Echeverria Izarra
Star Bonifacio Echeverria, S.A. · Pistol · Discontinued · 1914
Also known as: Izarra, Bonifacio Echeverria Izarra, Eibar pistol, Spanish Ruby
Overview
The Echeverria Izarra is a Spanish blowback semi-automatic pistol chambered in .32 ACP, built in Eibar by Bonifacio Echeverria during the First World War. A Ruby-pattern sidearm derived from John Browning's FN Model 1903, it uses a fixed-barrel straight-blowback action with an internal hammer, single-action trigger, a heel-release detachable box magazine, external extractor, slide grasping grooves and a frame-mounted safety lever. Echeverria was one of the many Basque workshops subcontracted to feed the French Army's enormous wartime demand for inexpensive service pistols. The Izarra name (Basque and Spanish for 'star') and the company's wartime experience became the foundation of the later Star pistol brand.
Specifications
| Weight (empty) | 875 g (30.9 oz) |
| Weight (loaded) | 975 g (34.4 oz) |
| Overall Length | 157 mm (6.18") |
| Barrel Length | 87 mm (3.43") |
| Height | 110 mm (4.33") |
| Width | 30 mm (1.18") |
| Sight Radius | 120 mm (4.72") |
| Action Type | Blowback |
| Firing Mechanism | Hammer Fired |
| Trigger Type | Single Action |
| Magazine Capacity | 9 rounds |
| Magazine Type | Detachable Box |
| Muzzle Velocity | 300 m/s (984 fps) |
| Muzzle Energy | 200 J (148 ft·lbf) |
| Effective Range | 25 m (27 yd) |
| Maximum Range | 100 m (109 yd) |
| Barrel Rifling | Right Hand |
| Number of Grooves | 6 |
| Frame Material | Steel |
| Slide Material | Steel |
| Barrel Material | Steel |
| Stock Material | Wood |
| Finish | Blued |
Calibers
- .32 ACP · primary — also known as .32 Automatic, 7.65x17mm Browning SR, 7.65mm Browning
Features
- Firing modes: Semi Automatic
- Feed systems: Detachable Box Magazine
- Safety mechanisms: Manual Safety
- Features: External Extractor, Heel Magazine Release, Slide Grasping Grooves, Fixed Sights
Service history
Operators
- French Army · adopted 1915 · as Pistolet Automatique de 7 millim.65 genre "Ruby"
- Royal Italian Army · adopted 1915
Conflicts
- World War I (1914-1918)
Production
Production years: 1914-1921
One of dozens of Eibar-region firms producing Ruby-type pistols; the French and Italian armies bought hundreds of thousands of Spanish .32 ACP Rubies during World War I, of which the Izarra was one contracted pattern.
Origin
Country of origin: Spain
Discontinued: 1921
Notes
Izarra-marked pistols typically carry an 'I' inside a circle at the rear of the left frame. An earlier hammerless .25 ACP Izarra was made in small numbers around 1905-1906; the wartime model documented here is the .32 ACP Ruby-pattern pistol of 1914-1921.
Background
Bonifacio Echeverria and his brother Julian took over their father Jose Cruz Echeverria's Eibar workshop in 1905 to enter the new semi-automatic pistol trade. Their wartime Izarra 'Ruby' contracts gave the firm the capital and experience that, a few years later, launched the Star marque under which the company became famous.