Romanian TT-C Tokarev 7.62x25 Purchase

[Red Wind]

I'm been thinking about buying one of these pistols for several years. Finally, today I pulled the trigger and got one from Aim Surplus in Ohio.

It looked very cool in the photos and I've had good luck with Aim in the past, buying about 10 C&R's from them since 2006. It comes with two, 8 round mags and a holster.

At $239.00, it seemed fairly reasonable if their blurb is on target. I do trust them.
They were out of ammo for it, so I scrounged around and found the best deal at Ammoman. 200 rounds for $100 and free shipping. 85 grain Sellier & Bellot FMJ.

I hope that was the best deal for a minimal number of rounds with all the comparative shopping.Shipping costs on ammo is bad.

I'm sure some of you have had experience with the gun and the round. Are there any suggestions? Is it viable for small game? SD with the proper holster?

Any thoughts are appreciated. Now I can wait about a week for the FEDEX Guy to show up.That's the best part. Home delivery. Only $14.50 for S&H.

Here is a look.

 

[Steve C]

I shot a friends Chinese Tokarev in 7.62X25. The round has a lot of power, close in muzzle blast and recoil to shooting 110gr .357 magnum. The problem with using it for SD is that the FMJ military ammo over penetrates and would likely go through a person, wall or even several other persons. On the other hand my friend keeps his loaded for self defense use at home since its a very reliable gun that's never jammed on him.

My friend was shooting steel plates at the gun range with the military ammo that may have a steel penetrater or at least steel jacket and was yelled at for target damage.

Hand loaded with soft point or JHP bullets would make it a viable small game gun up to maybe Coyotes as it is flat shooting and velocities in around 1,400 fps with 70 to 80 gr bullets.

 

[Red Wind]

Thank you,Steve. Thinking about the penetration angle, I put in a back order for 50 rounds of HP from a company I can't even remember now! I think it was Midway.

Anyway, I won't carry on the street with FMJ!

There are not any coyotes around the Keys that I know of ,but hogs are seen. Maybe I can take down a porker.

I know the East Bloc certainly still loves this round. The penetration is remarkable at 85 grains, but that velocity is something else.

I am beginning to believe this gun will be intriguing. Your friends target damage at the range made me giggle. The gun seems to be dangerous!

 

[wally]

I've been shooting mine for a long time, a bit over 5 tins of the cheap Polish and Romanian surplus ammo through it. I stocked up on ammo before I got the gun (also had a CZ 52, which I haven't shot since I got the Tok), $0.08 or less per round -- those were the days!

I had trouble with the sights, but I made the front into a fiber optic by drilling a hole for a light pipe through it, and then filing away the center to let light in -- made a world of difference for me. But old age progresses, and now I can't hit with it without "reading glasses". So now I'm working on figuring out how to mount a Burris Fastfire red dot to it. That's how much I like shooting it, and I've still plenty of ammo in storage.

I've had two parts breakages. The firing pin, and the right side rear ear of the trigger group. Curiously neither breakage caused a stoppage and was only noticed during cleaning. I got a new trigger group from Numrich, but the firing pins are much harder to find, the one I got from Numrich was too short, I ended up using the front half of it and the rear half of my broken original to make a 2-piece firing pin (details in the gun-smithing forum). That was almost three tins of ammo ago.

 

[minutemen1776]

Keep us posted on how the one you receive actually looks. I was also tempted by the e-mail from Aim Surplus, but I have not convinced myself to get one...yet.

 

[Red Wind]

^ I will certainly do that,minutemen. I'm hoping for the best. The CZ 82 Mak I bought from Aim a few years back was in almost pristine condition.

We will soon find out.

 

[il.bill]

AIM has always been a first rate operation in my experience. If your Tokarev looks like their picture, you will be one happy C&R collector.

 

[GBExpat]

Anyway, I won't carry on the street with FMJ!

I stocked up on the cheap 7,62x25 milsurp years ago and at the time I also purchased 1K+ of S&B commercial FMJ (n/c primers).

For SD ammo, rather than pay the current high prices, I simply replace the S&B FMJ with a soft point.

 

[el indio]

With the Tokarev, if you need ammo, you can also shoot 7.63 Mauser in it. That's what I'm shooting now in mine. Just thought I'd let you know.

 

[Red Wind]

Thank you all. I am learning a lot here. Didn't realize that 7.63 Mauser was good to go.
Just checked some prices on that and they are about the same as the 7.62. But it expands the field which is good!

Have to wonder when ammo prices will drop back to somewhat good old days levels. Was that about 2012?

