The Astra A-100 is a Spanish double-action/single-action semi-automatic pistol that was manufactured by

Astra-Unceta y Cia SA Astra Unceta y Cía was a Spanish weapons manufacturer founded on July 17, 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 t ...

beginning in 1990. It was distributed in the United States by European American Armory (EAA).Operator's Manual: Astra A-100. European American Arms
The A-100 is also known as the "Panther" as imported into the United States by Springfield Armory, and some specimens have this roll-marked on the left of the slide. The A-100 design is a further development of Astra's earlier A-80 and A-90 models.Reinitz, Jeff. "Handgun that was part of three crimes is tagged for destruction." ''

Waterloo Courier ''The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier'' is a daily afternoon newspaper published by Lee Enterprises for people living in Waterloo and Cedar Falls, Iowa as well as northeast Iowa. The first issue of ''The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier'' was publishe ...

''. 5 March 200

/ref> The A-80 was originally patterned after the SIG P220.

Design

The A-100 is a recoil-operated, locked breech design with improved Browning-style linkless locking. The lock up is similar to the Browning High Power or CZ-75 with locking lugs on the top of the barrel which mate with lugs in the slide (not with a single lug in the ejection port like a

SIG Sig used as a name may refer to: * Sig (given name) *Sig, Algeria, a city on the banks of the Sig River *Sig Alert, an alert for traffic congestion in California, named after Loyd Sigmon *Sig River, a river of Algeria also known as Mekerra sig (l ...

P22X.) The pistol's safety features include a manual

decocking lever Close-up shot of a safety of an M16A2 rifle In firearms, a safety or safety catch is a mechanism used to help prevent the accidental discharge of a firearm, helping to ensure safer handling. Safeties can generally be divided into subtypes su ...

, firing pin block, and hammer safety. The A-100 lacks a

manual safety Close-up shot of a safety of an M16A2 rifle In firearms, a safety or safety catch is a mechanism used to help prevent the accidental discharge of a firearm, helping to ensure safer handling. Safeties can generally be divided into subtypes suc ...

, but depends entirely on a deliberate pull of its

trigger Trigger may refer to: Notable animals and people ;Mononym * Trigger (horse), owned by cowboy star Roy Rogers ;Nickname * Trigger Alpert (1916–2013), American jazz bassist * "Trigger Mike" Coppola (1900–1966), American gangster ;Surname * Bru ...

to fire it; in this way it is similar to the

P22X series of pistols. The double-action trigger pull is relatively long and heavy, thereby precluding the need for a safety as the probability of an inadvertent discharge is low. The A-100 resembles the

SIG P228 Sig used as a name may refer to: *Sig (given name) *Sig, Algeria, a city on the banks of the Sig River *Sig Alert, an alert for traffic congestion in California, named after Loyd Sigmon *Sig River, a river of Algeria also known as Mekerra sig (lo ...

and is similar in overall size and dimension, but differs in several respects, the most visible being the location of the take-down/disassembly lever on the right side of the frame (from the shooter's point of view) as compared to the SIG design, in which it is located on the left. The A-100 is also slightly heavier than the SIG, owing to its all-steel construction. Additionally, the A-100's chamber contour as visible when the slide is fully forward is rounded whereas the SIG design is squared. The configuration of the hammer is also different, with the A-100 having a rounded hammer provided with a lanyard hole and the SIG having a more conventional spur hammer. Magazines are not interchangeable between the A-100 and SIG pistols, however many holsters made for the SIG P229/228 fit the A-100 satisfactorily. The various A-series pistols were submitted unsuccessfully as contenders for Spanish military contracts beginning in the 1970s. The

Lebanese Forces The Lebanese Forces ( ar, القوات اللبنانية '')'' is a Lebanese Christian-based political party and former militia during the Lebanese Civil War. It currently holds 19 of the 128 seats in Lebanon's parliament and is therefore th ...

political party named the A-80, A-90, and A-100 as a few of the many semi-automatic pistols in use by that organization's members."The Weapons: Semi-auto Pistols." Lebanese Forces

Notes

{{reflist

External links

Owner's Manual
.40 S&W semi-automatic pistols .45 ACP semi-automatic pistols 9mm Parabellum semi-automatic pistols Semi-automatic pistols of Spain