IZH 53M Air Reviews

Hi all. Got the gun this morning. VERY FIRST SHOT the rear sight went sailing across to the other side of the room where the cat was watching from. He brought it back to me... he thought we were playing FETCH again, which he will do ALL DAY and wear my arm out! Any who, nothing was BROKEN, it just was NOT fastened down the way it should of been. Again, nothing broke, but I tell ya', the rear sight is one lousy piece of... well, you know. It has WAY too much wiggle, so it will not HOLD the centering. I truly believe that if this pistol had a decent REAR sight, it would be a tack driver at 20 feet or less. Using some thin plastic shims, I got the thing to not wiggle so much, and I was getting nickle sized patters at 10 meters, and at 20 feet, one-on-top-of-the-other... WAY NICE! Oh, the cocking is GREAT... no effort for me. Umm_ oh, I love the way the trigger breaks for me. I must of lucked out_ very little creep if any... and so short to the back wall, then SNAP - GLASS!

I would of given five stars across except for that darn rear sight. But, once sighted in where you want it, if you can tighten it up without ruining the centering, then you WILL get tight groups out to 10 meters or so, and at 20 feet - - FAH-GET-AH-BAUGHT-IT!!! Yea, except for that sight, FIVE STARS.

YES THERE IS SOMETHING YOU MUST REMEMBER! Before that first shot, be sure the rear sight is tightened securely. The one screw on the BACK of the rear sight tightens to keep the WINDAGE section from flying out. It sort of acts like a SET-SCREW, but I do not believe it is hardened like a real set-screw, for the purpose of holding something secure would be. So be sure not to torque it too much. Oh, you will see what LOOKS like a small hex screw going up into the rear of the elevation adjustment. That is a SPRING meant to give you the little clicks when adjusting elevation.

Quality construction, easy to cock, manageable trigger. Low enough velocity for indoor use.

Adjustable trigger

Buy one while you can.

The accuracy, weight, and overall quality are excellent for the price. It's easy to cock, and is well balanced. The rear sight has extremely fine detents, so getting a perfect center is easy.

I think the trigger design on this pistol needs an adjusting screw. The length of the first stage pull is very long and uneven. At times it would move almost effortlessly, and at other times it was rough.

It is important to remove the action from the stock and clean and lube everything. It looks like the factory sets these up for long term storage. All the grease should be removed and the proper oils used. The bore needs to be cleaned as well. After doing that this pistol performs well. Mine is extremely accurate because I polished the trigger sear, and installed an adjuster. It is possible to get a true hair trigger on this gun. I am able to adjust it for a perfect release. I have read other reviews that complain about the sights. Any problems with them are remedied by cleaning and lubing.

Accuracy, trigger and easy to cock

Sights and power

The rear sight windage adjustment froze and is now impossible to move. Good thing it froze at the right windage. At 25' it's easy to shoot a .75" group. My gun had a very smooth trigger from the start.

A tank of a pistol. Not heavy at all but of an earlier era as far as looks. Pretty good trigger, other companies can learn from this one. Good sights! Fine accuracy for the price. 10m is about it on distance.

Dovetail for scope or red dot.

You can make a plate out of "L" shaped aluminum and mount a scope base via the side, mine works very well. Very little recoil/noise-a basement friendly pistol for sure. These Russian guns are fun to shoot!

Nice heft and ergnomics. Decent trigger that should smooth out even more with use. Pretty well made for a Russian airgun.

The stock rear sight is adequate at best. It's useable out of the box but feels like it could be easily damaged.

Surprisingly accurate for its price point. Put a Williams aperture sight on it if you want to drive tacks.

Not much. The grip was fairly comfortable but then I'm not that picky.

The trigger. The front sight. The rear sight. Izhmash quality control personnel. The front sight is a naked, vertical blade which makes cocking a bit tough. Also, it's got to be vulnerable to damage. The rear sight wouldn't stay at the position I set. After each shot I had to thumb it back up to the position I'd set. The trigger was somewhere over five pounds to break with no adjustment. It patterned like a shotgun. I'm not going to the Olympics but I can hold the "8" ring pretty well and, on a good day, the "10" ring. With the IZH-53M I put the third ding on my basement door. The first two occurred about thirty-five years ago when I started shooting and missed the trap completely. Reading some of the other reviews other people have had a very different experience then I. I'm guessing Izhmash's quality control consists of cocking the pistol, loading a pellet, pulling the trigger and confirming the pellet came out the muzzle. Under those circumstances some buyers are going to get lucky and some aren't. I didn't but for sixty-five dollars I'm not terribly disappointed.

