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Is 375 H&H More Versatile than the 30-06?

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20 of the Best Dangerous Game Rifles From the affordable to the insanely expensive, any of these guns will serve you well should you come face to face with one of the world’s aggressive game species BY RICHARD MANN

young hunter kneeling next to giant black ox
No, a dangerous game rifle does not have to cost as much as a used pickup truck. But, it does have to pack a punch and be every time, all the time, reliable. Richard Mann

Regardless of what you’ve read, and what you might hear experts advise, the number one requirement of a dangerous game rifle is reliability. It can be exquisitely beautiful with engravings of naked concubines and vicious creatures, but if it does not work every time and all the time, it is not a dangerous game rifle.

Many believe a rifle of this sort has to be expensive but that’s not the case. It only must work and deliver a hard enough hit to get the job done. Knowing those facts, if you can afford to hunt dangerous game, you can probably afford a reliable and (very) nice hard-hitting rifle. To help find one that’s right for you, here is a list of 20 of the finest dangerous game guns available, working from a beer to a champagne budget.

Mossberg Patriot Laminate Marinecote

Mossberg Patriot Laminate Marinecote • Price: $629

When most folks think of dangerous game rifles, they think of broken wallets and maxed-out credit cards. It doesn’t have to be that way. Mossberg’s Patriot Laminate is a rugged and reliable bolt-action rifle. It comes with open sights, a fantastically functional detachable magazine, and a great trigger. It’s also chambered for the .375 Ruger, which is all the gun you need for dangerous game, whether it be lions, tigers or bears.

Drilled and tapped for scope mounting, but also fitted with adjustable open sights, and chambered for the most classic of all dangerous-game cartridges—the .375 H&H—this rifle is ready for rough country and perilous encounters. The stainless steel action and barrel are fitted to an ergonomic synthetic stock with checkered grip panels. It has a 3-round magazine capacity and weighs only 6 pounds, 13 ounces, so those long treks on the track of buffalo won’t wear you out.

CZ 550 American Safari Magnum

CZ 550 American Safari Magnum • Price: $1,215

Built on CZ-USA’s famous 550 Magnum action, this rifle is intended for use with magnified optics, but back-up iron sights are there if needed. The stock has a high, flat comb to better aid eye alignment with both optics and irons, and the round forend won’t snag on brush while stalking. Many professional hunters prefer the 550’s Mauser-style extractor and fixed ejector, and the rifle is available for most of the hard-hitting big bore cartridges synonymous with dangerous game hunting.

Ruger Hawkeye African

Ruger Hawkeye African • Price: $1,279

Loaded with features like a non-rotating Mauser-style extractor, fixed ejector, three-position safety, hinged floor plate, integral scope mounts, express style open sights, and the Ruger LC6 trigger, this rifle offers a lot for your money. And, to help control the big bang that comes from cartridges like the .375 and .416 Ruger, the muzzle is capped off with the removable Ruger Muzzle Brake System. This rifle looks as attractive as it’s price tag.

Winchester Model 70 Safari Express rifle

Winchester Model 70 Safari Express

Winchester Model 70 Safari Express • Price: $1,350 Winchester

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Available in .375 H&H, .416 Remington Magnum, and .458 Winchester Magnum, the Model 70 Safari Express is a fine representation of what many expect in a dangerous game rifle. The satin finished stock has cut checkering, the steel bottom metal is one-piece, and the pre-64 Winchester action is one that is revered by African professional hunters. Modernizations include the M.O.A. Trigger System, with zero take-up, zero creep, and zero over travel for outstanding accuracy.

Ruger No. 1 475 Linebaugh/480 Ruger

Ruger No. 1 475 Linebaugh/480 Ruger (Lipsey’s) • Price: $1,919

Though this may not be the traditional action and cartridge associated with dangerous game hunting, the Ruger No. 1 offers a level of reliability and strength that is unmatched. And, the .475 Linebaugh cartridge will push a 370-grain bullet to almost 1,600 fps. The combination isn’t great for long range shots, but will knock down anything inside spitting distance.

