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Birthday Mak!

3K views 18 replies 9 participants last post by  Hukbrogan 
#1 ·
Beloved wife just purchased a Bulgi Mak for my birthday (shhh, it's a surprise). Looking forward to owning one - it'll go great with my CZ82!

Yeah, the woman is a keeper ;)
 
#8 ·
The Bulgarian Birthday Mak showed up this morning :thumbsup: Have to say that I'm impressed, considering today's market and what I paid. The pistol seems to be in good shape: some wear on the slide close to the barrel (I suspect it's from rubbing against a holster), a very small scratch towards the rear of the slide, and some significant finish wear around the safety/decocker. The machining is pretty amazing: tight fits, no machining marks, everything is very smooth - would have expected this from an East German model, but surprised to see it in a Bulgarian. Some rubber grips (definitely not Pearce). One original magazine with "1440 - 1" scratched in the side.

It's a "Circle 10" made in 1986 (a limited production year for some reason). Serial BO 26 XXXX. Imported by CAI.

I stripped it down to clean and oil it, but that was completely unneeded. Thank you, previous owner, for keeping this gun very well maintained!

I probably won't have an opportunity to fire this pistol until sometime next week. A range report will follow. In the meantime, here are a couple of really crummy cellphone camera pics:
 
#9 ·
Nice looking Bulgarian. That is a Mak-wrap grip that was sold my Makarov Dot Com. I have one or two in my collection. They are nice and thin and feel good to some shooters and not preferred by others, still a nice grip to have. You can get an original Bulgarian grip and screw fairly easy.
 
#11 ·
Birthday Mak Range Report

Took the birthday Mak to the range today. Threw 200 rounds downfield. Just for comparison's sake, I also took along my CZ82...pushed another 100 through the CZ.

Let's start with the grip. I love the way the Mak fits in my hands. I can get a nice "hand wrap" without having to stretch for it. It's well-matched with my stubby little fingers. And I actually like the aftermarket grips much more than I anticipated.

Even though I had oiled and cleaned the Mak ahead of time, the slide was a little stiff at first...kind of hard to rack. However, this issue resolved itself within the first 20 rounds. It seemed to loosen up as the pistol warmed up.

Dang, that front sight is tiny. I really had some issues acquiring target. I'd read quite a bit about the challenge with the sights on the Mak, but now I realize that's it's a huge issue, at least for me. I suspect that a small strip of bright green paint on the front sight will help out.

I began by racking the slide at the beginning of each magazine cycle and working the trigger in single action. Much better than I expected. If you really want to split hairs, it's not quite as smooth as my CZ, but I had to work with both through a few cycles to notice the really, really minor difference.

I decided to use my cheap commie block ammo, because that's usually what I practice with. Red Army for the most part. Also tried some Brown Bear and Silver Bear. No hollow point (don't need HP for range practice and I've had some tough experiences with HP misfeeds in older guns).

Started out shooting at 5 yards. I naturally pull everything low and just a touch left. No different with the Mak. Once I compensated for that, everything hit the target between 8 and 10. In my book, that's a pretty impressive start.

Noticed lots of muzzle flip, noise, but not much recoil. Much more than the CZ. But no bite from the hammer or slide whatsoever...I could shoot the Mak all day without tearing up my hands. Anybody who has shot a pocket gun will tell you that this is a real positive!

It also cycled very smoothly. Those Bulgarians sure built a jewel here. Everything felt really tight and well-fitted. It cycled smoothly like a knife through butter. Seems extremely reliable. No failures to feed, no misfires, no nothing. You point the gun, you pull the trigger, and it goes bang. Every time.

That magazine release on the bottom of the handle? Drove me batty. I'll be putting a key ring or a loop of paracord or something to help with that thing. I can't even imagine attempting to work that magazine release with any kind of speed whatsoever as it is.

