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About Makarov.com - References and Feedback

I'm sure we've all heard the Internet horror stories about people being ripped off, scam artists peddling their vapor-wares, and so forth. Actually, few days go by without us receiving some offers to get rich quick by just sending $5 to 5 different people.

We want to make sure that Makarov.com is viewed as a fun, informative place to visit and a quality place to do business. We've taken a bit of time to put this page together to give you a feel for how Makarov.com got started, what it's all about, what others have said, and a chance to view feedback references before you send a check to some faceless address or submit a credit card form over the net.

History of Makarov.com

The Fall of the Wall

In 1992, I visited a friend in Germany, and I wanted to see the newly opened East Germany and East Berlin. I became interested in East Germany and picked up a few military surplus things at the Brandenburg gate. Upon my return, I saw an ad for a local gun shop that had East German Makarovs. Since it was only $179, I bought it.  I was hooked.

No Available Information

I found a drought of information on the gun, particularly reloading the then-odd 9x18 caliber, so I started experimenting. An article came out in American Rifleman (Rocky Raab), so I was off and running trimming my 9mm Parabellum brass and using my new dies from Hornady.

Soon I had collected enough information to write up a manual and with access to a scanner, I could even illustrate. When I was nearly finished, I realized that there was probably a very limited market for such an item. Also, I was doing it for fun and as a record of my own loads and experiences. Therefore, I wrote a short blurb about reloading the 9x18M on a Dillon 550 reloading press for the rec.guns FAQ. Pretty soon, I outgrew that and wanted to stop pestering Dave Putzolu to keep updating my text.

The World Wide Web

The next stop then was to add Makarov reloading information on my personal homepage. After a while I managed to get this listed with search engines and people starting asking questions not only about 9x18M reloading, but the pistols themselves. I was gobbling up all the information I could find and plastering it on my web page.

Where Do I Get... ?

The next step came after people kept asking me where to get grips, magazines, and other accessories. After a while I learned where to send people and found that there was enough interest for me to buy some items in bulk and sell them directly at good prices. Soon manufacturers and distributors started contacting me whether I would be interested in carrying their products. As this grew, I realized that my ISP would eventually catch on that I'm selling stuff and kick me off. Also, I was beginning to outgrow my 5MB limit on homepages.  With the combination of the domain name, Makarov.com and the Makarovpistol.com mirror site, web hosting, a toll-free voice/fax number, and addition of a shopping cart, the result soon grew into a full time business. 

So who are you anyway?

Karl Bloss is owner of Makarov.com, which, until 2001, was a Pennsylvania-based corporation.  We have since reincorporated in West Virginia as Makarov.com, LLC.  Karl has a full-time position as a chemical engineer and the occasional light-hearted reference to "Dr. Karl" stems from his Ph.D. in engineering that was completed during the first few years of running Makarov.com

Starting in 2002, Makarov.com had a class 01 federal firearms license (FFL), a retail shop in St. Albans, WV and thus sold  firearms for a few years. When the Retail store was closed in late 2006 due to overwhelming time demands from the Mail Order business, we could no longer sell complete firearms.

Around the same time as our move to West Virginia, long-time customer and vendor George Fisher joined the Makarov.com team.  George is the creator of the 9x18M semi-wadcutter bullet, the grip enhancers, and many other accessories.  He has since been experimenting with Makarov laser pointers, scope mounts, and a number of other projects.  George became the operations manager of Makarov.com and oversaw the day to day operation of the retail store as well as the on-line business.

Makarov.com is a fun project for us and we enjoy corresponding with likeminded people. The business is self-sustaining enough to pay the bills (including salaries) and finance a few Makarov-related projects that we report about, but this isn't quite up to maintaining a full-time salary for Karl. We just try to get good deals for people and recover the shipping costs and have a few bucks left over, which we usually roll into other projects.  

In May 2008 the demands of the business again began to out pace the time available to one person,  and since Makarov Pistols were no longer being imported, the decision was made to sell off the business Inventory and close the Retail sales portion of Makarov.com.  It took several months to do this, and the E-commerce portion of the website finally closed on September 30th, 2008.  The Left over inventory is sometimes offered on www.gunbroker.com as time allows.  When the Retail sales portion of the website closed, we also took the down the Tech Support and contact information off the website.  We hope to leave the informational portion of the website up for a long time to come, however we no longer offer any Tech Support,  answer questions or respond to "Where do I get......" requests.  If you are looking for Makarov Parts, grips, etc May we suggest www.gunbroker.com or try clicking here.

References and Feedback

Customers often write us after they've received orders. We're not mentioning names, except where appropriate so as not to put these people on the spot.

• "I believe it [makarov.com] to be the most informative single source of Makarov information I've seen. I must have played with it for at least two hours." - Lane Pearce, owner of Pearce grips
• "I just wanted to say you have the best service of anybody I have dealt with on the net."
• "Sir, I have placed two orders from you recently. I just wanted to say that you have excellent service, great products and were very polite during my phone order. I received the items VERY FAST. Thanks for the great service."
• "Great site! Lots (tons!) of information for all users, beginner and the pro. Hope to see more of this in the future. I think your name best describes this site. This IS THE makarov.com!"
• "I received my order yesterday; thanks for the quick turnaround. [...] I was pleasantly surprised to find an entire site dedicated to this firearm, but I'm sure glad you're maintaining it! And you're doing a great job...I'm impressed!
• "One of my favorite sites. Have it booked marked, and read the message board daily. "
  
• "I had received my order on 1/23 and am very pleased to say the least. I must credit you with being very accurate in that it did indeed ship within 1 to 2 business days. Very well done sir!"
  
• "Damn you're fast! I just placed that order maybe one hour ago! It has been noted on the mak.com www.board that you give good service. I disagree. I think you provide GREAT service. Of all the orders that I have placed over the net, you have provided the best service. I think it is good customer service to reply to the customer, in a timely manner, when one receives an order as you do."
  
• "After reviewing the information on this site, I purchased my first Makarov (Bulgarian). Not only did this site help me with my decision, but after I brought my Mak home, I purchased the Falco Holster, and Pearce grips, they were here in two days. I just finished a complete trigger clean up using the technical information, instructions were complete and very easy to follow, tested with 100 rounds today, WOW what a difference. I am a web master as well, and know a good site, this is one of the best I have encountered."
• "Thanks for checking my order. It doesn't surprise me, though. The first order I sent you was handled well and promptly. You seem to be establishing a standard to live up to!!"
• "I got the holster and magazines. They are great."
• "I have to thank you for the prompt service on my order. I was leary of ordering from a company I had only heard of only over the internet, but you proved me wrong. I enjoy my gun alot more with the improved grips."
• "I was going to write you and tell you how happy I am with your service! I ordered at 10:15PM on the 4th and today, the 7th, the grips are here! EXCELLENT SERVICE!"
• "Got my order yesterday, wonderfully packed! Thanks!"
• "I was just looking at your Mak page and really like it. "
• "A great page, as I'm sure you know. "
• "Compliments on your website. Having just purchased a Makarov Izh 70-200, I was thrilled to find such a plethora of information available on this fine handgun."
• "I recently got on line and found your web site! COOL!!!"
• "I think your website is one of the most useful that I have come across recently."
• "Again, thanks for the info and load data. I enjoyed reading it."
• "Thanks for the great Mak site -- lots of useful & interesting info."
• "I have just purchased my first two handguns and based, largely on your page, I made the Makarov one of those guns."
• "I have been looking at your homepage and really like it."
• "Have been reading your stuff.... good information!"
• "Keep up the good work!"