Marlin Custom Shop 1895 Modern Lever Hunter

Marlin Custom Shop 1895 Modern Lever Hunter • Price: $1,995

With three times the ammo capacity of a double rifle and faster follow-up shots than a bolt action, it could be argued that this fine quality .45-70 from the Marlin Custom Shop is ideal for dangerous game. Custom crafted to your color preferences, the action of this Marlin Model 1895 is smoothed to perfection, and all metal surfaces are coated with Cerakote. The XS Sights Lever Rail lets you choose between an aperture sight, a red dot, or a conventional or scout style scope.

CZ Safari Classics Magnum Express Rifle

CZ Safari Classics Magnum Express Rifle • Price: $2,271

Available in .375 H&H, .404 Jeffery, .416 Remington, .416 Rigby, .450 Rigby, .458 Winchester Magnum, .458 Lott, and a variety of other dinosaur killing cartridges, this rifle is built to your exact specifications. It features a single set trigger, matte or gloss blue finish, and a #1 Fancy American Walnut stock, with dual cross bolts and a straight comb. A muzzle brake, ebony forend, and a weather resistant coating are options, while the Mauser-style extractor and hammer-forged barrel are standard.

Remington Model 700 Custom C Grade

Remington Model 700 Custom C Grade • Price: $2,995

Don’t let anyone tell you the push-feed Model 700 action is not up to the task when it comes to dangerous game hunting. Not only is it reliable, but you can drop a cartridge in the ejection port and close the bolt for a follow-up shot if you run the rifle dry—something most controlled-round-feed actions cannot do. A gloss finished, C-grade walnut stock, with contrasting grip and forend tips makes this a luxurious safari rifle.

Weatherby Mark V Dangerous Game Rifle

Weatherby Mark V Dangerous Game Rifle • Price: $3,600

Weatherby is a brand synonymous with the African continent and high-dollar hunts. Their Dangerous Game Rifle offers a sub-MOA accuracy guarantee, the Weatherby LXX trigger, a short 54-degree bolt lift, and the famous Weatherby Magnum 9-lug action. The action is bedded in a hand-laminated, composite stock, with a raised Monte Carlo comb, and is finished with spider web accents. It’s available in six Weatherby chamberings and .375 H&H.

Dakota Arms Model 76 Safari

Dakota Arms Model 76 Safari • Price: $8,900

Gorgeous and deadly might be the best way to describe this bolt-action rifle built for African safaris and dangerous game hunting. Constructed on the famous Dakota Model 76 action, it’s available for right or left hand shooters, with a XXX walnut stock, hand-cut checkering, ebony forend tip and barrel band in a variety of chamberings up to .458 Lott.

Dakota Arms Professional Hunter

Dakota Arms Professional Hunter • Price: $8,000

The brand new Professional Hunter from Dakota Arms features their respected Model 76 action and a custom fiberglass stock with pillar bedding. Designed for the dangerous game hunter who values ruggedness over beauty, the rifle’s 23-inch Premium Douglas barrel is Cerakoted and a quarter rib fixed sight and hooded fiber optic front sight are standard features. The cartridge options are vast and include the .450 Dakota and .450 Rigby.

Dakota Arms African Big Five

Dakota Arms African Big Five • Price: $9,700

An exquisite firearm by any measure, the Dakota Arms African Rifle is built on a stock made form XXX grade walnut, with a shadow line cheekpiece, and is detailed with hand-cut checkering. It features a straddle floorplate with an inside release and a drop-belly magazine with a four-round capacity. It’s available in a wide assortment of elephant-capable cartridges including the .450 Dakota.

Heym “Express” Magnum Bolt Action Rifle

Heym “Express” Magnum Bolt Action Rifle • Price: $13,000

Elegance abounds with this bolt-action rifle from Heym. It is reminiscent of the best-grade English sporting rifles that were built between the great wars. The actions used are sized perfectly to the cartridge, with cartridge specific magazine boxes. The barrel, along with everything else, is made in house at Heym in Germany. The action features the famous Mauser claw extractor and true controlled feed design. A single stage trigger and 4+1 capacity Oberndorf-style drop-box magazine is standard. Cartridge options include the .375 H&H, .416 Rigby, .404 Jeffery, .458 Lott, and .450 Rigby.

