Questions on Makarovs

[neilwest]

1. since I cant even pick my Bulgarian up until Jan 10 according to South Carolina gun laws i have some questions.

2. How accurate are these weapons, are they good concealed carry, and why is the cost so little.

3. Everybody I talk to seems to think they are fantastic pistols, but the cost is very moderate. I'm not complaining just curious.

4. I hate the wait that my state puts a collector through. DAMN!!!

[matrosov]

How accurate are these weapons, are they good concealed carry, and why is the cost so little.


The joke in Russian military was that Makarov is an officer pistol for an oficer to blow his brains out when he is about to be captured :). I discovered M-9 back in Motherlands military and never looked back:). Well ok in all seriousness Mak is pretty accurate but I hope you have an extra pair of arms at home because recoil is simply brutal. They are kinda comparable to the cheetah line of guns by beretta.

With a hollow point load they are pretty good concealed carry although they are not much as far as intimidation factor goes.

Everybody I talk to seems to think they are fantastic pistols, but the cost is very moderate. I'm not complaining just curious

Look at the comment above. They are a good all around pistols but in my opinion there is nothing outstanding about them. They are not AK-47 of guns they do like certain types of ammunition and will jam while you are using the kind they don't like:) Whereas I can load any kinda crap in my M-9 and it'll go bang. But then again its all about personal preferences I hate small guns. Mak's are also a piece of history something from behind the iron curtain:) They are cheap because Romania Bulgaria x-GDR and whoever else makes them don't have to pay a factory worker 60K a year to make them, those guys are lucky if they make 100 bucks a month.

[second amendment]

hey recoil aint that bad, but they do zing ya in the hand a little bit.
they are a blast to shoot though!!

[neilwest]

1. so in other words, this thing is a blast to shoot but stick with my Kahr K-40 or Walther for concealed carry. I appreciate the help

[matrosov]

so in other words, this thing is a blast to shoot but stick with my Kahr K-40 or Walther for concealed carry. I appreciate the help

Not necessarily if you like compact guns and it looks like you do like compact guns :). Makarov is perfect for concealed carry once you figure what kinda ammo it likes it'll never jam. It's just with me I never wanted anything below a medium size for my handgun. That's why I have to suffer conceal carrying a cinder block M-9 on my hip :D

[neilwest]

1. I own three 1911's and one 92f, Sig 226, two bersa's, two PPK's, CZ-75.

My favoirite is the 1911 officers for carry by as you know it's not SA/DA. I usually carry the maimi rig with a PPK. But if this Makarov fits I do like to switch out.

[Bret]

Matrosov, I'm going to have to disagree with some of your statements. I own ten Makarovs, so I am a little biased.

"Well ok in all seriousness Mak is pretty accurate but I hope you have an extra pair of arms at home because recoil is simply brutal." I wouldn't call the recoil brutal. I'd call it about average, even better when compared to most small pistols. It's on par with my Glock 23 (40 S&W) and Browning Hi-Power (40 S&W). It probably has more recoil than an M9, but consider that an M9 or any full sized 9mm has a high gun size to cartridge power ratio and will therefore have less recoil.

"... they do like certain types of ammunition and will jam while you are using the kind they don't like..." I have shot thousands of rounds through my Makarovs and have only had one jam. It was a failure to feed caused by a bad reload. I didn't fully take the bell out of the case mouth. I know these guns were made for FMJ, but most will work just fine with HP's. The ones that have a problem with HP's can be fixed by doing a little feed ramp polishing. In my opinion, the Makarov is one of the most reliable pistols out there.

Considering what you get for what you pay, I don't think they can be beat.

[matrosov]

Hehe Bret k lemme explain why I said what I said:)

extra pair of arms at home because recoil is simply brutal." I wouldn't call the recoil brutal. I'd call it about average, even better when compared to most small pistols.

It's true but for me personally this recoil is bad enough for me to stop enjoying the gun for recreational shooting purposes. I have a Mak and I never wanted to put more then two clips through it the satisfaction of hitting the target never surpassed the stinging pain in my hand :). Again I am not bashing the Mak but personal preferences are personal preferences.

"... they do like certain types of ammunition and will jam while you are using the kind they don't like..." I have shot thousands of rounds through my Makarovs and have only had one jam. It was a failure to feed caused by bad reload. I didn't fully take the bell out of the case mouth.

Well looks to me that you are shooting the ammunition that this gun likes. I had a jam up on the jam up on certain kind of ammo I forgot which kind it was and then I switched to WOLF and have not had a problem ever since. This is pretty much a problem with any small gun that I 've shot cheetah's glocks etc. Once you figure out the right kind of ammo they never jam:)

By no means I am bashing MAK's, the price is unbeatable and reliability that it offers is very good, but thing is this is a carry/collector gun not a rec shooting gun. I usually put 200 rounds through M-9 during a trip to the range and since I am on the budget it is also my carry gun. The Mak I have, is a gift and is original russian made with the stars on the handle etc etc and is simply not as much fun to shoot 200 rounds through as M-9. :D

[jimmyjoebobx]

no flames intended
but comparing a m-9 to a makarov is like me saying my corvette kicks your chevetts ass!

