB for $190, sold it for $300, made some money I guess, but I still miss it.

FS2K · July 28, 2007, 05:56 AM

When you check the gun out today, make sure to check the frame right above the side-stop on the switch side. I had a Firestar M45 and loved that gun. It was on the heavy side, but that made it even better handling for its size and the Starvel finish is beautiful and very durable and the gun was very accurate as it was very easy to point. The stock rubber grips were perfect. The only complaint I have for the gun would be it's creepy trigger but that's it.

The ONLY reason I got rid of that gun was because I wore a hole in the frame above the slide-stop like I mentioned. The frame is VERY thin there and a gunsmith told me that it along with the finish would make welding it more harmful than good. I ended up giving the gun away to my friend who told me he wouldn't shoot the gun much if at all and just wanted it to have around his office. Good Luck!

dogngun · May 19, 2017, 06:48 AM

I don't remember if I bought that Firestar .45 or another one some time later, but I was just checking mine out this morning...decided once again to keep it. I have 3 1911 full size pistols and the Starvel matte nickel Firestar...I'm selling a Colt Series 70 and maybe my last Argentine Army version of that pistol.
So my keeper .45's will be a Series 80 Colt GM Stainless Steel and the Firestar .45. Still a gem more than 15 years after they went out of business.
I'm the OP of this thread, now going on 70 years old, and cleaning up the huge amount of stuff I have accumulated in order to eventually sell my house of 24 years...See, I have a new lady friend....

larryf1952 · May 19, 2017, 02:25 PM

I bought a new .45 Starvel Firestar way back in '93. I also bought a .40 model. I still have both of them. I pulled out the .45 just a few months ago and ran 500 rounds through it. It still shoots like a dream and will shoot with my 5" 1911's all day long. I have absolutely no inclination to part with either of the Firestars.

Congratulations on your new lady friend! I like girls, too. They're soft and smell nice. Mine has kept me around for almost 44 years.

lee n. field · May 19, 2017, 06:45 PM

Quote:

I don't remember if I bought that Firestar .45 or another one some time later, but I was just checking mine out this morning...decided once again to keep it. I have 3 1911 full size pistols and the Starvel matte nickel Firestar...I'm selling a Colt Series 70 and maybe my last Argentine Army version of that pistol.
So my keeper .45's will be a Series 80 Colt GM Stainless Steel and the Firestar .45. Still a gem more than 15 years after they went out of business.
I'm the OP of this thread, now going on 70 years old, and cleaning up the huge amount of stuff I have accumulated in order to eventually sell my house of 24 years...See, I have a new lady friend....

is it thread necromancy, if you revive your own ancient thread?

Somewhere along the line I picked up a 9mm Firestar, and some extra magazines. Heavy sucker, and almost everything else in that size in my horde is ahead of it in priority for carrying.

DT Guy · May 19, 2017, 07:04 PM

Those mags are generally unobtanium, though-might have some luck moving them.

In fact, that's the main reason I got rid of my Firestar in 9MM; mags were just impossible to find.

Larry

krimmie · May 19, 2017, 08:47 PM

I got rid of mine for the same reason DT Guy did...it was a very reliable pistol though.

Bill DeShivs · May 20, 2017, 02:36 AM

The Firestar and other late guns were robust guns-but their weight was their downfall.
Prior to these guns, Star made graceful guns styled along 1911 lines. Many were extremely small and lightweight for their respective calibers. The SIG, Colt, Rock Island, and Kimber .380s are all copies of the Star DK.
Star decided they needed a line of "modern" guns and dropped all of their 1911 style guns. They went out of business soon after.

Ibmikey · May 20, 2017, 06:29 AM

Dog n gun, Glad to find anothrer Star affectionado, I currently have just under one hundred Star and small frame Llamas. I have made arrangements in my will as to whom some 200 firearms are to go when I check out but until that time i shall continue to enjoy and shoot my firearms.
For a time I carried a Firestar in 9mm as a Dective but with my 155 pounds i could not keep my pants up and changed to a PD in .45. As I was assigned to serve Governers Warrants on people who had decided to flee the state and fly them back for court attention. That Star PD went many a mile with me flying about the country until replaced with a LW 9mm Colt Commander.
I have some fairly rare pieces and boxed new pistols in the Spanish part of my "accumulation" also Colt SAA's, Winchester levers, US Carbines etc. but my Star DK 380's are about my favorites.

