Star PD recoil spring guide and buffer

[flightsimmer]

Hi Guy's and Girl's;

I have two very nice Star, PD's. They are Garcia imports through Interarms. Both have serial numbers in the low 141xxxx range and look like twins except that wood grips on one is a little lighter than the other.

http://i366.photobucket.com/albums/o...CPhandguns.jpg

One other difference is that the recoil spring guide rod on one will unscrew on one end and has a plastic buffer that can be removed and replaced buy retracting the recoil spring and pushing or snaping the buffer off of the guide rod and then snaping on a new one and then letting the spring slide over it to retain it in place.

The other pistols guide rod does not appear to unscrew on one end and someone in the past has attempted to do so and it has left small marks from the attempt and the plastic buffer is a different shape, it is flat and it does not snap on and off of the guide rod and does not appear to be held on by the spring although the spring pushes against it.

Both of the plastic buffers are in good shape and do not need to be replaced at this time but the day may come when they will need to be replaced. Are these plastic buffers still available anywhere and are there really two or more different styles? Also does the one guide rod really unscrew and or is it just tightly stuck.

Have a great week everybody. Regards, Dan.

[Rex B]

Scroll down and read the recent posts on the same topic.
Sounds like someone has used a 1911 shock buffer on one of yours.
that's what you do when you can't get any more of the original type.

I wonder how hard it would be to copy the original?
I have a lathe and some Delrin, other plastics.
What material were they made of?

Anyone got a good original that can take pics and measure one?

[Capt Zorro]

I picked up a NOS buffer guide rod assembly from "STAR" in Spain. He posts here quite a bit, do a search and you'll be able to track him down.

[Rex B]

In production soon

http://www.hoosiergunworks.com/catal..._misc_m_z.html

[candr44]

Don't count on Hoosier Gun Works to have it. They say they have something in stock on their web site and it says its updated but that doesn't mean a thing with them.

They may actually have what you want but that hasn't been my experience with them. Not having something also didn't stop them from taking my order and then they left me wondering why my order hasn't arrived. I had to call them back to be told it was out of stock and yet the web site says its still up to date and still in stock.

[Rex B]

I emailed them yesterday as to when they would have more.
No reply as yet.

At $18 apiece they aren't doing us a big favor anyway.
I really wanted a virgin example to try making one or more from Delrin.
How hard could it be?

[Rex B]

Will finally have these available as of December 3rd. Will be taking orders then.

From:

www.hoosiergunworks.com

[ccwtrainer]

$15.00 each seems like an unreasonable price for a piece of plastic, I plan to change mine over to the copper tube spacer and standard 1911 buffers.

[Rex B]

I also think so, but I may buy one just to see if I can duplicate them

[ccwtrainer]

I ordered one, let's see how long it takes to get here-

[MGMike]

One other difference is that the recoil spring guide rod on one will unscrew on one end and has a plastic buffer that can be removed and replaced buy retracting the recoil spring and pushing or snaping the buffer off of the guide rod and then snaping on a new one and then letting the spring slide over it to retain it in place.

The other pistols guide rod does not appear to unscrew on one end and someone in the past has attempted to do so and it has left small marks from the attempt and the plastic buffer is a different shape, it is flat and it does not snap on and off of the guide rod and does not appear to be held on by the spring although the spring pushes against it.

Both of the plastic buffers are in good shape and do not need to be replaced at this time but the day may come when they will need to be replaced. Are these plastic buffers still available anywhere and are there really two or more different styles? Also does the one guide rod really unscrew and or is it just tightly stuck.

There were two different recoil spring/guide/buffer assemblies used on Star PDs. The first was semi-permanently threaded together with loctite and used a flat buffer that was made of an inferior plastic that disintegrated within a few hundred rounds. The buffer could be replaced only by popping the loctite seal either with heat (which was not good for the spring) or by brute force with pliers, which usually disfigured the end caps. That is, unless it came apart by itself, which some early ones did, because the threads were erroneously mismatched at the factory and loctite was improvised to fill the gap.

About 1981 this was changed to a redesigned buffer with an integral split sleeve that could easily be replaced without dismantling the guide assembly, in the manner Dan described above. The plastic also was changed to a glass-filled Delrin, which lasts indefinitely.

If I wanted to replace the buffer in an early guide, I'd cut it off rather than dismantle the guide assembly, and replace it with a later-type buffer that snaps on.

But why not just buy a new factory assembly with late buffer from "STAR" and get a new spring too? Jorge probably also has just the buffers; ask him.

M

[Rex B]

I think Jorge is out of them.

thanks for the details. I am going to find one to model a replacement of Delrin.
If it can be made on a lathe I'll probably make a dozen or so.
But first I need to find a sample.

Does anyone know what style Hoosier Gun Works sells?

[jimm2003]

Hoosier sells the late-model split buffer. They are shipping at this moment.

[Rex B]

Yes, I guess I ought to buy some. $15 each seemed a little high. Couple of years ago they were selling a dozen for that price, according to someone else.

I'm also looking for a box and a spare mag for the PD.

[CactusCapt]

I'm also looking for a box and a spare mag for the PD.

There's just such a combo on Gunbroker now--BIN $50. Of course, I believe the seller bought it on ARF.com for $25, but that's capitalism for you!

[Rex B]

That would be the one I missed by about 30 seconds.
Pretty sorry to snap that up when he probably didn't even have a PD

[CactusCapt]

RexB--

Sent you a PM...

[Rex B]

I ordered one, let's see how long it takes to get here-

Well, did your buffer get there?
How does it look?

[jimm2003]

I got a couple a few weeks back. The took about a week of arrive and they look fine. I installed one in my PD to replace the old, chewed up one, but haven't fired it yet.