Makarov - Part 4

Lets go back to the end of World War II, The Russian army also known as the Red Army captured the German Walther plant in 1945. This became a great asset to the Russian army and the Russian Military small arms design engineers, the captured people cooperated and it all started from that point in time. The Russians did not have the ACLU to worry about, Stalins word was final, it was either cooperate or a bullet in the head, they had no liberal press to worry about.
And certainly no video cameras.

The Makarov has a completly different type of firing pin design as compared to the German Walther PP, PPK, and PPK/S. The Makarov uses a free floating firing pin design and does "NOT" use a firing pin spring. The German Walther uses a completely different type of firing pin and it utilizes a typical coil firing pin spring. The Makarov has a uniquely triangular shaped firing pin that is totally free floating. If you were to carry your Makarov pistol with a bullet in the chamber, the free floating pin could move about 1/16 of an inch and its limited free travel is so slight there is no way I can ever forsee an accidental discharge with this design.

I have had people call me many times being concerned about this design. I do not see a problem, being as conservative and as cautious as I am, I am not the least bit worried about this firing pin design. I do not see a problem. So the more I point out the differences between the Makarov and the Walther you are getting to see that there are very few common parts after I have explained it to you in complete detail. These Two different pistols are worlds apart.

The thumb safety of the Makarov is brutal and trying to move it up and down is very difficult. I will explain why, the Russian designer decided to use a piece of hardened spring steel wire that is inserted in to the inside of the thumb safety and rides in the detents of the slide. This decision had to be to save money in manufacturing. They should have used a ball bearing or a spring activated pin detent. This can all be corrected and smoothed out.

The operation of the Makarov thumb safety is similar to the Colt 1911 pistol. When the thumb safety is in the "UP" position it is in the safe mode, and when it is in the "DOWN" position it is in the firing mode and good to go by just pulling the trigger.

The flat leaf mainspring is an ingenious design and it does a number of things. The largest leaf operates the hammer, looking from the rear it is on the left side. The thinner leaf spring leg which is on the right also looking from the rear operates the trigger bar assembly. The very bottom of the main spring is used as a magazine catch, this retains the magazine in the pistol.

A separate part called the mainspring clamp secures the mainspring in place against the rear of the frame. This clamp has a hole so that when the mainspring clamp is in place, and the grip is installed which is actually a one piece wrap around design that slides into place from the rear. The unusual looking grip screw is actually screwed through the grip, through the hole in the mainspring clamp and threaded directly into the FRAME which is at the very rear of the frame. The only major problem you would ever have is if you buy an after market grip and the screw turns in to deep it could bind your magazine from either entering the magazine well, because the screw is in to deep and or you will not be able to remove your magazine unless you back out the grip screw a little, by turning it counter clockwise.

So now you see even more proof that there is no similarity to the Walther design beyond the very few things I have already mentioned early on, as some ignorant people would have you believe.
There are some after market grips that are sold for these Makarovs, but they are too thick for my application of a concealed carry handgun. I took the original grips on my chrome plated Makarov and removed the lanyard ring off the grip and the Russian symbols and totally recontoured it to my hand, then I blackened it and then used fiberglass to refinish it. My Russian Makarov is beautiful and its picture has been in many published gun magazines. As you can now see Nickolai Makarov was a truly brilliant handgun designer.

Please Note: Tomorrow, Makarov - Part 5 . This will be Makarov week and I am sure by now you realize I know a great deal about handguns as I work on over 100 different models. I will not be teaching anyone what I know other than what I write about in these commentaries. It all goes to the grave with me. Please print anything that interests you and save it for future reference. I have quite a bit more to write about this Makarov pistol.
POINT OF NOTE: I am of 100% Russian ancestry, My Grandfather was in the Army of the Czar in approx. the year 1890.


AUTHORS PERSONAL NOTATION: This commentary as well as all my previous commentaries are my personal opinion only and my personal viewpoint. I have no agenda other than trying to help those that want to learn and that are sincere, I would ask those that complain about me on the mindless irrelevant forums to just leave and do not come back. I am getting 500 hits per day now and my goal is 1000 hits per day so please pass this Blogger link on to decent people. I get an awful lot of email and I will answer all of your email and will honor your request for a specific commentary. I am a man of honor and integrity and can not be bought like other people. I have my own code of honor that my Father taught me and it separates me from all the others that pray to Benjamin Franklin and Teddy Roosevelt.
Thankyou you for reading my commentaries.


Teddy Jacobson / Pistolsmith
www.actionsbyt.com
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tjacobson@houston.rr.com
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