I just got into these little Com-Bloc gems about 2 years ago and love them. Back after Obama got in office the 380acp ammo was non existing and up to $40-50 for pratice ammo when you could find it, so I decided to try one of these out for summer carry and 9x18 mak ammo is plentiful. Bulgarian Makarov 1986 8rds with a surplus Russian holster. Nice and small with little more punch than 380, simple to field strip double action with decocker. On the down side tiny sites and European heel mag release. CZ-82 12rds 1985 Little thicker than the Mak very nice single action and double action is very smooth, and much better sites than the Mak (CZ-75 nite sites can be easily install on the 82) push button mag release. The one bad thing about the 82 is manually lower the hammer to carry it double action but it can be carried "cocked & locked" like a 1911/BHP. Now to get one of the Polish pistols in the collection.
I like the Makarov pistols. Had a couple of IJ70 Russian models with adjustable sights in .380. Sold them during the great ammo shortage. Got this one later, a Hungarian PA-63 in 9 Mak. Dual tone and tiny sights. Much the same size as my Bersa .380. Sa trigger is o.k. DA trigger is heavy. Some people have been putting lighter springs in them, but then the DA is not reliable. Anyway, my son has it for now. Couldn't let him have my Bersa.
The Pistol Makarov (PM) is a medium-size, straight blowback action, frame-fixed barrel handgun. In blowback designs, the only force holding the slide closed is that of the recoil spring; upon firing, the barrel and slide do not have to unlock, as do locked-breech design pistols. Blowback designs are simple and more accurate than designs using a recoiling, tilting, or articulated barrel, but they are limited practically by the weight of the slide. The 9x18mm cartridge is a practical cartridge in blowback-operated pistols; producing a respectable level of energy from a gun of moderate weight and size. The PM is heavy for its size by modern US commercial handgun standards, largely because in a blowback pistol the heavy slide provides greater inertia to delay opening of the breech until internal pressures have fallen to a safe level. Other, more powerful cartridges have been used in blowback pistol designs, but the Makarov is widely regarded as particularly well balanced in its design elements. Pictured above is my Cold War relic from the year 1961...an East German Makarov chambered in 9x18mm. She actually shoots pretty good for an old timer...
Shooter, nice E. German you have there. That was one of those pistols I'm still kicking myself (and old gun dealer in the butt) for not getting it back in the 90's when they were dirt cheap. Dealer talked me out of it and into a Taurus 38spl revolver, that gun is long gone.
