9x18 Makarov dying off?

[SC Shooter]

Makarovs

Makarovs are getting harder to find, but I really believe that it is becoming a more popular gun rather than because they are dying off. I have talked with several dealers at gun shows and in their shops, and they all say theft can't keep them in stock. Another indicator is that the prices are increasing rapidly. As long as the guns are selling, someone will be making and selling ammo for them; hopefully.

 

[PabloJ]

So I have 2 Makarovs in 9mm Mak aka 9x18

I really enjoy shooting them, and one of them (a bulgie) is also my carry gun.

I am concerned that in a few years Makarov ammo and reloading components will disappear. Hornady's recent announcement that they're dropping production of the 95gr XTP has me especially worried, as I believe it was the last JHP bullet available to reloaders (have not seen a Seirra or Speer JHP in some time now).

So what do you guys think? Am I worried about nothing? Or is 9x18 going the way of the dodo? Should I look for .380 ACP barrels for my Maks?

No need to worry there are plenty serving security forces in smaller towns and hamlets of former eastern block. Big city boys get Walthers or Glocks small town boys get 9x18 pistols.
Instead of having 9x17 barrels pressed into PMs I would buy new SR9c. You get same size & weight, better ergonomics, combat sights, 17+1 capacity, rail and less expensive quality defensive ammo. You know, not cheap JHPs from places where people do not know how to make good ones.

 

[j1]

Hey M 2 Carbine, how much 22 rimfire do you have on hand? You seem well stocked, and that is meant as a compliment, sir.

 

[PabloJ]

Makarovs are getting harder to find, but I really believe that it is becoming a more popular gun rather than because they are dying off. I have talked with several dealers at gun shows and in their shops, and they all say theft can't keep them in stock. Another indicator is that the prices are increasing rapidly. As long as the guns are selling, someone will be making and selling ammo for them; hopefully.

They are getting harder to find. Went to LGS and found only four pistols chambered for the 9x18 cartridge. Russian Commercial IJ for $279, Bulgarian military/police for $249 and two CZ82s for $350 each. That Bulgarian had no wear and came with Russian leather holster so the price was fair, but having R9 I have no need for it so I passed by.

 

[Dean1818]

I have seen quite a few places that have 9mak higher than 9mm, or on par

Just 5 years ago it was 50-60% of the price of regular 9mm. Many people
Made decisions to buy pistols in this round due To ammo costs

That trend isnt positive for the long run, but i imagine there will be sources for awhile.

Reloading is the key to long term availability

 

[Got_Lead?]

The popularity of these pistols seemed to be at least in part a result of cheap and readily available surplus ammo. For about $95 you could get a thousand blasting rounds, and have at it.

Ammo is much harder to get today, but these are still great little pistols. Very accurate, handy, and reliable. While the supply of very cheap surplus ammo is no longer abundant, it feels like reloading for these pistols is gaining speed.

After about 3 years of trying, I finall y have both a set of Makkie reloading dies, and a .365 bullet mold from F&M. I make the cases by trimming 9X19 cases. I'm looking forward to shooting some reloads, especially from my Polish P-64. I'll be loading these down a bit for much more comfortable shooting.

 

[North Bender]

The popularity of these pistols seemed to be at least in part a result of cheap and readily available surplus ammo. For about $95 you could get a thousand blasting rounds, and have at it.

There hasn't been any quantity of surplus ammo available for some 10 years or longer. The $95/1,000 deals were sales of Russian commercial ammunition (Brown Bear, Barnaul, etc.). I don't believe ammunition is any harder to find than it was 10 years ago - you still order on line if you want quantities at good prices and you can readily find it.

 

[OilyPablo]

Ammo is out there and I have a large stash. Thanks!

 

[Dudedog]

Missouri Bullets works has cast bullets for them. (9x18) Mine seems to shoot them well. I am using S+B brass 3.6 grns of Universal clays.
Lee makes dies.


http://www.missouribullet.com/results.php?category=5&secondary=28
$32.50 for 500. Shipping for up to 2000 (as long as they are less than 65lbs) is $14. They ship in flat rate US postage boxes. I always wonder what my mail person thinks when I get a 40lb box.
There is a 5% discount code here for Missouri if you look for it.