Oh by the way, welcome back after 13 years, come back and check in in another ten years, and let us know if you are still shooting that Star.

glockman55 · February 18, 2018, 01:44 PM

I have two Stars now,, M40 and M45.. looking to get the 9mm M43 soon..Attachment 106959

agtman · February 19, 2018, 07:15 AM

Good gawd, ... a 2007 thread still walks.

It's undead, ... again.

glockman55 · February 19, 2018, 08:31 AM

lol why not? or should I start a new thread....lol

HisSoldier · February 19, 2018, 03:35 PM

This reminds me of the day I realized that my own biases were subject to wild error. I have a .40 Firestar, which I liked a lot, but I couldn't hit anything with it. When I showed off my collection to friends I'd remark that it wasn't accurate.
Then one day I decided to shoot it again and was surprised at how accurate it was.

So I try to not believe my own experience based on only one or two. Must have been a bad day for shooting for me that day.

July 25, 2007, 07:18 AM	#1
dogngun Senior Member Join Date: November 18, 2002 Location: South east PA Posts: 570	"New" old Star Firestar in .45 ACP... I read about 15 pages of old posts here about these pistols, and found a lot of you owned and liked this gun. I just found a like-new old one for sale and I want to know if anyone still has and shoots these little pistols. I have owned Star pistols before and I have never had any problems with any of them, except the .22. I think it's a real shame they are no longer in business. Who still has one ? How is it working? Thanks. Mark

July 25, 2007, 07:24 AM	#2
dbgun Senior Member Join Date: March 25, 2007 Location: Texas Posts: 326	STAR I bought a STAR 30MI (9MM) at a Houston Gun show about 15 years ago. It's never given me any problems. One of the reasons I haven't bought another 9MM. They are easy to clean, but the magazines are kind of expensive.

July 25, 2007, 07:36 AM	#3
Musketeer Senior Member Join Date: September 12, 2005 Posts: 3,733	I have a 9mm Firestar (designation M-43) that is a real workhorse. Accurate and Dependable with the mass and hardness that only comes from steel which allows it to double as a hammer for driving nails! I do not reccomend actually doing carpentry with your Firestar but it is tough. The 9mm is a Single Action only pistol, I believe the 45 was DA/SA but I may be wrong. __________________ "Religions are all alike - founded upon fables and mythologies." Thomas Jefferson "The way to see by faith is to shut the eye of reason." Benjamin Franklin

July 25, 2007, 11:35 AM	#6
Musketeer Senior Member Join Date: September 12, 2005 Posts: 3,733	Thanks, I must have been confusing the Firestar Plus with the Firestar. Again, I love mine. __________________ "Religions are all alike - founded upon fables and mythologies." Thomas Jefferson "The way to see by faith is to shut the eye of reason." Benjamin Franklin

July 25, 2007, 04:03 PM	#8
Shooter 973 Senior Member Join Date: February 3, 2001 Location: Home town of John M. Browning, Utah Posts: 499	Firestar handguns!!! I have 3 of these fine handguns. A Starvel 9mm and 2 of the 45acp's. One Starvel and one Black. The Black one is my carry gun. The Starvel is the back-up gun if the Black one gets seized or breaks. I really like these handguns and have NEVER had a minutes trouble with any of them. I'm always on the lookout for another one to pop up on the used market, but I know I don't need another one. They shoot my handloads and cast bullets with out any problems and are pretty dang accurate for me. __________________ The problem with America is stupidity. I'm not saying there should be capital punishment for stupidity, but why don't we just take the safety labels off of everything and let the problem solve itself?

July 25, 2007, 09:32 AM	#4
JR47 Junior member Join Date: August 9, 2005 Location: North Georgia Posts: 2,228	The Firestars in 9mm, .40 S&W, and .45 ACP were all compact, steel, and single-action. There were some later, larger, variants, like the Firestar Plus, that were of different actions. The Medic, now retired, of whom I spoke in a number of these threads, still has her .45 ACP Firestar M45. She still shoots it. After nearly 18 years, it's only repair has been the replacement of the recoil spring. It's still her bedside weapon.

