I’m not rich enough to impulse purchase guns in most situations. Sometimes, I see a deal I can’t pass up. Recently, I attended an auction/estate sale. Estate sales are often a great way to find guns, accessories, and ammo. Amid the auctions most guns went for a decent deal, but not decent enough for me to squeeze the trigger, pun intended. Then, the GZ-MAB came up for auction and received not a single bid.
I’m famously unathletic and was picked last for lots of teams, and 7th-grade Dodgeball still haunts me. With a heart full of empathy, I bid on the GZ-MAB. It went once, twice, and was mine for a mere 90 dollars. Empathy is one thing, but the gun also had some alternative appeal to me.
First, it was a .32 ACP, and I’ve made the .32 ACP a plank in my personality. (Speaking of Caleb, please convince Taurus to import the 57SC.) Second, it’s made in Spain, and I’ve recently become a fan of Spanish-produced pistols. Finally, it was 90 bucks. Hell, that’s what it costs to take my wife out to dinner in 2024.
The GZ-MAB – From France to Spain
MAB stands for Manufacture d’armes de Bayonne and is a French firm. As mentioned, my GZ-MAB is a Spanish-produced pistol. MAB produced the Model G and GZ until 1962. They licensed the designs to Echave y Arizmendi, which is located in Eibar, Spain. Because Europe is tiny, Bayonne is only about 90 minutes from Bayonne. Echave y Arizmendi became Echasa, which is stamped on my gun.
According to Ed Buffaloe of the Unblinking Eye, the French guns are considered the better guns. I certainly couldn’t tell you if that’s true or not. The GZ-MAB in my hands feels solid and looks decent. The finish appears to be weak, especially on the slide. The GZ-MAB series was never super popular and seemed to be pretty uncommon, dare I say rare. It’s one of those rare guns that is also not highly desirable.
It’s clear the GZ-MAB was produced in the wake of the popularity of the PP and PPK. The PPK, in particular, is an inspiration. Nothing about the PPK was revolutionary, but a combination of desirable features allowed it to stand out.
The GZ-MAB is a blowback-operated design with a fixed barrel that doubles as the recoil guide rod. The hammer-fired gun has a single action-only design rather than a PPK-style DA/SA gun. The GZ-MAB holds seven rounds of .32 ACP, has simple fixed sights, and a manual safety, but the slide doesn’t lock open when the last round is fired. The safety is on the frame and sits right above the magazine release.
To The Range
If you have to shoot a small, lightweight blowback-operated pistol, then I’d stick with .32 ACP. It has much less recoil than .380 ACP and more reliability than .22LR. It’s the perfect small pistol caliber. The GZ-MAB handles quite well and has very little recoil.
The little .32 ACP pistol has hardly any recoil. It’s very pleasant to shoot and easy to shoot rapidly. Your hand isn’t going to get tenderized by the GZ-MAB.
An intelligent design of the grip gives you a beavertail that stops hammer and slide bite. The little beavertail puts plenty of room between the web of your hand and the slide. Little guns, especially of this era, are well known for their slide bite when you use a high grip on the gun.
The Sights and Accuracy
The sights across the top are certainly sights. They are super small, and it’s no wonder why people used to say, “You won’t see your sights in a gunfight!” You can barely see them on a square range. If you take your time, you can align the small front sight with the small rear sight and make it work.
The trigger has a bit of takeup and a bit of a spongy feel to it. When you press the trigger, you feel almost a completely separate stage of the trigger. Once you’re past the stage, it moves into the wall, which breaks and fires. The trigger isn’t bad, but it is not great. The GZ-MAB shoots straight enough for a small gun.
I can hit a gong at 15 and even 20 yards. Beyond that, it is capable of hitting full-sized IPSC targets, but you won’t be throwing .32 into the A Zone. The sights make it tough to shoot quickly, and accuracy falls apart outside of seven yards when I push the pedal.
The Spaniard
If it was 1962 and I needed a deep concealment pistol, I could see myself armed with a GZ-MAB. It’s small enough to easily conceal and has hardly any recoil. It’s robust and well-made. The sights sucked, but most sights sucked in that era. The little gun is fun to shoot, and when they come up for sale, they seem to be cheap. If you want a cheap, fun little gun, grab a GZ-MAB.
