Makarovs in .380?

[BHPshooter]

I thought I heard of a Makarov chambered in .380, but I wasn't sure if I was blowing smoke. Is there such a gun? If so, where can one be found?

Wes

 

[Kevinch]

Yes, there have been Maks produced in .380ACP, & the Bulgarians may still be producing them.

In fact, a simple barrel swap will convert a 9x18 into a 9x17 - which is the same round.

But...why would you want to do that? That would be like owing a Porshe with a GM engine!

All true Makarovs are 9x18!!

 

[AUTIGER04]

Yep, I have a Russian Makarov chambered in 380acp. It also has adjustable rear sights. I chose the 380acp over the 9x18mm because of ammo selection is greater. Mine has 2000rds through it with no hiccups what so ever. I load mine with the Remington Golden Sabers 102 JHPs and sometimes with Corbon. I really love this gun.

 

[railroader]

I have a russian mak with a chinese barrel in 380 . I reload so I can make 1000 rounds for under $70. Works for me. Mark

 

[David4516]

Yup, there are .380 Makarovs out there. But 9mm Mak is a better round, and the ammo is cheap, so why bother?

On a side note, you can convert Makarovs to .32 NAA with the conversion barrels they sell at Makarov.com

 

[PCRCCW]

The one youll see around in these here parts (spoken like a true Utahn eh? ) is the Russian version of the IJ series. Its got the Adj. rear sight and nice dark blueing. Personally Id take a Mak chambered one over a .380......
Fum...PM me....
Shoot well

 

[lee n. field]

Yup. As others have noted, the Russians and Bulgarians both made .380 Maks. The Bulgarians were from the short run of "modernized" (squared trigger guard is the big difference. Don't care for it myself. I'd rather they put better sights on instead) commercial Makarovs.

I have a Russian .380, with Makarov.com's replacement for the adjustable sight. Haven't shot it in a while. It's an OK gun, no functional problems ever (except for brass going into LEO).

One thing I have read, but do not know for a fact, is that you cannot rebarrel the Bulgarian .380 for 9x18. The slide won't work.

 

[Pilot]

One of my five Maks is a commercial Russian, nickel Mak in .380. I also reload so I can shoot downloaded .380's which feel like .22's. Lots of fun. For all else, however, I prefer the 9x18 Mak caliber which is available in many different varieties and is also cheap.

 

[lee n. field]

I also reload so I can shoot downloaded .380's which feel like .22's. Lots of fun.

The first time I reloaded for .380 I made the mistake of doing up a box of 50 using Lyman's recommended starting load for that bullet and powder.

They could _barely_ cycle the Mak.

Now-a-days when using a new bullet or powder I'll make up a mag's worth of cartridges for each tenth grain increment from starting to maximum load, run through them all, pick a sweet spot (defined as everything works and I can hit what I shoot at) and stick with it.

 

[Pilot]

Lee N. Field wrote:

"The first time I reloaded for .380 I made the mistake of doing up a box of 50 using Lyman's recommended starting load for that bullet and powder.

They could _barely_ cycle the Mak."

Lee,

I used Lee's (Press mfg) guide to get my "cycleable" .380 light load. Its been a while since I did this, because I've been shooting inexpensive LVE 9x18 ammo in my other Maks.

I think I use 2.8 grains Winchester 231 over a lead, copper washed 102 grain bullet, but I am working from memory, so check the charts before you try this. I think Hogdon's HP38 would be a good choice also and the loads seem to be similar for 231, but YMMV, so do as you stated and work up loads from the minimums. I got lucky with my light load, which cycles the slide fine, but is really low recoil. As I am sure you know, you can also change recoil spring weights to tailor the gun to a particular load.

 

[makdaddy03]

No need for the 380acp? I also have the Russian 380acp. I find the 380acp more accurate, reliable and like one other poster said better ammuntion selection. I have both the 380acp and 9x19 and really cant tell that big of a differance between the two. Nothing wrong with the 380acp. You have ammo from everybody : Federal, Remington,Corbon,Winchester, PMC and loads of others.

 

[JERRY]

my mak is in 9x18mm. i wont bother changing it over to .380 until there is a drop in the availabilty of mak ammo.

i dont carry it for defense so the mak round being slightly more powerful than the 380 round is moot. i like to keep it original like the secret squirel spy era intended them to be.

 

[9x19]

One of the best reasons for owning a Mak in .380 is... you already own several others in 9x18 Mak.

I have two Maks in .380, one is a Russian commercial model, chambered for .380 at the factory, the other is a MilSurp Bulgarian with a .380 replacement barrel which I got from www.sportsmansguide.com and installed myself.

BTW, the same magazines work with either caliber.