The Down Range Forum
Member Section => Down Range Cafe => Topic started by: ericire12 on February 19, 2010, 09:09:07 AM
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http://frankwjames.blogspot.com/2010/02/astra-is-back-but-now-swiss.html
The German gun magazine is VISIER and if you look on page 71 you will notice that Walt Rauch and I are listed on their masthead as 'writers'. I haven't written anything for them in years, but still it's the thought that counts.
It's what I found on page 25 however that has me excited. It's a full page for ASTRA, a gun company that is a historic Spanish small arms manufacturer, only now they are located in Switzerland and they are manufacturing 1911 pistols and AR-15's of all things.
It has been purchased evidently from the heirs of Augusto Unceta, the original owner who was assassinated by the ETA, a Basque terrorist organization, in 1977 and their product line is yet another indication of the world wide trend: 1911 pistols and AR-15 carbines and rifles.
Surprise, surprise.
The AR they are offering is called the Model StG4 and it comes with a 14.5" barrel (legal in Switzerland) with an HBAR profile. Everything is Mil-Spec from 7075-T6 aluminum alloy. The StG4 features the typical collapsible stock and the removable 'suitcase handle' rear sight assembly.
As for their 1911 pistols they mention on their website http://www.astra-arms.ch/ their desire to reproduce the 1970's era Colt Gold Cup, so considering they are located in Sion (Valais), Switzerland in a brand new manufacturing facility they probably are making a pretty good duplicate of the 1970's era Gold Cup.