Krieghoff Classic Big Five Double Rifle

Krieghoff Classic Big Five Double Rifle • Price: $13,995

Combining the heritage of traditional side-by-side design and the sophistication of modern manufacturing technology, the beautiful Krieghoff Classic Double rifle is available in the most common chamberings for an African safari or dangerous game hunting. It features a manual cocking device that allows carrying while fully loaded with the hammers uncocked. With options that include additional barrels you can more than double the price, as well as your cool factor, while sitting on the back of the Land Rover.

Merkel 470 NE 140-2.1 SXS

Merkel 470 NE 140-2.1 SXS • Price: $14,275

Nothing parts the waters of a hunter’s heart like a finely crafted double rifle. The Merkel 470 NE 140-2.1 SXS is elegant, reliable, and responsive. It features a steel action, Greener-style cross bolts, double triggers, manual safety with intercepting sears, automatic ejectors, express sights, and a finely figured wood stock that looks as if it has a life of its own.

Heym Model 88B Double Rifle

Heym Model 88B Double Rifle • Price: $22,000

For more than 35 years, the Heym 88B has been the company’s flagship dangerous game rifle, and it’s likely the most common double rifle in Africa. Handcrafted for a perfect fit and with a host of customizing options available, holding this rifle can make your knees feel weak. Built with Krupp steel hammer forged barrels and a triple lockup boxlock action, automatic ejectors and dual triggers are standard. This rifle will even handle the .577 Nitro Express.

Rigby London Best Rifle

Rigby London Best Rifle • Price: $32,000 to $72,000

When you can afford the very best of everything in life, a starting price of more than $32,000 won’t cause you to blink an eye. What might make you order another drink are the options available on the Rigby London Best rifle. Grade 11 wood, H&H quick detach scope mounts, case hardening, engraving, the take-down option, and a custom case later, and you’re on the other side of $72,000. But, you might have the finest bolt-action rifle in the world. If that doesn’t impress the hippo you’re facing, show him the receipt; maybe it will scare him to death.

Rigby Rising Bite Double Rifle

Rigby Rising Bite Double Rifle • Price: $136,000

You simply cannot afford this rifle. With its custom fitted Grade 7 Turkish walnut stock, best sidelock ejector with dipped edge lock plates, Rigby ¼ rib and front slight block, and color case hardened action, before you start customizing, you’re in for more than a hundred grand. A few customizations later you have created what might be the most fabulous rifle ever. With a rifle like this, it won’t matter if you ever hunt dangerous game or not—you can just sit by the fire ring and brag about it.

Holland Royal Double Rifle

Holland & Holland Royal Double Rifle

Holland & Holland’s Royal Double rifle might be the most iconic dangerous game rifle of all time. Built to deal with any four-legged danger while providing the instinctive handling of a finely fitted shotgun, these rifles exude luxury, craftsmanship, and history. Available in flanged, belted or rimless cartridges, from .284 to .700 caliber, this is the rifle professional hunters lust for and filthy rich safari clients dream of. It will cost more than a trophy wife, kill anything that walks, and leave your heirs in a bitter argument over who gets it after you depart this Earth. Built to your every desire, prices are available by request; which means if you have to ask, you don’t have enough money.

 

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The 6.5 Creedmoor Versus the .264 Winchester Magnum Love it or hate it, science proves the Creedmoor is superior to similar cartridges BY DAVE EMARY

reloading a rifle with a 6 creedmoor

In the last 10 years we have seen a number of cartridges introduced that all have similar design characteristics. They have a relatively short, minimum-taper cartridge case with sharper shoulder angles, moderate capacity, fast twist rates, what would seem to be heavy bullets for the case size, and chamber throat designs that are long and tight.

A few examples of these cartridges are the .300 WSM, 6.5mm Creedmoor, 6mm Creedmoor, and most recently the .224 Valkyrie. All of them deliver downrange performance and accuracy beyond anything that would be expected from a cartridge of their size. So what exactly is behind this shift from traditional cartridge designs with a big case pushing a projectile at high velocity?

