This 8-shot semi-automatic pistol was the Czech answer to the already obsolete Russian Tokarev design. From 1952 to 1954, 200,000 CZ 52 pistols were manufactured at two different locations in Czechoslovakia. The Czech-designed Model 52 with its phosphate finish and unique roller cam locking action was designed to handle high pressure 7.62x25mm Tokarev ammunition intended for sub-machine guns, logistically precluding the need to supply two different varieties of ammunition. Retained in service until 1982, the CZ 52 underwent several re-furbishing programs in the 1970s and 1980s. These pistols may be identified by a VOZ or VOP cartouche and two digits depending on the year. Such pistols indicate a high degree of usage and should be reduced by 10 percent versus unmarked variations. This model was replaced by the CZ 82 9mm Makarov in 1983.