9mm Largo made by star ...

[mozeppa]

made several loadings to see what was optimum for cycling....and just when it starts to cycle reliably...

it work and runs perfectly! ...yay!...so i pickup my brass...( first time loaded and first firing of starline brass) and i head home.

36 pieces of brass all split case mouth to web ....5/8" split.

why? it was within loading limits in every aspect.

cycled just fine ...not heavy. hmmmm?

[Oyeboten]

What is the history of the Brass? Any idea? Old used stuff? Or..?

Pictures of the splits?

What Model STAR is this? ( I love the old STAR Pistols, so definitely would like to see it ! )

I've shot thousands of rounds of .38 ACP, reloading same brass over and over, no split cases I can recall, even if .9mm Largo is about 10 percent more powerful, it should still not do this unless Brass is way WAY over used and become brittle maybe.

If good Cases, even a slightly over large Chamber I would expect to just 'fire form' the cases a little, instead of splitting them.

I'd have to suspect over used Brass, unless you tell us different.

[dtknowles]

made several loadings to see what was optimum for cycling....and just when it starts to cycle reliably...

it work and runs perfectly! ...yay!...so i pickup my brass...( first time loaded and first firing of starline brass) and i head home.

36 pieces of brass all split case mouth to web ....5/8" split.

why? it was within loading limits in every aspect.

cycled just fine ...not heavy. hmmmm?

Have you fired any other ammo in that gun? Could be bad brass. Not bad bad but not properly annealed. Did you size the brass or just load it straight from the bag? If you sized it what dies are you using and are you maybe over sizing it. Do you have any other fired brass, fired in that gun. Maybe the chamber is large. What diameter bullet are you using? Did you slug the bore, do a pound cast of the throat or have any info on chamber, throat, barrel size?

I have shot 9mm Largo Starline brass with no problems but it might be from a different lot and mine was shot in a chamber that I reamed in a 9mm CZ 52 barrel. I have also shot 9x23 win ammo in this chamber with no problems and have shot a variety of 38 super brass with the rims turned down.

It would suck if you have to anneal your new brass so I hope it is just a sizing issue.

Tim

[rintinglen]

The first batch of Starline brass that I bought did that, nearly 50% of the cases split on the first firing. Meanwhile, W_W 38 Super cases that I had Turned the rims on worked just fine, with no splits. I was told by an ex-employee of Speer that the likely cause was improper tempering of the brass as it was drawn to final shape. As the case is pounded into shape, the brass gets work-hardened and hence, brittle. To restore ductility, it is heated to ~750 degrees for a period of time that varies according to the size of the casing. Too much heat makes the case heads too soft and too little leaves the cases prone to splitting. You can try annealing the brass that you have left by placing it in a shallow metal container on the bases with about a 1/4 inch of water and then heating them to a dull read with a propane torch, and tipping them into the water as soon as they reach the desired temperature.

I must confess I have only done the annealing thing on rifle cases, which are much longer than the .91 inch 9mm Largo cases.

Later batches of brass from Midway did not have this problem..

[lar45]

I have a Star Modelo Super in 9mm Largo and have loaded Starline brass without any problems. My Starline brass is about 5 years old. I'd call Starline and see about getting some replacement brass.
I converted mine to shoot 38 Super by filing a small step in the barrel hood. The magazine feed lips needed a small tweak to accept the semi-rim of the Supers.
261071

261072


It will feed, shoot and cycle with a mixed mag of 9mm Luger, 9mm Largo and 38 Super. It will also feed and fire 380auto, but it doesn't have enough pressure to cycle the action.

The barrel on mine slugs .358". I've tried loading 180 and 190gn cast in it, but haven't had much luck yet.

I did put a different rear sight on mine as it was shooting way low.
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261074

[mozeppa]

history of brass = new never shot.

sized but not over sized.

.355 lead bullets. ..chamber not over sized (made a cerro bend cast of the chamber)

here is a pix of 9mm Largo...

[lar45]

Is yours the Super, or non Super? Take down lever on right side...

[Oyeboten]

history of brass = new never shot.

sized but not over sized.

.355 lead bullets. ..chamber not over sized (made a cerro bend cast of the chamber)

here is a pix of 9mm Largo...

Mysterious then!

I can not imagine any reason for the Cartridge Cases to crack.

Post some images of the cracks in the cases for us?

[lar45]

I had some Winchester brand 454 ammo split on the first firing of factory ammo. I contacted Winchester and they said they have no control over my reloads, I told them it was their factory ammo and they wanted it back. I sent it back and they sent coupon/vouchers for new Win ammo or Win components.

[bruce drake]

It could also be the dies paired with the chamber of the barrel? 9mm Largo is a tapered case while 38 Super is a straight walled case because of the semi-rim.

With my Star Super, I use 38 Super/38 ACP dies with 9mm SuperComp brass which is 38 Super brass without the Semi-Rim (Starline makes it also). I've never had a Starline case split on me as you describe.

[mozeppa]

yeah it's a star super model B, with take down lever on right side .

cases are split all the way to the web on every one of them. using 38 super dies from dillon.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

These Star pistols are great guns. I own several, and have never had any case splitting trouble with any of them. Just to clarify the model names, the Star A was 9mm Largo, and the Star B was 9mm Parabellum. So, logically, the Star Super A is 9mm Largo, and the Super B is 9mm Parabellum. These old pistols have been in the country for quite a few years now and were reasonably priced, and many of them have passed from hand to hand through several owners. It is not impossible that something was done to your pistol by a prior owner, and you may wish to look it over very carefully including inspecting the chamber. An example of someone monkeying with one of these pistols would be myself. There isn't really any difference between the A and B model except the chambering. I have one A model that was nice externally but had a terrible bore. A company now out of business named Federal Arms Corp. imported a batch of new after market barrels from S. Korea. I bought several and installed a new 9mm Parabellum barrel in the A model, so now it is a B model but still marked as an A model, which someday will no doubt cause wonderment for a subsequent owner.