July 25, 2007, 03:45 PM	#7
Ranger61 Senior Member Join Date: September 3, 2004 Posts: 213	My Firestar in 45 ACP has been very reliable and scary accurate. Its a bit hefty but in 45 that's not all bad. It always surprises me how well it shoots since I don't like the sights with the dots on them and I have lots of guns with better triggers but the thing shoots great anyway. Never had a jam and all I've shot through it is semiwadcutters and hollow points. Everytime I start to think of getting an officer or mini size 1911 I just get out the firestar shoot a 100 rounds through it and the feeling goes away.

July 25, 2007, 08:22 PM	#9
dogngun Senior Member Join Date: November 18, 2002 Location: South east PA Posts: 570	Thank you all. I will look at this gun Saturday morning. Mark

July 25, 2007, 08:23 PM	#10
railroader Senior Member Join Date: February 8, 2000 Location: Tucson Arizona Posts: 1,756	I use to a firestar 45. It was very accurate and reliable. Parts can be a problem but if you do a search on "thehighroad.org" for a guy named "Star" he had parts and would ship from spain. The reason I mention parts is the slidestop broke on mine and I was lucky enough to find a replacement from a guy in virginia. Mark

July 27, 2007, 08:19 AM	#11
Ilovea45 Senior Member Join Date: May 19, 2007 Location: West Central Florida Posts: 114	I owned an M-45 Firestar with Starvel finish for 14 years. I just sold it to a coworker last month. It was like selling a family member. I didn't sell it because I didn't like it, I simply have other .45's that I am carrying and it was just sitting in the gun safe. I found the M-45 to be extremely reliable, very accurate, cost effective and easy to conceal. I never had a problem with mine. GK

July 27, 2007, 01:46 PM	#12
dogngun Senior Member Join Date: November 18, 2002 Location: South east PA Posts: 570	Got to the gunshop today, but I found the prices on the Firestars were way too high.($390 for the .45) I did find 2 other Star pistols I had them lay away; a commercial Interarms imported BM, unfired and still in the factory grease, and a M30 in excellent condition. Very happy with these guns...the BM is one of my all time favorite single action pistols. Thanks for all your input...great to see other Star fans...it's a shame they are no longer in business. Mark

July 28, 2007, 01:13 AM	#13
drifts1 Senior Member Join Date: January 9, 2005 Posts: 136	I had the Firestar Plus in 9mm with the Starvel finish. It was a great single action, aluminum framed, 100% reliable shooter that fit my hand perfectly. Regrettably I sold it to a friend a few years ago. He kept hounding me to sell it to him. At the time I figured, hey, I get a friend into shooting(it was his first gun), extra mags were expensive, and replacement parts werent easy to some by. Bought it NIB for $190, sold it for $300, made some money I guess, but I still miss it.

July 28, 2007, 05:56 AM	#14
FS2K Senior Member Join Date: September 9, 2006 Posts: 1,853	Mark, When you check the gun out today, make sure to check the frame right above the side-stop on the switch side. I had a Firestar M45 and loved that gun. It was on the heavy side, but that made it even better handling for its size and the Starvel finish is beautiful and very durable and the gun was very accurate as it was very easy to point. The stock rubber grips were perfect. The only complaint I have for the gun would be it's creepy trigger but that's it. The ONLY reason I got rid of that gun was because I wore a hole in the frame above the slide-stop like I mentioned. The frame is VERY thin there and a gunsmith told me that it along with the finish would make welding it more harmful than good. I ended up giving the gun away to my friend who told me he wouldn't shoot the gun much if at all and just wanted it to have around his office. Good Luck! __________________ Just a big fan of guns.

May 19, 2017, 06:48 AM	#15
dogngun Senior Member Join Date: November 18, 2002 Location: South east PA Posts: 570	Nearly 10 years later... I don't remember if I bought that Firestar .45 or another one some time later, but I was just checking mine out this morning...decided once again to keep it. I have 3 1911 full size pistols and the Starvel matte nickel Firestar...I'm selling a Colt Series 70 and maybe my last Argentine Army version of that pistol. So my keeper .45's will be a Series 80 Colt GM Stainless Steel and the Firestar .45. Still a gem more than 15 years after they went out of business. I'm the OP of this thread, now going on 70 years old, and cleaning up the huge amount of stuff I have accumulated in order to eventually sell my house of 24 years...See, I have a new lady friend.... __________________ I am another gun-carrying liberal veteran.

