In Search of Hard Currency: Prototype 9x19mm vz52 Pistol

Cool Forgotten Weapons merch! The pistol was originally adopted by Czechoslovakia as a short-term option, with an intention to quickly replace it with something better. The problem was that without a viable domestic pistol, the Soviet Union would have forced Czechoslovakia to start production of the TT-33 Tokarev. Out of national pride, they did not want to do this - and successfully avoided producing the other standard Soviet bloc small arms as well (like the AK). Well, no alternative was forthcoming for more than 20 years. In the 1960s, the CZ factory began looking at options for a 9x19mm pistol to export for hard currency, as there was really no Western market for a pistol in Tokarev. The project became more serious in 1970 with a real potential for export sales from a Belgian business. At that time, the only