Which Tokarev to buy?!?!

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Robk13

Robk13

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Odeasa, Texas
Hello all,

I am planning to stimulate the economy a little buy picking up a few more surplus weapons!

Any of you who know me already know that 95% of my guns are military surplus, I simply love them. So I am currently window shopping for a Tokarev clone from either Yugoslavia or Romania. I do see for about half a bill more I can get a polish radon tt33, is it worth the price?

Does anyone own either of these pistols or both of them? I am curious as to which ones have a better fit and finish as well as serves best in the reliability department. I am open to other milsurp pistols as well. I have been wanting a Bulgarian mak for a few years but it seems they have all but dried up.
Thanks everyone!
 
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I have both. The Romanian model has a shorter grip which can be a problem if you have bigger hands. I like the Yugo CZ 52 the best of all the Toks.
 
The Romanian & Polish pistols are clones of the Tokarev TT-33. The Yugoslavian M57 is probably more of a Variant than a Clone since they changed it so much from the original (starting with that longer grip). While the Czechoslovakian CZ-52 pistol is also chambered for the 7,62x25 Tokarev cartridge, it is not actually a "Tokarev". ;)

I have examples of all three types of Tokarevs in my gunsafes (in addition to 3 of the original Soviet TT-33s, all Izhevsk '44,'45,'52).

My Polish clones exhibit the best fit & finish and 2 of my 4 M57 variants required some TLC/repair to make them truly serviceable (YMMV).

The add-on safeties on my Romanians work a bit better and are more comfortable than those on my Poles (I will periodically carry one of my Romys concealed).

IMO, the Poles, while nice, are not worth a ~25% premium.

Enjoy! :)
 
own all three and a few of them.

the polish looks the closet to the Russian one with the slide serrations designs. the fit and finish is better on the polish than the roms and yugos typically, and my owned examples.

that said I prefer the m57 to shoot with. more capacity and longer grip is better even with small hands
 
A. As stated above, a CZ52 is NOT a Tokarev.
2. All added safeties are crap....hunt and spend a bit more for a bring-back with no added safety.
III. Of all the TT variants on the market, the M57 is the most user-friendly. That extra little bit of grip makes them more comfortable to shoot. I have Russian and Chinese, Yugo and 2 Romanian, but the M57 is the only one that ever seems to get any range time.
 
I had both a Polish and a Yugo. I just liked the Polish much better all around for it's fit, finish and performance. Sadly I had to part ways with them over time.
 
I have a Romanian that almost looks unfired. Admittedly, it hasn't been in the few years I've had it, either. I can't even move the add-on safety lever, so I don't know if it works. I'm afraid I'll break something if I actually do make it move.
 
Thank you everyone for your input and advice! Sorry to start a thread and not reply sooner I became unexpectedly busy yesterday and today.

I am now leaning towards the m57, I wanted a true clone or as close to the tt33 as possible but it seems that most prefer the yugo in regards to shooting.

I will probably source the m57 from J&G since I've had good luck with them before but DK has the polish for 70$ more, while they look nice I am not ready for that premium of 35%.

In either case I appreciate the advice and will of course show off pictures when I can, seems with this pandemic we are having all firearms dealers are moving very very slowly. I bought a type 56 from classic about 10 days ago and it is yet to ship!!!
 
jonnyc said:
2. All added safeties are crap...
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Gotta disagree with ya' there, jonnyc!! The safety on my Yugo model 57 looks, operates and feels exactly like a 1911's safety, Up is safe, down is fire, which is a natural movement for us Americans. It is the ONLY add on Tokarev safety worth having.
 

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I really don't use the manual safety on them, barely know it exists. The one on my Romanian TT33 is functional, that is the best I can say about it. I'm going to put in a vote for the Romanian personally. I have fired original pre war, WWII and early cold war vintage Soviet TT33s, as well as the Polish and Yugoslav variants. The Romanian is the closest to the "real Tokarev" experience IMHO. The example I have is deeply blued, well fitted, and all the parts show a very high overall quality of manufacture. It is superbly reliable, and functions and feels like original Soviet examples. Maybe I got lucky on mine and got one made when the Commisar Inspektor was prowling the factory with his own TT33, but it is superior to the workmanship on Polish and Yugoslavian examples I have seen, comparable to pre-war Soviet guns.
 
I have a Polish 33. A fine robust well built piece of steel, BUT, the ammunition is so expensive that my ownership of said pistol may come to an end soon. Surplus ammo is about gone. I just can't afford to shoot it. My advice is get one of the surplus Beretta 81's. 32 acp is much cheaper.
 
total recoil said:
I have a Polish 33. A fine robust well built piece of steel, BUT, the ammunition is so expensive that my ownership of said pistol may come to an end soon. Surplus ammo is about gone. I just can't afford to shoot it. My advice is get one of the surplus Beretta 81's. 32 acp is much cheaper.
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Alternatively, find a 9mm barrel and keep the Tok. I have a Norinco T-54 in 9mm, it's fun. It was my first pistol.
 