Traditional Cartridges

Let’s start by looking at the design characteristics of several long-standing traditional cartridges. This design philosophy, for the most part, has used a big case with a lot of taper and a modest shoulder angle with a lot of propellant behind a medium-weight projectile. This formula is about generating speed.

A lot of case taper was considered necessary for reliable extraction, and modest shoulders were easy to produce. Some examples are the .22/250 Remington, .243 Winchester, .264 Winchester Magnum, and .300 Winchester Magnum. These cartridges all have moderate to slow twist rates and relatively modest weight projectiles. The bottom line is their designers wanted bullets to go fast. The tables on p. 45 show a comparison of these four traditional cartridges and their modern counterparts.

As you can see, all the newer cartridges have sharper shoulder angles. They all have less case capacity than a comparable older cartridge. They all have the same lead angle of 1.5 degrees. They all have a lead diameter barely over the projectile diameter. They all have faster twist rates. And they all shoot heavy, high-ballistic-coefficient projectiles. Considering their smaller case capacity, they all produce muzzle energy levels quite close to that of much larger capacity cases in the same caliber. What I could not show in the tables is that all the newer cartridges have much less body taper than the older cartridges. Finally, all of the newer cartridges have established reputations for very good to incredibly good accuracy with out-of-the-box ammunition and rifles.

All About the Bullet

Today, cartridge and ammunition designers are putting much more emphasis on projectile performance characteristics. If I could sum up this philosophy, it would be “let the bullet do the work.” In other words, design a cartridge that can use a heavy, very aerodynamic projectile, launch it at a more modest velocity, and let the bullet aerodynamics provide the downrange ballistics. This is the common thread binding the new efficient cartridges listed above. The benefits to the shooter are actually better downrange ballistics despite the lower muzzle velocities, less recoil, and longer barrel life.

The old-school approach to cartridge design—large case and going fast—resulted in very heavy charges of slow propellants. In general, with this approach the propellant is not completely burned by the time the projectile exits the barrel. The result is faster barrel wear, severe muzzle blast, and heavy recoil.

To take a concrete example, let’s compare the ballistics of the .264 Win. Mag. with a 140-grain flat-base projectile to the 6.5 Creedmoor with a 143-grain boattail projectile (see charts above). You might cry foul, because those are two very different bullets, but hear me out. The .264 Win. Mag., because of the 1:9-inch twist it was designed around, can’t adequately stabilize more bullet than a 140-grain flat-base Spitzer. Even adding a boattail would result in a marginally stable projectile that would likely have stability problems on a cold day. Not so with the Creedmoor, because of the 1:8-inch twist.

As you can see, the 6.5 Creedmoor quickly makes up the 330 fps deficit in muzzle velocity it has with the .264 Win. Mag. There is also very little difference in the trajectory of each cartridge despite the 330 fps difference. If the graphs were taken to greater distances, the 6.5 Creedmoor would leave the .264 in the dust. This is the value of emphasizing the projectile design as part of the cartridge design. The 6.5 Creedmoor will, for all practical purposes, perform with the .264 Win. Mag. It does so with less recoil, 15 to 20 grains less propellant, and about three times the barrel life.

New Accuracy Standards

The approach to designing an inherently accurate cartridge has also changed. The traditional way to get an accurate cartridge-chamber combination was to have no lead or throat in the chamber, the bullet seated right up to or actually into the rifling, a tight chamber-to-­cartridge neck fit, and a sharp and concentric crown on the muzzle. Lead angles tended to be a little random, from 1.5 degrees to up to 15 degrees. Little attention was paid to the cartridge shape or throat design as it pertained to the projectile. Throat or lead diameters were allowed to be anywhere from .003 to .007 inch larger than projectile diameter.

These types of lead diameters allow a lot of room for a projectile to wander around while trying to get seated in the rifling. This can lead to the projectile entering the rifling at an angle relative to the axis of the bore. This angle is called principle axis tilt (PAT). It is the angle between the line of flight of the projectile and the axis through the center of the projectile from the rear to the point. PAT defines the angle of attack or, put another way, the angle the bullet is flying at relative to the line of flight. The bigger this angle, the less accurate the bullet will shoot.

