Any New Makarovs Out There?

[TooTaxed]

Help!!
I've been trying to locate a Makarov in 9-mm Mak NIB, with no luck! Dealers such as JB Sales who have advertised them are out of stock. Would like to find a Russian, E. German, or Bulgarian in that order of preference...

 

[alamo]

You'll have to go the the auction boards for Russians or E. Germans, those haven't been imported in years. SOG might still have some Bulgarians. They are listed on their website but you need to call to be sure, they don't update the website often. About 10,000 were imported a few months ago. Dealers bought a good number so you should see them at gunshows. It may be next to impossible to find a E. German that is NIB. Virtually all that were imported were used. Russian military ones are used. Some of the Bulgarians recently imported were "unissued" - they might be 15+ years old but never fired. You might also get lucky and find a NIB Russian commercial Mak. Some of these might be new but they haven't been imported for a few years thanks to Clinton.


http://www.southernohiogun.com/surplus_hand.html

See this site for more details:

http://www.makarov.com/makfaq.html

Many, including me, think the best are the E. Germans. Find one in good to excellent condition and you will be pleased. I like it better than my unissued Bulgarian.

 

[TooTaxed]

Thanks...will check with SOG again.

The E. German Maks are certainly the best finished...but are single stack with fixed sights, as are the Bulgarians. Would like another Russian, which have hi-cap staggered box mags and adjustable sights...even though they have the least attractive surface finishes! In my experience, all three have been equally accurate and reliable.

 

[alamo]

Not many seem to like the adjustable sights. I have no experience with them myself, just have read that a lot, seem to recall there is some sort of problem with them.

See the Mak-Trader forum at this link:


http://www.armscenter.com/forums/

 

[makarov]

I have a Russian with adjustable sights. Have had no problems. makarov.com offers a sight to replace the adjustable that is a drop-in. I haven't tried it since I am OK with the sights as is. Some people have unscrewed the adjustment screw and lost the spring under the sight, but I think they work just fine. You could always have a smith dovetail in new sights too. Some people might laugh at having work done on such an inexpensive gun, but they really are quality steel. If they were made in the US or Germany they would easily be twice or three times the price.

 

[Freightman]

I have a Russian w/adjustable sights no problem at all very accurate carry it all the time paid $150 OTD two mo ago

 

[Dutchy7]

There are several nice Makarov's being advertised an Makarov Trader and on Gunboards Trader today, 1-10. I would buy either of them in a heartbeat if I needed one.

Hope you find the one you want, as far as I'm concerned any variety of Makarov is good.

 

[Bainx]

Go for a Bulgarian if that is what is available. I can not stop bragging about how reliable and accurate mine has been.

 

[WhoKnowsWho]

Well, I went to the local gun show today and found a Makarov listed as New. Looks new except for box wear and since the price was a lot lower than the used looking one at another table, I picked it up. Behold its glory!

 

[alamo]

Looks like a Bulgarian, maybe from the new shipment. Some good accessories to get are the magazine loader (highly recommended), the #19 recoil spring and the Makawrap or Pearce grips. Is it covered is cosmoline? or did the dealer remove it on the surface? It is/was, be sure to clean out the firing pin channel and firing pin. My unissued Bulgarian was covered in cosmoline. It was in the extractor too which I took off and cleaned out.

If you're not familiar with it already, see the "Technical Info." link for disassembly instructions.

http://www.makarov.com

 

[nickler]

If you're in CA, then you can't get a Bulgie. They were taken off the approved list on December 6th. :banghead:

 

[WhoKnowsWho]

alamo:

I have to take the whole thing apart most likely. There is cosmoline in the barrel and all over the springs in the mags. So most likely, it is in the firing pin channel also, but I haven't shaken it around to see if it moves yet.

It was surprising how nice it is to hold. Now for that dang CCW...

 

[alamo]

I saw a lot of recommendations on what to use to clean it off. Mineral spirits was commonly recommended and Simple Green which I used. The extractor is a bit tricky to take out and get back in if you've never done it before. I've only done it once. It helps to have 3 hands.