I bought this for fun target shooting in my basement. For the price and intent, it would be hard to beat. Mine arrived in perfect condition with no issues whatsoever. It's very easy to cock and I find it pretty accurate at 10 meters. It is also very quiet. Perfect for the basement. I have only had it for less than a month and I haven't tried it at longer distances, but...I didn't buy it for that purpose anyway. I have no issues with the trigger. I find it light, smooth and very predictable. No disappointment with this one at all.

The only thing I would like is dovetails for the option of testing a red dot on it.

Something to note is there is NO safety. Not a problem for me but they could be a problem for some. Again for the price, it's hard to beat.

I really like this pistol, the price, solid construction, trigger and accuracy make it a good deal. I have been looking for a good starter target pistol and after much thought and research, bouncing around in a $40 to $200 budget, I decided on the 53M. Built like a tank and finished like one too. That's OK as it didn't take much to smooth things out. Right out of the box it's great for the money and there's great potential sleeping in this pistol.

Tractor Factory #4 (tee-hee) should lube it up for performace not just storage before shipping. I'd like to see IZH bring back the trigger adjustment screw as there's a nice 2-stage trigger all ready and waiting in there. An option between the current grip and the old match style grip would be nice. I can't help but feel the pistol would be a better 10m pistol with a more agressive grip. This is all small stuff and easily fixed.

There's much concern about the lack of a safety but this pistol belongs on an organized and well run firing line. In a competition situation a safety is just one more thing to cause trouble and cost points. MHO. Out of the box it did shoot very much to the left (well it is the product of left wing Marxist stooges, right?) but after proper lube and a trigger job it shoots more middle of the road. A little Germanic finish work and Prussian discpline and this pistol will make sweet music!

Price, simplicity, quietness,balance, robust construction, accuracy, velocity, rear sight.

At this price, nothing. I expected it would need tuning to perform to its potential.

After initial firing and rear sight adjustment, I disassembled the gun and polished the bearing surfaces of the trigger/sear group, disassembled and lubricated the rear sight, and lubed all internal parts. The trigger pull went from very rough to a light 2-stage pull with crisp and consistent letoff - a world of improvement. It is really enjoyable to shoot now.

Well made air pistol at first sight. Solid feel and a nice balance for its size. Shoots a very small group at 33'. However the quality control is non-existence. The first gun I received looked like it was used, marks all over the frame, bare metal showing on the trigger and the elevation and windage knobs were frozen. Called customer service asking for a replacement and could someone please check the replacement b/4 shipping. The second gun had an off center front sight to the right and the elevation and windage knobs were frozen. Called customer service again requesting a replacement and if someone could please check it b/4 shipping. The third gun had the front sight off center but the elevation and windage knobs worked. However with the windage knob adjusted to the extreme right and the elevation knob adjusted to the highest elevation the gun shot to the left and below the bull at 33'. There was no adjustment left to get a group in the 10 ring.

Test fire these air guns before shipping and advise the importer of the lack of quality control. Change the rear sight to a better quality even if it increases the cost. This air gun could be a very accurate shooter if a little quality control was used.

If you decide to purchase this air gun anyway order it with the 10 for $10.00. Maybe you will get a better one than I did.

I bought this air gun for its noise level to shoot indoors (apt.)during the winter. This is a solid gun with a good balance for its size and first impression looked as if was well made. The first gun I received looked as if it was used. Frame was marked up, bare metal showing on the trigger and the windage and elevation knobs were frozen. I sent it back asking for a replacement and if someone could check it b/4 shipping. The 2nd gun was worse than the first one. The front sight was off center to the right and the windage and elevation knobs were frozen again. I called customer service asking for a third replacement and Please could someone check it b/4 shipping. The third gun came with the front sight off center to the right but the windage and elevation knobs worked. I have a 33' range in my apartment, I tried to sight in the air gun at 15'. It shot very small 5 shot group but 31/2"-4" below the bull and about 6" to the left of the bull. I adjusted the sights and moved to 33'. With the windage adjusted to the right as far as it good go and the elevation at it highest setting the gun still shot to the left and low of the bull. I gave up trying to get this air gun that had some type of quality control when it was made. I gave it to the factory foreman to see if they could straiten the barrel to a midway sight pattern.