I did notice that ejected shells were flying all over the place: in my face (I'd have been blinded several times over were it not for the glasses), over my right shoulder, over my head, down my wife's blouse (seriously - offered to retrieve that shell myself, but she wasn't all that keen on the idea at that moment), bouncing off the lane dividers of the indoor range, into the next lane, off the ceiling. Yeah, I think I'll be talking to the folks at Wolff about a new spring.

Flying shells notwithstanding, I then took it back to 10 yards. 65% of shots hit target the 9 to 7 range. Another 20% "in the black". Nothing off paper. No 10s, but I mostly blame that on my own abilities with a gun that's new to me. I know that, as a relatively new pistol shooter, my technique still needs work. I was very happy.

Things went a little haywire at 20 yards. I struggled to keep my hits on paper. Maybe 30% "in the black", 30% on paper, and 40% missed paper altogether. This is where I think those teeny-tiny sights got the better of me. Just to check myself, I ran a few magazines through the CZ. Same distance. 65% in the black, everything on paper...pretty typical shooting for me at this time. Back to the Mak...no improvement. Went back to 10 yards. The Mak and I were right back in the zone again.

After that, I tried a few shots with the double-action trigger. Um, a word to the wise here - just don't do it. Long, gritty, nasty trigger pull. All that great stuff I wrote earlier about tight fit, smooth as butter, and all that? Not here. Rack that slide and stick with single action...you'll be glad you did.

The biggest thing I noticed with the Mak. It definitely shoots right where and how you point it. There's no slop. That can be both good and bad. Let me explain. The CZ is a very forgiving pistol. Technique can be a bit off. You can vary the trigger pull a bit. You'll still hit black at reasonable distances so long as your mistakes are minor. The Mak seems to require more discipline in technique. When my stance, breathing, trigger pull, and aim were all good, it shot where I aimed it (at least within 20 yards
) But if my technique was not good, the Mak accuracy exposed my mistake immediately. The good news is that it will make me a better shooter. The bad news is that I'll peel off some pretty lousy shots in the process of becoming a better shooter.

Overall, I'm extremely happy with the birthday Mak. It performed beyond my expectations for any gun in a first trip to the range. As I've mentioned, some very minor tweaks needed. Hey, it's a new gun to me...everybody tweaks a new gun just a little, right? And I'll keep working with the Mak. As we get to know each other a bit better, I'm pretty confident that it has the capability to perform well out to 30 yards (and that limit will be due to my capabilities more than the pistol's). I eventually see the Mak as my primary CCW: small enough to easily conceal, accurate, very reliable. Darn fine pistol. If you don't have one, go get one now.
 
#12 ·
Great review fteter, very well written. Great looking gun. The sights definitely take a bit of getting used to, i'm still adjusting as well. Hopefully over time we'll both improve.

That part about the shell casings flying into orbit and one landing down your wife's blouse had me rolling, now mine thinks i'm insane laughing out loud at the computer screen. I have 19 LB Wolff springs on mine, and the casings seem to land within reasonable distance, but I haven't tried shooting with the stock springs, so I can't really compare.

Again; awesome review. I love my Mak, soon to be Mak(s), they're great guns.
 
#14 ·
gogochino, we're trying it out again as part of our Father's Day celebration here. Going with a new Wolff 19 lb. spring. It'll be 80+ degrees here, but I think the wife is planning to wear a turtleneck sweater ;) Thanks for the kudos, glad you liked the report.
 
#15 ·
Took the Mak out again today as part of our family's Father's Day shooting outing. My marksman ship is better now...doing out past 20 yards. Recoil has definitely improved with the new Wolff 19 lb. spring. But the shells still eject at least 10 feet to my 3 o'clock. Guess the wife will have to stock up on turtlenecks ;)

Love the Mak.
 
#16 ·
I assume you could figure this out by taking a 9x18 round and inserting it into the muzzle (NOT THE CHAMBER). If it fits I think you could assume its a 9x18. Does the threaded barrel extension come off?
 
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