Both are good pistols, both have their problems.

However in the area of the 9mm Mak caliber, there is not a better choice. As for jamming, I have played with many and have not witnessed this. Even if there is a jam, the problem lies with how the barrel aligns with the frame ramp. Just a mild polish and all is well. Also if you add a 19lb wolf recolil spring, it helps with the recoil a bit. If my hosting site was not down, Iwould post a picture of my tricked out CCW mak. For the price and quality of weapon, you can't do wrong.

HTH

James

[neilwest]

1. Ive learned that there is plentiful ammo available and that I need 9mm mak rounds. Other than that sounds like a fun gun to own. I will check barrel alignment when I get it. Thanks.

[MISRyx]

WaHahaha! Brutal recoil. I'm gonna have to remember to tell the wife that she can deal with "brutal recoil". Can't shoot 2 *mags*? I have to *make* her stop after two boxes.

Couldn't stand it so I called her, the first thing out of her mouth was, "He ought to try shooting the Beretta!"(my M-9). Get some of those Pierce soft rubber grips like she has for the one she fires in her left hand. The right hand still has the red bakelites as she doesn't fire it as much.

Brutal recoil, BuAHahahaha!

BTW: Get FMJ for practice and the Barnaul HP. We've only had feeding issues with Cor-Bon but the Barnaul opens up to some really ugly stuff after it hits.

[matrosov]

ROFL Misry M-9 is my gun of choice. Sorry peoples I am not flaming maks they are good guns. It's just I guess I have had enough fun with maks back in mother Russia. We loved your 1911, loved beretta's did not really care much for maks.

And recoil IS brutal it stings your hand :D

The common bitch back in home land was: We can make the best goddamn assault rifle in the world we can make one of the best fighter jets in the world why can't we make handguns as good as those imperialist pigs make them :D

j/k

I have nothing against maks its one of those opinion like a hole thingies everybody got one :).

[UGACherokee]

I totally agree with the "stinging hands" complaint. I don't know if it's vibration or what, but I fire more powerful pistols regularly that don't sting my hands even though the recoil is more -- much more in some cases :D -- pronounced.

I like my Mak as a novelty, but wouldn't think of using it for carry when smaller, more powerful guns are available that are more comfortable to shoot. (Like the above mentioned Kahr .40 and my favs, the G27 and G30).

[oldguy]

Good God, guys they make rubber grips (makawraps
and pearce) the makawraps from Makarov.com gives
the gun a good feel and flat look for carry.
Oh,yeh, and no hand pain.

[RAWFIRE]

Ok Guys,
Now that Ive stoped laughing from the brutal recoil comment I guess I can throw in my two cents worth. I love the gun!!! But I thinkeveryone missd the statement about the recoilspring earlier. In most handguns stinging recoil is a result of weak recoil springs allowing slide velocity to exceed design. The resulting impact of the side against the frame at high speed causes the stinging you feel. I like to over spring my guns(to the piont they dont cycle)and then clip coils untill reliable function occurs. This results in the lowest slide velocity at slide/frame impact. The result is low felt recoil and increased gun longivity. MAKs are bad about weak recoil springs so the first thing I do is replace them. The only MAK jam Ive ever seen is when my buddy loaded his chamber and then loaded a compleatly full mag under it. The resulting pressure under the slide resulted in a short cycle. Hope this helps??? My MAK goes with me where others fail to go!!! That and Glaser Safty Slugs!!!


HAPPY HOLIDAYS:)

[Herman Von Cherusi]

I am curious if there are any conversions to other caliburs for the Makarov. I know it can be converted to .380 Auto with a simple barrel change, but are there any others available? I would really like a Mak in 9mm Luger.

Thanks for any help!

[RAWFIRE]

As I recall they were thinking of makig the MAK in 9mmP by using radial flutes in the chamber to hold the case there till pressures dropped but gave up on it. Other than that the only other calibers it would be suited for would be less effective than the 380/9x18 and poise magizine problems as well so why bother?
Enjoy what you have, its a great piece!!!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS ALL!!!

:D

[oldguy]

Sad to say they do make a 9mm version but cannot
be imported to usa, I have seen emails from other
countries on the 9mm, should be an excellent gun.
maybe someday.?

look in the store window Baikal 442.

http://baikalinc.ru/eng/prod/hguns/baikal442/

[RAWFIRE]

I stand correct but:
Why Not???

[oldguy]

Mr Clinton stopped the import of handguns but
not shotguns from Russia. Politics again in the
world of free trade.:cryeyes:

[RAWFIRE]

To correct my previous post, I STAND CORRECTED.

One reason why Friends dont let friends vote democratic!!! At least Im not untill they stop this business of not finding a gun control bill they dont like. Thanks for the info!!!! I appreciate it.

HELP ALWAYS APRECIATED
:)