Got my Romanian Tokerav out to the range.

[LifeInPa]

After a two week wait I finally got a chance to take my Romanian Tokerav out to PPC this past Thursday. Sadly, I did come across some issues operating this pistol at the range. The biggest issue being chambering a round which happened twice, both times putting the pistol out of service for a solid 5 minutes. The first chambering issue happened like this: Slide was back, I inserted a loaded magazine, I tried releasing the slide with the slide release which failed, then I tried releasing the slide by pulling back on the slide which also failed. Another issue I had which made this issue worse was the magazine release, it is by far the worst I ever had the displeasure of operating. I would push the button down until it was flush with the surface and it still wouldn't release the magazine. Me and the gunsmith that did my transfer took note of the issue. Dropping the magazine while unloaded took a bit more effort than I would have like but I figured it would get easier like it did with my Ruger 22/45 pistol whose slide release and magazine was very hard to operate out the box but got real nice after a few hundred rounds.

As for the issue with the slide not chambering a round off a loaded magazine I was able to resolve the issue on my own. After 5 minutes of fighting with the slide I took another course of action. I got my knife out, got it behind the bullet and pushed it forward while on the magazine. I moved the bullet maybe a fraction of an inch forward then tried the slide again and I was able to eject the round. I did this for all 8 rounds and once I totally unloaded the magazine I was able to eject the magazine from the pistol. After this I reloaded the magazine, chambered a round and shot through the whole magazine flawlessly.

The second issue that happened was another chambering issue. This time though the slide closed however something didn't feel right. I tried pulling back on the slide again and it was locked up, I couldn't move it a fraction of an inch. I speculated the round stripped off the magazine partially then got stuck between the magazine and the slide/feed ramp. This time I couldn't get the magazine to drop nor the slide to open so I had to get a range officer to help me out, after a bit of a fight he got the slide back and I was able to unload the pistol for another attempt. After that he speculated that the pistol didn't have enough lubrication which wasn't the case since I cleaned it and lubricated it the night before. I lightly lubricated the rails, the barrel brushing, the trigger assembly and put a light coat on the outside of the barrel/recoil spring. I just put a drop of Hoppes on my finger and rubbed it in as not to over do it. For the hell of it I put 2 drops of Hoppes into the action, worked the slide a few times and went back to shooting. For the remainder of my session I had no issues but at that point I only put around 24 more rounds downrange. By the end of my session I shot 100 rounds down range.

So what could be the cause of the two chambering issues I faced? Something wrong with the pistol? I don't think so as it was looked over by a gunsmith and praised. Magazines maybe? I purchased 5 additional magazines on top of the one that came with the pistol, Romanian surplus that I got from Classic Arms. They were clean and good shape so I didn't bother with disassembly. I loaded them by hand (Didn't use my magazine loader) and didn't think the springs were weak. By the way over a course of 100 rounds the magazines were used twice. Maybe it's simple user error? This isn't my first pistol but this type of pistol is new to me. Maybe the pistol needed more than a light coating of oil or maybe I didn't load the magazines right? Or maybe the pistol just needs to be broken in? The gunsmith felt the pistol was never fired, maybe like my Ruger 22/45 it needs a few hundred rounds down range to eliminate these issues? What do you guys think?

I really want to put these issues behind me because this pistol was fun to shoot, when I started to shoot the pistol on an indoor range it really turned some heads. Only 2-3 other lanes got used during my visit but I could hear them saying "What is he firing". One guy came up to me and asked what I was shooting so I told him all about it. For such a small round it makes quite a noise. As for recoil it was sharper than I expected (More than 9mm Luger) but not unpleasant or unmanageable, I only wish the grips were better. It seemed as my range session went on it was harder to keep a firm grip on it. I would just like to know what my options are for fixing this? I have heard they make slip on, rubber grips. Are they any good and where may I purchase one?

As for accuracy here are my first two groups:



Another two groupings I did afterwards:



I am very impressed with the accuracy of this old war pistol. Even though I am relatively new to shooting pistols and I am still working on my skills with trigger control I was able to print some very tight groups at 15 feet even with the sharper recoil. Some people have issues with picking up these sights but I didn't however I have excellent vision.

