http://www.southernohiogun.com/gallery/ ... t-9mm.html
I love the original TT pistols. I have a 1953 Romanian TT-C that I love to shoot. It fits my hand well, points naturally for me, is very accurate, simple, reliable, and is a thin, sleek design that feels good. I'd like to use it as my concealed carry gun except I don't like the idea of carrying on an empty chamber or on a live chamber at half cock since the cheap import safety on these is not very safe. I also don't want to put this nice old gun through the abuse and holster wear of frequent carrying. I bought the M88A because I thought it would be a better concealed carry Tokarev. The M88A is basically identical to the original TT aside from different grip panels, revised beavertail, pinky rest attached to the magazine, shortened barrel, 9mm Luger chambering, and better safety.
1953 Romanian TT-C and 2013 Zastava M88A together:
Safety:
The M88A has a slide-mounted safety that takes a little effort to reach with my right thumb and requires loosening my grip a little to operate. However, it is a very reliable safety. It disconnects the trigger from the sear, raises a hammer block to prevent the hammer from touching the firing pin, and locks the firing pin rearward to prevent it from touching the primer. I have no hesitations about carrying the M88A cocked and locked 1911-style. The safety does not lock the slide. There is also a magazine safety that blocks the trigger. The M88A does not have a half cock, but the slide-mounted safety's hammer block moves the hammer back off the firing pin when it is engaged.
Shooting:
Shooting off-hand at an indoor range with a two hand grip, sighted fire with one shot every two seconds, at 5 yards:
Romanian TT-C, 24 shots. PPU 7.62x25 85gr JHP.
Zastava M88A, 50 shots. S&B 9mm Luger 115gr FMJ.
Speaks for itself. I was nervous and shaking a little with the M88A since this was my first time shooting this gun, so it's hard to say how much of that is me and how much is the gun. I think it is safe to say though that the M88A is not as accurate.
The TT-C has never jammed on me, but the M88A jammed three times in those 50 rounds due to the next round failing to feed smoothly into the chamber. The round would get cocked sideways going into the chamber and jam the slide from going into battery. All three jams occurred within the first 25 rounds and did not repeat after I adjusted my grip to have a firmer hold of the gun. Perhaps a firmer grip is all it needed. The feed ramp is a little rough in finish, so some polish work there may help. Perhaps it just needs to break-in. That idea of break-in is a repeating theme with this pistol.
The M88A in 9mm Luger recoils more than the TT-C in 7.62x25. Perhaps the shorter barrel and lighter weight is making itself known, but the recoil is definitely sharper on the M88A.
Trigger weight is about the same on the M88A as the TT-C. Take up is about the same on both, creep is about the same on both (barely perceptible), and the break is about the same (pretty clean). The M88A's trigger is a little gritty compared to the TT-C, but it is getting smoother with use. It may equal the TT-C someday. The M88A trigger is smooth and not serrated, though it doesn't matter to me.
Ergonomics:
The M88A has different grip panels than the TT pistols. I think they look terrible, but they definitely give a tighter grip and are comfortable. I found that tighter grip helpful with the extra recoil and muzzle flip the M88A produces compared to the TT. It's not a hard pistol to control, but it takes a little more work than a 7.62x25 TT.
The M88A safety requires a little effort to reach with my right thumb. I have to loosen my grip a little to do it.
The slide lock on the M88A locks very positively. It actually locks more positively than the TT-C, which has always released way to easily.
I dislike the revised beavertail shape on the M88A. It alters the beautiful rounded shape of the TT and turns it into a more 1911-like shape which I don't like as much and does not protect the hammer as well when the hammer is cocked The hammer hangs way out there when it is cocked and would be easy to damage if the gun was dropped. It also could cause printing problems when concealed cocked and locked.
I have the same attitude with the pinky rest added to the bottom of the magazine. It ruins the clean lines of this gun and adds no real functionality. My hands are not big enough to need it and it adds an odd shape to the bottom of this otherwise sleek gun that could print when concealed. I suppose the pinky rest may come in handy in a really bad jam if you had to pry the magazine out, but I do not forsee that kind of jam occuring with the TT design. Much like other TT designs, the M88A does not drop it's magazine when you press the release. It simply pops down about 1/4 inch for you to pull it out.
Quality:
The quality of the M88A can be summarized by my photo of it next to the TT-C. Notice how crisp and precise the machining work is and how nice and even the bluing is, but also notice that the edges of the steel are rather sharp and the exterior finish of the steel is a little rough. Compare this to the smooth, rounded look of the TT-C. This continues to the inside of the gun. The quality of the steel is high, as shown by the hammer forged barrel. Machining tolerances are precise and all parts fit tightly together. This is not a sloppy or loose gun by any means. It fits together tighter than my TT-C, which I think is part of the M88A's problem. It feels a little "gritty" and tight as the parts slide against each other until they break in and wear smooth, which is already happening after only 50 rounds so far. I think it will be a very good gun after it breaks in. Overall I'd say quality is good.
Summary:I see potential here. I think I'll run a couple hundred rounds of different 9mm loads through it and do some drills. By then I'll be comfortable with it and it will be broken in and operate smoothly. I'll get a holster for it and start packing it. I may switch out the magazine floor plate if it prints. I'd recomend this gun to anybody who really likes the old military TT pistols and is looking for a new compact carry pistol. Just give the M88A some time to break in before you criticize it too much.
