During testing, the Md57 proved to be an able shooter and was sighted in dead-on out of the box. Recoil is fairly mellow, but the muzzle flash and report is attention-getting. (Photo: Laura Fortier)

I purchased an Md57 and have to say I am quite impressed. The overall finish is much nicer than your average Soviet, Chinese or Romanian piece. In the hand it feels much better than your typical TT-33 or knockoff due to the lengthened frame.

Out of the box, the manual safety was a bit difficult to manipulate at first, but soon broke in. During my initial testing I did have one glitch where the pistol refused to fire. Despite pulling the trigger, the hammer would not budge.

Scratching my head, I stripped it and noted another addition to the design made by the Yugoslavs was a simple magazine safety, which was not functioning properly. I abhor these devices, and did note that it is possible to easily remove/deactivate. Now you should NEVER tamper with such safety devices. That said, I soon had the problem solved and an improved trigger pull.

The Md57 performed well when put to work on my range. Magazines load easily and rounds, even JHPs, fed smoothly. Controls are straight 1911 and very easy to use.

Recoil is relatively mild, but the report is attention-getting and usually accompanied by a noticeable muzzle flash. Feeding, extraction and ejection are flawless. Accuracy is actually quite acceptable.

Ammo prices got you down? Cold War-surplus 7.62x25mm ball is widely available at very attractive prices along with new production Wolf Gold. Dies and components are also easily had. (Photo: David M. Fortier)

Running Drills

I have to say the 1911-style safety makes a huge difference running this piece. Military TT-33s have no external safety and relied on either a half-cock notch or carrying the piece with an empty chamber. Either method of carry makes the piece very slow to get into action.

Muzzle flash is quite noticeable, even during the day, and it speaks with authority. Recoil, though, is quite controllable. Running the piece is pretty much straight out of the 1911 book, except you have 10 rounds. As to be expected, though, the sights are fairly small and hard to pick up and the grip frame angle leaves a bit to be desired.

Despite the small sights and a slightly rough trigger, the Md57 did well during drills from 2 to 50 yards. It's a good value for the money

As a collectible, fun shooter and plinker, the Md57 is a great piece. Ammunition is very inexpensive and it's an enjoyable pistol to blast away with. Its main drawback is its unique magazine. Due to the Md57's longer frame, standard Soviet -pattern magazines will not fit. Extra Md57 magazines are currently hard to find.

One solution would be to take readily available Soviet-pattern magazines and cut and weld them to the proper length to make an extended magazine. Plus, you need to keep in mind the ComBloc surplus ammunition is corrosive, and clean accordingly.

Practical accuracy of the Md57 was quite good despite a somewhat rough trigger. As to be expected, the sights are fairly small and hard to pick-up at speed. (Photo: Laura Fortier)

Sources

Southern Ohio Gun
800-944-4867
www.SouthernOhioGun.com

Dan's Sporting Goods
724-727-2648
www.DansAmmo.com

Wolf Performance Ammunition
888-757-9653
www.WolfAmmo.com

Yugoslav Md57 Accuracy and Velocity chart

Load                                         Velocity                    25 yards
Wolf Gold 85 grain JHP         1,369 fps                  2.9 inches
Romanian ball                         1,519 fps                  3 inches

Accuracy is an average of four five-shot groups fired from the bench at 25 yards.
Velocity readings were measured 12 feet from the muzzle with an Oehler 35P at 83 degrees F at 1,030 feet above sea level.

- End of part 2 (of 2) -