How hard is 9x18 to come by?

[Jimbo1]

I was at my gun-smith's the other day, and was checking out the Makarov's he had. I really liked the feel of them, and for a cheap weapon, I really liked the feel.

How hard is the 9x18 ammo to come by? Or would I be better off looking for a 380?

 

[lee n. field]

Not very hard, and a .380 barrel can be installed.

 

[Jimbo1]

I was wondering, saw a 380 Mak. on Auction arms. Thought if 380 is cheaper and easier to get, I might look into one of them.

 

[Catbird]

9x18 Mak ammo is not hard to find at all. I buy it by the case (1K rounds)online for about $100.

 

[gm]

its not hard to find, perhaps not in a walmart but sometimes local shops have it or will order it. you can go online and order it in quanity and basically pay 3-4 bucks a box after you figure in the total cost of a case of it and shipping.its cheaper to buy it by the case because of markup on indivual boxes at stores.


380 is still more expensive by the box here than 9x18 mak ammo but you do have that option to get a barrel press and pop out the 9x18 barrel and install a 9x17(380) barrel.

 

[larry starling]

In the latest issue of SGN, there is an ad for J&G sales and there selling 9x18
1000 rd's for $99.90.....hope this help's

 

[Catbird]

I believe I bought my last case of it at www.midwayusa.com. You can also order it from www.makarov.com. FWIW, when not shooting my personal 9x18 Mak reloads, I prefer the Barnaul brand. By all reports, it functions very well in the various 9x18 guns.

 

[Moonclips]

You can get them from Reeds Ammo:
https://secure18.websitecomplete.com/reed1911/shop/showDept.asp?dept=1257

or from Georgia Arms:
http://www.georgia-arms.com/pistol.htm

 

[Teakwood]

9x18 is about 20% cheaper than .380. Best places I know are:
http://www.ammunitionstore.com/pricelist_ammo4.htm#9x18
http://www.dansammo.com/ammo.asp
http://www.aimsurplus.com/acatalog/index.html
http://www.jgsales.com/

There are many more.

Personally, I prefer the 92 and 95 gr ammo. I do not like the Wolf or any of the heavier grain ammos as I have had problems with them in some of my Maks. The ammo is also made by Sellier & Bellot, Fiocchi, Hornady and Winchester.

Only reason to change a Mak to .380 is if you have a hangup about ordering ammo on-line or you prefer to support your local Walmart super hydra.

 

[Jimbo1]

Thanks, I can go online and order. I was looking at the bersa's, but liked the weight of the Mak. And for the price, I could probably get 2 of them his & hers.

I probably need to check out the places you have listed and stock up on other ammo too. Buying .45 ACP is getting expensive.

 

[Trebor]

The Makarov is a great gun. It's reliable, durable and accurate.

9x18 is cheap. You can't always find it at a local shop, but it's available on-line. Buy 1,000 rounds and you're set for awhile.

The only thing you really need to do to a Mak is install some rubber grips. I like the Pearce Grip. It really improves the comfort and controllability of the gun. You can get them at www.makarov.com.

The Mak is twice the gun of the Bersa. Heck, it's a better gun than the Walther PPK.

 

[Ripped]

There is a Bulgarian Makarov for sale on a site i know. it had 4 magazines two holsters and some ammo..$225.00

I sold this particular Mak to the guy selling it two months ago.

Check here if your interested..

http://www.floridashootersnetwork.c...p?t=5471&sid=f3a0025aeb2049fd08102a65d45417ab

 

[Catbird]

Jimbo1 -

Since your location is Richmond, VA... may I suggest you check out the Bulgarian Makarovs from Dark Sun Surplus also in Richmond. That's where I bought my two Maks. They are both in excellent/unissued condition and cost ~$145 plus tax each. Their ph. # is (804) 272-3026.

 

[Kevinch]

If you are buying online, I'll throw in a plug for Dan's Ammo.

I live near Dan's warehouse, and have dealt with him many times in the past. His is a family run business; I've met his wife & daughters & they are good people.

Dan's site says he has these for $55 (500r) & $105 (1000r):


He also has these for $70 (500r) & $135 (1000r):


You won't find an online "order form", but if you click the shopping cart icon a screen will pop up & ask for your zip code for shipping charges. You can then determine the total order cost.

 

[Jimbo1]

Catbird, Just called them. They are out of Bulgarian ones, just have German @$350.00. I may head to the show this weekend and check them out there.

Thanks,
Jim

 

[Catbird]

I'm not sure if it's the same one or not, but they have had a used Russian Mak with an adjustable rear sight chambered in .380 ACP for quite some time. Nobody seemed to want to buy it (including me). Particularly when you can get an unissued/excellent condition Bulgarian Mak in the slightly more powerful 9x18 chambering for less than 1/2 that price. If it REALLY is an East German Makarov chambered in 9x18 in mint condition, I might go for it. OTOH, if it's that Russian one, I'd definitely pass.

 

[halvey]

A little trickey to get it locally for me. You may have to just order it.

 

[cls12vg30]

Online is by far the best way to buy 9x18. Though I've been noticing lately that more and more stores seem to be carrying it, although at higher prices of course. I just bought 500 rds of the Fiocchi pictured above from Dan's Ammo, for use in my FEG SMC-918 (No steel-cased ammo for that baby). I also bought several boxes of the Brown Bear from....Midway, I think, that was less than $5 per box. That's steel-cased (even though it looks like copper), so only goes in the Bulgarian Mak, but it's very good range ammo. And I'm sure I have a couple of boxes of Wolf 9x18 in the bottom of one of my ammo cans, just about every Mak owner I know has some of that stuff laying around.

As for defensive ammo, Hornady XTP's are available in 9x18, although they're loaded lukewarm (965 fps or so, 95 gr. bullet). Cor-bon used to make 9x18, they've dried up but rumor has it they're about to release a 9x18 PowRBall, which would be great. Cor-bon is about the hottest-loaded carry ammo out there, and their old 9x18 was tested to be the best-expanding HP in that caliber.
Then of course there's the Silver Bear JHP's, which are very inexpensive, seem to have good consistent loadings, the bullet machining is a bit crude compared to a Hornady, but they use 112 gr. bullets, which is just about the heaviest 9x18 out there. That's what my Bulgarian gets loaded with on the nightstand. The SMC-918 gets carried with XTP's alternating in the mag with some of my few remaining Cor-Bons. (Bring on the PowRBall!)