I remember almost 20 years ago looking at the online images of wooden shipping crates filled with CZ-52s and TT-33s.

To my ignorant eye, the latter looked a bit too, I don't know, old-school(? Vanilla? Style-less?) but the former looked rather svelte & intriguing ... so my initial order was for a CZ-52.

I quickly realized that the CZ-52 was blocky, heavy and uncomfortable. <sigh> Schade. :(

The following year, the TT-33s re-appeared and I decided to buy one before they disappeared for good (you never knew).

When I first gripped that Polish TT-33 I realized just how WRONG I had been! I wear Size L/G gloves (long, thin fingers) and that pistol fit in my hand per-fect-ly with no grip to spare (fits just as well with unlined thin leather patrol gloves :)). It was like they measured it for me, personally. It not only felt great in my hand, I was surprised at how lean the pistol is. Very concealable!

At the range (backyard) I found that it points naturally for me and is quite accurate.

The M57s I like for shooting in cold weather when I am wearing insulated/thicker gloves. The additional grip-length means that they are also easier to retrieve from a holster attached to the seatbelt base in my truck (reaching crossbody).

EDIT:
The 9mm barrel is a good suggestion ... if you can source one.

I have one/each 9x19 barrels to fit both TTs and CZs. Interesting alternatives. ;)
 
I have the Chinese in 9 MM. It came packaged for civilian sales in the US. The instruction manual was a real bonus. "Do not shoot nails? in gon." The gun is a great shooter,but rare now. I did buy a Romainian in 7.62X25 and other than the safety, I like it. The 7.62 X 25 is a heck of a round for penetration. I shot an out of date ballistic vest rated for proof against pistol rounds and it penetrated front and back. The CZ 52 I had in 7.62 had a bad habit of firing if you used the drop safety. I traded it to a gunsmith for a CZ 52 in 9MM that didn't have that problem. If you have a CZ 52 I suggest the pencil test to check the hammer drop safet IMG_0781.JPG IMG_1651.JPG y.
 
tark said:
Gotta disagree with ya' there, jonnyc!! The safety on my Yugo model 57 looks, operates and feels exactly like a 1911's safety, Up is safe, down is fire, which is a natural movement for us Americans. It is the ONLY add on Tokarev safety worth having.
Click to expand...

And I had to tighten the top rolled bit and shave a small bit off the top of my left grip to get the safety on my M57 to work correctly, so I'll stick with my original statement.
 
jonnyc said:
tark said: ↑
Gotta disagree with ya' there, jonnyc!! The safety on my Yugo model 57 looks, operates and feels exactly like a 1911's safety, Up is safe, down is fire, which is a natural movement for us Americans. It is the ONLY add on Tokarev safety worth having.

And I had to tighten the top rolled bit and shave a small bit off the top of my left grip to get the safety on my M57 to work correctly, so I'll stick with my original statement.
Click to expand...
I removed the safety from a Chinese I used to own, after it self-destructed. Put some wood aftermarket grips on it that covered the holes.

The Romanian and Polish safeties are abominations, in my opinion. And you can't hide them. The ideal aftermarket safety is the run of "Glock triggers"that someone, I think Classic, had done on the Yugo's. Get one of those, swap in a traditional trigger, and you're good to go.
 
Anyone have a source for ANY 7.62 tok? I have searched far and wide but i can not find a single box available online! There is no way I will buy a gun that I cant at least load the magazine right away, it goes against my nature haha with that said I am ready to pull the trigger on an m57 but ammo availability has me spooked down right proper.
 
Robk13 said:
Anyone have a source for ANY 7.62 tok? I have searched far and wide but i can not find a single box available online! There is no way I will buy a gun that I cant at least load the magazine right away, it goes against my nature haha with that said I am ready to pull the trigger on an m57 but ammo availability has me spooked down right proper.
Click to expand...
Check Liberty Tree Collectors, in collectible ammo. It's not in the pistol ammo section. They have surplus Yugo, $25 for a box of 70.

I've used them, including recently. They require a copy of your ID (I sent them a photo a few years ago for my account). Then they require a signature for shipping- I logged into my free UPS acct and signed online the day I got a shipping notice. It says "one box", but that's just the way it lists. You can buy more if you want.

I bought several boxes of something else. I think shipping was $16. If it were me, I'd probably get $100 worth of ammo or so, and make the shipping worthwhile.
http://www.libertytreecollectors.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=9489&idcategory=12
 
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