 

[David4516]

I do miss those cheap 9x18 ammo days of 10+ years ago. I once bought 1,000 rounds of wolf ammo for $50 at a gunshow.

 

[Pilot]

The round is easy to reload. Trim 1mm off of 9MM brass, and get properly sized lead bullets for it from Missouri Bullet or other casting outfit or cast your own. You can shoot it no problem if ammo ever dries up.

 

[Ignition Override]

Even though the Polish P-64 is Not an actual Makarov handgun, three friends "carry " them, and they do so every day. One of them sometimes carries a Russian Mak.
If the 9x18 round itself were decreasing in popularity, the ammo price would be steadily dropping, unless manufacturers were producing less on a consistent basis.

The Czech Cz-82/83 (9x18)handgun prices seem to be holding steady, if not increasing. Maybe actual Makarovs are no longer being imported?

 

[angrymike]

I have read that the last major lead smelter in the USA is being closed next year, EPA's new rules, its scary that the DRats may be trying to do gun control through ammo control. I'll look for the link in the morning, I have it on my blog, so it'll be easy to find...... ;(

 

[David4516]

If the 9x18 round itself were decreasing in popularity, the ammo price would be steadily dropping

Actually I think it works the other way around. The more popular/common a given product is, the cheaper it should be (greater supply = lower prices)

This is why 9mm Luger is cheaper than .25 ACP, even though they use less material to produce the .25

 

[TParrish]

Considering the number of Makarovs made, and the number still in use (not just in military, but now by civilians), and the existence of other 9X18 MAK weapons (my CZ82 being one of them)like the PA63, P64, SMC-918, I don't see the market for 9X18 ammunition drying up. What has annoyed me is the difficulty in finding suitable reloading components since berry's stopped making FMJ bullets in 9X18. But the ammunition is still easily available and relatively inexpensive.

 

[WardenWolf]

I only tried one of Hornady's two 9x18 Mak factory loadings, the Critical Defense round. It won't chamber in a Polish P-64, to my disgust. One would think, with only 4 9x18 pistols in common use in the US (Makarov, CZ-82, PA-63, P-64), that they would have tested it in all four. My Makarov ate it just fine, but in the P-64 (both mine and my father's) it feeds but does not slip under the extractor, resulting in the slide being out of battery and unable to strike the primer.

Just remember that, if need be, you can use bullets intended for .380 for handloading 9x18 rounds, with little to no loss of accuracy. 0.005 undersizing isn't enough to cause problems in most cases.

 

[Ignition Override]

David4516: That's a good point, as such market economics don't always seem to be logical (to me). Thanks for clarifying that. Maybe if demand dropped very suddenly, or supplies jumped in a bizarre manner, certain ammo would need to be sold at a discount.

In late 2008, When Academy's G.O. mistakenly ordered maybe Ten times as much Monarch 7.62x39 ammo as had been planned, the blue boxes went from $4.00 to $3.00. I told my wife that after a while it would cost more money ("If we could just buy > 1,200 rds.") during a Road trip to in-laws in San Antonio.

My first handgun will be a German Sauer 38H, in .32 ACP: arrives next week, being into classic milsurps. It surprised me that the ammo costs a bit more than .380, which is much more popular. All of these are checked very often on "Gunbot".
Still don't quite enjoy shooting the P-64 owned by three friends (wish that I could). It is a very cool, ultra-reliable, easily-concealed, thin little beast. And very affordable.

 

[cdb1]

My CZ 82 is alive and well. I don't reload for it b/c I reload .380 and don't want to have to be careful about mixing the two. I have approximately 1000 pieces of once fired brass so if they ever quit making 9x18 ammo, I'll buy a set of dies and keep on trucking.

 

[Ignition Override]

M2 Carbine: but other than target shooting, wouldn't that gun and type of amo work at a self-defense distance? My impressions are
that civilian self-defense situations in the US are usually within about ten feet or so.

Criminals normally don't reveal their intentions until they are very close, and are seldom noticed in a blind spot.

 

[Chenevat13245]

I remember hornady saying that it was temporarily going to cease production of less popular calibers in order to catch up on popular stuff. I wasn't sure if that may have had any affect on it.