Educate me on the Yugo M57 (Tokarev)

[Sixer]

I just received my M57 Tokarev from AIM Surplus...

http://www.aimsurplus.com/product.aspx?item=F3M57&name=Yugoslavian+Tokarev+M57+7.62x25+Pistol&groupid=3

I make holsters and had been keeping an eye out for a Tokarev "dummy" gun to use as a mold for a future order. These fake guns cost about $50.00... so when I get a chance to grab the actual firearm for a bit more cash, it's tough to pass up

Anyhow... I'm really intrigued with this pistol and the 7.62x25 round. The gun I recieved was in decent shape. Plenty of wear on the outside, but after a good cleaning, the internals look great.

Granted, I haven't had a chance to shoot it yet... but my first impression was "hey, this is a pretty cool little gun!" Of course, the sights leave much to be desired, the plastic grips are crap, and I'm not a big fan of the mag safety or the manual safety. But for under $200 I can't complain.

I'm just curious to see what others have to say about this gun. Good, bad ugly, etc. I'm also interested to hear if anyone has made any mods to the trigger, mag safety, or manual safety. After detail stripping the gun, it doesn't seem like it would be that hard to get rid of the last two.

Any thoughts or experiences you could share would be awesome!

P.S. Remind me not to take the firing pin out again unless absolutely necessary. That thing was a PAIN to put back in!!

Cheers,
Sixer

 

[Cheapshooter]

I have 3 variants of the Tokarev pistol. All are enjoyable to shoot, and have proven to be reliable. The additional magazine length, and the improved safety of the Hugo M57 make it my favorite over the Polish, and Romanian variants I have. If you Don't like the M57 safety, you really wouldn't like the after thought add-on for importation requirements safety on the other two.
Surplus ammo had been relatively cheap, and easy to find. Kind of dried up a while back, but I see some showing up again. More costly now though.

 

[carguychris]

If you Don't like the M57 safety, you really wouldn't like the after thought add-on for importation requirements safety on the other two.

+1. The Yugo is the only vintage Tok variant with a proper thumb safety that blocks the sear. The only issues I've heard about this design are some reports that an out-of-spec safety can interfere with the trigger pull- although this has not been a readily apparent problem on any M57 I've handled- and the fact that the safety is retained by the grip panel, which can lead to stiff operation if the grip panel is fitted too tightly, or accidental engagement if the panel is too loose.

Russian, Romanian, and Chinese Tokarevs originally lacked a safety, and were basically intended to be carried in Condition 3, and then loaded and fired until the pistol was empty or was manually unloaded by the shooter. It should be emphasized that a Tok should NEVER be carried in Condition 2 because, unlike the similar 1911, AFAIK no Tok has an inertial firing pin. Hammer-down Condition 2 carry is ridiculously dangerous because the tip of the firing pin will rest on the primer, and half-cock carry is only slightly less reckless and stupid.

OTOH the M57 CAN be carried in Condition 1 with a reasonable degree of safety, although, like an older M1911, there is no mechanism to physically restrain the firing pin, so the pistol CAN discharge if dropped hard enough on the muzzle.

 

[skizzums]

where can i get a tokarev for under 200$? i would jump all over that, i am always drawn to old service pistols ie, tokarev, nagant revolvers etc

 

[Sixer]

where can i get a tokarev for under 200$? i would jump all over that, i am always drawn to old service pistols ie, tokarev, nagant revolvers etc

Skizzums, check the link in my first post at the top. Aim Surplus had them for $169.00 plus shipping.

 

[skizzums]

sweeet, wife is really gonna off me soon(she still hasnt seen the beautiful lever-action in the basement), she is curious though, to why i have been loading hundreds of 357s for the last two weeks for HER 357 snubbie

is the surplus ammo for those steel cased? will i have to pay premium for once fired brass?

 

[carguychris]

mods please delete

 

[doofus47]

carguychris

All the surplus ammo I've seen has had copper-washed steel cases with corrosive Berdan primers.

Which country made the steel cased surplus? Not being a jerk, but when I had a Tokarev, all the surplus I saw was brass cased. Just curious.

 

[gyvel]

and half-cock carry is only slightly less reckless and stupid.

While I don't condone carrying the gun loaded on half-cock, I have to say that the Tokarev was designed with a very beefy half cock notch and that was considered the "safety" on the gun when first issued. Both the sear and notch were highly unlikely to break.

Also, if you will take notice, when the hammer is at half cock, the entire gun is put out of action including the fact that you cannot retract the slide.

Edit: A very good post elesewhere pointed out the Tok has a heavy firing pin which is NOT locked in place when the hammer is on half cock and, CAN and WILL detonate a round if the pistol is dropped and hits at the muzzle, even from a moderate height. The poster proved it repeatedly by dropping the pistol onto a 2x4 from just a few feet, using primed cases.

 

[leadcounsel]

I like the Tok. I own several Romanian and Yugo versions. Some of mine are in excellent shape. I prefer the frame mounted safety like the Yugo. I read you can remove the Romanian safety.

The advantages of the Tok pistol were affordability of the gun and ammo. That is no longer the case, at least for the ammo. All/most of the surplus is bought up and I haven't seen surplus ammo in ages. And any sub $250 Tok is likely going to be rough.

I like the Tok, but it would not be near my top choices for SD. It's ammo is small and very fast and penetrates armor (in an online test, it was the only handgun round to penetrate the military Kevlar helmet). SD ammo should shoot a big hole and go relatively slow to not over-penetrate.

The gun design is good for a previous era and military use. But there are far better designs available for modern SD use.

Great gun for the collection though!

 

[gonzogeezer]

I just purchased an M57 in amazing condition. I am confused about the markings and therefore what the actual date of birth might be.

Six torches in the crest on top of the slide.
Serial number O-164xxx.
SFRJ grips, suggesting post-1963.
"GRC MTNSBG WV 7.62x25 Croatia" on left frame under the slide ahead of the trigger...Gibbs Rifle Co.?
"7.62x25 M57" on left slide.
Frame mounted safety.

Can anyone help narrow down a date of production for this weapon?

Thanks in advance.

gonzo

 

[Clark]

In 1996 things were different.
Books said the CZ52 could take higher pressure, and surplus 7.62x25mm ammo was 7 cents a shot delivered to your door.

Now the books have been outed. The Tokarev is strongest.
But the Tokarev ammo is closer to 50 cents a shot.
So Tokarevs with 9mm barrels are cheaper at ~ 25 cents a shot.

I have converted 9x19mm Tokarev barrels to 9x23mm, but that ammo is 66 cents a shot.

The Tokarev barrel is an easy pistol barrel to make, if you have a link and can weld a lug.

 

[CWKahrFan]

Point of information: BRAND NEW PRODUCTION versions of the M70A in ordinary standard 9mm are available through Classic Firearms for $80 more than the used 7.62x25mm milsurp ones.

I had a 7.62x25 milsurp one and liked it a lot, but when the cheap milsurp ammo dried up, I sold it and got one of the new 9mm ones.

New 9mm ammo is much cheaper than new 7.62x25 ammo, and regular 9mm is also much easier to reload than 7.62x25. Anyhow, here's the link to Classic Firearms.
As of this post, new 9mm's are in stock but used 7.62x25's are out of stock:

http://www.classicfirearms.com/hand-guns/zastava-m70a