Astra 903
Astra-Unceta y Cia · Pistol · Discontinued · 1932
Also known as: Astra Model 903, Astra 903E
Overview
The Astra 903 is a Spanish selective-fire machine pistol produced by Astra-Unceta y Cia in the early 1930s as a development of the Mauser C96 'broomhandle' design. Chambered for the 7.63x25mm Mauser cartridge, it improved on the earlier fixed-magazine Astra 902 by adopting detachable 10- or 20-round box magazines and a fire selector on the right of the frame marked '1' for semi-automatic and '20' for full-automatic fire. It uses a short-recoil, locked-breech action with a vertically tilting locking piece and an external hammer, and can be fitted with a wooden holster-stock for shoulder firing.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 1450 g (51.1 oz) |
| Overall Length | 310 mm (12.20") |
| Barrel Length | 160 mm (6.30") |
| Height | 150 mm (5.91") |
| Action Type | Short Recoil |
| Firing Mechanism | Hammer Fired |
| Trigger Type | Single Action |
| Magazine Capacity | 20 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Detachable Box |
| Muzzle Velocity | 440 m/s (1444 fps) |
| Muzzle Energy | 540 J (398 ft·lbf) |
| Effective Range | 50 m (55 yd) |
| Maximum Range | 1000 m (1094 yd) |
| Rate of Fire | 900 rpm |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Slide Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Wood |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- 7.63x25mm Mauser · primary — also known as 7.63 Mauser, .30 Mauser, 7.63x25
Features
- Firing modes: Semi Automatic, Full Automatic
- Feed systems: Detachable Box Magazine
- Safety mechanisms: Manual Safety Lever, Half Cock Notch
- Features: Broomhandle Grip, Select Fire, Fire Selector Switch, Detachable Shoulder Stock Holster, Tangent Rear Sight, Detachable Box Magazine
Service history
Operators
- Chinese Warlord and Nationalist forces
Conflicts
- Chinese Civil War (1927-1949)
- Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945)
Production
Estimated total produced: 3,000 · Production years: 1932-1936
Approximately 3,000 produced; a large share exported to the Chinese market
Origin
Country of origin: Spain
Designer: Astra-Unceta y Cia
Discontinued: 1936
Notes
The rapid ~900 rpm cyclic rate made the 903 difficult to control in full-automatic fire; the later Astra 904/Model F added a rate-reducing mechanism to address this. Roughly 3,000 were made, many exported to China where selective-fire broomhandle pistols were prized by warlord and factional forces.
Background
Spanish gunmakers in Eibar built high-quality copies and derivatives of the Mauser C96 for export, and the select-fire Astra machine pistols reached China ahead of Mauser's own Schnellfeuer, feeding the appetite of 1930s warlord armies for concealable rapid-fire firepower.