The Korovin pistol (Пистолет Коровина, Тульский Коровин (ТК),
GAU Index 56-A-112) is regarded as the first Soviet
semi-automatic pistol
A semi-automatic pistol is a type of repeating single-chamber handgun ( pistol) that automatically cycles its action to insert the subsequent cartridge into the chamber (self-loading), but requires manual actuation of the trigger to actu ...
.
History
Sergey Korovin designed the first 7.65 mm caliber military pistol around 1922, while working at the famous
Tula
Tula may refer to:
Geography
Antarctica
*Tula Mountains
* Tula Point
India
* Tulā, a solar month in the traditional Indian calendar
Iran
* Tula, Iran, a village in Hormozgan Province
Italy
* Tula, Sardinia, municipality (''comune'') in the ...
arms factory
TOZ. However, this model proved too complex and difficult. But in 1925 the sport society ''
Dinamo'' placed an order for a 6.35 mm pocket pistol for sports and civic needs. By 1926, Korovin completed development of a model, and at the end of that year, TOZ began its release.
The following year the gun was approved for use, having received the official title of «Pistol TK Model 1926». The gun was not intended for the army, and it was considered a "civilian weapon". It was used by
NKVD
The People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (russian: Наро́дный комиссариа́т вну́тренних дел, Naródnyy komissariát vnútrennikh del, ), abbreviated NKVD ( ), was the interior ministry of the Soviet Union.
...
operatives,
militsiya
''Militsiya'' ( rus, милиция, , mʲɪˈlʲitsɨjə) was the name of the police forces in the Soviet Union (until 1991) and in several Eastern Bloc countries (1945–1992), as well as in the non-aligned SFR Yugoslavia (1945–1992). The ...
, senior officers of the
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian language, Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist R ...
and senior government or party officials. TKs were often used as gifts or awards.
Some TK pistols remained in
Sberkassa offices even after the end of the
Great Patriotic War
The Eastern Front of World War II was a theatre of conflict between the European Axis powers against the Soviet Union (USSR), Poland and other Allies, which encompassed Central Europe, Eastern Europe, Northeast Europe (Baltics), an ...
.
Construction
The pistol is of
simple blowback type. A safety is located on the left side of the frame above the trigger; the magazine catch is located at the bottom of the grip.
The grip panels came in two types: plastic with the TOZ logo, or wooden. Wooden grips came in two versions: checkered or with larger vertical grooves. Until the early 1930s grips were secured with screws, later with spring latches.
Ammo
The Korovin was developed for the
.25 ACP
The .25 ACP ( Automatic Colt Pistol) (6.35×16mmSR) is a semi-rimmed, straight-walled centerfire pistol cartridge introduced by John Browning
John Moses Browning (January 23, 1855 – November 26, 1926) was an American firearm designe ...
cartridge of J.M.Browning design.
The official designation of the cartridge in Soviet Russia were: 6.35-mm pistol cartridge 57-N-112 (Browning) - ''6,35-мм пистолетный патрон 57-Н-112 (Браунинга)'', where 57-Н-112 - ГАУ/
GAU index for product.
[Константин Соловьёв. Пистолетные патроны Браунинга // журнал «Калашников. Оружие. Боеприпасы. Снаряжение», № 5, 2002. стр.24-31] Some Russian sources mention the use of a more powerful cartridge in the gun, which is copied a mistake. According to
GAU documents the standard only Browning 6,35 mm cartridges produced in the USSR, since 1934, when the TK pistol production was already ended.
See also
*
List of Russian weaponry
Notes
External links
Russian revolvers siteHistory pistols site
{{Soviet infantry weapons of World War II
Semi-automatic pistols of the Soviet Union
.25 ACP semi-automatic pistols
World War II infantry weapons of the Soviet Union
Tula Arms Plant products
Military equipment introduced in the 1920s