25 ACP caliber vest pocket pistols were developed, including a series of popular. 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. 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.ĭevelopment moved rapidly from pistols that looked like Colts to ones that operated on the Browning tilting breech method.

Originally, Bonifacio 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. 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. In 1919, Bonifacio formally registered the Star trade name, and all subsequent weapons were marked as such. Share of the Bonifacio Echeverría company, issued 1. 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. Additionally, Bonifacio Echeverria was directly contracted for a version of the 1914 Model pistol. 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. The Model 1914 was released with much the same mechanism as the 1908, but with further improvements to the ergonomics,Īs is often the case with weapons makers, a government contract secured the success of the company. Around 1910 Julián left the business and Bonifacio expanded and began improving their current offering. They produced the model 1908 pistol, substantially a Mannlicher Model 1900 in 6.35 mm (.25 ACP) caliber. His two sons, Julián and Bonifacio, entered the firearms business about 1905. The oldest known ancestor of the Star lineage is José Cruz Echeverria, who made muzzle-loading firearms in the 19th century. When firearms came into being, Eibar retained its edge as a weapons manufacturing center.

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.

380 star pistol for sale