So, I was at a gun shop the other day and I noticed a blued .357 revolver they had tagged as an "ASTAR" and were selling for a hair under $200. (Upon reflection I believe it's got a 4" barrel.) It looked to be in pretty good condition so I asked to take a closer look, and noticed it was an Astra. I'd heard of the company and, despite being slightly pressed for time, took my time to drool over it.
I did a quick inspection of it for mechanical fit, damage, rust spots, finish wear, and things like that, and couldn't find anything wrong with it aside from the screws (all of them that were visible, I think - grip screw as well as 2 in the frame that I can readily recollect) had been stripped slightly, and the grip wood was kinda cheap and ugly.
But, now that I'm home (was visiting family out of town), I can't find any sources indicating what the heck the thing is (ie which model and what it's reputation is). I've found a site which states (in the form of a chart) that it might be the Astra Standard, but I can't find any pictures of what that might be. Upon seeing it, I thought it looked a bit like a buddy's S&W 386 but I couldn't be sure - I'm not much of a revolver person and the features - and online I've read of some Astras being compared to the S&W model 27 (but I don't think it looked like that). So,
Anyone possibly able to point me in the right direction? I'd like to find out a little bit more about this piece before/if I end up trying to pick it up.
I did a quick inspection of it for mechanical fit, damage, rust spots, finish wear, and things like that, and couldn't find anything wrong with it aside from the screws (all of them that were visible, I think - grip screw as well as 2 in the frame that I can readily recollect) had been stripped slightly, and the grip wood was kinda cheap and ugly.
But, now that I'm home (was visiting family out of town), I can't find any sources indicating what the heck the thing is (ie which model and what it's reputation is). I've found a site which states (in the form of a chart) that it might be the Astra Standard, but I can't find any pictures of what that might be. Upon seeing it, I thought it looked a bit like a buddy's S&W 386 but I couldn't be sure - I'm not much of a revolver person and the features - and online I've read of some Astras being compared to the S&W model 27 (but I don't think it looked like that). So,
Anyone possibly able to point me in the right direction? I'd like to find out a little bit more about this piece before/if I end up trying to pick it up.