Tokarev
 

I looked at a Tokarev today and was hoping some of you have seen one of these before and can tell me what country of origin.

The only marking on it is a M 20 on the slide just forward of the rear sight and serial number on frame and slide. I looked and looked and could find nothing else.

Thanks

Not an expert by any means, but as I recall they were only made by Russia and China... how about some photos...

What did the grips look like?

John,

Star in grips, I have found out that it is a Chinese M20. It is probably a VN bringback, there is no safety. And it looks like it was rode hard and put up wet.

I have the M57 Zastava/Yugoslavia [Serbia] version...It has a longer grip and magazine and holds one more round than the Russian/Chinese versions...And it has been fitted with a thumb safety (which needed some work, but that is detailed on the Web).

http://forum.lugerforum.com/attachme...1&d=1343771823

I like it. Typical Browning design, chambered for the 7.62 x 25 Tokarev round. Sturdy, no-nonsense, and has several 'improved' features that the M33 or M20 do not have.

And relatively cheap by today's standards. :thumbup:

The M20 is a Chinese clandestine pistol. Apparently a number of them did come out of VN. Very nice variation.

Poland also made them and Romania I think too (besides China, Russia)

M20 was Chinese free exporting pistol to support people's revolutionary in southeastern Asia during the cold war. Many of those were found in Vietnam and Burma. After 1990, some of those pistols flowed back into China from those countries via black market, and became an important source of illegal guns in China.

M20
 

There are 5 matching parts on the M20: Frame, slide, action block, barrel, bushing. Very hard to find them all matching. As previously stated, most are Vietnam bringbacks. I don't think very many were ever imported. Almost all of them lack import marks and safeties.

From another board http://www.gunsnet.net/forums/showthread.php?t=104195:

"Three original military versions (Chinese Tokarevs):
1) T51: Russian parts assembled in Chinese arsenals in Manchuria. Production started in 1951.
2) T54: Domestic production; type-designated in 1954. There is no difference between T51 and T54 except marking. T54 has three Chinese characters on top of the slide (Five-Four-Type), while T51 has three characters on the left rare side of the frame (Five-One-Type)
3) M20: the most interesting variation. They were identical to T54, but were marked M20 on tope of the slide. These were made for supplying various communist insurgencies, national liberation fronts, and Viet Nam troops. It has no Chinese markings, so the the source of supplier can be denied when the weapons are cought in embarrassed situations.

There are three Mxx weapons: M20: Type 54 Tokarev pistol; M21: Type 56 semi-auto rifle (SKS), and M22 (Type 56 assualt rifles, aka AK47)."

Jack

A and M marks
 

The trigger guard is also marked with an "A" and an"M":