Minimizing PAT

Ballisticians have gained better insight into projectile dynamics and how they affect performance. Along with the quality of the construction of the projectile, jacket concentricity, and consistent core swaging, the PAT of the projectile has to be controlled and minimized to obtain top accuracy. If the projectile enters the rifling at an angle, it will travel down the barrel at that angle, and it will leave the muzzle at that angle. The projectile will be starting out behind the curve for best accuracy before it ever leaves the gun.

Better understanding the relationship between the projectile and barrel, designers are now designing cartridges and chambers with an eye toward controlling the entry of the projectile into the rifling and thus the PAT. The optimum lead angle into the rifling has been pretty well established for quite some time as 1 degree 30 minutes, or 1.5 degrees. Many new cartridges have a very tight lead or throat with a diameter that is only .0005 inch bigger than nominal projectile diameter. This tight fit between the projectile and lead forces the projectile to enter the rifling as straight as possible. It is an old wives’ tale that “jump to the rifling,” or bullet travel prior to entering the rifling, is bad for accuracy. That just isn’t true. There can be a significant jump to the rifling if the lead diameter is designed to be very close to the projectile diameter. The only limitation to throat length is getting too much jump to the rifling and having a projectile running into the rifling at a velocity that damages the jacket.

The quest to improve accuracy and limit PAT is another reason we see cases with minimal body taper and sharper 30- to 35-degree shoulders. These two things aid in forcing the cartridge case to align itself better with the axis of the barrel. The minimal taper and sharper shoulder don’t allow the cartridge to lie off center in the chamber as much as a more tapered, shallow-shoulder-angle case. This in turn further helps to limit and control the PAT of the projectile.

So, have these changes in design approach and philosophy really brought shooters better-performing, more-shootable cartridges? Another look at cartridge specs below provides the answer. The .224 Valkyrie does not match the .22/250 with the heaviest projectiles that the .22/250 can shoot, but the Valkyrie burns about 8 to 10 grains less powder in the process. The .224 Valkyrie can fire the heaviest projectiles made in .224-inch caliber. Not so the .22/250 without a rebarrel and a faster twist. For long-range shooting, the .22/250 can’t touch the Valkyrie. Likewise, the 6mm Creedmoor can run away and hide from a .243 Winchester. The .300 WSM produces the same performance as the .300 Win. Mag. but does it with 6 to 8 grains less propellant. In every one of the comparisons, the newer cartridge will have longer barrel life, less recoil, and less muzzle blast because of its more efficient design. Lastly, at this point there is little argument about the outstanding accuracy of any of these new cartridges. Shooters have never had it so good.

advantages modern cartridges
The advanges of modern cartridge designs Illustrations by Clint Ford

New Cartridge Specs
Cartridge .224 Valkyrie 6mm Creedmoor 6.5 Creedmoor .300 WSM
Twist Rate (in.) 7 7.5 8 10
Shoulder Angle (deg.) 30 30 30 35
Lead Diameter (in.) .2246 .2435 .2645 .3099
Lead Angle (in.) 1.5 1.5 1.5 1.5
Case Capacity (gr. H2O) 30.9 50 52 79
Bullet Weight (gr.) 88 103 143 190
G1 BC .545 .512 .625 .595
Muzzle Velocity (fps) 2,675 3,050 2,700 2,875
Energy (ft.-lb.) 1,398 2,127 2,315 3,487

Traditional Cartridge Specs
Cartridge .22/250 Rem. .243 Win. .264 Win. Mag. .300 Win. Mag.
Twist Rate (in.) 14 10 9 10
Shoulder Angle (deg.) 28 20 25 25
Lead Diameter (in.) .2245 .2463 .268 .315
Lead Angle (in.) 2.0 1.5 2.0 1.5
Case Capacity (gr. H2O) 43 52.8 82 89
Bullet Weight (gr.) 60 1000 140 180
G1 BC .240 .405 .465 .450
Muzzle Velocity (fps) 3,650 2,960 2,940 2,950
Energy (ft.-lb.) 1,625 1,960 2,684 3,475

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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.17 HORNADY MACH 2 BALLISTIC GEL TEST

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A Smith and Wesson books. 686-3 3” CS-1 barrel with classic hunter unfluted cylinder

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This interesting but its probably too late now – Buying Guns in South Africa: What it’s Really Like

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A Ruger Security Six

They may be ugly to some. But they are tougher than Hell and will get the job done EVERYTIME!