 

[Wanderling]

Probably never, at least not on the round like that which is no longer used in any current / new firearm. But it surely looks like a fun gun to play with, and the design itself is historically very interesting - this was the main handgun of the Soviets throughout WW2, probably as iconic of a weapon as 1911 or Walther / Parabellum (Luger).

How does this safety feel ? I read that on many models it's an afterthought for an American market and is not very good or even operational. The original TT-33 did not have a side mounted safety.

I was looking at some Yugo 9mm versions, but read very mixed reviews on fit, finish and quality. Romanians seem to be better made ?

 

[Red Wind]

How does this safety feel ? I read that on many models it's an afterthought for an American market and is not very good or even operational. The original TT-33 did not have a side mounted safety.

It hasn't arrived yet. It should be coming in about the middle of next week. I'll give you a report on the safety and the pistols overall condition.
This is from the Aim Surplus ad which mentions the added safety you discussed:

Authentic 1950's Romanian TT Tokarev 7.62x25cal pistols mfd by the Cugir Factory. First designed and built by the Russians borrowing heavily from the Browning blow back design. The Tokarev became the side arm of choice for the Communist Bloc countries. Each pistol has been meticulously reconditioned and finished by the European factory at the time the safeties were installed.

 

[Dentite]

I have a couple of the Yugo versions. One thing to add as far as your inquiry of it being a viable self defense pistol.

I would say in a pinch absolutely it can be used (with the right projectile as mentioned above). That being said, do some reading about drop safe with a round in the chamber. Long story short I don't think I would be carrying one with a round in the chamber on a daily carry basis. There are so many other options that are more foolproof and lend themselves better to carry.

 

[Storm]

If your Tokarev looks like the one in the pic you will be very fortunate. They must be refinishing them somewhere along the line. My 1953 is very rough in comparison.

 

[jhb]

I own a romanian, polish, a wartime made m57 yugo, and a modern m57 yugo.

Do not trust the import safety. It's only there for import reasons. All mine the safeties work as they should but I still wouldn't trust them...except for the yugo modern because the gun was redesigned to include it and it's set to work as it should.

My advice is do not carry one in half cock or hammer down. Plenty swear it's safe but I've seen firsthand it is not. This is a wartime gun designed for loading when needed...not for self defense carrying one in the chamber. People will swear up and down I am wrong. I dont argue with them anymore. Its their life they can do what they want. Trust them if ya want to its your choice. I figure someone should mention it for your own safety.

As for small game it's flat shooting and fast as you know. Recoil to me is similar to a plastic 9mm pistol. Easy to control for quick follow up shots. I think it's too small a round for hogs, not sure what fish and game says on the matter? Everyone I know uses 10mm glock 20 with 6" barrel for hogs. Yeah shot placement and all but still.

Check for barrel pitting. My romanian came fine..but my polish looked like the old sewer pipe and it shot but not well. Crown was pitted a bit. Took forever to find a good replacement barrel that wasn't a Chinese norinco for it that wasn't pitted or polished to death to remove pitting.

I really like these pistols...but they have limitations. Enjoy yours.

 

[nathan]

My Norinco 54-1 in tokarev caliber using Romanian surplus grouped about 4 inch average at 15 yrds. This was on sandbag rest slow fire. It was a lot of fun shooting it especially the ammo was still cheap per tin back 10 yrs ago. Now, i wouldnt even want to get another tokarev . But i carry mine loaded with JHP in my truck with three mags extra just in the worst case scenario. If it gets loss, it would nt hurt too bad for what i have on it.

 

[Red Wind]

More good, interesting advice, particularly the round in the chamber and the hunting factors. Gives me a lot to think about. I know I can't carry for SD without one in the pipe.
Not after over 40 years. Psychologically, for me, that's impossible.

Though,like nathan, truck or car carry sounds quite viable. Maybe I can get by with only 2 extra mags!

The hog or small game factor is a lesser deal. I've got .357's and ,44 Mags for that if this Romanian can't cut it.

Many of you certainly have a lot of Tokarov experience. More than I had imagined. But that's THR for you. jhb, I'll look carefully at that bore and bear in mind the need to be careful with this gun. You certainly have a wealth of knowledge with that big stable of Toks.

It probably will get a lot of range and plinking use. I'll try to stay out of trouble near the Everglades!

 

[GBExpat]

I have 2/ea of the Romys and Poles, 3 Soviet (sans retrofitted safety) and 4 Yugo M57s. I started buying these things a dozen, or so, years ago. After my first (Polish) I fell in love with the style.