May 19, 2017, 02:25 PM	#16
larryf1952 Senior Member Join Date: July 17, 2004 Location: KCMO Posts: 615	I bought a new .45 Starvel Firestar way back in '93. I also bought a .40 model. I still have both of them. I pulled out the .45 just a few months ago and ran 500 rounds through it. It still shoots like a dream and will shoot with my 5" 1911's all day long. I have absolutely no inclination to part with either of the Firestars. Congratulations on your new lady friend! I like girls, too. They're soft and smell nice. Mine has kept me around for almost 44 years.

May 19, 2017, 07:04 PM	#18
DT Guy Senior Member Join Date: February 4, 2001 Posts: 959	Those mags are generally unobtanium, though-might have some luck moving them. In fact, that's the main reason I got rid of my Firestar in 9MM; mags were just impossible to find. Larry __________________ He who fights and runs away had better run pretty damn fast. Government, Anarchy and Chaos

May 19, 2017, 08:47 PM	#19
krimmie Senior Member Join Date: February 11, 2007 Location: S. Florida Posts: 280	I got rid of mine for the same reason DT Guy did...it was a very reliable pistol though.

May 20, 2017, 02:36 AM	#20
Bill DeShivs Senior Member Join Date: April 7, 2006 Posts: 10,981	The Firestar and other late guns were robust guns-but their weight was their downfall. Prior to these guns, Star made graceful guns styled along 1911 lines. Many were extremely small and lightweight for their respective calibers. The SIG, Colt, Rock Island, and Kimber .380s are all copies of the Star DK. Star decided they needed a line of "modern" guns and dropped all of their 1911 style guns. They went out of business soon after. __________________ Bill DeShivs, Master Cutler www.billdeshivs.com

May 20, 2017, 06:29 AM	#21
Ibmikey Senior Member Join Date: June 1, 2013 Location: Now relocated to Texas Posts: 2,943	Dog n gun, Glad to find anothrer Star affectionado, I currently have just under one hundred Star and small frame Llamas. I have made arrangements in my will as to whom some 200 firearms are to go when I check out but until that time i shall continue to enjoy and shoot my firearms. For a time I carried a Firestar in 9mm as a Dective but with my 155 pounds i could not keep my pants up and changed to a PD in .45. As I was assigned to serve Governers Warrants on people who had decided to flee the state and fly them back for court attention. That Star PD went many a mile with me flying about the country until replaced with a LW 9mm Colt Commander. I have some fairly rare pieces and boxed new pistols in the Spanish part of my "accumulation" also Colt SAA's, Winchester levers, US Carbines etc. but my Star DK 380's are about my favorites. Oh by the way, welcome back after 13 years, come back and check in in another ten years, and let us know if you are still shooting that Star.

February 18, 2018, 01:44 PM	#22
glockman55 Senior Member Join Date: April 19, 2009 Location: Mich Posts: 179	I have two Stars now,, M40 and M45.. looking to get the 9mm M43 soon..Attachment 106959 Last edited by glockman55; October 16, 2018 at 06:08 PM.

February 19, 2018, 07:15 AM	#23
agtman Junior member Join Date: July 26, 2001 Location: midwest Posts: 2,374	Good gawd, ... a 2007 thread still walks. It's undead, ... again.

February 19, 2018, 08:31 AM	#24
glockman55 Senior Member Join Date: April 19, 2009 Location: Mich Posts: 179	lol why not? or should I start a new thread....lol

February 19, 2018, 03:35 PM	#25
HisSoldier Senior Member Join Date: August 9, 2007 Location: Oregoncoast Posts: 1,793	This reminds me of the day I realized that my own biases were subject to wild error. I have a .40 Firestar, which I liked a lot, but I couldn't hit anything with it. When I showed off my collection to friends I'd remark that it wasn't accurate. Then one day I decided to shoot it again and was surprised at how accurate it was. So I try to not believe my own experience based on only one or two. Must have been a bad day for shooting for me that day. __________________ CNC produced 416 stainless triggers to replace the plastic triggers on Colt Mustangs, Mustang Plus II's, MK IV Government .380's and Sig P238's and P938's. Plus Colt Mustang hardened 416 guide rods, and Llama .32 and .380 recoil spring buttons, checkered nicely and blued.