Llama Firearms

Llama Firearms, officially known as Llama-Gabilondo y Cia SA, was a Spanish arms company founded in 1904 under the name Gabilondo and Urresti.

In 1912, the company was not among those Eibar manufacturers involved in legal action against Fabrique Nationale so it can be assumed that they had not yet begun to sell self-loading pistols based on Browning patents.

[2] The "Vélodog" revolvers are small pocket pistols intended for the protection of cyclists and hikers against savage dogs, typically firing five or six shots, and fitted with a short barrel and folding trigger.

In 1913, the company manufactured the Radium, a small six-shot self-loading pistol in 6.35 mm/.25 ACP with a unique magazine design patented by Guillermo Echeverria and Valentin Vallejo.

[1] In 1914, just before the start of the First World War, Gabilondo created a sturdy self-loading pistol based on the Browning Model 1903 and chambered for the 7.65mm Browning/.32 ACP cartridge.

The pistol was intended for export to the Americas, and despite the small calibre was designed with military and police sales in mind.

These copies were less sophisticated than the original, but one was very similar to the eventual Ruby design, the "Victoria" made by Esperanza y Unceta.

In 1915, Gabilondo sent examples of the pistols to the French government, who were hard-pressed for all sorts of small-arms, even in this early stage of the war.

Many Ruby-types were plagued by poor finish and incorrectly hardened steel parts which after a short period of use wore so badly that pistols fired on full-auto.

Despite being marked "War Model" and being fitted with a lanyard ring, these pistols attracted no official military sales, but were popular private-purchase and police weapons.

[3] Around 1931 Gabilondo began to make copies of the Colt 1905 in .45 ACP and 9 mm Largo without a grip safety and with a nine-shot magazine.

In the 1930s, Gabilondo manufactured its pistols under the brand names "Tauler" and "Mugica" for worldwide export, mainly to the Americas and Asia.

Tauler was a famous Spanish target shooter and Olympic medalist who became a gunsmith, opening a shop in Madrid and he eventually began exporting weapons.

He had the full range of Llama pistols manufactured bearing his trademark and name, with a variety of minor improvements of his own design.

In the 1930s he contracted to export pistols to the Thai government, but after the occupation of that country by Japan he was forced to concentrate on other markets, mainly in China.

Omni III was a 9 mm parabellum pistol with a double stack 13-round magazine, however the first five rounds fed into the action in a single column to reduce the likelihood of jamming.

The wealth of features meant the Omni was an expensive pistol to make compared to previous models, and together with its radical appearance, this discouraged commercial sales.

An extractor-mounted loaded chamber indicator, reversible magazine release and ambidextrous safety levers were also included.

It was fitted with a special Swartz safety, first used by Colt in the 1930s, to prevent accidental discharge when the pistol is dropped on a hard surface.

Following the passage of the US Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act late in 1994, magazine capacity was dropped to 10 rounds in and several minor changes made to the shape of hammer and safety.

However the slimmer mainspring housing from the IX-C was retained, a move considered by smaller-handed shooters to give this model superior handling qualities.

The ban on the import of Chinese weapons contributed to this models success in the low-cost "1911 clone" market, although there were problems fitting many aftermarket 1911 accessories.

Initial reviews were disappointing citing mediocre accuracy and occasional malfunctions, but these may be related to quality control issues and ammunition choice rather than design failure.

Spanish banks that had extended bad loans in East Asia tried to cover their losses by restricting credit domestically, including to Llama.

Fabrinor was able to reschedule the debts in 2002 and again in 2003, but even public listing on the stock market didn't help generate the funds required.

With the long lingering collapse of Fabrinor, the ruling post-depression triumvirate of Spanish pistol makers came to an end.

Comanche I: .22 LR calibre with 6-inch barrel, ventilated rib, adjustable rear sight, wide spur hammer.

[8] Comanche II: .38 special calibre with four- or six-inch barrel, ventilated rib, adjustable rear sight, wide spur hammer.

Scorpio: .22LR and .32 S&W Long calibre with two-inch unribbed barrel, low profile sights, rounded grips, steel frame.

Picolo: .22LR and .32 S&W Long calibre with two-inch unribbed barrel, low profile sights, rounded grips, alloy frame.