So all the Cool Kids are doing it. Here’s my BAG day gun.
Its a Radom P64! Its the kinda-sorta Polish copy of the Walther PPK. The guns have a bunch of mechanical differences, most are things that elude me, but the big things I see is it has the European-Style mag release on the butt, a Loaded chamber indicator in the form of a spring-loaded piston that rides above the firing pin. Round in the chamber the piston is pushed back leaving a small bump that can be seen and felt just under the rear sight block. Also this gun is in 9×18 Makarov rather than .32 ACP or .380 ACP found in Walthers.
Also one of the most amusing thing about the gun is the trigger. It is the best lesson on what a bad trigger feels like. Its both amusingly bad and surprisingly bad.
The DA trigger pull is around 20lbs. I’ve been dry firing it, and it fatigues my beefy hands. Its also gritty, mushy, and has GOBS of overtravel.
Then you have the SA pull. Its around 4lbs. Its surprisingly light, I’m sure its gritty but the weight is so light you can’t really tell. Still there’s a bunch of mush at the front, and a ton of overtravel at the back. Its horrible, and oddly I find that a huge part of the charm.
Haven’t shot it yet, I’ll give a range report when I get a chance to hit the range.
Oh and let’s just look at how far we’ve come.
Just look at that! One is a 6+1 shot 9×18 gun that weighs 22oz empty. The other is a 5+1 .45 ACP gun that weighs 19oz. And the Kahr has a good trigger too!
The kahr is a bit wider, but otherwise the dimensions are damn near identical.
Oh for those who are safety conscious the gun has a rebounding-type hammer that is blocked by the trigger pull, and the decocking safety moves a massive steel block around the firing pin to prevent the hammer from moving the pin. So the gun is drop-safe.
With the fact that most modern ammo-makers are loading for 9×18, it isn’t a bad design for conceal carry if you’re on a budget.
Stay tuned for a range report.
I’ve got one and they are shockingly accurate. Especially on single action.
And there’s a Wolf spring update for it that turn the DA pull from shockingly bad to annoyingly bad. Well worth it if you’re going to shoot it. And vital if you’re going to carry it.
The sights aren’t that good begin almost a gutter style and tiny nubs, but it does point well enough. I got one simply because the price was almost hilariously low and I already had the ammo for my CZ82s
My biggest problem is as a southpaw the safety is annoying to work for me.
Huh, it’s funny. I never actually took out m P64 ad compared with my PM45.
“turn the DA pull from shockingly bad to annoyingly bad.”
Now THAT’S funny.
The DA Trigger pull is a pain in the butt, however, I trained myself to draw and cock the weapon simultaneously. This has helped eliminate the necessity to use the DA trigger yet holster the gun in a safe position. But I am going to check out that Wolf spring upgrade, thanks for the info!
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The Mosin didn’t prepare you for that?
Heh the HORRIBLE trigger is part of the charm.
Honestly I bought it because:
A) It was CHEAP
B) Its Mil Surplus. I LOVE thems.
C) Its a Walther PPK that’s not a Walther PPK
D) Like Jack I already have the ammo, and I like the price of 9×18 for shooting.
E) The shit-tastic trigger makes me smile its so bizzare.
That acutally might be a reason to not do the spring upgrade.
Because it does change by a good magnitude how bad the trigger is.
Mind it doesn’t make it “good” but it does make the trigger no longer uniquely bad.
It’s a good finger workout!
I picked one up a while ago, fully intending to use as a pocket pistol. Of course the safety kinda sucks and I have a hard time flipping it off, and it’s not really “safe” to carry with it off, hammer down, and with a round chambered (no hammer block…) Plus anytime I’ve ever shot it without gloves on, it’s drawn blood.
It’s still adorable, and I wouldn’t dream of getting rid of it. It is fun to shoot.
Mine has a hammer block. The hammer is only free to rebound to full travel when the trigger is at full compress.
I’ll have to watch out for that slide-bite. The last time I shot one it wasn’t an issue, but I didn’t log much trigger time…
What’s BAG day? The only thing that a Google search seems to uncover is a Jersey thing regarding the day after St. Patrick’s? Also, more gun bloggers who post their liberty teeth without much elaboration.
Buy a Gun Day. AKA Tax Day.
Send in your taxes, buy a gun so the Government knows you did that 100% voluntarily.
Love it. A bit impecunious this year, but next year…
It happens. I know my first gun of last year was Eleanor, and I picked her up well into the fall.
Used to be I was always buying guns. Really isn’t any shame as these days I’d rather spend money on parts and ammo for guns I already have. Plus a lot of the ultra-cheap bargains are things I’ve already bought.
I’ve had one for a couple of years. It came with a factory hammer spring–twenty-seven pounds, or so I’ve read–which I changed out for a seventeen pound spring. Before, if I had to aim at a bad guy, I’d have had to ask him to move over a few feet to get hit, thanks to the huge trigger weight. Now, I’ll just have to ask him to stand still while I hook up the pulley to pull the dang thing. I’ve run into some Bulgarian ammo that wouldn’t shoot with the new spring–I don’t know if it’s because of the lighter weight or because the rounds were decades old–but cheap Russian rounds go bang without fail.
I do love the little beast. It and a box of ammo came in under $200, and holding it in my hand gives me the feeling of being James Bond’s cheaper, grittier and uglier fellow agent. Yeah, Bond, James Bond, you can hold a martini glass, but can you squeeze this?
*sigh*
It’s starting to seem like my BAG day purchase is going to look like a new dryer, an exterminator, and maybe either a new fence or a new lawnmower.
The joys of being a homeowner.
Weerd,
I touched your bag.
Snerk!
You transferred my BAG too!
You were gentle!
A Keltec P-11 showed up at my door, and it was SOOO Cute, well…. ; )
But I know what you mean about Bad Triggers. Keltec’s aren’t QUITE as Bad as Makarovs, but they’re pretty dam close!
I let a P-11 get away from me once. It wasn’t until I got my PM45 that I stopped regretting that decision.
ah, i remember buying combloc iron. a TT33 Tokarev has a nice single action pull but it’s a lousy carry pistol owing to having to thumb cock the hammer to get it to go bang. my East German mak was wonderful but i let it get away from me. had a good trigger pull, it did. i have toyed with the idea, recently, of acquiring more of these odd little pieces of comunist history, but every time i kick the tires on one at my local Merchant of Death ™ the quality is so awful i get over the notion fairly quickly.
Welcome to the dark side! I have its Hungarian cousin, the FEG PA63. The DA trigger is indeed horrendous, but a new set of springs from Wolff cure many ills. Also, Hornady makes a load for it with their excellent XTP bullet, which makes it a very potent and viable CCW option.
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