Llama Especial

Llama Gabilondo y Cia · Pistol · Discontinued · 1933

Also known as: Llama XA Especial, Especial

Overview

The Llama Especial is a Spanish blowback-operated semi-automatic pocket pistol chambered in .32 ACP, manufactured by Gabilondo y Cia of Eibar. Styled as a scaled-down Colt M1911, it carries the characteristic 1911-pattern lines including a grip safety and frame-mounted manual thumb safety, but uses a simple blowback action suited to the low-pressure .32 ACP cartridge rather than a locked breech. It fed from a seven-round detachable box magazine with witness holes, wore checkered walnut grips, and was fitted with a fixed front and drift-adjustable rear sight on a serrated rib.

Specifications

Weight (empty)680 g (24.0 oz)
Overall Length165 mm (6.50")
Barrel Length95 mm (3.74")
Action TypeBlowback
Firing MechanismHammer Fired
Trigger TypeSingle Action
Magazine Capacity7 rounds
Magazine TypeDetachable Box
Muzzle Velocity290 m/s (951 fps)
Muzzle Energy183 J (135 ft·lbf)
Effective Range25 m (27 yd)
Barrel RiflingRight Hand
Number of Grooves6
Frame MaterialSteel
Slide MaterialSteel
Barrel MaterialSteel
Stock MaterialWalnut
FinishBlued

Calibers

Features

Service history

Operators

Production

Production years: 1933-1954

Produced before and after the Spanish Civil War interruption; exact totals undocumented.

Origin

Country of origin: Spain

Designer: Gabilondo y Cia

Discontinued: 1954

Notes

Marketed alongside the .380 ACP Especial models; sometimes catalogued under the Llama 'XA' designation for the .32 ACP variant. Eibar proof marks date individual examples.

Background

Gabilondo y Cia rose to prominence supplying Ruby-pattern pistols to the French Army during the First World War, then built its postwar reputation on the Llama line of compact 1911-style pistols, of which the Especial was a popular pocket-sized .32 ACP offering.