The first sample of the TK pistol (Tula Korovin) chambered for 7, 65mm Browning was developed by Sergei Aleksandrovich Korovin in 1923. However, primarily due to the complexity of the design and the large mass, this pistol was not adopted by the Red Army.
But in 1925 the sports society "Dynamo" proposed to Korovin to remake the pistol chambered for 6, 35x15, 5mm SR Browning in order to get a pistol for sports and civil purposes.
Korovin went on. He not only modernized the pistol itself, the ammunition itself underwent significant changes, which received an enhanced powder charge, which made it possible to increase the muzzle velocity from 200 m / s to 228 m / s, and, accordingly, the penetrating and stopping action of the bullet. In 1926, the production of the first serial domestic self-loading pistol began, which received the designation TK (Tula Korovina, GAU index - 56-A-112).
The pistol is built according to the scheme with a free breech, the return spring is located on the guide rod under the barrel. USM striker, single action. The non-automatic fuse is located on the left side of the frame. The ejector tail acts as an indicator of the presence of a cartridge in the chamber. Single-row magazine, box-type for 8 rounds, located in the handle. The magazine latch is located at the bottom of the handle. Sights are fixed, of the simplest type. The pistol is made of steel, the grip cheeks are made of plastic.
The TC turned out to be quite heavy, but with high survivability of parts. It is worth highlighting such design flaws as low accuracy (at a distance of 25 meters, the dispersion was 25 cm) and an inconvenient handle. Among other things, carrying a pistol on a combat platoon not only led to a large number of misfires due to the "settling" of the spring, but was also unsafe for the owner, since the fuse blocked only the trigger, without affecting the drummer, which often ended with the striker's disengagement from the combat platoon … The cartridge 6, 35x15, 5mm Browning, even with an enhanced charge of gunpowder, did not provide sufficient efficiency.
Already in the early 1930s, the pistol was modernized, associated, in the majority, with the simplification of its manufacturing technology. The shutter casing received inclined, not vertical, notches, without grooves on both sides, it is thrown out. In order to unify production with the TT pistol, the grip cheeks were fastened not with screws, but with locking bars.
Due to the lack of an alternative, the TC quickly gained popularity among the command staff of the Red Army, Soviet, party and Komsomol activists. Many TK pistols were donated to the foremost workers of production and the Stakhanovites. From 1926 to 1934, about 300 thousand pieces of TK pistols were produced.
1 - barrel, 2 - fuse, 3 - ejector, 4 - knife-breech, 5 - drummer with a mainspring, 6 - sear, 7 - shutter frame, 8-trigger rod, 9-one-footed and 10-two-footed mainsprings, 11 - frame, 12-magazine latch, 13-magazine, 14-return spring
Tactical and technical characteristics
Caliber: 6, 35 mm
Cartridge: 6, 35 x 15, 5
Empty weight: 0, 423 kg
Weight with loaded magazine: 0, 485 kg
Gun length: 127mm
Barrel length: 67.5 mm
Height: 98mm
Width: 24mm
Number of grooves: 6
Rifling stroke length: 186-193 mm
Muzzle energy of a bullet: 83 J
Magazine capacity: 8 rounds
Rate of fire: 25-30 rds / min
Bullet muzzle velocity: 228 m / s
Automation system: free shutter recoil
Fire mode: single
Liner ejection direction: Up
Sighting range: 25 m
Radius of dispersion at a distance of 25 m: 25 cm
