Military Model Scene

Title: Soviet Pistols
Author: Leroy Thompson
Publisher: Osprey Publishing
ISBN: 978-1-4728-5348-6

Number 84 in Osprey's Weapon series, and this one looks at Tokarev, Makarov, and Strechkin pistols, among others. An 80-page soft-cover book in the standard style for the Weapon series. It includes revolvers and automatics alike, even one which was designed to shoot darts underwater.
After the Introduction which sets the scene, the rest is spread across 4 sections. These cover Development, the evolution of Soviet handguns from the late 1800s, through to beyond WW2. There are 3 main weapons, from the Nagent M1895 revolver, Tokarev TT33 and Makarov PM plus a number of other models, though not made in such large numbers. The next significant section tackles the Use of the various handguns over the years. The Tokarev was made in large numbers during WW2, over 1.6 million of them. The Soviets also captured a large number of German made Walther pistols and their machine tools, so no great surprise that they also built some of their own which bear a close resemblance to the Walther PP and PPK. The weapons had a wider impact after WW2, as they were provided to other Warsaw Pact allies, or some countries made their own handguns, but using the same, common ammunition. In the closing Conclusion there are more modern weapons available, but the older guns, even the old M1895 Nagent pistols remain in use to this day. They do also include a number of weapons with specialist suppressors.
Highly illustrated throughout, there are plenty of detailed photos showing the various pistols, and their holsters, plus some fine sectioned artwork. There are archive photos and a lot of modern pictures showing preserved examples. As an owner of a deactivated example of a Tokarev, I found this an interesting read.
Thanks to Osprey for the review copy.

Robin