Best Tokarev

[Dabull]

Greetings Tok experts...

I have seen Romanian and Polish advertised recently, and heard of Yugo, Chinese, and Russian versions...

What is generally available for purchase now?

Which is considered the best in terms of accuracy?

Reliability?

Fit?

Finish?

I don't want to blow mine up with high powered SMG ammo...

What kind of ammo should I be looking for?

Any tips on cost and vendors (for ammo or Toks)?

Thanks,
Dan DaBull

[raftman]

The Romanian one is the most common, and the least expensive of them all. There's not a huge difference in terms of build quality between any of them. Some are closer to the original than others. The only differences are somewhat minor, such as the positioning of the external safeties (in most cases, these aren't original to the gun anyways). The Yugo one has 1 round larger capacity than the others, the gun thus has a bigger grip, which some like and some don't. Stuff like that. They'd all fall somewhere between $200 and maybe $330 in price if you know where to look.

They're all relatively available except the actual Russian ones. Those are quite uncommon and command a significantly higher price than the others. A post-war Russian one can easily go for more than $400, and I've seen WW2-era Russian Tokarevs sell for more than $800.

All of them them are reputedly very reliable and if in good condition, likely to work flawlessly for a very, very long time.

As far as ammo goes, the cheapest option is obviously the military surplus stuff, it's obscenely inexpensive for a centerfire caliber. Something like $8 if you want a box of 70 rounds, and you can easily find tins of over 1000 rounds for barely more than $100. It is corrosive however, so you have to be good about cleaning. The modern-made ammo, like Prvi Partizan is more on par with other center fire pistol calibers terms of cost, when I see it, it's around $20 for a box of 50.

Don't worry about the hot SMG ammo, that's basically a myth. The same rounds were used in the pistols as in the submachineguns. There is a hotter loading of 7.62 Tokarev out there, but it's basically nowhere to be found anymore anyways and even when it was being made, it was in small numbers.

[BobbyT]

The best Tok is one without one of those hackjob import "safeties". After that, it doesn't matter much--it's a 60 year old commie-production workhorse, not a showpiece. The Romanian I have looks and shoots just fine.

The ammo doesn't really matter either. You're firing old surplus rounds in an old surplus pistol. Whatever differences there are just aren't going to have a noticeable effect, so get what's on sale.

[jsmaye]

I don't want to blow mine up with high powered SMG ammo...

Simple - don't shoot any. It's not like the stuff is just lying around.

[amd6547]

My Romanian has been 100% reliable, and very accurate. I use the Romanian ammo from Aim Surplus.
The add-on safety does not bother me, when I think I wouldn't even be able to own it without it. The safety works fine at the range, the rest of the time, I just ignore it.
The Yugo's sound attractive, but the mags are non-existant, and I have read about a few problems with them.
I use my Romanian Tok as a woods pistol, and like it a lot...It can reach out to 100yds with no problem.

[Mike in Va.]

I recently bought a Romanian Tokarev pistol, from I.O. in N.C., the total cost,
shipping included, was $233.50. In the Nov. 1st. Shotgun News, J&G, has a Romanian TTC, for $!99.95, one mag. & holster, extra mag. $14.95, total,
$214.90, in very good condition, plus shipping. I.O. which appears to have changed it's name, to Royal Tiger Imports, has a Romanian, TT33-C, with 2 mags., holster, & cleaningrod, in very good condition, for, $209.95, and in
excellent, to unissued condition, for, $20.oo more.
I don't know the difference between, a TTC & a TT33-c, maybe someone else does. AS to condition, all I have seen, are about the same.
Hope this helps.
Mike in Va.

[BobbyT]

I don't think there's any such thing as a "TT33-c".

The TT-33 is Russian and the TTC is Romanian. Other countries have different names, like the Yugo M57, etc.

"TT33-c" is probably just what some importer is calling the Romanian TTC or "Cugir TT".

[Dabull]

My Romanian Cugir TT-33 should be arriving next week, as will my can of 1260 rounds of 87 gr 7.62x25. Several questions:

1. A can of 1260 87-gr rounds...is that Bulgarian? The seller did not specify, but another website hinted it was Bulgy.

2. Any tips for me regarding field stripping or reassembling the TT? (Don't want to loose any springs!)

3. Any tips for me regarding regarding cleaning after shooting corrosive ammo? I understand I am supposed to rinse with water soon after shooting, then clean and lube as usual, but have never done something like this before and am worried about rust and corrosion.

[BobbyT]

The TT would be a great pistol to strip and clean if it weren't for that awful clip on the side. You can depress the button in the barrel bushing and remove that and the spring first if you want, but I always start from the slide stop clip.

Once you push the clip back, you can drop the slide stop out and the slide comes straight forward off the frame. Put your hand under it in case the spring wants to run off, but there really aren't any surprises and you'll immediately see the 1911 similarities. The spring & guide rod come right out, the barrel bushing rotates 180 degrees, and the barrel slides right out with the swinging link down.

It's a very very simple gun. As for cleaning, my non-expert method is as follows:

1. Barrel out, several sprays of Windex, prop up on a paper towel, sit while I take apart my CZ-52.
2. Another spray of Windex, clean patch, patch soaked in Hoppes #9, sit a few more minutes.
3. Quick scrub with nylon brush (very little; since I clean after every session there isn't buildup), Hoppes patch again.
4. Several clean patches, patch soaked in Mobil 1.

I clean the rest of the pistols while I'm letting the Windex / Hoppes sit. I lube the frame rails with Mobil 1 and leave a generous coating inside my barrels when I reassemble them. It's overkill but I'm always wondering if I really got all the salts out. The nice thing about corrosive ammo is you'll never let your gun get any buildup, so there's no real "scrubbing", just wiping clean.

[jsmaye]

You can substitute warm soapy water for the Windex - it's a common myth that the ammonia in Windex is required to remove the salts. Actually, it's the water that does the job.

[MikeGoob]

when I take my Tok to the range I bring a little mister bottle filled with windex and a little can of WD-40

After shooting, I spray a lot of windex down the barrel, then some WD-40 to get the water out. when I get home I swab out the WD-40 and clean it like my other guns with gun oil.

[Mike in Va.]

One thing you need to beware of is, that the manual safety, that was added, has a very small pin and spring, that fits into 2 small indentures,in the frame, to keep the safety from moving.
They are extremely small, so be careful, place the gun on an old white sheet,
or something, they will show up on.
Also the surplus ammo, is corrosive, so be sure to clean the gun, with a good solvent, I use W.D.40, which seems to work just find.
M.I.V.

[cougar gt-e]

Also the surplus ammo, is corrosive, so be sure to clean the gun, with a good solvent, I use W.D.40, which seems to work just find.

I hate to rain on your parade, but corrosive ammo needs to be cleaned with water, then dried and the gun oiled up good. The salts that form are washed off with water, not by WD40.

Windex is often used with the thought that the ammonia is neutralizing the salts. Maybe, but the stuff I read seems to point that water is the thing that is needed to flush the bad stuff out.

jb

[erwos]

The ammonia is an anti-rust chemical. It doesn't do anything with the salts, but presumably lessens the chance of your gun rusting out from the application of said water.