Drilling Pistol Part of Russian Space Gear...Until 2007

Gun Watch ^ | 16 November, 2014 | Dean Weingarten

[marktwain]

Link to video

For 20 years, the Russians took a survival drilling pistol kit with them into space.  Then they ran out of ammunition.  The YouTube video above does a good job of highlighting the pistol and kit.  Such an item would likely be a "collector's and curio" item in the United States, as no ammunition is available for the shotgun barrels and very few were made.   Some enterprising importer would do well to get a couple of dozen thrown into a Russian import container of rifles and shotguns.   Collectors in the United States would gobble them up!  The shotgun barrels are fired by outside hammers.  It is not clear how the rifle barrel is selected, but the long lever on the left hand side of the receiver (just above the grip) seems a possibility, though it may be the action release lever.   The left hand hammer may have a selector for the shotgun barrel.  The trigger below the trigger guard may be a grip safety.   Perhaps someone else can explain how the front sight mounted horizontally on the left shotgun barrel is supposed to work.



The YouTube video above says that a regular semi-automatic pistol would be substituted for the TP-82. 

A wiki article confirms what is said in the video.  They say the designation is  TP-82, and it used 12.5mm shot shells and 5.45 rifle ammunition.  in the Wiki article, It says the Russians stopped including the gun on  missions because  the special ammunition for it had become unreliable or unusable.

In 2007, the media reported that the remaining ammunition for the TP-82 had become unusable and that a regular semi-automatic pistol would be used on future missions.

I have also seen it called a TOZ-82, but not as often.
 

In the IAAForum, a post by Historian describes the TP-82 ammunition.  It says the 12.5mm shotgun is a unique Russian 32 gauge shotgun shell and unique  5.45x40 ammunition was used for the rifle barrel, even though the chamber is the same as for 5.45x39!

 The chamber for the 5.45x40 is the same as the 5.45x39. The cartidge for the TP-82 had to get a different designation because the gun was also designed for military air crews (likely bombers) which of course would not be allowed to use expanding projectiles ojn regular ammunition.
I also found now the info on the two different projectiles.
The first pattern was a soft point, the second one has a hollow point and steel core (probably some sort of "universal" cartridge).

SDC is right, I mixed up the shot caliber, it is a 32 GA and the cartridge designations are:
SN-S (signal)
SN-D (shot) 

No slugs are listed actually.

The TP-82 is known with at least three different fore grips (under the barrels).

The forum shows a picture of a standard survival kit issued to aircrews.

There were thousands of Soviet Aircraft that could have been issued this kit.  If standard Soviet practice was followed, the kit would be included with aircraft for export, so some TP-82 kits might be in former East Block countries or Egypt, India, or other African and Asian nations.  It would make sense that a few would be floating around Afghanistan, Syria, Libya, Cuba and Nicaragua.

The Russians would never throw away a handy item like this.  Somewhere, these kits are available.  They just need to be found. 

This interesting firearm shows the utility of short barreled rifles and shotguns for military purposes.   Too bad it did not exist in 1932, to be presented to the Supreme Court in the infamous Miller decision.   But the presiding judge, Heartsill Ragon, made sure that such an event would never happen.

©2014 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice is included.
Link to Gun Watch

Update: Parts of the kit, including the machete/stock were said to be available on online auctions only a year ago, according to dailymail.co.uk.   The use of the TP-82 was said to have started as early as 1968.   The Daily Mail said that now a Makarov pistol or two is kept at the space station at all times.

Russian cosmonauts still carry semiautomatic firearms in space.

At any one time, there are usually one or two handguns on board the International Space Station.

[marktwain]

The video is pretty cool.

[The Sons of Liberty]

In case one of their comrade cosmonauts when whacko.

[Paladin2]

"Perhaps someone else can explain how the front sight mounted horizontally on the left shotgun barrel is supposed to work."

Obviously for use in the 'hood.

[Paladin2]

Open the pod door, HAL.

[Hot Tabasco]

I’m curious, would a firearm be able to ignite a bullet in an oxygen free vacuum such as space?

[Axenolith]

What are you planning to do with those Windows disks Dave?

[Craftmore]

It was in case of alien attack.

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

I read that the gun had almost a single purpose, to fight wolf attacks. A couple of Soviet space missions Cosmonauts had problems with them after landing. Lucky for us Sharknados weren’t around during our space program or we would have needed to include a chainsaw in our spaceships.

[deweyfrank]

Some of the equipment in that space station wouldn’t take kindly to bullets.

[marktwain]

Cartridges do not depend on oxygen to work. Gunpowder has its own oxidizer built in. If the cartridges were exposed to vacuum, it is possible that the gun powder would outgas enough to effect burning rates. This would not happen if the cartridges were well sealed. I think military cartridges with solid bullets, would work just fine, because they would keep their contents without any gas leakage.

A more serious problem would be overheating or overcooling of cartridges. Military cartridges in the U.S. are tested to about 150 degrees F, and negative 60 degrees F, as I recall. If the cartridges were exposed to direct sunlight, they might reach over 200 degrees F, and that might lead to severe overpressures upon firing.

[Paladin2]

It’s a security update?

[Little Ray]

I bet a complete kit, with provenance, would be worth a mint to a collector!
And I bet they could sell these kits on the survivalist market, too!

[OldNewYork]

Interesting. Thanks for posting.

[marktwain]

You are welcome. Be nice to see a few come on the market.

[wetphoenix]

AFAIK it is replaced with 9-mm Makarov pistol now. Some NASA astronauts were unhappy that Russians are packing handguns at ISS but it is still considered a part of mandated equipment for cosmonauts.

[Lazamataz]

I want one.

[Lazamataz]

If you fired a gun in space, you would propel yourself right into the sun.

[Lurker]

“I’m curious, would a firearm be able to ignite a bullet in an oxygen free vacuum such as space?”

Yes. The necessary oxygen is in the primer and powder.

L

[Hot Tabasco]

5 posted on 11/18/2014, 12:40:01 PM by Hot Tabasco

Took you long enough to answer my question..........LOL!