Astra Model 900 | |
---|---|
![]() An Astra 903 pistol. | |
Type | Semi-automatic pistol Machine pistol (Astra Model 902 and Astra Model 904) |
Place of origin | Kingdom of Spain |
Service history | |
In service | 1927–1945 |
Used by | See Users |
Wars | |
Production history | |
Manufacturer | Astra-Unceta y Cia SA |
No. built | 35,076 (all versions) |
Variants | 900, 901, 902, 903, 904 |
Specifications | |
Mass | 1.275 kg (Astra 903) |
Length | 308 mm (Astra 903) |
Barrel length | 160 mm (Astra 903) |
Height | 150 mm (Astra 903) |
Cartridge | 7.63×25mm Mauser 9mm Largo |
Caliber | 7.63mm 9mm |
Muzzle velocity | 461.28 m/s (1,513.4 ft/s) |
Maximum firing range | 1,000 m (1,100 yd) |
Feed system | 10, 20 round box magazine |
Sights | Iron |
![]() | This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations .(November 2014) |
The Astra Model 900 is one of many Spanish copies of the German Mauser C96 semi-automatic pistol. It shares the same caliber, magazine capacity, and holster type and is generally very similar to the German handgun.
The Spanish gunmaker Astra-Unceta y Cia began producing a copy of the Mauser C.96 in 1927 [1] that was externally similar to the C96 (including the presence of a detachable shoulder stock/holster) but with non-interlocking internal parts. It was produced until 1941, with a production hiatus in 1937 and 1938, and a final batch assembled from spare parts in 1951. [2]
The Spanish copies of the C96 were generally intended for export to China, [2] but after the commencement of the Sino-Japanese war, the remaining Astra 900s were used in the Spanish Civil War, and numbers were also sold to Germany in the period 1940–1943. [2]
The Basque-manufactured Astra-Unceta y Cia SA Astra 901 is a compact machine pistol, with a magazine capacity of 10 7.63×25mm Mauser cartridges, which is a considerably smaller capacity than is standard for a machine pistol. The next model, the Astra 902, was provided with a fixed magazine of 20 cartridges and a lengthened barrel, and Astra 903 had a removable magazine instead of the usual fixed one. Astra later added a mechanism to slow the rate of fire and make the gun more manageable (to an extent) when being fired on full-auto or burst modes, calling this the Model 904.
The Model 904 is comparable to the German Mauser M712 'Schnellfeuer' Broomhandle pistols, having a detachable magazine, automatic fire capabilities, and general appearance.
The Astra Model 904 was produced in a 9mm Largo variant, the Astra Model 904E, which was identical to the Model 904 in all other respects.
The following models were made by Astra: [1] [3]
A machine pistol is a handgun that is capable of fully automatic fire, including stockless handgun-style submachine guns.
The Pistole Parabellum or Parabellum-Pistole, commonly known as just the Luger or Luger P08, is a toggle-locked recoil-operated semi-automatic pistol. The Luger was produced in several models and by several nations from 1898 to 1949.
Mauser, originally the Königlich Württembergische Gewehrfabrik, was a German arms manufacturer. Their line of bolt-action rifles and semi-automatic pistols was produced beginning in the 1870s for the German armed forces. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Mauser designs were also exported and licensed to many countries, which adopted them as military and civilian sporting firearms. The Gewehr 98 in particular was widely adopted and copied, becoming one of the most copied firearms designs and it is the foundation of many of today's sporting bolt-action rifles. Around 10 million Gewehr 98 style rifles were produced.
The Mauser C96 is a semi-automatic pistol that was originally produced by German arms manufacturer Mauser from 1896 to 1937. Unlicensed copies of the gun were also manufactured in Spain and China in the first half of the 20th century.
A semi-automatic pistol is a repeating handgun that automatically ejects and loads cartridges in its chamber after every shot fired, but only one round of ammunition is fired each time the trigger is pulled. The pistol's fire control group disconnects the trigger mechanism from the firing pin/striker until the trigger has been released and reset manually, unlike the self-cycled firing mechanism in fully automatic pistols.
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A handgun is a firearm designed to be usable with only one hand. It is distinguished from a long barreled gun which typically is intended to be held by both hands and braced against the shoulder. Handguns have shorter effective ranges compared to long guns, and are much harder to shoot accurately. While most early handguns are single-shot pistols, the two most common types of handguns used in modern times are revolvers and semi-automatic pistols.
Astra Unceta y Cía was a Spanish weapons manufacturer founded on 17 July 1908, under the name Esperanza y Unceta by Juan Esperanza and Pedro Unceta. Initially based in Eibar, the centre of the Basque arms industry, the company moved in 1913 to Guernica.
The 9×25mm Mauser is a cartridge developed for the Mauser C96 service pistol around 1904 by DWM. Mauser pistols in this relatively powerful caliber were primarily intended for export to Africa, Asia, and South America. The 9mm Mauser Export cartridge was produced specifically for Mauser pistols and carbines made from 1904 to 1914 and then later from approximately 1930 to 1945 for submachine guns chambered for this caliber.
The Astra modelo 400 was a Spanish service pistol produced by weapons manufacturer Astra-Unceta y Cia SA as a replacement for the Campo-Giro 1913/1916, which had also been chambered in 9mm Largo. It was the standard issue sidearm in the Spanish Army during the Spanish Civil War and also saw service in Germany during World War II.
The Bergmann 1894/1896/1897 was a family of 19th-century semi-automatic pistols developed by German designer Louis Schmeisser and sold by Theodor Bergmann's company.
The Type 80 is a close-combat machine pistol that was used in China in the 1980s by the People's Liberation Army of China. It was developed by Norinco in the 1970s, influenced by the design of the German M712 Schnellfeuer.
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The 7.63×25mm Mauser round is a bottleneck, rimless, centerfire cartridge, originally developed for the Mauser C96 service pistol. This cartridge headspaces on the shoulder of the case. It later served as the basis for the 7.62mm Tokarev cartridge commonly used in Soviet and Eastern Bloc weapons.
The Modelo 1905 is a pistol designed by Ferdinand Ritter von Mannlicher in 1899 and originally produced in Austria as the Mannlicher Model 1901. The Mannlicher Model 1901 was an improved version of the Model 1900, both of which were produced by Österreichische Waffenfabriks-Gesellschaft. All of these models have the same basic design and operation, but minimal adjustments were made to improve each of them. The Modelo 1905 is the version of the Model 1901 that the Argentine Army purchased from Steyr in 1905. This semi-automatic pistol has a unique and elegant appearance due to the curve of the handgrip. It is single action and uses a blowback operation system to reload. Like its predecessors, the Modelo 1905 has a non-detachable magazine that can be loaded from the top with a stripper clip.
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