A visit to a gun store in the Czech Republic.

[Ignition Override]

At 7:25 the American visitor asks about the legal right to defend yourself with a gun. This might be the only country in Europe where it is allowed.
Thousands of Czech citizens acquired the Concealed Carry Handgun permit and they also can own various semi-auto centerfire rifles such as ARs, VZ-58s, AKMs etc. Note: several other Euro countries (both west and "east") allow these rifles to be used at gun clubs.

But most of my interest here is simply hearing/watching a CZ factory-store representative answer questions. After 8:00 the rep explains how "..we walk around" some EU gun restrictions. They basically tell EU burokrats that "We do things our way"..”Get lost”… (likely done so since the early days of the Habsburg/ Austro-Hun. Empire).
This seems to be the company's flagship store, and it is in the heart of Prague. They also can buy "Silencers" (their words) shown at about 8:35 or so.

My wife and I visited a different city, Cesky Krumlov in late September. Had we been --instead-- in Prague, I might have asked about any nearby gun stores out of mere curiosity.
I would have told them about my Czech-manufactured VZ-58 rifle (4,200 rds., zero issue) and five Czech handguns owned.

How Are Czech Gun Laws? (and Gun Stores)

In this episode of TFBTV, @JamesReeves is in Prague, Czech Republic visiting the CZ (Česká Zbrojovka) gun shop to talk about gun laws, gun prices, and even ...

www.youtube.com

 

[dodo bird]

Czech is a great place to visit. Great people, food, beer, and of course they make CZ. I would recommend it to anyone over most of Europe .

 

[Bill M.]

Good beer. Good ice cream. Friendly people. The touristy part of Prague is beautiful indeed. So is the drive into Austria.

 

[Offhand McFlan]

I've heard CR has the most lax gun laws in Europe followed by Poland.

 

[dodo bird]

Good beer. Good ice cream. Friendly people. The touristy part of Prague is beautiful indeed. So is the drive into Austria.

I forgot to mention Terezin. It was a concentration camp less than an hour drive to the north. My kids learned more about the holocaust by this trip than they would ever learn in school.
http://www.terezin.org/the-history-of-terezin
One of the many reasons Czech people cling to their guns. As well as the decades of living under a communist regime.

 

[Riomouse911]

Very neat!

I walked past what looked like a very high end gun store/hunting clothing retailer in Copenhagen two years ago (Game & Gun). My son and I wanted to pop in but they wouldn’t be open for a couple hours. Kind of odd seeing gun stores in the EU, but many countries still have a hunting tradition.

I would love to get a factory tour of the CZ factory!

Stay safe.

 

[Armorer 101]

The Czech Constitution was created from the US Constitution and the Czech people are justifiably proud of their freedoms and country. When the Russians invaded and took over, like Hungry, they asked for US help, that request was ignored. My two doctors, husband and wife, world class, are both graduates from the University of Bratislava, located across the Danube from Vienna, Austria. They defected from the Communist state and like most, are total, anit Communist folks. The husband was a Major in the Russian Army, forced service.
The Czech Republic is / was the arms manafacturing center for the iron curtin countries.

In our area, we have a number of expats from Communist countries, always interesting to talk to them. Constant single question: When is America going to wake up....

 

[Rule3]

I kind of skimmed the video,,, but did they have Dan Wessons? All I heard was Colt?
I am a CZ fan boy from long ago before people found out how good they are.

 

[Savage30L]

I have a good friend, a Czech, in Brno. I should go to visit him.

Back decades ago, when he was a young conscript in the Czech army, he risked his life to flee from communist oppression. He ended up in southern Indiana, just across the Ohio River from Louisville, where I met him. He made a life for himself in the U.S. and only returned to Czechia a few years ago to tend to his elderly mother who had become ill.

He enjoys shooting. Back about 10 years ago or so, he came to visit for the weekend and I took him out to our gun range. I have a semi-auto version of the VZ-58 (among other Czech guns, all CZs). He was surprised and impressed...he carried the selective-fire version as a soldier those many years ago.

 

[Ignition Override]

Savage30L:
That's an interesting story about the Czech guy. I knew a guy (he prev. had been with Border Security) who escaped "East Germany" several years before the Wall came down, as a few shots were fired towards him by a river.
As for the VZ-58, most people know basically nothing about them.
They probably wouldn't want to believe how high the quality is ....versus some brands of US-made 7.62x39 semi-auto rifles...

.....or that VZ-58s have Milled receivers, despite being light weight, and have bayo lugs and threaded muzzles.
But my all-American 2022 M1A by Springfield has No bayo lug ( since the pre-AWB days).

 

[Savage30L]

The VZ-58 is well-made, but I think it was designed more for "show" than for "go". The barrel is pretty slender for a military firearm. When I fire a full, 30-round mag in semi-auto, the barrel is too hot to touch, and the hand guard doesn't help much. I wonder what it would be like in a sustained military firefight with multiple 30-round mags fired at full-auto....

I don't plan to get rid of it, though. It always impresses guests. I made a post on another thread about letting my niece, a city girl from California, and a recent law-school grad, with little firearm experience, fire it. I think it really realigned her opinion of the sort of folks who would post on THR. She had a blast, no pun intended.

 

[Steel Horse Rider]

Nobody understands the importance of our Second Amendment better than those who have lived under tyrants or Marxist regimes. My wife and I once shared a dinner table on a cruise ship with a woman who had left the former Soviet Union and came to America before President Obama was elected. She pointed out many of the similarities of Soviet propaganda and Obama speak and encouraged us to pass along her opinion to everyone we could as she was fearful that there was no other place to go.

 

[Savage30L]

Nobody understands the importance of our Second Amendment better than those who have lived under tyrants or Marxist regimes. My wife and I once shared a dinner table on a cruise ship with a woman who had left the former Soviet Union and came to America before President Obama was elected. She pointed out many of the similarities of Soviet propaganda and Obama speak and encouraged us to pass along her opinion to everyone we could as she was fearful that there was no other place to go.

I am among a group of people who have an annual meeting in Louisville. There is a core of us who attend every meeting, but about 2/3 are people who have never attended before, or only rarely attend. They come from all over the world and are a diverse lot. One year, one of the attendees was a tall, blonde, beefy amazon-woman from Norway who seemed to have contrary (and inflexible) opinions on just about everything. At one point, she revealed that she was "one of the founders of the Norwegian Maoist Communist Party", and started touting Marxism. I pointed out to her that Mao, through his policies, had murdered or starved 50 million Chinese citizens (an act that has been well-documented). She gave me an incredulous look and said, "Oh, it's rubbish, it didn't happen!!". Then my Czech friend, who was in attendance, and who is a very reserved and mild-mannered individual, had to set her straight on what it's really like to live under communist tyrants.

 

[Paul Kersey]

The CSA VZ58 is an excellent rifle.