Frequently Asked Questions List

The serial numbers for that year start out with serial number 140,00 and end with serial number 168,00. Subtract those numbers and it comes to a total of 28,000 shotguns of this type were made in 1909.
The Baikal IZH-70-01 is the commercial version of the Makarov PM, produced for sale in the West. Apart from its designation it is the same as the Model PM. It is an 8 shot medium-size pistol with a straight blowback action and is of all steel construction with a frame-fixed barrel. In a blowback designs such as this, the only force holding the slide closed is that of the recoil spring wrapped around the barrel; as a consequence upon firing the barrel and slide do not have to unlock.

See also the Makarov Basics page

Baikal Makarov Serial Numbers. A range of serial numbers has been observed across the various letter codes for the years 1960 through 1965 (ranging from 00XX to.

Where did Makarovs come from and what types are there?

To the best of our knowledge, there are only 5 countries that ever produced the Makarov:

Russia - home of Nikolai Federovich Makarov
East Germany - The Ernst Thaelman Factory
China
Bulgaria - The Arsenal Factory and Miltex
Germany (post-unification) - The Simson Suhl

If you think you have a Hungarian or Polish Makarov, check the other pistol page.

Russia
There are several versions of the Russian Makarov. First of all there are the true surplus guns, which are recognizable by their fixed rear sight and a lack of any non-cyrillic markings including 'Made in Russia.' Second is the Baikal and Izhmech new production Makarov. These are recognizable by their rear adjustable target sight, 'Made in Russia' and Baikal markings. Another variant of this is the 10-round double-stack Makarov, which was also made by Izhmech.

More recently, some of the Russian military Makarovs with fixed rear sights have snuck into the country with shipments of Bulgarian guns. You can usually spot these by the bifurcated triangle with circle marking. Some common markings of East German, Soviet, and Bulgarian Maks.

How is Izmech different from Baikal?
IMEZ stands for Izhevskii Mechanicheskii Zavod or Izhevsk Mechanical Factory located in the city of Izhevsk near the Ural Mountains. They produce the Makarov, PSM, various shotguns, airguns, artificial pacemakers for the heart, oil drilling equipment. It is a goverment, state owned enterprise, but has the right to close its own business contracts and deals without govermental interferance.

Baikal is a foreign trade organization this is similar to North China Industries (NORINCO). This was a govermental organization that was used to market Soviet goods abroad. These days Baikal is hardly active in any trade with the US, largely because of the Bill Clinton imposed 'voluntary trade restrictions.' IMEZ used the grips with Baikal on it because...well, it was all they had.... Baikal also traded autos, trucks, various other consumer goods. Not only guns and ammo.

East Germany
The Ernst Thaelman factory in Suhl, Thueringen made what are considered by some to be the finest pre-fall-of-the-Berlin Wall Makarovs. The finish is nice, the fit and machining is of quality you'd expect from a German shop, and they shoot like a dream. Almost all that came into this country had already seen service, so their quality varies by how they were treated by the person who carried them. Nonetheless, most have more holster wear than bore wear. They occasionally still pop up at dealers and at gun shows. If you can get them for a good price, these are the ones to buy.

Markings on them include a letter 'y' with a circle of dots, which some Russian folks think stands for for uchebneii or 'training'. This would be strange for a German pistol, but we haven't heard any other explanations.

Note that this table is not complete and there appears to be a sequential pattern, so don't panic if yours doesn't fit into the ones listed.

East German production codes
(not a complete list)
Production year	Letter Code
1958	S
1959	J, K, L, N, U
1960	B, F, G, H, M, T
1961	AP*,AR, AS, AQ, AT, AU, AV, AW, AX, AY, AZ
1962	BR, BT, BU, BV, BW, BX, BY, BZ
1963	DA, DB, DE, DF, DH, DK, DL, DP, BO, BP
1964	ES, ET, EV, EX, EZ
1965	ER, FB, FH, FF

* One person noted that his gun was marked 'AP' and '62,' so there appear to be inconsistencies.

China
Not terribly much is known about these, except that they were brought in as Norinco Model 59. Not many are available, so they often command a premium over other Makarovs. On the whole, the quality of these is not as good as some of the others, but there have been notable exceptions. Very rarely you may run across a Type 59 with an Arsenal mark (number) in a circle. Most common found are 56 and 66. These were Military pistols that were remarked and packed for Commercial Export. A Chinese Makarov with 'SHI' mark is of Military issue, and normally if found in the USA means it was a War Trophy 'bring Back' from some conflict, and commands a Premium price. With bring back papers, these can cost as much as $2,500, without the papers, about half that. If it has the original issue holster, add another $100 or so to the price.

Bulgaria
The Bulgarian Arsenal Makarovs are the only ones that are currently being imported into the country. Miltex had an exclusivity agreement with Arsenal before they decided to get out of the small arms business. Many other Bulgarian Makarovs are out on the market including some military surplus. As the Bulgarians start to switch to other guns as standard police and military issue, these should continue to pop up everywhere and can be purchased at a very good price. Fortunately for US shooters, these are very nicely done and some interesting variants were delivered by Miltex. Again, since Miltex is out of this business, collectors might want to consider picking up one of the Miltex 'Special Edition' Makarovs still floating around on the market.

In recent years, the Bulgarians have held the most market share of all the Makarovs. As such, there are variants among these, primarily in grips and markings, including police, military, commercial, and even mis-marked Russians.

Bulgarian production codes

To find the Year of Manufacture of your Bulgarian 'Circle 10' Military Makarov, look at the serial number (S/N), normally found on the left side of the frame, above the grip. The first two letters are the Production series, the next two digits are the Year code, see list below. The last four digits are the unit number in that production series. Please note, the 1970 date is start of all Production at this plant using the 'Circle 10' code, the Makarov was first produced under Russian supervision in 1975, and first year of Production under Bulgarian control was 1976. Some Bulgarian pistols made in 1975 will have the Russian Date format, with the full year in place of the later date codes.

Bulgarian 'Circle 10' military proof mark

Year Code	Year Code	Year Code	Year Code
1970 = 10	1971 = 11	1972 = 12	1973 = 13
1974 = 14	1975 = 15 (Begin Makarov Production under Russian Supervision)	1976 = 16(first year Makarov Production, under Bulgarian supervision)	1977 = 17*
1978 = 18*	1979 = 19*	1980 = 20*	1981 = 21*
1982 = 22	1983 = 23	1984 = 24	1985 = 25
1986 = 26*