IZh-58M

About the IZh-58M

The IZh-58M is a Soviet side-by-side double-barreled break-action hunting shotgun, the first modernization of the IZh-58 family produced at the Izhevsk Mechanical Plant. Introduced in 1970, the M variant retains the hammerless boxlock action, two horizontally arranged smoothbore barrels and double triggers of the original design, while replacing the earlier leaf springs of the firing mechanism with more durable coil (helical) springs.

The unassuming IZh-58M put the switch from leaf to coil hammer springs into mass production, a small durability tweak that let the design survive decades of hard use by rural Soviet hunters and paved the way for the auto-safety IZh-58MA that followed.

IZh-58M specifications

Chambered in 12 and 16 gauge with 70 mm chambers and chrome-lined bores; fixed half (left) and full (right) chokes are typical. Uses a simple extractor rather than an ejector. Roughly 235,000 IZh-58M guns were produced between 1970 and 1976 before the IZh-58MA introduced an automatic tang safety.