Sorry if this is the wrong forum, but I looked through and there didn't seem to be any that were specifically related to gun problems, and I was hoping to get this fixed soon and this forum gets a lot of traffic.

I just picked up a bulgie makarov at a gun show a few weeks ago, and haven't had a chance to fire it. It looks to be in good condition, except I'm having one problem with it.

When you rack the slide on an empty magazine, the slide locks back as it should, as the follower is holding it up. But when the magazine is released, so is the slide.

The slide hold/release mechanism wasn't properly catching the slide, and the follower was holding it up, so once the follower was removed, the slide released.

When I rack the slide back with an empty gun but hold the slide release tab up (which is manually simulating what a magazine would do), it locks the slide back, but only for as long as I apply upward pressure to the slide release. If I let it go, it falls back down and the slide releases.

I'm not too good with pistols yet, but it seems to me that there's supposed to be a catch somewhere that locks the slide/hold release tab in the up position at the appropriate time, and mine isn't functioning properly.

Has anyone ever experienced this before? Could anyone tell me perhaps which part is the slide hold/release lock, and how I might fix it?

The part in question on mine broke into two parts once. It's slidestop/ejector in one.

Refer to part #11 in this exploded diagram, and if it doesn't look like that, it's broken:

[img]http://makarov.com/graphics/makarov_exploded.jpg[/img]

Btw, there /is/ a Makarov forum on this page. Check the Handguns section.

[b]Kar98[/b] is on the case. There are only 26 parts in the hole pistol; take it apart. If you have 27 parts, something is broken. The slide stop may be bent or worn as well. In either case, order a new one for $8.00 from [url=http://makarov.com/cart/vitemmakparts.htm]Makarov.com[/url] and you're on your way to fun with your new Bulgie. Good luck.

Ok, thanks. This is my first pistol, so I'm pretty unfamiliar with how they work in general. I haven't gotten it around to detail stripping yet - just yanking the slide.

Even if that part is broken, that wouldn't cause any safety issues, right? It only affects the slide lockback, not anything related to firing.

At this point, I think it would be prudent of you to go ahead and detail strip the pistol to look for any kind of anomalies. It's about as simple of a pistol as you'll ever find, and can be disassembled and reassembled in a matter of minutes. Just follow the directions and look at the pictures on Makarov.com and it's a snap. Since the pistol doesn't pass a function check already (slide won't stay locked back with magazine removed) it is unwise to assume that everything else is fine. I would not fire this pistol until it was functioning properly in all regards.

Will do. One thing, though - are there any little springs that are easy to lose because they go flying off? I'd like any warnings about that sort of stuff before I detail strip it.

Naw, the thing has only one spring that you would encounter during a field stripping, part 1 in the diagram. Leave parts 13 and 14 alone as they are a bitch to put back on.
To field strip, remove magazine, pull down trigger guard #4, push it aside for about 2, 3 millimeters (there shold be a scratch made by the previous owners), pull back slide, lift rear end of the slide, push slide forward and up. Remove screw from grip, pull back grip, and the thing is basically field stripped. Should any parts fall out during this process, they are broken and weren't meant to fall out.

Yeah, I've removed the slide before, but I have to detail strip it further than that to really get at the slide stop... well, I'll check the makarov.com guide. Thanks.

I just detail stripped it (let's hope I can get it back together), and the whole slide stop piece appears to be fine - matches what's in the diagram (part 11).

Everything else physically looks fine also.

Hmm...

Someone on another forum posted a picture of their mak from the top down with the slide removed for me.

The top hook on their slide stop bent over fully until a small tab of it was 90 degrees horizontal and the end is squared off relative to the frame of the gun. In other words, it bends over so that the end is flat.

Mine isn't. The hook starts to bend over towards the center of the frame, as it should, but it appears to be sliced off at some point of the bend. In other words, the top 3mm or 4mm of metal on the slide stop hook is missing. It also is cut from right to left, rather than being squared off.

It appears that this is my problem. The slide stop hook is chopped off somehow. But just to confirm, before I bought a new one, can someone look at their makarov and tell me that the hook on their slide stop ends horizontally and is squared off, so that about 3-4mm of metal is horizontal relative to the gun?