Introduction

The PSM is a late Cold War era compact pistol of Soviet origin. It was developed at the request of the KGB for a concealable pistol. The name PSM stands for "Pistolet Samozaryadnyj Malogabaritnyj", which is Russian for "self-loading small pistol". Despite being a very thin and small pistol the most interesting feature of the PSM is its caliber. The 5.45mm pistol round has very limited power. Reportedly some who were issued this pistol refused to carry it, opting for the Makarov PM instead.

Design

The PSM is a simple blowback double action pistol. It is of all metal design and very thin. The safety level extends rearwards but does not protrude sideways. Early versions had ribbed aluminum grips and later version have plastic panels.

Firepower

The PSM is a semi-automatic weapon that fires the uncommon 5.45x18mm round from and 8 round magazine. The 5.45x18mm round has limited stopping power, even when shots are placed in the chest area. The spitzer FMJ design does result in good armor penetration and about 55 layers of Kevlar can be penetrated.

Users

The PSM was adopted by the Soviet KGB, law enforcement and military officers. Despite being a weapon of limited effectiveness it was widely exported among Warsaw Pact nations, but hardly to any other nation with good ties to the USSR. The PSM remains in limited use.

The PSM was produced only in one real version, although early models have ribbed aluminum grip plates and later models have plastic grip plates. The PSM can be recognized by its small and very slim design with rearwards facing safety lever.