So that's the story, if it wasn't for those two chambering issues I would be thrilled with this pistol. As of now I am worried next time I take it out I will have these issues again. Next time though I am going to use my Uplula magazine loader and see if the issues disappear, also if I do come across these issues again I will be sure to put the magazines aside to test them further so I can eliminate possibly faulty magazines. The one issue that I am worried about over the long term is the magazine release. I hope it gets easier to operate as I put more rounds down range. After 500 rounds if the issue still pops up I will probably have my gunsmith look at it, God forbid I ever had to use this pistol for self defense the issue would be a serious liability. Also something has to be done with the grips, I hope a viable slip on solution exist to give you something "gripper" to hold onto.

Last thing worth mentioning about this pistol was the tendcy for the slide to close on a loaded magazine just from tapping the bottom of the magazine to make sure it's secure. I have seen this happen now and then with my M&P 9 but that's a modern design so I know it won't go off but with this Romanian TTC I am not so sure. It's a bit concerning and I would like some insight on this issue. Thanks.

[justashooter]

several years ago i bought two of these. the only issue i had with them had to do with the safety that was added to allow for importation. the original design does not have any, and the cobbled on import fix can cause magazine binding and interfere with hammer function. after removing the safety i had no function issues.

remember, when chambering a round let the slide fly. do not ride it home gently with your hand.

[LifeInPa]

several years ago i bought two of these. the only issue i had with them had to do with the safety that was added to allow for importation. the original design does not have any, and the cobbled on import fix can cause magazine binding and interfere with hammer function. after removing the safety i had no function issues.

remember, when chambering a round let the slide fly. do not ride it home gently with your hand.

Thanks for the tip. Funny thing about the safety it's very hard to manipulate, I just leave it in fire and make sure to keep my finger off the trigger until I l am ready to shoot. As for the slide I let it get home on it's own. I wonder if it pays to have my gunsmith remove it and just have the hole filled?

[Rblakely]

I had a problem where the mag follower would skip over the slide release. This would make it almost impossible to rack the slide and would not allow the mag to drop out. I had to slightly bend the little tab on the follower that triggers the last round hold open. After that all was good.

[Thomas Paine]

i don't know how that safety works, but i'd suspect that's the problem.

-i'd remove it, but results may vary.

[robert slabaugh]

You just have to love a round where the milsurp ammo can go through engine blocks or Level 2a body armor. The first time my friend heard my CZ 52, he thought I was shooting a rifle! Just be sure to stay away from the Bulgarian submachine gun round. About 2k fps! The stuff might turn your hand cannon into a grenade.

[telopyros]

Sorry to hear about the issues.


How did you remove the safety?

[Gunsnwater]

Strange, the feed lips are part of the gun not the magazine for reliability. Rack it a bunch until you go back to the range, if it's a break in thing it will help at a cheaper rate then shooting ammo. Post back after next time.

[Zet70]

I had to polish the shit out of my feed ramps and it's been flawless ever since.

[LifeInPa]

I had a problem where the mag follower would skip over the slide release. This would make it almost impossible to rack the slide and would not allow the mag to drop out. I had to slightly bend the little tab on the follower that triggers the last round hold open. After that all was good.

Appreciate the tip, if it wouldn't be an inconvenience can you post a picture of the part that needs to be adjusted?

i don't know how that safety works, but i'd suspect that's the problem.

-i'd remove it, but results may vary.

I am going to look into that too. I wonder if that's something I can do at home? I'd like to have a gunsmith remove it so he can fill in the hole and blend it into the finish. I'd love to have this pistol back to original configuration.

You just have to love a round where the milsurp ammo can go through engine blocks or Level 2a body armor. The first time my friend heard my CZ 52, he thought I was shooting a rifle! Just be sure to stay away from the Bulgarian submachine gun round. About 2k fps! The stuff might turn your hand cannon into a grenade.

That is why I purchased this pistol. The round has so much power but it's so controllable and accurate. Sadly I don't have to worry about surplus, it dried up nearly 2 years ago.

Sorry to hear about the issues.


How did you remove the safety?

I didn't get to that point yet, I will post updates if I decide to take this course of action.

Strange, the feed lips are part of the gun not the magazine for reliability. Rack it a bunch until you go back to the range, if it's a break in thing it will help at a cheaper rate then shooting ammo. Post back after next time.

I am going to try that since that option is free.

I assume I would do that without a magazine inserted?

I had to polish the shit out of my feed ramps and it's been flawless ever since.

You had the same issues as me? Could you explain how I would go about polishing the feed ramp? I have a Dremel tool so I could easily do this but what kind of polishing compound would I use? I have both a polishing compound and the harsher rubbing compound for my car, would I be using the same stuff? Thanks.