.380 Auto The Makarov pistol or PM (Russian: Пистолет Макарова, romanized: Pistolet Makarova, IPA: [pʲɪstɐˈlʲet mɐˈkarəvə], lit.

Under the project leadership of Nikolay Fyodorovich Makarov, it became the Soviet Union's standard military and Militsiya side arm in 1951.

[6] Shortly after the Second World War, the Soviet Union reactivated its plans to replace the TT pistols and Nagant M1895 revolvers.

The adoption of the future AK assault rifle relegated the pistol to a light, handy self-defense weapon.

The lower pressures of the cartridge allowed practical straight blowback operation (reducing the cost and complexity of the weapon), while retaining low recoil and good stopping power.

Several engineers took part in the contest, including Korovin, Baryshev, Voyevodin, Simonov, Rakov, Klimov, Lobanov, Sevryugin, and Makarov.

In the U.S., surplus Soviet and East German military Makarovs are listed as eligible curio and relic items by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, because the countries of manufacture, the USSR and the GDR, no longer exist.

[16] However, designer N. Makarov and his team drastically simplified the construction of the pistol, improving reliability and reducing the part count to 27, not including the magazine.

All of the individual parts of the PM have been optimised for mass production, robustness and interchangeability, partially thanks to captured German tooling, technology, and machinery.

The extractor is of an external spring-loaded type, and features a prominent flange preventing loss if a case should rupture.

The one-piece, wraparound bakelite or plastic grip is reinforced with steel inserts and has a detent inside the screw bushing preventing unscrewing during firing.

The sheet-metal mainspring housed inside the grip panel powers the hammer in both the main and rebound stroke, the trigger and the disconnector, while its lower end is the heel and spring of the magazine catch.

Designer Nikolay Makarov thought the firing pin of insufficient mass to constitute a major danger.

When handled properly, the Makarov pistol has excellent security against accidental discharge caused by inadvertent pressure on the trigger, e.g., in carrying the weapon in dense brush or re-holstering it.

The DA trigger pull is heavy, requiring a strong squeeze, trading first shot accuracy for safety.

The most widely known variant, the PMM (Pistolet Makarova Modernizirovannyy or Modernised Makarov pistol), was a redesign of the original gun.

The PMM is able to use existing 9.2×18mm PM cartridges and has other minor modifications such as more ergonomic grip panels as well as flutes in the chamber that aid in extraction.

[19] A silenced version of the Makarov pistol, the PB, was developed for use by reconnaissance groups and the KGB, with a dedicated detachable suppressor.

Nonetheless, these cosmetically similar designs are independent of the PM and have more in common with the Walther PP (which, in fact, was also a major influence on the original Russian Makarov).