Tribute to the Star BM9
- Thread starter sixgunluv
- Start date
Bill DeShivs
New member
The gentleman from Spain no longer sells parts. Hasn't for a couple of years.
Dashunde:
The 938 is a copy, but SIG had to make it look "tactical." They did this to the 238 copy of the Star DK, too.
Dashunde:
The 938 is a copy, but SIG had to make it look "tactical." They did this to the 238 copy of the Star DK, too.
joe-lumber
New member
Star
I received my Star and after taking it to the range the magazine comes down after every shot. Shot 4 magazines full thinking it would stop but it didn't. I don't really want to spend any more money on it. I think the magazines are wrong and too large for 9mm shells. I have sent an email to the retailer and hoping to hear back with favorable news. For a single shot it is accurate but the magazine can't keep coming down.
I received my Star and after taking it to the range the magazine comes down after every shot. Shot 4 magazines full thinking it would stop but it didn't. I don't really want to spend any more money on it. I think the magazines are wrong and too large for 9mm shells. I have sent an email to the retailer and hoping to hear back with favorable news. For a single shot it is accurate but the magazine can't keep coming down.
Bill DeShivs
New member
Your magazine catch is probably worn, or not engaging properly.
turkeestalker
New member
Well I am sorry to hear that he is no longer selling parts, that's truly a shame. Hope all is well with him besides.
I got one off gunbroker a couple years back for my son to grow into one day as his first center fire handgun. My criteria was for a single stack (smaller grip radius for smaller hands) 9mm (low priced practice ammo for plenty of trigger time in a caliber with mild recoil) with a single action trigger (to avoid excessive trigger reach problems present in traditional double action pistols). I was also looking for a firearm with a manual safety that can be left on safe until the sights are on target and ready to fire. I've had plenty of students on an M9 firing line with college degrees (educated itiots IMHO) that had problems grasping that concept so thatruled out something like a Glock or M&P. I was also looking for a jheavier steel fra!me that would help soak up recoil and all in a more compact sized pistol for a younger shooter. The Star BM made the grade in every criteria I was looking for so that's what I went for. The fact that they could be had for a very economical price and are a reliable pistol are also great selling points that steered me to this pistol. The high price of magazines and hard to find spare parts for are dings against it though. Still, a good pistol for a good price that should fill this role fairly well in the years to come.
Bill DeShivs
New member
I make firing pins for the Stars.
Dain Bramage
New member
I second getting a spare extractor, if you can find one.
My Star BM was jamming regularly, as delivered. I had always heard they were such great guns. Got an extractor from Jorge of Iparguns, and the Star has been 100% ever since.
Jorge was a hoot. We talked about Elvis and other things of import in the world. Shame he's out of the biz. Hope he's doing well wherever he may be.
The Star is the favorite of my youngest son. Makes me proud he's a chip off the old blued steel block.
My Star BM was jamming regularly, as delivered. I had always heard they were such great guns. Got an extractor from Jorge of Iparguns, and the Star has been 100% ever since.
Jorge was a hoot. We talked about Elvis and other things of import in the world. Shame he's out of the biz. Hope he's doing well wherever he may be.
The Star is the favorite of my youngest son. Makes me proud he's a chip off the old blued steel block.
BM9
I agree Dashunde,
The Star BM9 has retained the good looks of the 1911, smoother/rounded a little less 'squarish' than the Sigs. However the back of the grip didn't...for me. The sides of the back of the grip seemed sharp to me and grip itself was not deep enough up high. So i smoothed of the hard edges on the back of the grip frame and reshaped a little deeper. You can probably tell from the pic i posted.
My two favorites the Star BM and Astra A70. The grip on the A-70 is perfection in my opinion and needs no improvement.
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I agree Dashunde,
The Star BM9 has retained the good looks of the 1911, smoother/rounded a little less 'squarish' than the Sigs. However the back of the grip didn't...for me. The sides of the back of the grip seemed sharp to me and grip itself was not deep enough up high. So i smoothed of the hard edges on the back of the grip frame and reshaped a little deeper. You can probably tell from the pic i posted.
My two favorites the Star BM and Astra A70. The grip on the A-70 is perfection in my opinion and needs no improvement.
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Walt Sherrill
New member
At the range, when I used to shoot my Star Firestars (in both 9mm and .40) the standing joke was, "If you miss hitting the the bad guy, just drop the gun on his foot and he'll be out of action for a while."
Those guns are HEAVY. The Firestar Plus, with the alloy frame and higher capacity (but only in 9mm, in the U.S. anyway) was an improvement.
Those guns are HEAVY. The Firestar Plus, with the alloy frame and higher capacity (but only in 9mm, in the U.S. anyway) was an improvement.
Sixgun, you wanna sell me your BM? 
I've handled the Sig several times at the LGS... I never would have guessed it was based on the BM.
I can see the family resemblance in the controls and I tried to like it, but it would be like dating the BM/1911's really ugly sister.