I have one of my Romys setup for CCW and have carried it periodically. At the time I selected it, I chose it over my 2 poles and 3 Soviets. It was probably the least pretty of all of those, but it is tight, accurate & dependable and its safety is not only smoother (still with a positive detent), it requires a much shorter pivot to dis-/engage than the Poles ... and my thumb is right there.

I checked it out thoroughly before painting the sights and using it for CCW (IIRC, I only changed out the sear leaf).

I carry it with a round in the chamber, safety ON (trigger blocked) and the hammer at half-cock (slide locked). Upon draw, I cock the hammer and when I make the decision to fire, a small movement of my right thumb disengages the trigger block safety.

Acoupla years ago I even spent $70-80 with Ross Leather to have a proper crossdraw holster molded for the TT-33. Perfect for roadtrips.

 

[tark]

Any of you that live in California beware of bringing in any surplus to shoot at the range. Most of it has a steel jacket and that makes it Armor Piercing as far as California is concerned. As in illegal. I have heard of California State cops patrolling public ranges with a magnet......

Winchester is marketing a white box version of 7.62X25 Tok ammo for a reasonable price, if you can find any. It is actually loaded in the Czech Republic and it is reloadable. No steel jackets and it is very hot 1645 FPS with the 85 grain bullets. I guess that is advances in powder technology. I hear it is loaded to 9X19 pressures, which would make it safe for a broomhandle in good condition. ( Which is to say don't even THINK about shooting a Broomhandle without new springs and a thorough physical.)

And before you Naysayers get started about broomhandles, may I remind you that they were chambered for 9X19s and had no trouble digesting THAT round, or the 9X25 Mauser, which makes a 38 Super look puny. 128 @ 1362

Nuff said on that, I got off subject. Sorry.

I have owned and shot a lot of Tokarevs. I have found the Yugoslavian Zastava's to be the best, The are well finished (by Tokarev standards) and they have the added bonus of the longer grip and the 9th round in the Mag. And they seem to hold up.....not all Toks do. I have had one, made by the Soviets in their darkest hours, beat itself to death from lack of heat treating. One, Chinese, Norinco...I think, had the opposite problem. The frame cracked where the slide and the spring guide crashed into it during recoil.

Still, I love Toks. And I hoard that precious steel jacketed surplus ammo, it penetrates car bodies like no other ...

 

[noelf2]

I really like the 7.62x25 round. On a par with .30 carbine IMHO. It would be a great rifle caliber for an H&R break barrel. I have a 9mm luger conversion for my Rom Toc but it just sits in the safe (until I run out of 7.62x25 surplus). Just FYI, this is a great place for Tok parts. Good prices too.

www.robertrtg.com

 

[Onmilo]

I bought my Romanian TTC when they were first offered.
Pretty rough and some issues to correct but it has turned into an acceptable shooter.
Here's how I "Fixed" the manual safety issue,,,


The magazines were junk.
I replaced them with Chinese and Polish magazines and had to play around with several before I got five that would fit, feed, and come back out of the magazine well without prying.
The slide stop was well worn as was the slide stop notch so I replaced the slide stop with a new Chinese and recut the slide stop notch and now everything works as it should.
Accuracy is acceptable, reliability is perfect.

 

[Red Wind]

The Romanian just arrived via the Brown Truck. It looks as good as the blurb picture and the barrel is cool. Looks like a shooter.

As to the rest, it is bathed in Cosmoline. So a quick cleanup via the Box O' Truth procedure and then to the range for the report.

Back shortly on that. We'll check out the safety,trigger,accuracy, the whole 9 yards.
But just right now on the visuals, we are quite pleased.

Photos to follow. As of the moment, it appears Aim Surplus has come through again. A mighty fine outfit in the Buckeye State.

 

[Vonderek]

Red Wind, glad you got a good one. The few C&Rs I have bought from AIM were turds despite the handpick premium. Southern Ohio Gun was a different story and got some nice ones from them. I hope you have as much fun with the 7.62x25 that I have.

 

[Red Wind]

^Thanks for the support,Vonderek. I have had excellent results from SOG also. Both Ohio outfits have been good to me!

 

[Kleanbore]

Several years ago (just under 65), a friend acquired a Soviet or Soviet Bloc Tokarev. We fired the better part of a then-new green box of Remington Kleanbore 7.63 Mauser ammo at a few targets for fun. The thing lacked a safety. The same guy later bought a real Mauser. I just cannot remember whether I ever fired it or not.

I am beyond the age of wanting to acquire things because they are neat or have historical significance. Otherwise I would have an Astra 400 or 600, a P-38, a Webley, a Beretta 1934, a Luger....

And a good Tokarev.