Inspect these air guns b/4 shipping by actually shooting them or better yet advise the importer of the lack of Quality Control. Change the rear sight to a better quality even if it increases the cost.Its a shame because this could be an accurate shooter and is well made except where noted

If you purchase this Air Gun anyway, go for the 10 for $10.00.

This is a real cool space-age looking air pistol made in Russia. The quality control is pretty decent for the price point. It has an easy cocking effort with a ratcheting mechanism that won't catch your hand in a "bear trap." I am glad it doesn't have a pesky manual safety, as this gun should not be stored cocked anyway.

Mine shot high and to the left. However, the rear site is fully adjustable. I had to drift the rear site to the right quite a bit.

I find that this gun shoots better with heavier pellets in the 9 grain plus range to bring the point of impact down a bit.

The forged all steel barrel with it's definite, precise rifling rivals more expensive pistols. It's weight and balance in the hand makes it easy to hold on target. The three screw take down makes for easy access to the piston spring and trigger mechanism. I really like the rugged simplicity of the design. Cocking the pistol is easy, and its accuracy is competitive with any other more expensive pistol that I have, and is a real pleasure to shoot.

The IZH 53M deserves much better sights. The rear sight is difficult to adjust at first, and is free to move on its own after adjustment. It would not have been difficult to spot weld a platform on top of the piston cylinder that would accept a picatiny rail. The trigger is light enough that it should at least have a manual safety. Finger off of the trigger will not be enough for all situations.

When first used, the trigger pull was gritty and unpredictable, but after cleaning, oiling, and some repeated use it became smooth, and predictable with a clean break. I am very happy with the pistol's performance and am in process of adding a picatiny rail and dot sight to make it a competitive shooter.

Simple, solid construction. Easy to cock, accurate, comfortable grip if you're hands aren't small.

Trigger was wildly variable at first, ranging from about 5 to 12 lbs. I was going to send it back, but decided to see if it would break in better. After about 1,000 shots, it has lightened up considerably to about 3-5 pounds on average, but is still somewhat variable. Crude, ugly finish that shows light marks on it, but it works for what it is.

Very utilitarian design (think Soviet era), but it seems to work. It's also very big, long, and clunky, but the long barrel gives it a long sight radius which makes it easier to line up the sights accurately, in addition to providing more leverage to cock it. Takes a little getting used to, as the muzzle tends to flip up a little as you shoot it, but you'll figure it out after a while. Despite my trigger taking a while to settle in- I clearly didn't get one of the better ones- it's a keeper after all and I'm having fun with it.

good accuracy.. once you understand springer shooting Very nice trigger!!!

safety would be nice... but ok for adult or teen.. practice trigger control, and all is well

is a joy to shoot! am 69 yrs old and the cocking effort is ok for me.. can pop 200 rounds in session with no prob. for my skinny arms..lol!!

The sturdiness of construction, the quality feel of the gun, the accuracy. The trigger is light and predictable - not at first but after 150-200 shots it got noticeably better. I love this guns simplicity and creative, minimalist engineering.

Maybe it's just me, but I thing the front sight blade is too wide (as is the rear sight's notch) for easy and accurate aiming. My Sheridan Blue Streak, for example, has a narrow blade and notch, and it is really easy to be more precise when aiming.

If you shoot this gun immediately after shooting a Crosman 2240, you won't like the 2240 as much as you did before you shot the 53m. It's the trigger and the quietness that spoil you with this gun. It's a real pleasure to shoot, especially indoors.

very easy to break barrel, light trigger pull, feels good in hand, light weight, accurate.

I wouldn't really change much at all, its a pretty straight forward basic design that works.

Easy to cock. Easy to load. Accurate at 10M range.

Add dovetail and/or Weaver/Picatinny rail. Add 3-dot or contrasting colors to existing sights. Orange front & white outline rear would be perfect for all.

Older model shows different rear sight. Older model shows dovetail. New ones have none. Would be nice if were able to use red dot sight. Difficult to see sights in darkened area. A little paint on the front sight helps.

built like a tank, comfortable grip

Sights on current model totally different than gun pictured on box. Rear sight flips up on EVERY SHOT and has to be lowered back into position by hand. Trigger is pretty crunchy now but i've heard it should smooth out after 200 or more shots.

Gun is capable of producing good groups with right pellet and decent technique. I'm usind TechForce domes and hollow pt. wadcutters and both shoot well. I'm sure a premium pellet would shrink groupsize.