Bulgarian Makarovs Any Good???

[MIR]

Im looking to purchase my first Makaov. I have seen alot of the Bulgarian mak's new with holster, 2-4 spare clips andall the accesoroes go for 140-160 dollars. I would appreciate any feedback on the Bulgarian Maks. I pretty much gave up looking for a East german and a Russian.

[Russian]

Bulgarian Maks have the best finish/fitting of any Makarov (in my opinion). Accuracy is surprisingly good as well.

[neilwest]

1. Get one, you wont be sorry. Im waiting to pick mine up now.

[MIR]

I have seen them from $$140-170, with holster, spare mags and all the acces. I dont want to pay too much. And since this is my first, I want to make sure I dont overspend!!!

[Russian]

Very good to excellent Bulgarian Makarovs are going for $100-$110 wholesale. I have ordered two and was less than thrilled. Both were missing a good part of their finish (expected) and one had significant levels of surface rust and pitting (not expected). I found a dealer that has mint condition, unissued ones with all the goodies for $150 and ordered one.

If anyone is interested, the dealer is in MI and their email address is warbirds@voyager.net.

I'm a collector, so I'm willing to pay premium for a mint condition weapon. I have several Maks and they're all fun to shoot (especially after putting on some Pearce grips). Either buy a shooter for $100 and have a dealer do the transfer or buy a mint one for $150. You won't be sorry you bought one.:)

[MISRyx]

pic got blocked.

[MIR]

My guns are mainly for collecting.So this Bulgarian mak, will be no exception. I dont mind paying the 140.00+ for one of these if its MINt, so heck, I may get two of them. Tehn I can start looking for a East German and A Russian one also.

[Russian]

You'll find that the East German and Russian Maks are more expensive and are rougher both in terms of finish and the milling. Chinese are also rougher and are considerably more money.

[MIR]

Is this guy you are referring to (Warbirds@voyager) a rep. person to deal with??? I may go with this person instead. The one I was thinking about buying was 165.00.

[Russian]

This is an FFL dealer that I saw listed on gunauction.
http://www.auctionarms.com/search/displayitem.cfm?ItemNum=2140216

She/he/they had something like 331 positive , 3 negative and 1 neutral comment. As internet credentials go, that's pretty damn good. Plus, when I talked to the woman, she was exceedingly polite and struck me as an honest person.

[Guard]

Bulgarian Maks come in 2 main flavors
Commercial ; called Arsenal , usually with a squared
off triger guard and black target grips.

Milsurp ; with circle 10 ,marking and rounded trigger guard , grips usually "red star"

These are very reliable resonably well finished
pistols. At current prices $120-150 you simply
cannot go wrong.

[Russian]

I vote for milsurp for two reasons:
1) Historical significance. It's like art. Sure, a painting may look nice, but you'll get bored with it eventually if there isn't a story behind the painting. Milsurp have history. Milsurp vs. commericial is like a chunk of the Berlin Wall vs. a brick from Lowes.
2) I HATE target grips. The quality is poor, there is no lanyard and a thumbrest is USELESS on a compact pistol. Plus, it just screams, "I was slapped on to get an extra point for ATF importation approval."

[MIR]

Well guys, I went ahead and purchased a Bulgarian on gunbrokers from (Warbirds). I took your advice Russian!!!! Cant wait to get it.

[Russian]

Originally posted by MIR
Well guys, I went ahead and purchased a Bulgarian on gunbrokers from (Warbirds). I took your advice Russian!!!! Cant wait to get it.

Just got mine in today. Mint in every way. Warbirds even tossed in a couple of freebies after I told them some of my stories from my retail days. Nice people. I highly recommend them.

[MIR]

Hey Russian, How did your holster look like. I looked at gunBrokers again today, and they have two more on the auction block, but this time it said, "some" of the holsters are used and not new!!! Maybe Ill give em a call to make sure they give me a new one. Im very tempted to get another one and I havent even got my first one yet. Didnt someone once say that: "This is an addictive hobby"!!!!!!

[Russian]

My holster was unissued. The one odd thing about it was that the leather strap for the lanyard was unpainted. Usually, the strap is the same color as the holster.

Yes, it is addicting. Fortunately, I'm only interested in the Bulgarian Maks and I'm content with the four I have.

[Seventh Fleet]

The East Germans made the very finest of all the Makarovs. Their fit and finish is heads and shoulders above all the rest. I own two of East Germans and a Russian high capacity .380 and have seen and handled many Bulgarian Maks. The East Germans cost a lot more than the rest of the Maks, (except for the Chinese,due to their scarcity). If you get a chance to handle an EG and a Bulgie Mak, take them both apart and compare the way that they're manufactured. There's simply no comparison.

7th

[MIR]

Well actually, my first choice was to get a East German Mak., but I could not find one anywhere. I wont be shooting it, so Im looking to buy a choice piece, preferably NIB with all the goodies.