Izhevsk Mechanical Plant (russian: Ижевский Механический Завод, ''Izhevsky Mekhanicheskiy Zavod'') or IZHMEKH (ИЖМЕХ) was a major firearms manufacturer founded in

Izhevsk Izhevsk (russian: Иже́вск, p=ɪˈʐɛfsk; udm, Ижкар, ''Ižkar'', or , ''Iž'') is the capital city of Udmurtia, Russia. It is situated along the Izh River, west of the Ural Mountains in Eastern Europe. It is the 21st-largest c ...

in 1942 for manufacturing

small arms A firearm is any type of gun designed to be readily carried and used by an individual. The term is legally defined further in different countries (see Legal definitions). The first firearms originated in 10th-century China, when bamboo tubes ...

History

It was one of the primary factories producing

Mosin–Nagant The Mosin–Nagant is a five-shot, bolt-action, internal magazine–fed military rifle. Known officially as the 3-line rifle M1891 and informally in Russia and former Soviet Union as Mosin's rifle ( ru , винтовка Мосина, ISO 9: ...

and SVT-40 rifles during World War II for standard issue to Soviet troops. After the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, it continued producing firearms, both for military (

Makarov pistol The Makarov pistol or PM ( rus, Пистоле́т Мака́рова, r=Pistolét Makárova, p=pʲɪstɐˈlʲet mɐˈkarəvə, t=Makarov's Pistol) is a Soviet semi-automatic pistol. Under the project leadership of Nikolay Fyodorovich Makarov, it ...

s) and hunting applications, and later high-tech weapons and civilian machinery. In 1948, the plant began production of Margolin pistols. In 1956, the plant began production of IZh-56 combination guns. Since 1960, Izhmekh supplied hunting shotguns for export under the trademark "

Baikal Lake Baikal (, russian: Oзеро Байкал, Ozero Baykal ); mn, Байгал нуур, Baigal nuur) is a rift lake in Russia. It is situated in southern Siberia, between the federal subjects of Irkutsk Oblast to the northwest and the Re ...

". The first model that began to sell for export was

IZh-54 The IZh-54 (ИЖ-54) is a Soviet double-barreled shotgun. History IZh-54 was designed in 1951-1954, since 1954 began its serial production.Л. Е. Михайлов, Н. Л. Изметинский. Ижевские охотничьи ружья ...

In 1973 plant began production of PSM pistol, in 1978 - IZh-35 pistols. In 1982, the plant produced a small number of

double barreled shotgun A double-barreled shotgun is a break-action shotgun with two parallel barrels A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden staves and bound by wo ...

s IZh-41. In 1980s plant began production of IZh-38 and IZh-40

air gun An air gun or airgun is a gun that fires projectiles pneumatically with compressed air or other gases that are mechanically pressurized ''without'' involving any chemical reactions, in contrast to a firearm, which pressurizes gases ''chemical ...

s, since 1989 - IZh-46 air pistols. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union the range of civilian products was greatly expanded, but firearms were still its major production. In 1993, Izhmekh began production of the IZh-76 gas pistol (the first model of gas pistol made in Russian Federation), IZh-81 and IZh-94 shotguns. In 2002, Izhmekh began the production MP-461 pistols, and in 2004 the production of

Makarych The "Makarych" (russian: "Макарыч") is a family of Russian non-lethal gas pistols with the ability to fire ammunition with rubber bullets. It was developed jointly by the ZAO TSSZ "Kolchuga" and FGUP Izhevsk Mechanical Plant and is ba ...

pistols. In January 2004, a contract was signed between the

Remington Arms Remington Arms Company, LLC was an American manufacturer of firearms and ammunition, now broken into two companies, each bearing the Remington name. The firearms manufacturer is ''Remington Arms''. The ammunition business is called ''Remington ...

company and the plant; Baikal firearms was bought by Remington and sold in USA ( IZh-18MN were sold as Remington SPR 18, IZh-94 were sold as the Remington SPR94, IZh-18 were sold as the Remington Spartan 100, IZh-43-1S were sold as the Remington Spartan 210,

IZh-43 The IZh-43 (''ИЖ-43'') is a Soviet and Russian double-barreled shotgun. History IZh-43 was designed in early 1980s, and in October 1985, first prototypes of IZh-43 were presented at the hunting weapons exhibition in Irkutsk. In 1986, produc ...

were sold as the Remington Spartan 220,

IZh-27 The IZh-27 (ИЖ-27) is a double-barreled shotgun. History IZh-27 was designed in early 1970s as a successor to the IZh-12."''Двуствольное охотничье внутрикурковое ружьё 12 калибра с вертик� ...

were sold as the

Remington Spartan 310 The Remington Spartan 310 is a double-barreled shotgun. It is an "over and under" gun, with one barrel above the other. There are several different models, each of them chambered in various gauges. The Spartan 310 is marketed and distributed by ...

and MP-153 were sold as the

Remington Spartan 453 The Remington Spartan 453, also known as the SPR 453, is a gas operated semi-automatic shotgun. It is an American import of the Russian-made Baikal MP-153, manufactured by Izhevsk Mechanical Plant in Izhevsk, Russia. It was marketed and distrib ...

). In 2008, Izhmekh made 9mm pistols ( MP-443 Grach and

MP-446 Viking The MP-446 Viking is a 9mm semi-automatic handgun originating from Russia. Overview It was created by the Izhevsk Mechanical Plant. It weighs at around when unloaded, and has a magazine capacity of 18 rounds. The pistol is a sport/civilian ...

), gas pistols,

signal pistol A flare gun, also known as a Very pistol or signal pistol, is a large-bore handgun that discharges flares, blanks and smoke. The flare gun is typically used to produce a distress signal. Types The most common type of flare gun is a Very (som ...

s, rifles and several models of smoothbore hunting shotguns. In 2010, Izhmekh began production of MP-353 pistols. On August 13, 2013, Izhmash and Izhevsk Mechanical Plant were merged and formally renamed

Kalashnikov Concern JSC Kalashnikov Concern (), known until 2013 as the Izhevsk Machine-Building Plant (), is a Russian defense manufacturing concern and joint-stock company headquartered in the city of Izhevsk in the Republic of Udmurtia as well as the capital ...

References

{{Reflist

Literature

* Н. А. Мокшин. Во имя Победы. 2-е изд. Ижевск, 1975.

External links

Air Rifle Scope
Firearm manufacturers of Russia Manufacturing companies established in 1942 Companies based in Udmurtia Kalashnikov Concern 1942 establishments in the Soviet Union Manufacturing companies disestablished in 2013 2013 mergers and acquisitions 2013 disestablishments in Russia