«Okhotnik» magazine

The Designer Is At First.

- Nikolay Vasilievich, a chief designer is one of the important persons at any industrial enterprise, isn’t it? I am sure it would be interesting for the readers of “Okhotnik” to learn your biography. To learn what has brought you to this way.

- In our plant as in many other enterprises there are a lot of hereditary gunmakers. It’s for sure very well. But I don’t suit this category. I was born 1941 in Tula in a family of a blacksmith. Among the relatives there were farmers, teachers and the representatives of other professions. I don’t remember my father as he was killed in 1941.

They say about my contemporaries that they are the children of war, meaning not only the date of their birth but giving a wider sense to the notion. In fact, we were brought in the atmosphere of war and heroism. We were eye-witnesses of war traces as blindages, trenches, weapons and ammunition, which one could find near the house. Many boys including me were fond of making shooting devices. The armoury was romanticism of childhood and played for certain an important role in my further life.

By the time I finished school I found out myself at the crossroads: what to do, to continue my education in the pedagogical university or in the technological university in gunmaking department. I chose the second one. So I entered the technological university in Tula, machine-building department to become a handgun specialist. The topic of my thesis is Combined Double-Barrel Hunting Shotgun With A Self-loading Shot Barrel. The further development of gunmaking was the evidence of this perspective direction.

After graduating the university in 1967, I was offered to work for the Central Design Office of Sport-hunting weapon. And I remember this period of my career as well as my first tutors with the feeling of gratitude.

That was the time of issuing the first home self-loading shotguns МC-21-12. This model very well-known among hunters is with a movable barrel. At that moment the point of making of semiautomatic guns with an unmovable barrel that had been already made by the best western companies was raised. Not fully realizing the real hardship of this process I decided to design such a model.

- There is an institution of government – Russian Newspaper of June the 15th, 1994 with the text of the decree made by the Russian President. It tells about the prize-winners in the field of science and technology in Russian Federation in 1994. One of the paragraphs of the decree has got a list of gunmakers, who won the prizes for new design and introduction of flexible equipment repetition work for the basic model of the self-loading hunting shotgun TOZ-87. Will you, please, comment upon it?

- In 1983 I started to work at the Tula Arms Plant, where in my opinion there were more favourable conditions for making this model. By that time I had had some ideas for it. In short, the TOZ-87 was born in 1987. By the way, that was the year of the 275-anniversary of the plant. A year later our model was accepted the best one at the state testing in Central Research Institute of Precision Engineering (in Klimovsk, Moscow region) and was recommended for launching.

In 1993 the repetition work of TOZ-87 began. Hunters appreciated the new model of the self-loading shotgun. Sometimes demand was outgrowing supply. Later, the point about making of new shotgun modification was raised.

I think winning a state prize for the shotgun is a remarkable event for the prizewinner as well as for the people who worked at the plant. I’d like to emphasize that the birth of any model, no matter how excellent the idea was, is the result of the great and intensive work in all parts of production process.

- What is the difference between TOZ-87, MC 21-12 and other semiautomatic guns?

- Functioning of MC 21-12 is based on the long run of the barrel at the expense of recoil after the shot. Our shotgun is the first repetition work of semiautomatic gas-actuated gun in the world. Cartridges, a magazine string, a pusher are inside the gas piston and gas-cylinder rod. Combination of different functions of the above mentioned parts positively influenced the shotgun balance and its resistance in the moment of shooting. TOZ-87 is the only home semiautomatic shotgun whose mass, balance, shooting results and design equal the best foreign ones.

- In the decree TOZ-87 is called the basic model. What models have been made on its base later?

- Now I can say about the family shotgun making based on TOZ-87. TOZ-87-01 has got a ventilated rib of the original design. The team of specialists and I have received the Mosin Prize. What gives one a sight leaf? It makes your aiming easier, removes the haze by barrel heating. Later there appeared TOZ-87-01M, TOZ-87-02M, TOZ-87-03M, and TOZ-87-06M. The improvement provided reliability, simplicity of disassembly, introduction of muzzle adapters that change grouping of shots and accuracy data depending on a kind of hunting. The last model has got a rifle sight, a front sight and a bracket for optical sight, changeable chokes, with a changeable adapter “Paradox”. Bullet shooting is also possible.

Nowadays the model TOZ-87 “Super” is developed. It has got all the previous innovations and extra gas regulator, which ensures reliability of a shotgun when using cartridges of various ballistic characteristics.

I’m far from the idea of idealizing TOZ-87. By the way, a perfect model doesn’t exist at all. One can’t but admit that blaming the quality of some shotgun parts has ground. Constantly we try to perfect shotgun designs as well as all its junctions. We will be thankful if the readers of “Okhotnik” give their views on our models.

In conclusion I’d like to express my gratitude to the editors who help us to tell about our weapon. I have told you about TOZ-87 in details not because I developed this model. All the TOZ models that were mentioned here are close to me. I suppose it’s right to let other gun makers tell about their models.

From the edition: in one of the coming issues of the magazine the deputies of the Chief Designer of Tula Arms Plant will tell about their models including rifles.