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A Pre War Colt Police in caliber .38 S&W

High Condition Pre War Colt Police C & R .38 S&W - Picture 2
High Condition Pre War Colt Police C & R .38 S&W - Picture 3
High Condition Pre War Colt Police C & R .38 S&W - Picture 4
High Condition Pre War Colt Police C & R .38 S&W - Picture 5
High Condition Pre War Colt Police C & R .38 S&W - Picture 6
High Condition Pre War Colt Police C & R .38 S&W - Picture 7

 

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A Rifle that is right were it belongs

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TOKAREV PISTOLS: BROWNING’S LEGACY IN A RUSSIAN GUN by PAUL PETERSON

Decades before Sig Sauer made it seem darn near common, the Russian-designed Tokarev handgun had modularity standardized. The Tokarev was the Soviet replacement for their outdated – and somewhat strange – Nagant Revolvers from the age of the Russian Tsars. While the Soviets strived to cut their own path with maximum simplicity, they also recognized and borrowed heavily from the brilliance of one man: John Moses Browning.

Developed by Fedor Vasilievich Tokarev in the early 1930s, the gun was eventually adopted as the TT-33, which saw service throughout World War II and still serves in some places today, though it was officially replaced in 1952 by the smaller Makarov. Various versions of the gun popped up throughout areas of Soviet influence, such as the Yugoslavian M57 variant we have here.

From left to right, you can see the difference between the .45 ACP, 7.62×25 Tokarev, and 9x19mm. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)

Still, the gun was more than just a copy of Browning’s designs, it also used an innovative and zippy ammo, 7.62x25mm. The flat-shooting, bottlenecked round balanced power and speed with the need for something compact enough for a pistol. Yet it still performed well in a submachine gun and simplified the logistics to support both platforms.

BROWNING’S INNOVATION

 

Though simplified for mass production, the guts of the Tokarev were born from Browning’s earlier designs. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)

Browning’s innovations can be found throughout the Tokarev. You’ll notice the familiar front bushing and the locking lugs on the barrel, which replicate the short-recoil tilting-barrel system from the 1911. Overall, the Tokarev has the external look of a Browning gun.

At first glance, one could even be forgiven for confusing this Soviet pistol with the blowback Model 1903. But the Russian design made some distinctly “Soviet” decisions when developing the gun for manufacturing. Indeed, the Tokarev emerged around the same time as one of Browning’s final designs, the Hi-Power. Yet it omits some of the designer’s latest developments and incorporates significant simplifications instead.

The Tokarev barrel, above, featured next to a Hi-Power barrel, below. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)

Notice the similar barrel locking lugs on both of the Browning-inspired barrels above. The Hi-Power barrel, bottom, was developed at around the same time but features more machining. The Tokarev, top, has similar locking lugs, but the manufacturing process was simplified to allow the barrel to be easily turned on a lathe. The Tokarev also maintains the barrel link from the older 1911, removing even more machining requirements.

The Tokarev profile betrays its Browning roots. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)

These all-steel guns were also quite slender and relatively light. This particular Tokarev variant is an M57 from Yugoslavia. The slide measures in at 0.82 inches wide, compared to the modern 1-inch Glock 17 slide.

The gun weighs 1.8 pounds unloaded, compared to the 2.2-pound Hi-Power or the 2.4-pound 1911. Though, the 9mm Hi-Power – introduced in the 1930s as well – boasted a capacity of 13+1. The TT-33 hosted only an 8+1 capacity, while the M57 bumped that to 9+1. The Tokarev also featured a magazine disconnect.

