Another dumb surplus purchase
Posted: Wed Jul 01, 2026 1:22 am
Well… who wouldn’t want to buy a $250 2” Yugo made .357Mag revolver?
Is it outdated? Are parts impossible to find? Is it somewhere between a K-frame and a python… but with a horrible DA trigger?
YES!
But… why the hell not? I have good CHL guns, and combat guns… I do not have a commie-ish surplus revolver in one of the most American calibers!
It actually shoots pretty well for having ill fitted grips that bite your hand (thinking of 3d printing some grips to make it look weirder). Took it to the range with some other .38 and .357 guns and rann about 150 rounds through it First 6 rounds of .357 at 7 yards in DA was not bad: Bet you can tell which round was first learning the DA trigger.
Ran it out to 15 yards and tried SA with .38SPL Still not bad, considering
Here is 25 yards SA with .38s Eh… for a 2” barrel, it’s not bad. But the ill fitted grips were actually starting to cut my hand at this point. Flinching is embarrassing with a steel frame running .38Spl.
To round out the day and make myself feel better, I ended with some .38s in the 686 at 10 yards. Much better.
Do you need a Zastava M83 .357? No. Is it an interesting artifact from the end of the Cold War? Yeah. Do I like it? Yep.
Is it outdated? Are parts impossible to find? Is it somewhere between a K-frame and a python… but with a horrible DA trigger?
YES!
But… why the hell not? I have good CHL guns, and combat guns… I do not have a commie-ish surplus revolver in one of the most American calibers!
It actually shoots pretty well for having ill fitted grips that bite your hand (thinking of 3d printing some grips to make it look weirder). Took it to the range with some other .38 and .357 guns and rann about 150 rounds through it First 6 rounds of .357 at 7 yards in DA was not bad: Bet you can tell which round was first learning the DA trigger.
Ran it out to 15 yards and tried SA with .38SPL Still not bad, considering
Here is 25 yards SA with .38s Eh… for a 2” barrel, it’s not bad. But the ill fitted grips were actually starting to cut my hand at this point. Flinching is embarrassing with a steel frame running .38Spl.
To round out the day and make myself feel better, I ended with some .38s in the 686 at 10 yards. Much better.
Do you need a Zastava M83 .357? No. Is it an interesting artifact from the end of the Cold War? Yeah. Do I like it? Yep.