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Makarov PM

• easy
• Shop tier 2
• medium confidence
• Pistol
• blowback
• fixed barrel
• surplus
• da sa
• corrosive ammo
• toolless field strip

field strip ~1 min · reassembly ~2 min · detail strip ~25 min

Specifications

Model-specific safety

• The trigger guard is the takedown latch. Pulling it down is the intended procedure, not a sign of a broken pistol.
• Fixed barrel with the recoil spring around it. The spring is under compression when the slide comes off.
• The safety lever decocks the hammer when rotated up. Never treat decocking as a substitute for verifying an empty chamber.
• Surplus Makarovs are often shipped packed in cosmoline. Clean the firing pin channel thoroughly before firing — the PM has a free-floating firing pin with no return spring, and a channel packed with hardened grease can hold the pin forward.
• Surplus 9x18mm ammunition may be corrosively primed. Clean with a water-based solvent the same day you shoot.

Under spring tension

• Recoil spring around the barrel
• Mainspring (which also serves as the grip backstrap spring)
• Magazine spring

Easily lost parts

Recoil spring · Grip screw · Slide stop · Firing pin

Tools

No tools required for the field strip.

Shop difficulty

Shop tier 2 Tier 2 — moderate among pistols, for the full job: strip to the parts that get coated and put it back together working. Only 27 parts with no special tools, but the trigger guard spring and plunger have to be compressed while the dumbbell pin is driven (a vise or helper), the disconnector has to be coaxed onto the sear by gravity after the hammer and sear are in, and the slide safety detent takes considerable force and marks the slide.

Parts: 27 pieces (Pistol without magazine. The site's labelled exploded view (makarov_exploded.jpg) has keys 1-30 with key 3 used twice; keys 27-30 are the magazine, which gives the same 27.), from Detailed Disassembly and Reassembly of the Makarov Pistol — Makarov.com makarov.com [4].

Bench time: about 20 min to strip, 35 min to rebuild (estimate). Grip, mainspring, sear spring, sear, slide release, hammer, trigger bar, trigger, trigger guard; slide safety, firing pin, extractor, rear sight. Rebuild longer for the trigger guard spring and disconnector.

Small parts: 3 pins, 6 springs, 2 detents or plungers (other: identified on the unlabelled makarov.com exploded view (keys 3 x2 and 5 as pins; 1, 8, 13, 18, 24, 28 as springs; 9 and 23 as plungers))

What comes off for coating

• Slide: safety (detent), firing pin, extractor, plunger and spring, rear sight — non-marring punch
• Frame: grip and screw, mainspring and retention clip, sear and sear spring, slide release, hammer, trigger bar/disconnector, trigger, trigger guard, pin, plunger and spring, recoil spring — cleaning rod claw / needle-nose pliers, padded vise

Special tools

• padded vise or a helper — Compressing the trigger guard spring while the pin is driven
• Makarov cleaning rod (claw end) or needle-nose pliers — Unhooking and re-hooking the sear spring over the slide release
• non-marring punch — Dovetail rear sight

Known pain points

• Refitting the trigger guard means holding its strong spring and plunger compressed with the guard while a dumbbell pin is driven in. (reassembly)
  Source: Detailed Disassembly and Reassembly of the Makarov Pistol — Makarov.com makarov.com [4] — “This can be difficult because the spring is relatively strong. A padded vise or a helper might help with this portion.”
• The site calls the trigger-guard refit one of the trickiest steps of the rebuild. (reassembly)
  Source: Detailed Disassembly and Reassembly of the Makarov Pistol — Makarov.com makarov.com [4] — “This is perhaps one of the trickiest procedures of Makarov reassembly.”
• The disconnector end of the trigger bar dangles and cannot be held up while hammer and sear go in; it has to be worked into place afterwards with the pistol inverted. (reassembly)
  Source: Detailed Disassembly and Reassembly of the Makarov Pistol — Makarov.com makarov.com [4] — “You will eventually have to move it such that it's pointing up, but it is nearly impossible to keep it that way while installing the hammer and sear.”
• The slide-mounted safety rides a strong detent; getting it back to 'safe' takes force and usually marks the slide. (both)
  Source: Detailed Disassembly and Reassembly of the Makarov Pistol — Makarov.com makarov.com [4] — “Considerable force might be required to get the safety rotated back into place and the detent spring will most likely mar the slide slightly.”

Fit or check on rebuild

• Disconnector engaged on the sear — If the disconnector is left hanging the pistol will not fire or reset
  Source: Detailed Disassembly and Reassembly of the Makarov Pistol — Makarov.com makarov.com [4] — “The disconnector end of the trigger bar should be positioned as shown against the right side of the sear.”
• Function check: trigger reset, sear/striker engagement, safeties — Standard post-reassembly check on any pistol whose fire-control parts were removed; a mis-seated spring shows up here, not on the bench

This is Pew-Takedown's rating, not the manufacturer's. How tiers are rated. Forum reports are owners' experience, not specifications.

Procedures

Torque specifications

No sourced torque values from the manufacturer are recorded for this firearm. Where a fastener has a specified torque — action screws, scope bases, muzzle devices, barrel nuts — get it from the manufacturer or a gunsmith rather than estimating it.

What the manufacturer does say: The official military manuals give no torque value. They say: "6) Довернут ли винт рукоятки." [translation by this project: "6) Is the grip screw screwed fully home?"] (Наставления по стрелковому делу: Основы стрельбы из стрелкового оружия; 7,62-мм модернизированный автомат Калашникова (АКМ и АКМС); 7,62-мм ручной пулемет Калашникова (РПК и РПКС); 7,62-мм пулемет Калашникова (ПК, ПКС, ПКБ и ПКТ); 9-мм пистолет Макарова (ПМ), PDF p. 587 (inspection of the pistol))

Function check

• Verify the pistol is unloaded with no magazine inserted before each check.
• Shake the slide and confirm the firing pin moves freely before reassembly.
• Rack the slide and confirm it returns fully into battery.
• Cock the hammer, rotate the safety up, and confirm the hammer drops safely and the trigger is disconnected.
• With the safety on, press the trigger. Nothing should happen.
• Return the safety to fire and press the trigger for a double-action hammer fall.
• Rack the slide and press the trigger for a single-action break.
• Confirm the slide locks open on an empty magazine and the heel release works.

Maintenance

Lubrication points

• Frame rails and slide grooves
• Barrel exterior
• Hammer and sear pivots
• Trigger bar

Cleaning notes

Corrosive surplus ammunition requires same-day cleaning with a water-based solvent, followed by thorough drying and oiling. Keep the firing pin channel dry and clean at all times.

Suggested inspection interval: roughly every 1000 rounds. This is a general guideline, not a manufacturer specification.

Wear parts to inspect

Recoil spring · Firing pin (free movement) · Extractor and extractor spring · Mainspring

Common issues

Also covers

The procedures above are reported to apply to: Bulgarian, East German, Russian, and Chinese Type 59 Makarov variants · Baikal IJ-70 commercial Makarovs. Verify against the manual for your specific model.

Similar manual of arms

• Walther PPK / PP

Sourcing