My earlier point was that we have 9mm's in just about every possible configuration, except, oddly... we do not have one that is visually identical to the 1911 only scaled down to 9mm.
I guess Commander length 1911's is as close as we're gonna get.
We have a few scaled to the 380 (Colt & the new Browning) but not one for 9mm, the most popular ammo around?
The enduring popularity of the BM kind of speaks to the viability of a 9mm 1911 in the correct scale with the right looks.
I'd really like to see the Dan Wesson CCO come out in 9mm... I'd buy it in a second. It would be worth the chewing out from the wife.
Walt, I had one of those alloy framed Firestar's back in the mid-late 90's.
Nice gun I suppose, but its frame cracked at the slide stop hole.
I've handled the Sig several times at the LGS... I never would have guessed it was based on the BM.
I can see the family resemblance in the controls and I tried to like it, but it would be like dating the BM/1911's really ugly sister.
My earlier point was that we have 9mm's in just about every possible configuration, except, oddly... we do not have one that is visually identical to the 1911 only scaled down to 9mm.
I guess Commander length 1911's is as close as we're gonna get.
We have a few scaled to the 380 (Colt & the new Browning) but not one for 9mm, the most popular ammo around?
The enduring popularity of the BM kind of speaks to the viability of a 9mm 1911 in the correct scale with the right looks.
I'd really like to see the Dan Wesson CCO come out in 9mm... I'd buy it in a second. It would be worth the chewing out from the wife.
Walt, I had one of those alloy framed Firestar's back in the mid-late 90's.
Nice gun I suppose, but its frame cracked at the slide stop hole.
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Walt Sherrill
New member
Dashunde said:
That's the first Firestar Plus I've heard of having a problem -- sorry to hear it. That would have put me off Firestar Pluses, had it happened to me. I've had maybe four of them over the years, and shot a couple of them quite a bit, without problem.
Don't know if that's something that will happen with a lot of use, or whether yours was just unusual.
lee n. field
New member
32 oz, in a package no bigger than a Kel Tec PF9.
Walt Sherrill
New member
No bigger than a PF9, and a lot more pleasant to shoot, but NOTICEABLY heavier to carry. (I actually tried it for a while. As noted earlier, I liked the Firestar Plus better, and it's was just a big wider than the PF9.)
lee n. field
New member
I think (without looking up the Kel Tec's specs) the Firestar is twice the weight of the PF9. For the same capacity.
It sits well in the hand, doesn't beat me up when shooting (like the PF9), and feels like a full size gun.
Now that this benighted state finally has carry, I need to find a good carry holster for it, and get it into the rotation.
It sits well in the hand, doesn't beat me up when shooting (like the PF9), and feels like a full size gun.
Now that this benighted state finally has carry, I need to find a good carry holster for it, and get it into the rotation.
saltydog452
New member
Post # 11, sixgunluv
A question was asked about spare parts in Post # 11. There is a small part that lives under or around the thumb safety. If dropped during detail disassembly, it is immediately sucked into a black hole, and isn't likely to be seen again.
If you feel that you just gotta strip it down for cleaning, I wouldn't go past field stripping. Slosh it around in some diesel fuel or Varsal/Kerosene, blow dry and call it good to go.
Right now, for spares, I'd buy a back up BM.
A question was asked about spare parts in Post # 11. There is a small part that lives under or around the thumb safety. If dropped during detail disassembly, it is immediately sucked into a black hole, and isn't likely to be seen again.
If you feel that you just gotta strip it down for cleaning, I wouldn't go past field stripping. Slosh it around in some diesel fuel or Varsal/Kerosene, blow dry and call it good to go.
Right now, for spares, I'd buy a back up BM.
"Right now, for spares, I'd buy a back up BM."
saltydog
Exactly what i was thinking. I was pricing used parts against what some of the lesser condition BM's are going for..as you can still find them on GB. I saw one on GB that needed minor fixin, my problem is i'd buy it as a parts gun then fix it... Where would that leave me? Looking for parts for three working BM9's.
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saltydog
Exactly what i was thinking. I was pricing used parts against what some of the lesser condition BM's are going for..as you can still find them on GB. I saw one on GB that needed minor fixin, my problem is i'd buy it as a parts gun then fix it... Where would that leave me? Looking for parts for three working BM9's.
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Sixgunluv,
Are they known to have any particularly weak or wear-prone part?
If not your likely to continue on with 3 working BM's... and if one did break then your left with 2 plus a parts gun and fingers crossed that the next one doesn't break the same part as the first, but if it did... your still left with 1 working BM... which is 1 more than me.
Are they known to have any particularly weak or wear-prone part?
If not your likely to continue on with 3 working BM's... and if one did break then your left with 2 plus a parts gun and fingers crossed that the next one doesn't break the same part as the first, but if it did... your still left with 1 working BM... which is 1 more than me.