So I've got an old as sin but awesome BFPU looking STAR DK 380. It has the aluminum frame and the slide is marked STAR B E Cheverria Eibar-Espana S.A. CAL 9m/m - .380
I bought it used from a buddy I work with at LGS and he's had it for ever, his pops before him. Swore on it. Took it out for a test fire had a Failure to extract almost every other round, tried 6 different ammo types. Upon further inspection looked like the extra had a nice chip in it, makes sense. I buy it from him for hella cheap because there's something about it I love. With the intentions of fixing of course.
The weapon was also havin issues loading the first round. Mag feed lips appeared fine, there's no real ramping to be said and I thought while on my near impossible search for spare parts I'd get a new guide rod assembly and spring as well and another mag.
Parts for these are hard to find as is, not to mention they've been cloned and cloned again and again by Firearms Intl, Iver J, Firestar? STAR/ Starfire, colt, maybe more.
I did as much research as I could find for days trying not to purchase useless stuff, found the following:
Nickel slide comeplete with complete LPK pretty much gun without receiver on eBay marked EXACTLY like mine minus the (Starfire) on the right of the slide but says STAR and all that Spanish jargon on the other and looks identical. Got it for 30.00 pics below.
Ordered a STAR STARFIRE .380 triple K replacement mag (no pics) doesn't even feed RN FMJ and sticks out 1/16th" below the PG. witness holes are circular not an elongated vertical cut like original mag in pic.
I tried to swap the upper first, no go, the chrome slide is too tight and won't slide onto the rails by mm....maybe that aluminum frame DK haunting me, bet it would slide onto an old steel frame...tried the extractors, the replacement had a beefier spring and was cut almost identical but the retaining pin-hole wouldn't line up just by a bit, it's got some different dimensions and I don't have calipers on it but DAMN! So next, bbl seemed to swap and interchange as well as recoil rod assembly (score that's what I needed) and bbl bushing. Didn't dig any deeper into small parts. Too bad still need an extractor.
Hit ebay again and bought an OEM original star starfire .380 DK mag lol jeeze. Its enroute as we speak. I also purchased (getting expensive) a for real STAR starfire S.A. .380 blued slide, bbl, recoil assembly. To ether A. Steal the extractor and refinish the extra slide in something cool as a back up. Or B swap the whole upper together. And keep my original as back up with original finish.
Question (thank you for bearing with the length of post)
Is there a gunsmith on here familiar/interested in STAR series pistols and would like to receive my 3 zip lock bags of various parts and uppers and let me know which can interchange with my DK and which could be repurposed whilst also addressing the issues my actual DK is experiencing like FTF (HPs and FN I know it's a .380 but maybe) and for sure the FTEs swapping my extractors from my parts or tig welding and filing down my chipped one? Thanks!
I bought it used from a buddy I work with at LGS and he's had it for ever, his pops before him. Swore on it. Took it out for a test fire had a Failure to extract almost every other round, tried 6 different ammo types. Upon further inspection looked like the extra had a nice chip in it, makes sense. I buy it from him for hella cheap because there's something about it I love. With the intentions of fixing of course.
The weapon was also havin issues loading the first round. Mag feed lips appeared fine, there's no real ramping to be said and I thought while on my near impossible search for spare parts I'd get a new guide rod assembly and spring as well and another mag.
Parts for these are hard to find as is, not to mention they've been cloned and cloned again and again by Firearms Intl, Iver J, Firestar? STAR/ Starfire, colt, maybe more.
I did as much research as I could find for days trying not to purchase useless stuff, found the following:
Nickel slide comeplete with complete LPK pretty much gun without receiver on eBay marked EXACTLY like mine minus the (Starfire) on the right of the slide but says STAR and all that Spanish jargon on the other and looks identical. Got it for 30.00 pics below.
Ordered a STAR STARFIRE .380 triple K replacement mag (no pics) doesn't even feed RN FMJ and sticks out 1/16th" below the PG. witness holes are circular not an elongated vertical cut like original mag in pic.
I tried to swap the upper first, no go, the chrome slide is too tight and won't slide onto the rails by mm....maybe that aluminum frame DK haunting me, bet it would slide onto an old steel frame...tried the extractors, the replacement had a beefier spring and was cut almost identical but the retaining pin-hole wouldn't line up just by a bit, it's got some different dimensions and I don't have calipers on it but DAMN! So next, bbl seemed to swap and interchange as well as recoil rod assembly (score that's what I needed) and bbl bushing. Didn't dig any deeper into small parts. Too bad still need an extractor.
Hit ebay again and bought an OEM original star starfire .380 DK mag lol jeeze. Its enroute as we speak. I also purchased (getting expensive) a for real STAR starfire S.A. .380 blued slide, bbl, recoil assembly. To ether A. Steal the extractor and refinish the extra slide in something cool as a back up. Or B swap the whole upper together. And keep my original as back up with original finish.
Question (thank you for bearing with the length of post)
Is there a gunsmith on here familiar/interested in STAR series pistols and would like to receive my 3 zip lock bags of various parts and uppers and let me know which can interchange with my DK and which could be repurposed whilst also addressing the issues my actual DK is experiencing like FTF (HPs and FN I know it's a .380 but maybe) and for sure the FTEs swapping my extractors from my parts or tig welding and filing down my chipped one? Thanks!
