Opinions or experiences with Russian/Soviet handguns

geologist

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I would like to get some opinions on the following Russian/Soviet handguns.

I've read a fair bit about Tokarevs and Makarov PM and PMM but would be interested in any experiences or opinions concerning the handguns on this list.

I'd be interested in rating these handguns in terms of reliabilty, size and weight with respect to daily carry, calibre, magazine capacity and effectiveness at 20m or less.

Thanks for any info you guys can provide.

Korovin TK
Tokarev TT
Makarov PM/PMM
Stechkin APS
PSM
PSS
Serdyukov SPS/Gyurza/Vector
Yarygin PYa/Grach
GSh-18
OTs-27 "Berdysh"
OTs-33 "Pernach"
SPP-1 underwater
MP-446 "Viking"
MP-448 "Skyph"
P96 P96S P96M
 
SHot a Tok alot. ITs extremely loud. Bad ergonomics. The safety is sloppy. Grip is not very comfy. It was in my experience fairly accurate. Its a pretty snappy little pistol. I would equate it to like shooting a moderately hot 10mm. The one I shot I believe was Egyptian. Never shot a Mak, I think they are prohib now.
 
7.62 also it looked like it was a hammer biter. Never got me, but grip it high and look out! Pretty pounchy round. Suprised by how loud it was at indoor range..
 
Well, for what it's worth I think the Vostok .22 pistol is a helluva deal for the money.... Great .22 cal plinker... :cool:

I know it's not on the list but I thought I'd mention it anyway, since the topic is Russian handguns.
 
The tokarev has bad ergonomics IF you have big hands. It suits smaller hands well. I've never been hammer bitten by one - it's not as apt to do that as a 1911 is.

They are VERY reliable and snappy. There should not be a swing safety unlesss you have some weird Yugo, Chinese or Egyptian variant. The normal TT safety is a half-#### setting on the hammer.

The Makarov is a truely nice pistol. On a par with the PPK for design and build quality (if you get a non-chinese one). Sadly, unless you change the barrel, it's a prohib. I'd love to have an East German, Soviet or Bulgarian Mak - but alas it'll likely never happen. The non-prohib barrel would protrude 5mm or 6mm from the slide. They are sold in the USA if you know an importer - questar? Up to the challenge?

The MP-446 Viking has a good reputation. I see them in the EE from time to time. Armrus used to sell them in Canada. They have a reputation for being simple, rugged and reliable. Beyond that I can't comment as I've only held them in-hand, but never fired one. The grip felt allright but tought to judge these things without getting any trigger time.
 
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