Do Makarovs Have A Good Reputation Here?

[TripleL]

They're not modern guns but they're all-steel and have passed the test of time...and war. Some deride them as cheap Commie junk but others swear by them, me included. Are they regarded well here in Indiana?

 

[Bluedragon]

I had a bulgarian Makarov about three years ago. I thought it was a good enough gun, great for ankle carry. I sold it to help finance another gun purchase. I do regret it. I hope to find an East German Makarov in the near future as a replacement.

 

[Goodcat]

My wife loves hers! I've got some houge grips on the way for her. cheaperthandirt @ $11 a box too! Ammo is hard to find otherwise at a decent price. As long as it's clean, it functions flawlessly. A bit snappy, but very acurate!

 

[behinger]

I have a Bulgarian model and I like it alot. its great fun to shoot.

 

[mospeada]

They're reliable, accurate firearms. A little underpowered for as big and heavy as they are.

 

[r3126]

I have two, an East German and a Russian Hi Cap. I carry the East German a lot in the summer as it is smaller than my Glock 30 and still packs a good punch with hollow point ammo. The Russian has been duracoated and I have wood grips on both. I find them both to be very reliable - you pull the trigger and they go BANG - every time.

http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s188/r3126/Maks003.jpg

The East German is on the right and the Russian on the left.

 

[Steven]

I have a small collection of them and find them to be simple, accurate and reliable.

KGB tested and approved.

 

[Steven]

http://i152.photobucket.com/albums/s188/r3126/Maks003.jpg

The East German is on the right and the Russian on the left.

Very Nice

 

[TripleL]

The East German is on the right and the Russian on the left.

Very nice pair. Are those Marschal grips?

 

[r3126]

Are those Marschal grips?

Yes, they are. It takes a while to get them, they come from mid Europe. The fit and finish is really good. Considering the price, they are as good as they come.

Thanks for the compliments.

 

[jsgolfman]

Love my Mak.

 

[HICKMAN]

One of my very first pistols was a .380 Mak, I loved that thing.

 

[jjohnisme]

I have two, one for looks, and one for show. Beautiful guns, a bit heavy for it's cartridge though. Could make for a nice stepping stone in between a .22 and a full-on 1911 .45.

 

[m2steven]

I got one about 3 weeks ago and it's now one of my favorite pistols. The thing just plain works everytime. Get one while you can. They are beautiful pistols and really functional.

 

[danmdevries]

I loved mine. Not a true Mak, but shot the 9x18. It was a CZ-82 and that thing was completely reliable and extremely accurate, it always hit right where I pointed it. I've never owned a gun that shot as true as the Mak for me.

I got rid of it because of the oddball caliber. Sportsmans guide has the ammo at around 9/box last I ordered so it was cheap to shoot as well.

I love em, just don't have any anymore because of the nonstandard caliber.

 

[Frankingun]

Who has good Mak prices in or around Indy? Been thinking of getting one.

 

[BIG TIM]

BGF had a new (unfired) CZ-82 last week for about $300.

 

[TheDude]

Had a Bulgarian and was very accurate pistol. But the sights are small and kinda hard to pick up. Other than that a nice piece. There is a nice EG in the listings right now.

 

[Claddagh]

I have owned three: A Chinese Norinco, a Russian commercial IJ-70 and a Bulgarian. Presently, I still have the Bulgie.

All were 100% reliable functionally. All shot at least as well as I can hold for on any given day. All came OTB well-regulated for POI/POA with mil-spec 95 gr. ammo. Fit and finish levels varied a bit, but not to any large degree. What more can one ask for in an easily affordable SD/HD piece of a thoroughly proven design?

I traded the Chinese and sold the IJ-70 to someone who wanted it a lot more than I did. I didn't like the huge, clunky adjustable rear sight anyway, and with the same tiny, shiney front it didn't make any marked difference in how well I could hit with it.

My only gripes about the breed are pretty much subjective. I'm a southpaw, and the stock military grip with the lanyard loop was uncomfortable to shoot with. A Hogue replacement fixed that.

The DA trigger pulls on all of them frankly sucked. Gritty-feeling, quite heavy and lots of travel. To be fair, they smooth up fairly well as the rounds accumulate. The other factors are pretty much inherent to the design and original purpose as a military sidearm, IMO. The aftermarket now has parts and info to address these, to some degree anyway.

The biggest thing to me is the stock sights. They're miniscule and very difficult for my bifocal-clad eyes to pick up quickly and index on-target with much precision consistently. There're fixes for this, but unfortunately I waited too long to decide to commit the considerable extra cash (started at about $125 at the time, nearly 90% of what I paid for the pistol NIB) and Makarov.com stopped offering the packages. It's gonna cost me even more now, if I can find somewhere locally to get the work done properly at all. FWIW, an XS set with a standard-dot tritium front is what I'd like to try. They make a set for the Walther PP/PPK that should be about right.

 

[jsx1043]

As an interesting sidebar...

The Makarov got the edge in the pistol category of "Deadliest Warrior" in the episode "Green Beret vs. Spetsnaz" due to their specialized holster:

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5H2GYOhKtM]YouTube - Russian Makarov Pistol Holster - EFA-2[/ame]