7.62X25MM AMMO

 

The bottlenecked 7.62x25mm, right, next to a 9x19mm, left. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)

It’s easy to see the similarities between the Tokarev and other Browning guns, but one glaring difference does stand out. The Tokarev was developed to use the 7.62x25mm cartridge. This round was flat shooting at 1,450+ feet per second and shares a lineage with the 7.63x25mm Mauser.

The round definitely had some heat to it for a pistol chambering, but it’s also surprisingly light recoiling. It’s actually a pleasure to shoot with little muzzle flip. The flat trajectory also makes it effective for close-combat applications.

RUSSIAN SIMPLICITY & HACKS

 

Here is the removed hammer assembly from the Tokarev. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)

The guts of the Tokarev are a particular blend of simplicity and unique Soviet innovation. While the design owes much to Browning, it also boasts features like a removable hammer assembly. This was meant to make maintenance and repairs simpler for the large Russian army. Instead of mucking about with individual parts inside the gun after a breakage, armorers could drop in a new hammer assembly with ease.

At the same time, the barrel and recoil spring were simplified for manufacture and maintenance. The barrel locking lugs are designed to be easily machined on a lathe, while the recoil spring itself was captured on a guide rod that was also articulated. Tokarevs kept the barrel link similar to the 1911, which cut down on machining as well. This made the barrels easier to produce, and the captured recoil spring made field maintenance simpler. Simplification is a theme that runs throughout the gun.

Here you can see the simplified locking lugs and the articulated, captured recoil spring of the Tokarev, top, beside the contemporary barrel and recoil spring of the Hi-Power, below. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)

 

The innovative locking levers inside the Tokarev grip panels removed the need for additional screws and further simplified manufacture and maintenance. Also, note the scratch below the hole for the slide stop, caused at some point by the unintentional release of the slide-stop retainer clip (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)

Simplification was not all “good.” Some of the features on the Tokarev may have been easier to produce, but they were also poorly suited to a service pistol. One that stands out to this author is the slide-stop retainer clip. This was a simple solution to the more complex slide-stop retention system in the 1911 and the Hi-Power. It cut down the need for additional parts and, significantly, more complex springs (which were like the mechanical microchips of the day).

The result is an awkward “paperclip” on the side of the gun. I don’t judge guns by their external looks very often, but that clip also has a nasty habit of weakening and eventually getting bumped off. This leads to the slide release freely swinging against the frame of the gun.

The slide-stop retention clip stands out as one of the simplifications added to the Tokarev. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)

The deep scratch on the left side of the pistol appears to have happened at some point when the retention clip bumped out of placement. This resulted in a circular gouge. There was also an issue with soldiers bumping the magazine release on the side of the gun. This was corrected with the heel release on the later Makarov.

If you were wondering where the safety is on a Tokarev, the answer is … random. The Tokarev originally had no safety, with the exception of a half-cock safety for the hammer. It is not drop safe when carried with a round chambered. That said, armies of the time – and even today – routinely carried their guns without a chambered round. This particular Tokarev was fitted with a trigger safety for importation, though many have a 1911-style safety fitted to the side of the gun.

Tokarevs were fitted with crude safeties for importation into the U.S. (Photo: Paul Peterson/Guns.com)

 

FINAL THOUGHTS

Tokarevs may be outdated, but they saw wide service in Soviet-influenced nations: China, Hungary, Vietnam, Romania, Yugoslavia, Pakistan, Poland, and the list goes on. They are also still in service in the Bangladeshi and North Korean armed forces today, and it is not uncommon to see the old guns with police in Pakistan and other countries from time to time.

Original caption: A Soviet lieutenant (probably A. G. Yeremenko, Company political officer of the 220th Rifle Regiment, 4th Rifle Division, killed in action in 1942), armed with a Tokarev TT-33 pistol, urges his men to attack German positions during WWII. Photo was taken by Max Alpert during the battle July 12, 1942, Voroshilovgrad region. (Image provided by the Russian International News Agency)

The blend of Browning’s genius and the demands of Soviet simplicity resulted in a unique firearm that arrived just in time to take part in a world-changing conflict and the Cold War that followed. You can feel that history when you hold the Tokarev, an odd blend of East and West during a pivotal period.